Vegetarian Journal - Issue 4 2010 - The Vegetarian Resource Group

FLIPPING THROUGH THE RADIO STATIONS ON ACalifornia commute, one might find somethingsurprising. Amongst the fast food advertisingand right-wing politics, a lone voice is heard saying,“Go vegan!”That voice belongs to Bob Linden, the producer,writer, and host of Go Vegan with Bob Linden a veganthemedcommercial radio show. Go Vegan has beenplaying in California for almost10 years. While the show’s primarytheme is animal rights, Go Vegan alsodiscusses nutrition, politics, and thenews with a vegan twist. Topics haveincluded the carcinogens in barbecuedmeat, the relationship betweencattle and global warming, and thefate of rabbits on Easter (along with adiscussion on what Jesus would thinkof modern diets). Linden’s show hasattracted many notable guests fromthe vegetarian community, includingPETA’s president Ingrid Newkirk,former game show host Bob Barker,and EarthSave founder and Diet for aNew America author John Robbins.The seeds of Go Vegan were planted at the LosAngeles World Festival, where a radio producer suggestedthat Linden, who had worked in broadcastingfor many years, start an animal rights show. Lindenliked the idea and aired his first episode in January2001. He didn’t expect to be allowed to do anothershow after that one—after all, his vegan and animalrights messages contradicted many of the popular radiosponsors: fast food and pharmaceuticals. However, theshow is still going strong. What’s Linden’s conclusion?“Apparently, radio show producers and managers aren’tlistening to their shows.”Vegetarian ActionGo Vegan with Bob LindenA Vegan-Themed Commercial Radio ShowBy Rachael ProkopUnwilling to accept advertising money from nonvegancorporations, Linden seeks out vegan and crueltyfreecompanies, many of whom have never done anyadvertising before. In addition, Go Vegan relies on donationsfrom listeners to keep the show going. Fundingthe show can sometimes be difficult, but Linden isnot giving up. He wants Go Vegan to go on not for hisown livelihood, but also for the animals. “How manypeople who have gone vegan fromthe show is basically what keeps megoing,” he said. “I start counting thenumber of animals saved in my head.”Linden has been vegan for 25years, and vegetarian for much longer.He does activism outside of the radiobut has found that his show gives himcredibility and an audience that hecan’t get as an activist with a megaphone.He said, “It pops out of theblue on progressive talk stations,”bringing the information to peoplewho would never have clicked on awebsite link or opened a brochure onGo Vegan Creator and Host Bob Linden the same topic. His goal is to “infiltratethe mass meat-ia” and to bringthe message of veganism to as many people as possible.In a nutshell, what is Go Vegan? According toLinden, “It’s just a little radio program trying to savethe world.”Go Vegan airs live in Los Angeles and San Francisco,and archived shows are available on the program’s website,. Visit the website forup-to-date information on stations and air times.Rachael Prokop wrote this article during a summer internshipwith The Vegetarian Resource Group. She completed a degreein creative writing at Ohio Northern University earlier this year.VEGETARIAN JOURNAL Vol. 29, Issue Four 2010 35