The mouth that roars (continued) BY IAN DONNIS

DEPETRO, THE SELF-described and self-referential Independent Man, although rapped by some because of his unstinting support for the Bush administration, is an ambitious and savvy political observer whose frequent mentions in the waning pages of ProJo reporter Mike Stanton’s forthcoming Cianci biography suggest his ability to make news. He relishes conflict, but when it comes to defining his work, "I don’t have an agenda," DePetro says. "I’m not trying to get everyone to vote Republican. It’s about whatever makes news — I don’t think some people get that."

In some ways, DePetro seems to exemplify some of the dueling strengths and weaknesses of talk radio: he can talk intelligently and passionately about a spectrum of topics, yet also makes occasionally wacky statements that seem designed to push people’s buttons, and not always in a good way. A case in point was his suggestion on June 30 that illegal immigrants will constitute the population of Providence, except for the East Side, in a few years. Asked about this, DePetro says, "I misspoke if I said it’s going to be all illegal immigrants, but their numbers continue to grow." He denies that such remarks are calculated, adding, "I take pokes at everybody. There’s nobody that’s off-limits." (At any rate, DePetro’s approach has proven successful enough WRKO in Boston asked him to do a Saturday afternoon program. With his WHJJ contract set to expire in five months, he says he’s looking for the best possible job he can find.)

To their credit, some of the hosts are capable of being unpredictable. Yorke, for example, although he also leans Republican, talks with unusual insight about race (disclosure: I am a weekly guest on his show). Similarly, DePetro and Violet made an effort to include guests with anti-war views in the time leading up to the US war with Iraq. And although he argues a singularly partisan line on issues like Bush’s tax cuts, DePetro says he welcomes callers with opposing views.

Anna Galland, program director in Rhode Island for the American Friends Service Committee, appeared once on DePetro’s show with David Gleicher, a World War II veteran who was opposed to the war in Iraq. Galland says she was "pleased to find that preaching not just to the choir was a rewarding experience, that there are people out there who are not listening to NPR and not reading progressive media, who were able to be engaged by new voices in talk radio. Although there were very hostile calls, those calls, in turn, prompted sympathetic calls [with the view], ‘I didn’t agree with you before this program, but at least you’re making some good arguments for peace, and you’re helping me to think about this in a new and different way, and by the way, the last caller was a jerk."

Violet, who casts an unusual profile as a successful female host in the male-dominated world of talk radio, was perhaps most skeptical of the local hosts about the Bush administration’s march to war in Iraq. Asked about the view that talk radio is characterized by a lack of discussion of ideas, she says, "I think it depends on the host. I think some people try to be lightning rods by saying outlandish things. I don’t do that. In the Iraq war, after we were in it, I asked callers to call and explain their position, and then asked them to try to name one point on the other side that had validity."

Although it took 83 callers to get 10 who would acknowledge a point on the other side, Violet says, "I used that as an object lesson. You shouldn’t be listening to talk radio just to have your own positions confirmed, because then you learn nothing."

IT REMAINS TO be seen how the clash between the state police and the Narragansetts will affect the goodwill and momentum that Carcieri has accrued during his first six months in office. At worst, it will make the challenge of building the ranks of Republican legislators even more difficult.

"If anyone is capable of doing it, Carcieri is, but it will be a long and difficult process," says Maureen Moakley, a political science professor at the University of Rhode Island, who spoke before the July 14 confrontation. "And he really has to reach out toward the mainstream. One could ask the rhetorical question, why would any small business person want to run for office when the pay is $11,000, when they’re destined to be a minority, when the media constantly beats up these people? He’s going to have to do a very forceful recruiting job. He’s got to start to build now."

Moakley, an occasional listener who perceives talk radio as a somewhat narrow constituency that tends to be relatively conservative, outlines a broader challenge for the governor: "He has to reach out to untapped constituencies, the 350,000 unaffiliated voters, and influence them in terms of legislative elections."

Other observers (who were interviewed prior to the clash between state police and the Narragansetts) have contrasting views about the potential political impact of talk radio.

Violet sees the medium as an incubator for popular movements and new candidates, nothing how members of Operation Clean Government and some other reform groups were talk radio listeners. "Generally, people who listen are voters, people who want to know what’s going on," she says. "They already have that desire to be informed are usually people who want to be pro-active."

Yorke, however, who can talk with palpable enthusiasm about politics, notes, "This kind of anti-assembly behavior has been going on for a long time, and what has that done to build the party? I haven’t swallowed my own grape juice. Anybody who’s behind the microphone or holding rallies who thinks they can build the [Republican] party is ridiculous. It’s all up to him [Carcieri]."

Senator Dennis Algiere (R-Westerly), the Senate minority leader, sees Carcieri’s strong communication skills as a plus for the GOP. "What I think is going to happen over the next couple of years, he’s going to get the Republican message out there," Algiere says. When it comes to making legislative gains, "I don’t have a crystal ball in front of me. That’s a tough question. But everything he’s doing is in the right direction."

Bill Lynch, chairman of the Rhode Island Democratic Party, acknowledges that talk radio has an impact, although "I don’t think it’s as significant as the hosts would like you to think. I think it provides him [Carcieri] with one of the different avenues that are available."

Common Cause’s Phil West notes that one of the arguments against implementing four-year gubernatorial terms in 1992 was that a strong governor "could make the rounds and really target legislators who he wanted to oust. This is the first governor who might do it. If he picked 10 Democrats who he wanted to go after and could get those four talk-show hosts to become his allies, and he just harped on a few themes — the greyhounds, for example – it would be a very formidable thing."

Obviously, the governor’s first task is recovering from, and moving beyond, the confrontation between the Narragansetts and state police. But if Carcieri can regain the goodwill and energy that characterized his first six months in office, talk radio could prove a useful ally in building the ranks of his supporters in the General Assembly.

Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis@ phx.com