During a wide-ranging interview with Jeremy Herrell on Live From America, Real America’s Voice correspondent Ben Bergquam explained that his new book, Step Into Fear, is not simply the story of his life. It is an interactive guide for anyone struggling with fear, addiction, division, uncertainty, or purpose. Combining real-world reporting, personal testimony, QR code videos, and biblical lessons, Bergquam hopes the book will encourage readers to become stronger Christians, better citizens, and more courageous leaders.
Bergquam has spent years reporting from the southern border, war zones, cartel territory, and political flashpoints around the world. Those dangerous assignments have made him one of the best-known field correspondents on Real America’s Voice. Yet during a recent appearance on Live From America with longtime friend Jeremy Herrell, Bergquam revealed that his upcoming book, Step Into Fear, tells a much bigger story than his journalism alone.
The conversation began with current events, including the importance of the SAVE Act, concerns over declining public trust, and the political division consuming the country. Bergquam agreed with Herrell that distrust has become one of America’s greatest challenges, but he also pointed listeners toward one of the central themes of his new book.
“I have an entire chapter in my book about that,” Bergquam said, referring to division and distraction. “It’s kind of woven through the entire book.”
According to Bergquam, Americans witnessed what he called an extraordinary political victory in 2024, yet too many have allowed themselves to become distracted and divided rather than united around the larger mission.
For Bergquam, those lessons did not come from politics. They came from years of walking through fear.
The cover of Step Into Fear captures one of those moments. It features the now-famous image of Bergquam standing bloodied after being attacked by Antifa during a free speech event in Berkeley while holding a sign calling for dialogue. Rather than replacing that painful memory, Bergquam chose to make it the face of the book because it represents what happens when someone refuses to let intimidation determine their actions.
The book itself breaks new ground by combining traditional storytelling with interactive technology. Nearly every chapter includes QR codes that allow readers to immediately watch the reporting or events being discussed.
Bergquam said the idea came directly from his speaking engagements across the country.
“My journalism is show-and-tell journalism,” he explained. “I’ll play a video, then I’ll talk about it. I’ll play a video, and I’ll talk about it.” QR codes simply allowed him to bring that same experience into the pages of the book.
Readers will find stories ranging from his reporting in the jungles of Panama to encounters with cartels, political violence, and the personal battle that nearly destroyed his life before it began.
One chapter recounts Bergquam’s struggle with crack addiction while secretly living what appeared to be a successful life. He describes how God transformed him, broke those chains, and gave him a completely new purpose.
Another chapter explores the fear of failure. Others focus on fear of the unknown, fear of death, walking through difficult seasons, and the ways God uses hardship to prepare people for future battles.
“Fear is actually a good driver,” Bergquam said. “It’s a great motivator.”
One of the book’s most memorable lessons came from what Bergquam described as an epiphany after years of dangerous reporting.
Looking back, he realized every defining moment in his life required him to overcome a specific fear.
“The things that have made me the man I am today,” he said, “I can point to a specific fear that had to be overcome.” Those experiences ultimately convinced him that fear itself is not the enemy. Instead, how a person responds to fear often determines whether they grow or remain stuck.
Bergquam also explains that God sometimes uses setbacks for protection. He recalled one reporting trip in Panama that had to be abandoned after illness swept through the team. Later they learned a deadly mudslide struck the exact area where they would have been traveling. What initially felt like failure eventually became evidence of God’s providence.
Throughout the interview, Bergquam repeatedly returned to the people God placed in his life. He spoke emotionally about his wife, Villy, describing her unwavering support after he confessed his addiction more than two decades ago.
“My wife is incredible,” he said. “From an addict…to where I am today…she is an incredible woman.”
Herrell, who is mentioned in the book alongside other friends and colleagues, praised the interactive format and predicted it would inspire readers to step beyond fear instead of allowing fear to control them.
The book also includes a foreword by Steve Bannon, whom Bergquam credits as an important influence during his career. The final chapter is dedicated to Charlie Kirk. Although Bergquam did not plan the timing, the book’s September 8 release falls just two days before the anniversary of Kirk’s death, something Bergquam views as deeply meaningful.
More than a memoir, Step Into Fear is designed to be part testimony, part leadership guide, part devotional, and part adventure story. Bergquam says his ultimate goal is simple: to help readers become better husbands, wives, parents, Christians, patriots, and servants of God by learning to see fear not as something to escape, but as an opportunity to trust Him more deeply.
Step Into Fear officially releases September 8 and is available now for pre-order on Amazon:
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