National Religious Broadcasters.

Dating back to the beginning of radio and television broadcasting, religious groups have used the airwaves to profess, proclaim, and "spread the word of God." The growth of opportunities for signal transmission during these initial years - a time comparable to today's cable, satellite, and computer network milieux - created competition between disparate religious groups. Religious factions, whose agendas ranged from fundamentalist ideology to Pentecostal beliefs to other liberal religious affiliations, struggled to achieve the highest degree of exposure via the airwaves.

In 1942 conservative evangelicals formed the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE), whose mission was to "raise up a witness against the apostasy of groups claiming to represent Protestant Christianity without such loyalty to the historic Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ." This group was organized to create a distinct separation from liberal denominations, which was necessary in order to gain power in the up-and-coming broadcast industry. In 1944, the NAE formed the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB), whose goals were more specific to safeguarding access for its conservative evangelical membership to the airwaves, in addition to providing protection from competition with liberal denominational broadcasters and the United States government.

The NRB's name implies a membership that includes a range of religious denominations. However, after a closer examination of its mission statement and membership base, the "National Religious Broadcasters" appear to accommodate a narrowly defined group of media producers. The creation of the NRB allowed for more cohesive organization and networking of religious Conservatives in the broadcasting industry. E. Brandt Gustavson, President of the NRB, states in the current membership guide that the organization "has been the voice and the representation of the evangelical Christian broadcaster." By positioning itself under the general rubric of religion, in addition to the use of strategic wording throughout its literature and publication materials, the NRB has succeeded in strengthening the power of the Religious Right by legitimizing, legalizing, and protecting the rights of an array of fundamentalist media groups.

According to Sara Smith, a spokeswoman in the Media Relations department of the NRB, current membership totals 820 individuals, organizations, and groups affiliated with "religious" radio and television programming. When asked about the specific groups that comprise the NRB, Smith claimed the organization to be "very non-partisan and non-denominational," but also confirmed that its membership consists of primarily evangelical Christians. Smith defends the NRB against any claims about the organization's alignment with fundamentalism or the extreme right by stating that the NRB is "a non-profit group and does not get involved in any way in political lobbying." In order to become a member with the NRB, one must understand and actually sign a contract maintaining a belief in the NRB's "Statement of Faith." Outlined in its membership guide, the Statement of Faith begins with the proclamation that, "We believe the Bible to be inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God, "and literally continues by professing belief in "the deity of Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in his bodily resurrection . . ." and concludes with, "We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in Christ." After a thorough reading of the NRB manifesto, it seems clear that its members are required to recognize only fundamental Christian principles. The stated aim and purpose of the organization is the propagation of the Gospel, eliminating, of course, all other religious denominations from benefiting from the NRB's highly organized network.

Currently headquartered in Manassas, VA, in the greater Washington, D.C. area, the NRB's membership includes non-profit and for profit organizations and individuals representing radio, network television, satellite and cable stations, program producers, agencies, manufacturers, vendors, publishers, music companies, and others situated in the field of Christian broadcasting. Membership dues range from $20 per month for those with incomes of $0-$75,000, to $489 per month for those with incomes of $25,000,001 and over. The benefits of NRB membership are numerous. First and foremost is the increase in visibility the NRB offers Christian broadcasting groups in all areas of the media. The historic groundwork of the NRB and recognition from political figures such as George Bush, Ronald Reagan, and Gerald Ford, ensures political clout from influential right-wing policymakers as well as reciprocal loyalties from members in electoral politics.

Other benefits of membership in the NRB include access to information and education by way of its industry-related network, publications, and annual conventions and conferences. Members receive complimentary copies of NRB-published Religious Broadcasting, a monthly magazine offered at a subscription rate of $24 a year, the Directory of Religious Media, a guide updated yearly, which lists "leads, contacts, suppliers, and on-target information for anyone who works inside or alongside the Christian broadcasting, print, or music community," and bi-monthly issues of the Membership Newsletter.

Yearly conventions sponsored by the NRB are the world's largest nationally and internationally recognized events dedicated to assisting the Christian broadcast industry. Workshops, exhibits, educational seminars, and trade shows offer members the "competitive edge" in learning about the latest in technology, innovative products, audio-visual equipment and services, computer software, and legal services, in addition to offering an educational forum for a variety of industry-related topics. Panels programmed at the 52nd Annual NRB Convention and Exposition held in Nashville, TN, in February 1995 included, "Boom, Bust and X: Grabbing a New Generation," "Christian Freedom: How You Can Help to Stop the Erosion," "Hot Issues in Television," and "The Changing Face of Hollywood: Insiders' Insights." The conventions reinforce the NRB's political platform - honor and thanks are awarded to the FCC for its loose regulations and to members of Congress seeking media exposure from the Christian Right. Political figures are usually featured as keynote speakers, while popular Christian-based entertainers provide musical inspiration. The NRB conference is where Christian media makers "dramatize their strength in unity," where leaders of the Christian Right make contacts, and where critical industry networking takes place.

The NRB's major role is to protect the rights of its membership to purchase airtime and to instruct members in the best use of current available airtime on radio and television. Founded to safeguard free and complete access to broadcast media for religious producers, NRB has helped protect the TV ministries of Jimmy Swaggart and Pat Robertson. Recently, the NRB was instrumental in the fight to pass the Cable Consumer Protection act of 1992, which secures religious stations transmission over local cable carriers.

For years the NRB was led by instrumental administrators who shaped the direction and structure of the organization. Ben Armstrong, who served as executive director until the late '80s, was a key figure in the propagandistic uses of religious broadcasting. Having worked from 1958 to 1967 with Trans World Radio, a global missionary station with transmission systems in countries around the world, Armstrong became proficient in the methodology used by psychological warfare strategists. His experience and research helped formulate the written doctrines of the NRB.

The sophisticated organization of the NRB - its slick marketing, promotion and resource of published materials, yearly conventions and expositions - strengthens the force of Christian and fundamentalist broadcasters within the media industry. Their strategic relationships with right-wing groups has also reinforced the NRB's economic and political viability. Their strength in building a successfully recognized association has also succeeded in minimizing the visibility and control of other religious denominations in the media that differ from the conservative Christian agenda. Consequently, the NRB's political and economic clout allows them to exercise great control and coordination, and gives them the power to determine which media ministries will succeed. This broadcasting monopoly is subtly stated in the introduction to the NRB membership guide which reads, "NRB members are responsible for much of the world's religious radio and TV." The relationships cultivated through membership with the NRB and with political policymakers in office create a platform for the NRB to act as a liaison for the church to intersect with the state.