Earlier this week, Podcast Movement, the podcasting conference that’ll be held in Dallas/Fort Worth, TX from July 31st to August 2nd, announced that it has added Glenn Beck to its list of speakers. Beck is best known for his roles as a conservative talk radio and TV show host. But in recent years, he’s had notable success as a digital media producer, primarily thru The Blaze.

Podcast Movement gave no specifics as to why the conference chose to bring Beck on board. Presumably, it’s because of his growing profile in the new media space. Regardless, like him or hate him, Beck is a true “mainstream” media figure that’ll likely bring some extra notoriety to the event.

It’s worth noting that, along with Beck, Podcast Movement has also booked Sarah Koenig, creator of Serial, as a speaker. And while we can hope that the conference won’t be defined solely in terms of political left-right balance, it’s good to know that Podcast Movement has some diversity in its speaker lineup.

There’s no question that Glenn Beck is a polarizing figure. I’ve already seen multiple comments from people in various podcast-centric forums stating that they won’t attend Podcast Movement due to Beck’s involvement. It’s a somewhat risky move on behalf of the conference, which is only in its second year. Time will tell if this move pans out for Podcast Movement in terms of increased visibility and attendance.