There's a myth out there that a lot of people subscribe to, which is if you want to present to the whole world through the media, get on major news networks, major newspapers, you have to have huge budgets, lots of money for graphics, special effects, PR teams. And that can help. Sometimes there's no doubt about it. But you don't have to have all those things. Once I was at a talk radio convention, this is when I was hosting full time, way back in 1995. I was in Houston, Texas at the convention.
And they were about to give a major award to a talk show host for the I think they call it the Freedom Award of the year. I'm on about the second row, and I'm having a pleasant conversation with a talk show host next to me. Her name was Gloria alread. She was famous back then she's wildly famous now as a prominent attorney and high profile cases. So we're sitting there chatting, and it was right before G. Gordon Liddy, a very famous Watergate criminal, and talk show host was about to be given a Freedom Award, because he talked about why people you know, could aim and shoot it federal marshals, essentially, some people like that some people found it wildly offensive. So I'm having a pleasant conversation with Gloria, someone I'd heard about for years and had a fascination with and she says, Oh, hang on.
I'll be right back. She had taken a piece of paper while we were talking scribbled a few things. She ran up on stage, shouting, it was something to the effect of saying out of fascist, she ran across the stage. It only took about 20 seconds. She came and sat down and we continued having a pleasant conversation. Well, that evening, every single TV network had her image protesting this award, and she represented 10s of millions of Americans who did believe it was sort of odd to be honoring a host talking about shooting federal agents.
So she was able to communicate a very specific political message. And she did it in about 20 seconds with a five cent budget a piece of paper. That's all it took. It was simple, handmade. And she was in the front page of the New York Times The next day, massive news coverage throughout the United States. It was short, it was brief, but she was willing reason at work.
She was willing to attack she was willing to interject herself where she wasn't invited. She was willing to run up on stage. Frankly, something most people would just feel too awkward to do and feel too. Bera Singh to do But she does show. If you have strong beliefs and you're willing to do things in a highly specific strategic way, you can get 10s of millions of dollars of publicity. Now she's been a great at generating publicity throughout her whole career, sometimes with high profile clients, but sometimes just a particular opinion she has that she wants to interject into a broader news story.
And she shows you can do it with gumption with creativity, and with courage, not necessarily with any money whatsoever.