A hilariously freethinking comedian comes back to “Freethought Matters,” the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s television show, this Sunday.
Comedian Trae Crowder is co-author of the books Liberal Redneck Manifesto: Dragging Dixie Out of the Dark and Round Here and Over Yonder: Front Porch Travel Guide by Two Progressive Hillbillies, to which is added: Yes, That’s a Thing. Crowder received FFRF’s Emperor Has No Clothes award as an outspoken atheist back in 2016. You’ve seen him on “Nightline,” “Real Time with Bill Maher,” “The View” and even once before on “Freethought Matters.” He reprises his inimitable humor, and the lively show features clips of his standup and videos.
“My dad only had one sibling, my Uncle Tim, and my Uncle Tim is openly gay,” Crowder tells “Freethought Matters” co-hosts Annie Laurie Gaylor and Matt Kenyon (substituting for Dan Barker). “For that reason, although he never talked about it openly, my dad didn’t go to church because they do a whole lot of stuff that don’t really jibe with ‘love your gay brother’ in Southern Baptist churches. So, I kind of grew up just areligious, which is odd for middle of nowhere Tennessee.”
Alas, the number of stations broadcasting “Freethought Matters” has reduced this year due to budgetary constraints. If you don’t live in any of the marquee towns where the show broadcasts on Sunday, you can already catch the interview on FFRF’s YouTube channel. New shows go up every Thursday.
“Freethought Matters” now airs in:
- Chicago, WPWR-CW (Ch. 50), Sundays at 9 a.m.
- Los Angeles, KCOP-MY (Ch. 13), Sundays at 8:30 a.m.
- Madison, Wis., WISC-TV (Ch. 3), Sundays at 11 p.m.
- New York City, WPIX-IND (Ch. 11), Sundays at 8:30 a.m.
- San Francisco, KTVU/KICU-IND (on broadcast Ch. 36 and Cable 6), Sundays at 10 a.m.
- Washington, D.C., WDCW-CW (Ch. 50 or Ch. 23 or Ch. 3), Sundays at 8 a.m.
(To view details on channel variations depending on your provider, click here.)
Upcoming shows include an interview with court reform expert Meagan Hatcher-Mays and an episode that spotlights a recent debate Dan Barker and Phil Zuckerman had with religionists at Oxford. You can catch interviews from previous seasons here, including with Gloria Steinem, Ron Reagan, “Daily Show” co-creator Lizz Winstead, author John Irving, actor John “Q” de Lancie and award-winning columnist Katha Pollitt. Past interviews also include Julia Sweeney and Reps. Jared Huffman, Jamie Raskin, Hank Johnson and Eleanor Holmes Norton, among many other notable authors, activists, musicians, actors and freethinkers.
Please tune in to “Freethought Matters” . . . because freethought matters.
P.S. Please tune in or record according to the times given above regardless of what is listed in your TV guide (it may be listed simply as “paid programming” or even be misidentified). To set up an automatic weekly recording, try taping manually by time or channel. And spread the word to freethinking friends, family or colleagues about a TV show, finally, that is dedicated to providing programming for freethinkers — your antidote to religion on Sunday morning!
