Dr. James C. Dobson, the psychologist who built Focus on the Family into one of the world’s largest evangelical ministries and became a prominent voice in conservative U.S. politics, died Thursday in Colorado Springs after a brief illness, the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute said. He was 89. Dobson founded Focus on the Family in 1977 and grew its daily broadcast to more than 4,000 radio stations, translated into 27 languages and distributed in 160 countries. After leaving the organization in 2010, he launched the eponymous FamilyInstitute and continued his "Family Talk" program. A Radio Hall of Fame inductee, he wrote more than 70 books on parenting and faith, beginning with the 1970 bestseller "Dare to Discipline." Beyond broadcasting, Dobson leveraged his following to influence policy debates, campaigning against abortion, pornography and LGBTQ+ rights and co-founding the Family Research Council in 1981. He advised or counseled five U.S. presidents—Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Donald Trump—and served on Trump’s Evangelical Executive Advisory Board. Tributes from faith leaders and elected officials described Dobson as a “pioneer” whose advocacy reshaped discussions of family life in America. He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Shirley; their children, Danae and Ryan; daughter-in-law Laura; and two grandchildren.