Fighting Bob Fests I-VI have been graced with many heroes. The late Senator Paul Simon, RFK, Jr., Russ Feingold, Amy Goodman, Cindy Sheehan, Doris "Granny D" Haddock, Members of Congress: Gwen Moore, Tom Harkin, Bernie Sanders, Tammy Baldwin, John Conyers, and David Obey; Green Party presidential candidate David Cobb, John Nichols and Bob McChesney, Congressman and presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich; and, what would a Wisconsin Chautauqua be without Stan Gruszynski, Mike McCabe and the nation’s favorite populist, Jim Hightower?

1,200 attended our first Fest; year two saw 2,500, year three over 4,000, and so on. In 2007 over 8,000 jammed the fairgrounds. People are inspired by great speakers and from the knowledge that, as they look around, they are not alone in fighting the good fight. While some say we preach to the choir, we say the choir needs inspiration as well. And we have fun!

My role? I keep the program rolling on time. So, come, enjoy, participate, raise hell, and take words into action. See you in Baraboo.

Ed Garvey
Editor and Publisher of FightingBob.com

Jun 25, 2008
Booths are going quick

Fighting Bob Fest exhibitor space is going quick.  If your organization hasn’t already submitted their booth application, now is the time to act.  Exhibitor space is granted on a first come first serve basis. To apply, simply go to our Booths link where you’ll find the Booth Application, fill in the required information, and send it in along with the application fee, to Fighting Bob, Inc., P.O. Box 2131, Madison, WI 53703.

While you’re at it, you might as well Pre-Register yourself for Fighting Bob Fest. You can also remind your friends, family, and cohorts to do the same. Pre-Registration helps us to better prepare for the size of the event, and puts you on the email list to receive festival updates, speaker announcement, and more.

Fighting Bob Fest organizers attended the National Conference for Media Reform in Minneapolis last weekend. Our goals were to network with organizations and learn what they were doing across the country using independent media, and talk with potential speakers for future fests.  Well, we accomplished just that!  We talked with Rep. Keith Ellison, David Sirota, author of "The Uprising", past fest speakers Amy Goodman and Laura Flanders, AND got a big boost from a pillar in journalism, Bill Moyers. "Fighting Bob...one of my favorite sites."

We also got to see first hand how the O'Reilly Factor invites their guests, when the producer of the show, Porter Barry, ambushed Moyers.  Check out what Karen Chin caught on video.

Fighting Bob Fest works hard to bring you inspiring speakers to uplift the crowds and call us to action.  But we don't get them that way!

This is the offical blog/announcement for the Seventh Annual Fighting Bob Fest - September 6, 2008, at the Sauk County Fairgrounds in Baraboo, Wisconsin.  Please check back often to our recently updated site as we will be posting speaker confirmations as they are received.  You can also pre-register for the festival by clicking on the online registration button found on the right hand column of this new website.  We hope to make this year's Fighting Bob Fest the largest one yet!  See you there.

Fighting Bob Fest is an annual Chautauqua featuring progressive speakers, networking opportunities, and entertainment. Fighting Bob Fest carries on the tradition of Robert “Fighting Bob” La Follette by providing a forum for progressive ideas on issues facing Wisconsin and the nation.

Freedom and justice are defended through education, and the exchange of ideas promotes solidarity among progressives. To this end, Fighting Bob Fest strives to provide citizens with a forum for democratic participation where frustrations with current policies can be constructively molded into calls to action.