AI Summary
5 min readIn 1940, Elizabeth Dilling—the woman who had already published a telephone-book-sized list of supposed communists in America—decided the only way to save the country from Franklin Roosevelt was to write a book so racist she could not put her own name on it. She published it under the pseudonym "the Reverend Frank Woodruff Johnson." The book was called The Octopus, and it was an anti-Semitic screed blaming Jews for the New Deal, church burnings in Spain, and everything else she hated. It did not sell well. It did not change the election. But the fact that Dilling understood she had to hide her own name to publish it tells you everything about how far she was willing to go—and how aware she was of what she was doing.
The Red Network and the Business of Defamation
Continue reading the full summary in the app — free to try.
Read Full Summary →Free • No credit card required
Never miss an episode of Behind the Bastards
Get every new episode summarized in your inbox — free, ~5 minutes to read.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
What you'll learn
- 1 (03:17) **Dilling as a Precursor to Modern Right-Wing Grifters** - Robert and Katie frame Elizabeth Dilling as the original model for figures like Candace Owens and Phyllis Schlafly, noting her crowdfunded, fear-mongering business model.
- 2 (04:42) **The Red Network: A "Telephone Book" of Communists** - Dilling's second major book is described as a massive list of supposed left-wing agents, dedicated to "professional patriots."
- 3 (06:53) **The Red Network's Content and Strategy** - The book reprints old essays and lists groups like the ACLU as having communist ties, arguing the Socialist Party would subsume the Democratic Party via the New Deal.
- 4 (09:02) **The Red Network's Success and Use** - The book becomes a massive success among the far-right and is cited in congressional investigations and by police as an excuse to harass citizens.
- 5 (11:48) **Dilling's Novelty and the Book's Appeal** - Dilling's willingness to paint all liberals as "red" won her accolades from the right, and the book's accessibility made it an instant hit.
- 6 (15:01) **Dilling's Anti-Semitism and Nazi Ties** - The people and organizations named in her book were disproportionately Jewish, and her work was distributed by outright fascist groups.
- 7 (18:42) **Father Charles Coughlin: Dilling's Primary Peer and Influence** - The episode introduces Father Coughlin, a reactionary radio priest who was a major influence on Dilling.
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Guests on this episode
Show Notes
Robert concludes the Liz Dilling story with her thrilling exploits to support Father Coughlin in taking down FDR and supporting the Nazis.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
More from this podcast
Behind the Bastards →