The Neal Larson Show
Neal Larson is an Associated Press Award-winning newspaper columnist and radio talk show host. He has a BA from Idaho State University in Media Studies and Political Science. Neal is happily married to his wife Esther with their five children in Idaho Falls.
Julie Mason is a long-time resident of east Idaho with a degree in journalism from Ricks College. Julie enjoys reading, baking, and is an avid dog lover. When not on the air she enjoys spending time with her three children and husband of 26 years.
Together these two are a powerhouse of knowledge with great banter that comes together in an entertaining and informative show.
The Neal Larson Show
8.10.2026 - WNBA Meltdown | DARVO | Flock Cameras
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Neal and Julie dug into what they called the “WNBA disarray,” starting with the on-court incident involving Sophie Cunningham and Dijonai Carrington—Neal arguing the foul was clearly flagrant, the ejection was justified, and the real explosion came afterward when Carrington posted “white privilege,” with some journalists and commentators rushing to defend her. From there, the conversation broadened into how sports—and politics—can quickly turn toxic when accountability gets replaced by narrative warfare, including Julie’s point that the league’s new attention feels less about basketball and more about “Jerry Springer” drama. They also spent time on the satirical “WNBA prospect” declarations from Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White, framing it as a deliberate attempt to force clarity on a league they argue has no coherent transgender eligibility policy.
The second half pivoted to broader political themes: Democratic Party anxiety over DSA-style candidates and what Neal sees as a looming “stress test” for the party’s “big tent,” plus a side discussion on John Fetterman bluntly acknowledging Democrats “destroyed our border.” Hour two then shifted into local-government trust and surveillance: Neal and Julie revisited Idaho’s debate over Flock automated license plate reader cameras, reacting to news out of Chandler, Arizona ending its contract after alleged misuse. They acknowledged the public’s low trust in institutions post-pandemic, argued for strict guardrails and severe penalties for misuse, and repeatedly challenged critics to move beyond hypotheticals and articulate concrete, real-world freedoms being curtailed—while taking calls and texts that raised questions about data-sharing, FOIA loopholes, and law enforcement accountability.
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## Highlights
- Neal and Julie call out the “white privilege” reaction to the Sophie Cunningham/Dijonai Carrington ejection—and the journalists defending the flagrant foul—as a sign the WNBA has gotten dangerously toxic.
- The Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White “I’m declaring myself a WNBA prospect” satire sparks a debate about exposing policy absurdities by “being absurd.”
- Julie drops the DARVO framework (deny, attack, reverse victim and offender) to explain how offenders rapidly get recast as victims in modern political/media cycles.
- Neal argues the WNBA’s attendance boost may now be driven more by spectacle than basketball—“the Jerry Springer show”—and wonders aloud if the league is “broken.”
- A detailed listener call raises a complicated concern: cross-state data sharing and FOIA requests potentially exposing long-term license-plate data depending on state rules.
- Neal and Julie press the core Flock question: is the problem the existence of cameras, or the misuse of access—and should punishment for misuse include career-ending consequences?
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