Well, it looks like the Progressive lapdog media has been colluding again.
Media Trackers, a site that tracks media stories and works for transparency in government, uncovered a group with over 1,000 members that is literally a who’s who of the Progressive Left in media. And I would wager, it is only the tip of the iceberg out there — I am sure that the collaboration is widespread and well-organized.
The group is called Gamechanger Salon and boasts members that include a CNN commentator, the top two political reporters for The Huffington Post, a Reuters reporter, the editor of The Nation magazine, a producer for Al Jazeera America television, a U.S. News & World Report columnist and approximately two dozen Huffington Post contributors. Conservatives need not apply. The group was founded by Billy Wimsatt, a dedicated Leftist and activist.
It is a digital group that corresponds with one another on topics of the day and until now, was secretive. Writers, opinion leaders, activists and political pundits all share strategy, information and ideas through a closed Google group. How cozy.
Wimsatt, the moderator of Gamechanger Salon according to a member policy manual, currently works as chief ideas officer at Gamechanger Labs, an incubator for leftwing political and social action with the motto, “R&D for the movement.” In 2008, Wimsatt worked for the Obama campaign and the Ohio Democratic Party, according to his LinkedIn profile. A former columnist he is the author of several books and contributed columns to the Huffington Post until 2012.
In 2010 he co-wrote a column about voter guides for the Huffington Post with the controversial Van Jones, who resigned from the Obama Administration in 2009 amid outrage over his advocacy for a convicted cop killer and signature on a petition saying the Bush Administration willfully allowed the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 to happen.
Media Trackers gained access to the list through a University of Wisconsin professor who belonged to the network, when they submitted an open records request.
Among the membership are political hacks from NARAL, the SEIU, the AFL-CIO and Planned Parenthood. Literally dozens of other groups are among the membership. The Atlantic, Wikipedia and MSNBC have members on board as well.
The likes of Sally Kohn, a former Fox News reporter who is now a contributor at CNN and who leans strongly in favor of Obama, worked the group to promote her appearances. She liberally promoted to her Progressive colleagues her work. She is but one of many plying their wares through the group.
Wimsatt has a book club, which is used to educate and motivate members:
A book club section of the list contains recommended reading material and occasional quick reviews of the books explaining why they are important for liberal activists and organizers. Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Church makes the list because, as Wimsatt notes in his review, “it’s a F#$@ING BRILLIANT and provocative book about the art and science of organizing that in part shows on many levels why right-wing evangelicals are organizing circles around us (even though much of what they’re selling is snake oil).”
Another book that Wimsatt recommends to the membership is Mockingjay, the third and final installment of The Hunger Games series. According to Wimsatt’s review, “Third Hunger Games Book. People say it’s great and complex parable of revolution – and it will help us get ready to leverage the next 2 movies better.”
Other portions of the extensive membership document recommend movies, songs, television shows, recommended websites and blogs, and goals for the online Gamechanger community. Two of the goals listed are “Recruit 200 key community-based organizers, especially women and people of color,” and “Recruit 100 key diverse bloggers, movement journalists, and pundits.” Another goal involves theorizing about a “TED-like conference for folks.”
Recruitment and revolution – the very essence of transformative politics. Gamechanger also keeps a detailed calendar that lists and promotes important events.
Thanks to Media Trackers, you can view the membership and calendar below:
Gamechanger Salon member list (Excel file): Gamechanger Salon
Gamechanger Salon calendar (PDF): Movement Calendar – Calendar 2014
Another view:
Brian Simka at RedState wrote an excellent piece on Gamechanger: Journolist 2.0 Discovered. In his article, he lists several key Progressive players and their positions:
- Amanda Terkel — Senior Political Reporter and Politics Managing Editor at The Huffington Post: Conducted a Leftwing effort to push Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D) to run for president.
- Ryan Grim — The Huffington Post’s Washington Bureau Chief: Worked with Terkel on conducting a Leftwing effort to push Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D) to run for president.
- Anna Louie Sussman — She is an energy and commodities reporter for Thomson Reuters and used to work for the New York Times.
- Katrina vanden Heuvel — editor and publisher of The Nation magazine. She is also a regular writer for the Washington Post.
- Lisa Graves — She leads the Madison, Wisconsin-based Center for Media and Democracy.
- Jordan Flaherty — He was a producer for Al Jazeera America television and blogs for The Huffington Post.
- David Brodwin — Columnist for U.S. News & World Report.
The group’s overview is quite interesting as well:
…experienced change makers from different ‘worlds’ of the movement to share stories, honest reflections, interesting articles, and provocative ideas on how we build a stronger, more coordinated, more game-changing movement for the 21st Century” according to the policy manual.
The group’s policy manual directs members to abstain from forwarding emails to recipients outside the group. It does warn, however, that with 1,000-plus members, anyone emailing the group should not say anything “you wouldn’t want to be subpoenaed by a Grand Jury or broadcast on Fox News.
So, they knowingly are covering up their alliances and their agenda. This is very similar to the antics of the original Journolist players. Trevor Loudon wrote at length on them in 2010 and their over 400 members. Gamechanger adds to and expands massively the Journolist group. It is the creme de la creme of the Progressive movement – these are power and influence brokers. Among the movers and shakers are Damon Silver, Policy Director for the AFL-CIO; Benjamin Joffe-Walk, Chief of Staff at Change.org; Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CODEPINK; Elizabeth Rose, Director of Communications at the Economic Policy Institute; Philip Radford, Executive Director of Greenpeace until earlier this year; and Ilyse Hogue, President of NARAL. Other members come from anti-Israel organizations such as Jewish Voice for Peace and J-Street as well as Amnesty International; the Canadian group which was a leader of Occupy Wall Street, Adbusters; and the Sierra Club. And, an organization I have written on, the Sunlight Foundation, a group supposedly dedicated to transparency in politics, is a member of this secret group. Considering their connection to George Soros, I am not surprised at all. They are progressively transparent. Also among the members are Raven Brooks, Executive Director of Netroots Nation; Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee and Deirdre Schifeling, National Director Organizing & Electoral Campaigns for Planned Parenthood.
This group has every right to exist and collaborate. Where it gets dicey is the brazen manipulation of the media to control the public and influence politics for power and profit. Also, the references to revolution etc. are troubling. Many of these same “JournoListas” were involved with Marxist-based organizations such as Democratic Socialists of America, or the far Left Institute for Policy Studies. Many have very close ties to Barack Obama and the Democrat Party. As Trevor said four years ago:
The “JournoListas” who helped Barack Obama into the White House are not unique. They are merely part of a movement to promote a promising young leftist that may have begun more than thirty years ago.
Without sympathetic socialist journalists, it is unlikely that Barack Obama would be President of the United States today.
Gamechanger is the Brother of Journolist and another secretive Leftwing network. The same old crowd with new faces mixed in is pushing the same Progressive/Marxist agenda. And through propaganda and media manipulation, they have helped Barack Obama bring the freest nation in the world to her knees. Gamechanger is another face of the enemy of freedom and the members of the group are foot soldiers for Marxism. And you wonder why they all have the same talking points.
Terresa Monroe-Hamilton
Editor/Author
Terresa Monroe-Hamilton is a Libertarian and she writes at NoisyRoom.net. NoisyRoom is a Conservative blog that focuses on political and national issues of interest to the American public.