PJ Media
 |
|
| Privately held company | |
| Industry | Media |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Founder | Roger L. Simon |
| Products | PJ Media, PJTV |
| Website | PJ Media |
PJ Media (originally known as Pajamas Media) is a media company and operator of an eponymous conservative news, opinion and commentary website. Founded in 2004 by a network primarily, but not exclusively, made up of conservatives and libertarians led by writer Roger L. Simon, it was created "with the intention of...aggregating blogs to increase corporate advertising and creating our own professional news service."[1] Its original name was derived from a dismissive comment made by former news executive vice-president Jonathan Klein of CBS during the Killian documents affair involving then-CBS anchorman Dan Rather in the fall of 2004: "You couldn't have a starker contrast between the multiple layers of checks and balances at 60 Minutes and a guy sitting in his living room in his pajamas."[2]
Contents
History
Name and the Killian documents controversy
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Charles Johnson, the blogger behind Little Green Footballs, teamed up with Roger L. Simon to create PJ Media after his contribution to the Killian documents controversy investigation helped lead to the retraction of a 60 Minutes story critical of President George W. Bush's service in the Air National Guard and Dan Rather's resignation from CBS News. Johnson and Simon set out to replace the mainstream media with a network of citizen-journalists.[3]
According to Simon, PJ Media was founded to take advantage of the "immediacy" unique to citizen journalism. He told the New York Sun, "Our affiliates will have a physical proximity, language and cultural knowledge" that traditional media lack. Responding to criticism of PJ Media and blogs in general, Glenn Reynolds, then an advisor to PJ Media, said, "it is a tired cliche that because there won't be newspaper editors at PJM, somehow the product will be diminished. We do not need four of five layers of editors to screw this up like they have at the L.A. Times."[4]
In October 2011, Pajamas Media changed its name to PJ Media. In a press release announcing the change, CEO Roger L. Simon said, "This evolution of our brand ushers PJ Media into a new era. We saw that people were worried that their rights and freedoms were deteriorating, and the next generation was going to be shackled with massive government debt. We heard people's concerns about how the country was moving away from its founding principles and watched as Tea Party activists and others protested these changes. It was clear that the time had come to shed our pajamas, change our name to PJ Media, and renew our commitment to the issues of freedom and liberty."[5] The name "Pajamas Media" was a reference to "Pajamahadeen," a portmanteau of pajamas and Mujahideen, meaning "bloggers who challenge and fact-check traditional media," according to The American Dialect Society, which voted it the Most Creative Word of 2004.[6]
Funding
PJ Media completed its first round of venture capital funding on November 14, 2005. Pajamas used this funding for its operations and marketing while expanding its news and opinion coverage. Investors in this round of financing included Aubrey Chernick, an angel investor and technology entrepreneur, James Koshland, a venture capitalist, and a partnership formed by DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary.[7]
Launch
In the fall of 2005, the company was known as Open Source Media. Its launch and official rebranding as Open Source Media took place November 16, 2005. Launch festivities included a keynote address by former New York Times journalist Judith Miller, presentations from John Podhoretz of Commentary magazine, Andrew Breitbart, Elizabeth Hayt of the New York Times, David Corn of The Nation, and others. Less than a week after its official launch Open Source Media changed its name back to Pajamas Media after discovering that Public Radio International distributed a radio show called Open Source produced by Open Source Media, Inc.[8]
PJTV
| Type | Internet streaming Television Network |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Availability | Worldwide |
|
Launch date
|
2008 |
|
Official website
|
PJTV.com |
In the summer of 2008 PJ Media launched PJTV.com, its high definition, subscription-based Internet television service. The Internet television service debuted at the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota, where PJTV had a broadcasting booth at Minneapolis's Xcel Energy Center, which housed the convention. The online TV service has featured interviews with former Republican senator Fred Thompson, former Australian Prime Minister John Howard, and numerous pundits and authors.[9] PJTV has several studios including a facility inside the Washington, D.C. offices of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. PJTV's studios transmit high definition video via broadband to the main PJTV studio in Los Angeles. There, several PJ Media affiliated bloggers do double-duty as show hosts and on-air pundits, in addition to PJTV-exclusive personalities, such as Alfonzo Rachel and Steven Kruiser, who specialize in comedy sketches and video parodies.
Afterburner with Bill Whittle
In Afterburner Bill Whittle challenges conventional wisdom on politics and society from a conservative's (his) perspective, often focusing on ethics to counter liberal ideologies and progressive social policies.[10]
Freedom's Charter
Hosted by Scott Ott, Freedom's Charter describes the history of the U.S. Constitution with a particular emphasis on its drafting. The twenty episodes of Freedom's Charter are described by PJTV as a "personal tour guide" to the drafting of the Constitution, "exploring the personalities, the fights, the compromises and the consequences surrounding the Federal Convention of 1787 and the subsequent ratification process."
PJTV says, "With lively stories, engaging graphics and high-def video from inside the Assembly Room at Independence Hall and Signers' Hall at the National Constitution Center, Freedom's Charter with Scott Ott will captivate young students, Tea Party people, and anyone who shares this same passion for liberty."[11]
ZoNation
Founder of Machosauce Production, black conservative Alfonzo "Zo" Rachel provides commentary on politics and social issues. His popular rapid-fire rants against liberals have now found a home on PJTV.
Trifecta
On Trifecta, "Vodkapundit blogger" Stephen Green, ScrappleFace.com editor Scott Ott, and Live Wire blogger Tammy Bruce comment on current events. Afterburner host Bill Whittle is also an active Trifecta commentator.[12]
Instavision with Glenn Reynolds
Instavision with Glenn Reynolds is a mix of libertarian political commentary, popular science, and culture.[13]
The Rundown
The Rundown is a news program that airs every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Host John Phillips speaks with a panel of expert commentators and guests about politics and culture. The show also covers major news stories, "under the radar" stories, and presents its weekly "Heros or Zeros."[14]
Poll Position
Poll Position is hosted by John Phillips. The show uses polling and surveys in order to illuminate elections and political issues.[15]
Up or Down
Up or Down, hosted by various PJTV personalities, is a Siskel-and-Ebert style commentary on current events.[16]
The Odyssey of Western Civilization
The Odyssey of Western Civilization' is hosted by Victor Davis Hanson. This eight-part series provides an overview of Western culture from the Greek and Roman empires to the present.[17]
The Western Story
The Western Story' is a series of eight video lectures contrasting ancient Greek and Roman culture with modern western culture. This series is hosted by Victor Davis Hanson.[18]
PJmedia.com
PJmedia.com provides news, commentary and analysis via blogs, streaming video and podcasts.
During the 2008 presidential campaign PJ Media conducted weekly online straw polls. PJ Media decided on weekly straw polls in order to address some of the problems that make it possible for campaigns to manipulate online polling. Roger Simon said, "Online polls have gotten a bad rap and, in some cases, deservedly so. By continuously allowing people to weigh in, we believe the true picture of the races will quickly take shape and we will be able to provide the public with consistent, accurate snapshots of where the races are and the trends that are emerging."[19]
PJM Political
Concurrent with the launch of the Sirius XM's POTUS channel (a corruption of the usual acronym for "President of the United States," here short for "Politics of the United States") in the fall of 2007, PJ Media debuted PJM Political, a weekly series on that channel whose guests included most of the 2008 Republican presidential candidates, representatives from the two leading Democratic presidential candidates, and in a telephone interview from Baghdad, General David Petraeus.[20]
News coverage
Iraq War
In December 2005 PJ Media teamed up with its affiliate blog "Iraq the Model" and numerous other Iraqi reporters and bloggers to provide online "comprehensive coverage" of the war in Iraq. PJ provided news-style text reports, video clips and still photography from eight provinces. PJ Media provided equipment, technical support, and financial assistance to its Iraqi partners. Roger Simon said, "By any standard, the Iraqi election is historic, and the opportunity to provide additional insight is a privilege. We are honored by the efforts of our affiliates, and by the commitment of bloggers and citizen journalists everywhere, without whom none of this is even conceivable."[21]
Leadership
Aaron Hanscom
Aaron Hanscom is the Managing Editor of PJ Media. He formerly worked as an elementary school teacher in Los Angeles. Hanscom graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in economics. His writing has been published in the Los Angeles Times, the Christian Science Monitor, and the Orange County Register.
Glenn Reynolds
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Glenn Reynolds, a law professor at the University of Tennessee, is best known for Instapundit, one of the most widely read American political weblogs.[22]
Personalities
PJ Media has had correspondents in as many as 48 countries and syndicates original content.
Roger Simon
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Roger L. Simon, a cofounder of PJ Media, served as its CEO of until his resignation in February 2013. Simon remains with PJ as a co-host of Poliwood and a blogger. He is the author of numerous books, including the Moses Wine series of detective novels, and six screenplays, including Enemies: A Love Story. He served as president of the West Coast branch of PEN and as a member of the board of directors of the Writers Guild of America. Simon was on the faculty of the American Film Institute and the Sundance Institute. He is an alumnus Dartmouth College and the Yale School of Drama.
Andrew Klavan
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Klavan is an author and screenwriter of "tough-guy" mysteries and psychological thrillers. Two of Klavan's books have been adapted into motion pictures: True Crime (1999) and Don't Say A Word (2001). He has been nominated for the Edgar Award four times and has won twice.[23] Playwright and novelist Laurence Klavan is his brother.[24] Klavan has been a regular contributor of short video commentaries under the general title "Klavan on Culture", posted at PJTV.com. He also became a contributor to the center-right social networking and blogging Web site Ricochet.com on May 17, 2010.[25]
Ed Driscoll
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Ed Driscoll is an editor at PJ Media. A veteran journalist, Driscoll has contributed to National Review Online, The Weekly Standard, Tech Central Station (now Ideas in Action.tv) and "dead tree" publications ranging from PC World to Guitar World. He has been blogging since early 2002.[26]
David P. Goldman
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David Paul Goldman is an economist, author, and blogger for PJ Media. As a religious Jew, Goldman says that he writes from a Judeo-Christian perspective and often focuses on demographic and economic factors in his analyses. He says his subject matter proceeds "from the theme formulated by Rosenzweig: the mortality of nations and its causes, Western secularism, Asian anomie, and unadaptable Islam".
Stephen Green
Stephen Green began blogging at VodkaPundit.com in 2002. Green's writing has been featured in publications and websites such as Guard Experience magazine, The New Individualist, and TCS Daily, in addition to Pajamas Media. In addition to frequent appearances on PJTV, Green also hosts PJM Political for XM Satellite Radio. Green lives with his wife and two sons in Monument, Colorado.
Victor Davis Hanson
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Victor Davis Hanson is a military historian, columnist, political essayist and former classics professor, notable as a scholar of ancient warfare. In addition to his work for Pajamas Media Hanson has been a commentator on modern warfare and contemporary politics for National Review and other media outlets. He was for many years a professor of classics at California State University, Fresno, and is currently the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. Hanson was awarded the National Humanities Medal in 2007,[27] the Claremont Institute's Statesmanship Award at its annual Churchill Dinner, and the $250,000 Bradley prize from the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation in 2008.[28] Hanson is also a farmer (growing raisin grapes on a family farm near Fresno, California) and a critic of social trends related to farming and agrarianism.
Michael Ledeen
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Michael Ledeen is specialist on foreign policy. His research focuses on state sponsors of terrorism, Iran, the Middle East, Europe (Italy), U.S.-China relations, intelligence, and Africa (Mozambique, South Africa, and Zimbabwe) and is a leading neoconservative.[29] He is a former consultant to the United States National Security Council, the United States Department of State, and the United States Department of Defense. He has also served as a special adviser to the United States Secretary of State. He held the Freedom Scholar chair at the American Enterprise Institute where he was a scholar for twenty years and now holds the similarly named chair at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. He is a contributing editor to National Review, contributes to the Wall Street Journal, and regularly appears on Fox News and on a variety of radio talk shows. He has been on PBS's NewsHour and CNN's Larry King Live, among others.[30] Ledeen regularly blogs for PJ Media.
Ronald Radosh
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Ronald Radosh is a writer, professor, historian, former Marxist, and neoconservative. He is known for his work on the Cold War espionage case of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg and his advocacy of the state of Israel. Radosh co-authored the book A Safe Haven: Harry S. Truman and the Founding of Israel with his wife, Allis.[31]
Ron Rosenbaum
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Ron Rosenbaum is a journalist and author. He graduated from Yale University in 1968 and won a Carnegie Fellowship to attend Yale's graduate program in English Literature, though he dropped out after taking one course. He wrote for The Village Voice for several years, leaving in 1975 after which he wrote for Esquire, Harper's, High Times, Vanity Fair, New York Times Magazine and Slate. Rosenbaum spent more than ten years doing research on Adolf Hitler including travels to Vienna, Munich, London, Paris, and Jerusalem, interviewing leading historians, philosophers, biographers, theologians and psychologists. Some of those interviewed by Rosenbaum included Daniel Goldhagen, David Irving, Rudolph Binion, Claude Lanzmann, Hugh Trevor-Roper, Alan Bullock, Christopher Browning, George Steiner, and Yehuda Bauer. The result was his 1998 book, Explaining Hitler: The Search for the Origins of His Evil.
Claudia Rosett
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Claudia Rosett is journalist-in-residence at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, a policy institute based in Washington, D.C.[32][33] A former staff writer for The Wall Street Journal, she writes a weekly column for Forbes, blogs for PJ Media, and makes guest appearances on television and radio.[34]
Michael Totten
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Totten is a regular blogger for PJ Media. Totten describes himself as an "independent journalist". He travels extensively around the Middle East and other trouble spots around the world.[35] Totten's work has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times,[36] City Journal, the New York Daily News,[37] The Jerusalem Post, the Daily Star of Lebanon, Reason magazine, Commentary,[38] LA Weekly, Front Page, Tech Central Station, and the Australian edition of Newsweek. Totten's first book, The Road to Fatima Gate: The Beirut Spring, the Rise of Hezbollah, and the Iranian War Against Israel, reports his experiences in the Middle East, primarily Lebanon.
Bill Whittle
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Bill Whittle is the host of Afterburner with Bill Whittle, a PJTV program. He is a pilot, photographer, blogger, and video editor from Los Angeles, California. He is a former National Review Online contributor and has been a guest on the Fox News Channel, The Dennis Miller Show, Sun TV, and national radio programs. His first book, Silent America: Essays from a Democracy at War, was published in 2004. Since 2009, Whittle has been a featured speaker at universities and a number of Republican and Tea Party events throughout the United States. He is also the co-founder of Declaration Entertainment, an independent film studio, and a narrator for Encounter Books.
Tammy Bruce
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Tammy Bruce is a radio host, author, and political commentator. Her nationally syndicated talk show, The Tammy Bruce Show, airs online via TalkStreamLive. She is a frequent on-air contributor to Fox News Channel, and writes material for the Fox Forum blog.
Bruce's website describes her as a "gay, pro-choice, gun-owning, pro-death penalty, Tea Party Independent conservative" who "worked on a number of Democratic campaigns in 1990s, including the 1992 Boxer and Feinstein Senate races and the Clinton for President campaign" and "also has a history of supporting Republicans as well, including President Reagan, both Presidents Bush and, quite reluctantly, John McCain during the 2008 presidential campaign."[39] In 2003, Bruce was appointed to serve on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's Transition Team after his successful recall election against Gray Davis.[40] She holds a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Southern California and is currently a PhD candidate at Claremont Graduate University.[41]
Helen Smith
Dr. Helen Smith is a forensic psychologist from Knoxville, Tennessee. She has a Ph.D. from the University Of Tennessee and masters degrees from the New School for Social Research and the City University of New York. She has appeared on numerous television and radio shows to discuss the topic of violence. She wrote “The Scarred Heart: Understanding and Identifying Kids Who Kill,” and produced the movie, “Six,” a documentary about juvenile violence.[42]
Partnerships
In 2006, PJ Media announced that it was partnering with news aggregator Breitbart.com. Both sites showcase the RSS feeds from the other. Andrew Breitbart said, "Some call them bloggers, but to me Pajamas Media are reliable and compelling first-responders to real time world events as they occur. I am proud to now be featuring PJM's exceptional news content at Breitbart.com."[43]
In January 2008, PJ Media announced that they were working with Vividas, a company specializing in streaming video technology, to bring viewers high-quality news coverage in full-screen, high-definition video. Vividas' streaming technology ensures a smooth and enjoyable viewing experience without the need for any dedicated video player software.[44]
See also
References
- ↑ "An open letter to all bloggers" by Roger L. Simon, April 28, 2005
- ↑ "How the Blogosphere Took on CBS' Docs"
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- ↑ American Dialect Society: 2004 Words of the Year.
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- ↑ The Truth Laid Bear[unreliable source?]
- ↑ Frontpagemag.com
- ↑ Biography. By M. Wallace. IMDB.com Retrieved July 6, 2009.
- ↑ Ricochet.com
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- ↑ 2007 National Humanities Medal winners at the National Endowment for the Humanities' website
- ↑ 2008 Bradley Prize Winners at The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation's website
- ↑ "Flirting with Fascism", John Laughland, The American Conservative, June 30, 2003.
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- ↑ Rosett's biography at the FDD website
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- ↑ Claudia Rosett In the Media at the FDD website
- ↑ The Explosive Caucasus, Michael J. Totten, August 2008
- ↑ Book review by Michael Totten of Mirror of the Arab World: Lebanon in Conflict by Sandra Mackey, The New York Times, March 30, 2008
- ↑ "Frontline Lessons from the Iraq Surge", Michael Totten, New York Daily News, August 29, 2007
- ↑ "The Worst since 9/11", Michael J. Totten, Commentary, August 22, 2007
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