Who is David Brock, Media Matters
Brock is gay.[6][61] His current partner is Washington, D.C. area restaurateur James Alefantis.
[38]
In 2001, Jonah Goldberg wrote in National Review that while Brock has been “hailed by liberals for 'coming clean,' they would never really trust him.” He quoted reporter Jill Abramson as having said that “the problem with Brock’s credibility” is that “once you admit you’ve knowingly written false things, how do you know when to believe what he writes?”[12] Similarly, The Guardian referred in 2014 to “residual unease among some liberal operatives that Brock’s conversion story fits into a pattern of opportunism and self-promotion rather than ideological transformation.”[29] Observing in 2015 that Brock had admitted to mudslinging before, The Daily Beast noted a difficulty in dispatching fears he would do it again.[4]
Brock's claim that the Clintons have never committed any wrongdoing has received criticisms from many, including fellow Democrats, who have cited instances of abuse.[60]
American Bridge 21st century[edit]
Main article: American Bridge 21st Century
Brock announced in 2010 that he was forming a Super PAC, American Bridge 21st Century, to help elect liberal Democrats, starting with the 2012 election cycle.[36] In 2011, Brock founded the PAC, which seeks “to track every utterance of every major GOP candidate.” The Los Angeles Times described him as having “reinvented the art of opposition research.” The group's work reportedly "did so much damage to Republicans in the 2012 elections" that they sought to replicate Brock's efforts.[35]In describing Brock's intentions for the super-PAC, The New York Times referred to Brock as a "prominent Democratic political operative"[1][37] and New York Magazine referred to Brock's "hyperpartisanship."[38]
The group, whose donors include George Soros, has more than 80 staffers.[29] It has researchers based in Washington, D.C., plus “a national network of professional trackers” who follow the moves and statements of every conceivable contender for the Republican nomination.[6] The Nation has described American Bridge as “the natural next step” after MMA, explaining that “Brock took the Media Matters method—which involves monitoring virtually every word uttered by the right-wing media—and transferred it to the realm of Republican politicians.”[6] Democratic operative Paul Begala told The Nation that in 2012 American Bridge “produced for us a 950-page book of every business deal of Mitt Romney’s career. We spent something like $65 million [in the 2012 election], and I believe every single ad was in some ways informed by Brock’s research.”[6]
In a 2011 interview with Politico, Brock vowed to wage "guerrilla warfare" and engage in “sabotage” against Fox News.
Correct the Record[edit]
In late 2013 Brock founded Correct the Record, described by the New York Times as Hillary Clinton's “own personal media watchdog”, keeping track of all negative news surrounding her.[27] Brock had first come up with the idea for the group that summer. “Having left the State Department,” he said, “Clinton didn't have the kind of robust operation that one would have if one was holding public office. That's where I saw the need.” The organization, whose staff “is crammed into a newsroom-style bullpen in the back corner of the offices of American Bridge 21st Century,” “keeps constant watch for any conceivable attacks against her, and then aggressively beats them back before they take hold.”[39]In September 2015, Brock and Correct the Record produced a piece on Bernie Sanders, linking him to Hugo Chavez and far-left British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn. The Huffington Post ran an article about the attack. The result was a huge increase in contributions to the Sanders campaign.[4]
Priorities USA Action[edit]
Main article: Priorities USA Action
In early 2014, Brock was named to the board of Priorities USA Action as the super PAC also announced its support for a possible Hillary Clinton presidential run in 2016.[40] In February 2015, Brock abruptly resigned his position with the super PAC.[41] In his resignation letter, he accused Priorities officials of conducting “an orchestrated political hit job” against MMA and American Bridge. The New York Times had run an article questioning his groups' fundraising practices, and he charged that “current and former Priorities officials were behind this specious and malicious attack on the integrity of these critical organizations.”[7][42][43] His resignation “set off panic among influential Democrats,” because his other groups' research “provides the foundation for the multimillion-dollar advertising campaigns created with Priorities cash” and because “key Priorities donors have long-standing personal ties with him.” Brock was persuaded to return to Priorities later in 2015.[35]
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