Conservative talk radio show host Al Travis is trying to depolarize the airwaves

For three hours a day, five days a week, Al Travis broadcasts his talk radio show from a soundproof room in his Blue Earth home. The show is a mix of sports and current events. 

But it’s the political chatter where Travis stands out against his industry peers. 

As a conservative who is broadcasting in some of the reddest parts of the state, Travis makes a point to bring on liberals and conservatives in equal measure. 

“I can listen to the same six national talk show hosts and they’re all going to talk about the exact same topic,” he said. “You get to hear the same thing 64 times in a day. You wonder why we’re so polarized.”

He even tracks the political affiliation of his guests in a spreadsheet to ensure even coverage.

Al Travis’ real name is Al Thielfoldt. He’s been doing radio for years, with a second gig running a marketing firm. The combination caught the attention of the Federal Elections Commission a few years ago; the FCC investigation found no wrongdoing on Travis’ part.

Travis became a fixture in St. Paul, too, where he hosted a cable show regularly featuring state legislators. 

But when he first pitched this iteration of his show to station managers, he sold it on the idea that he wanted to bring political diversity to airwaves dominated by political echo chambers. It’s a problem he says liberal talk radio suffers from as well.

On Travis’ show, guests debate topics like taxes and government spending. This summer, the assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump has been a big topic. So has President Joe Biden’s departure from the presidential race.

And every time he has a politico on the air, Travis tries to find common ground with them, like show regular Sen. John Hoffman, DFL-Champlin. 

“He can’t not talk about music. So we go off on music,” Travis said. “We have things in common. And I would never vote the same way he does on anything. It makes us all human.”

Travis wants his audience to find common ground with people they disagree with, too — to listen and be curious about their ideas. 

That’s why Susan Kent of Woodbury, the former DFL Senate Minority leader, is a regular on his show, even though Travis’ audience probably disagrees with her views.

“If this means that some people get a chance to hear another perspective, and especially from somebody who does not fit what I think are some of the stereotypes that are being discussed about Democrats … I think that just helps,” Kent said. 

Democrats need to talk to people who disagree with them even when it’s uncomfortable, she said.

“As we sort ourselves geographically, it gets harder for people to see beyond their affinity group, their political neighbors. That is a concern to me,” she said. “But that’s why I think we all have to be very intentional about it.” 

Rep. Walter Hudson, R-Albertville, agrees.

“You have a good faith conversation with everyone. There are going to be people who don't get what they want,” he said.

“But you at least get to glean what value there is from the minority perspective and incorporate it in the final product so that it doesn’t turn up the temperature and drive wedges between different segments of the populace.”

Hudson’s a former conservative talk radio host himself. He agrees political echo chambers are making it hard to legislate. And he said this last legislative session he went out of his way to have one-on-one conversations with Democratic legislators to find common ground on divisive legislation. 

But he said single-party rule at the Capitol has made those conversations a moot point. 

“Systemically, it has very much become an ‘us-versus-them’ situation,” he said. 

For his part, Travis said hosting the show has made him a more curious listener. 

“I hold my breath to say, ‘Are you going to give me the background that gives me that answer that makes me think you’re smart and we just disagree? Or you just throw me a one-liner,’” he said.

And it’s made him more humble about political differences. 

“Quite possibly most of my beliefs are wrong,” he said. “But they are mine.”

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