Democracy Now! was founded at WBAI-FM New York City in 1996 by journalists Amy Goodman, Larry Bensky, Juan Gonzalez, Salim Muwakkil and Julie Drizin. 'Democracy Now!' is primarily concerned with issues of war, democracy, and human rights. The program regularly questions the motives of US foreign and domestic policy, in an attempt to provide an alternative to mainstream national news coverage.
Democracy Now! and its staff have won dozens of journalism awards, including the George Polk Award, the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Prize, and the Pinnacle Award for American Women in Radio & Television.