Cox Media radio host Erick Erickson said Friday that he learned a valuable lesson from the late Rush Limbaugh.
While addressing a story about student loan forgiveness, Erickson said he has come to understand that his job on the radio is not to take on a role as an activist.
“Rush and I were dear friends, and I don’t say that lightly,” he said. “He (Rush) got me into radio, I would not have done this but for his encouragement. He found me as my agent, and he let me pick his brain on all sorts of stuff.”
Erickson said his one disagreement with Limbaugh stemmed from a conversation the pair had about what the role of a talk show host should be.
“I am an activist at heart,” Erickson said. “Rush told me that my job was just to entertain and keep people company.”
Erickson said that over time he learned that his number one priority was not to take issues to heart but to entertain his audience and drive engagement.
“It’s not to pick a political fight, it’s not to save the world, it’s to keep people company,” he said. “You must keep them entertained and informed. I always thought I would love to fire up the phones and turn people into activists.”
Erickson added that he understands why Limbaugh didn’t promote activism.
“He (Limbaugh) had 20 million listeners. He always told me that if he did [promote activism] he would’ve been bombarded with issues.”
Erickson said he finally understands what Limbaugh was talking about.
