The Washington Free Beacon Explained

The Washington Free Beacon
Type:Online news site
Format:Website
Chiefeditor:Eliana Johnson
Maneditor:Sonny Bunch, Victorino Matus, Stephanie Wang
Foundation:2012
Political:Conservative
Language:English
Headquarters:Washington, D.C.

The Washington Free Beacon is an American conservative political journalism website launched in 2012.[1] [2]

Overview

The Free Beacon was founded by Michael Goldfarb, Aaron Harrison, and Matthew Continetti. It launched on February 7, 2012, as a project of the Center for American Freedom, a conservative advocacy group modeled on the liberal Center for American Progress.[3] The website is financially backed by Paul Singer, an American billionaire hedge fund manager and Republican donor.[4]

The site is known for its conservative reporting, with the intention of publicizing stories and influencing the coverage of the mainstream media, and modeled after liberal counterparts in the media such as Think Progress and Talking Points Memo.[5] [6] The site has roots in the neoconservative wing of the Republican Party.[7]

In 2019, Politico journalist Eliana Johnson, described by Ben Smith as "a leading political reporter" assumed the editor-in-chief position from the WFB's founding editor Matthew Continetti. At the time, the outlet had a staff of 24.

Reporting

Jack Hunter, a staff member of Senator Rand Paul's office, resigned in 2013 after a Free Beacon report detailing his past as a pro-secessionist radio shock jock known as the "Southern Avenger".[5]

The publication also broke several stories about Hillary Clinton's successful 1975 legal defense of an accused child rapist that attracted national media attention.[8]

From October 2015 to May 2016, the Washington Free Beacon hired Fusion GPS to conduct opposition research on "multiple candidates" during the 2016 presidential election, including Donald Trump. The Free Beacon stopped funding this research when Donald Trump had clinched the Republican nomination.[9] Fusion GPS would later hire former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele and produce the Steele dossier that alleged links between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin. Paul Singer, a billionaire and hedge fund manager, who is a major donor to the Free Beacon, said he was unaware of this dossier until it was published by BuzzFeed News in January 2017.[10] On October 27, 2017, the Free Beacon publicly disclosed that it had hired Fusion GPS, and stated that it "had no knowledge of or connection to the Steele dossier, did not pay for the dossier, and never had contact with, knowledge of, or provided payment for any work performed by Christopher Steele."[11]

The Free Beacon came under criticism for its reporting on Fusion GPS. Three days before it was revealed that it was the Free Beacon that had funded the work by Fusion GPS, the Free Beacon wrote that the firm's work "was funded by an unknown GOP client while the primary was still going on."[12] The Free Beacon has published pieces that have sought to portray the work by Fusion GPS as unreliable "without noting that it considered Fusion GPS reliable enough to pay for its services." In an editor's note, Continetti said "the reason for this omission is that the authors of these articles, and the particular editors who reviewed them, were unaware of this relationship," and that the outlet was reviewing its editorial process to avoid similar issues in the future.[13]

In 2022, a Free Beacon article by Patrick Hauf accused the administration of President Joe Biden of planning to use federal dollars to fund safe smoking kits that included crack pipes, as part of a harm reduction initiative;[14] this prompted outrage among Republicans in Congress, some of whom proposed a bill to ban the federal government from funding drug paraphernalia. The Washington Post later reported that, according to a United States Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson, "Hauf jumped to a conclusion that was not warranted" because, while the safe smoking kits were meant to reduce risk in smoking "any illicit substance", the agency funding the program "d[id] not specify the kits' elements, only the parameters"; thus, although such smoking kits often include crack pipes and (according to a Drug Policy Alliance spokesman interviewed for the Washington Post article) some of the groups planning to apply for the funding had assumed that its kits would also include them, it was not clear that the agency had intended to include them.[15]

Bill Gertz, a senior editor until October 2019, took 100,000 US dollars from Guo Wengui, a conspiracy theorist, without disclosure,[16] wrote stories citing him and introduced him to Steve Bannon.[17] Gertz was subsequently fired,[18] with a disclaimer appended to his affected stories.[16]

In 2023 and 2024, The New York Times credited the Free Beacon with breaking, together with Chris Rufo,[19] and subsequently expanding, reportage on the plagiarism accusations against Harvard President Claudine Gay,[20] who resigned shortly thereafter.[21] The Washington Post called Gay's resignation "a major win" for the Free Beacon, which it described as "the rare conservative media outlet that does significant reporting of its own."[22]

In May 2024, the Free Beacon reported that the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA has continued to evaluate applicants based on race rather than qualifications despite the practice of race-based affirmative action being illegal in California since 1996. According to the outlet's reporting, 50% of UCLA medical students now fail basic tests of medical competence. A former admissions staff member called UCLA a "failed medical school."[23] [24]

On July 3, 2024, the Free Beacon reported that a number of senior administrators at Columbia University had exchanged text messages demeaning members of a panel on Jewish life on campus after the 2024 Columbia University pro-Palestinian campus occupations.[25] In mid-August 2024, three deans resigned in the wake of that reporting.[26]

Reception

Jim Rutenberg of The New York Times described the reporting style of the Free Beacon as "gleeful evisceration".[27] The Atlantics Conor Friedersdorf called the Free Beacons mission "decadent and unethical".[28]

Ben Howe wrote in The Daily Beast that The Washington Free Beacon established "itself as a credible source of conservative journalism with deep investigative dives and exposes on money in politics", but after Trump's election it was "producing less actual reporting" and moved "more towards the path of least resistance: spending their time criticizing the left and the media, along with healthy doses of opinion writing".[29] McKay Coppins in the Columbia Journalism Review wrote in September 2018 that while the website contains "a fair amount of trolling… it has also earned a reputation for real-deal journalism… If a partisan press really is the future, we could do worse than the Free Beacon".[30]

Jeet Heer wrote in The New Republic: "Much of the conservative press is terrible but the Free Beacon is far superior to propagandist fare like The Daily Caller. Unlike other comparable conservative websites, the Free Beacon makes an effort to do original reporting. Its commitment to journalism should be welcomed by liberals".[31] In 2015, Mother Jones wrote positively of the Free Beacon, commenting that it is far better than contemporary conservative outlets such as The Daily Caller.[32] Mother Jones however said that "the Beacon hasn't always steered clear of stories that please the base but don't really stand up", and that it tends towards inflammatory pieces that "push conservatives' buttons". That same year, the Washingtonian wrote that "The Beacons emphasis on newsgathering sets it apart among right-facing publications".[33]

Ben Smith wrote in BuzzFeed News that the Free Beacon was "[a]lternately parodic and wire-service serious", and had "broken major political news, mostly negative" (although its focus was mainly directed against Democrats). Smith continued that the Free Beacons hard news reporting differentiated it from other conservative outlets which were either opinion focused or did not produce journalism which met mainstream standards.[34]

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: Vogel . Kenneth P. . Haberman . Maggie . Conservative Website First Funded Anti-Trump Research by Firm That Later Produced Dossier (Published 2017) . 9 October 2020 . The New York Times . 27 October 2017.
  2. News: Lima . Cristiano . Conservative Free Beacon originally funded firm that created Trump-Russia dossier . 9 October 2020 . POLITICO . October 27, 2017 . en.
  3. News: How to fight liberals: Imitate them . Ben . Smith . Politico . 5 January 2012 . 8 September 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141107203605/http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0112/71099.html . November 7, 2014 . live .
  4. News: Deceased G.O.P. Strategist's Hard Drives Reveal New Details on the Census Citizenship Question. Wines. Michael. 2019-05-30. The New York Times. 2019-05-30. en-US. 0362-4331. https://web.archive.org/web/20190530134725/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/30/us/census-citizenship-question-hofeller.html. May 30, 2019. live.
  5. News: The Hillary Show . Ken . Auletta . The New Yorker . 2 June 2014 . 8 September 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140913043447/http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/06/02/the-hillary-show . September 13, 2014 . live .
  6. Web site: The Worst Mission Statement in the History of D.C. Journalism. Friedersdorf. Conor. 8 February 2012. The Atlantic. theatlantic.com. en-US. 2016-05-29. https://web.archive.org/web/20170320232832/https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/02/the-worst-mission-statement-in-the-history-of-dc-journalism/252744/. March 20, 2017. live.
  7. Web site: Smith . Ben . 2019-09-14 . A Top White House Reporter Is Taking Over The Washington Free Beacon . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20191224211652/https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/bensmith/eliana-johnson-free-beacon . December 24, 2019 . 2019-12-24 . BuzzFeed News . en.
  8. News: Hillary Clinton's Handling of 1975 Rape Case Emerges Again . Liz . Kreutz . ABC News . 20 June 2014 . 8 September 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140912204106/https://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2014/06/hillary-clinton-dogged-by-1975-rape-case/ . September 12, 2014 . live .
  9. News: Conservative Website First Funded Anti-Trump Research by Firm That Later Produced Dossier. Vogel. Kenneth P.. 2017-10-27. The New York Times. 2017-10-28. Haberman. Maggie. en-US. 0362-4331. https://web.archive.org/web/20171027231005/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/27/us/politics/trump-dossier-paul-singer.html. October 27, 2017. live.
  10. News: Conservative Website First Funded Anti-Trump Research by Firm That Later Produced Dossier . Kenneth P. . Vogel . Maggie . Haberman . October 27, 2017 . October 27, 2017 . . https://web.archive.org/web/20171027231005/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/27/us/politics/trump-dossier-paul-singer.html . October 27, 2017 . live .
  11. News: Fusion GPS and the Washington Free Beacon . Matthew . Continetti . Michael . Goldfarb . Washington Free Beacon . 27 October 2017 . 27 October 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171027231142/http://freebeacon.com/uncategorized/fusion-gps-washington-free-beacon/ . October 27, 2017 . live .
  12. News: Analysis Washington Free Beacon reported 'an unknown GOP client' funded Fusion GPS. It was the Beacon.. Borchers. Callum. 2017-10-27. The Washington Post. 2017-10-28. en-US. 0190-8286. https://web.archive.org/web/20171028180311/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/10/27/the-washington-free-beacon-reported-an-unknown-gop-client-funded-fusion-gps-it-was-the-washington-free-beacon/. October 28, 2017. live.
  13. News: Editor's Note . Continetti . Matthew . Washington Free Beacon . 30 October 2017 . 16 November 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171117002847/http://freebeacon.com/uncategorized/editors-note/ . November 17, 2017 . live .
  14. Web site: Biden Administration To Fund Crack Pipe Distribution To Advance 'Racial Equity' . https://web.archive.org/web/20220513195221/https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/biden-admin-to-fund-crack-pipe-distribution-to-advance-racial-equity/ . 2022-05-13 . 2022-05-14 . Patrick . Hauf . Washington Free Beacon . 2022-02-07 .
  15. News: Viral article that unleashed 'crack pipe' firestorm relied on assumptions. Kessler. Glenn. The Washington Post. February 11, 2022. May 14, 2022. https://archive.today/20220513014454/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/02/11/viral-article-that-unleashed-crack-pipe-firestorm-relied-assumptions/. 2022-05-13.
  16. Web site: Staff . Washington Free Beacon . 2019-10-11 . A Note to Our Readers on the Departure of Bill Gertz . 2023-10-09 . Washington Free Beacon . en-US.
  17. Osnos . Evan . 2022-10-17 . How a Tycoon Linked to Chinese Intelligence Became a Darling of Trump Republicans . en-US . The New Yorker . 2023-10-09 . 0028-792X.
  18. Web site: Gray . Rosie . 2019-10-12 . The Free Beacon Fired A Top Reporter For A "Financial Transaction" With Someone He Frequently Covered . 2023-10-09 . BuzzFeed News . en.
  19. News: Nicholas Confessore . How a Proxy Fight Over Campus Politics Brought Down Harvard's President . 3 January 2024 . . 2 Jan 2024 . began almost immediately after the hearing with a post by Mr. Rufo, who had obtained an anonymous dossier of work published by Dr. Gay in which she had allegedly plagiarized other scholars, as well as a report in the Washington Free Beacon.
  20. News: Jennifer Schuessler . Harvard Finds More Instances of 'Duplicative Language' in President's Work . 3 January 2024 . . 20 December 2023 . Additional allegations continued to surface in conservative outlets like The Washington Free Beacon.
  21. News: Jennifer Schuessler . Anemona Hartocollis . Michael Levenson . Alan Blinder . Harvard President Resigns After Mounting Plagiarism Accusations . 3 January 2024 . . 2 January 2024 . Dr. Gay's resignation came after the latest plagiarism accusations against her were circulated in an unsigned complaint published on Monday in The Washington Free Beacon.
  22. News: Sommer . Will . Harvard resignation is a win for conservative Washington Free Beacon . 5 March 2024 . Washington Post . 4 January 2024.
  23. News: Gligich . Daniel . Report: UCLA engaging in illegal, race-based admissions process for med school . 24 May 2024 . The San Joaquin Valley Sun . 23 May 2024.
  24. News: Leef . George . What DEI Does to a Medical School . 24 May 2024 . National Review . 23 May 2024.
  25. News: Sibarium . Aaron . 3 July 2024 . Columbia Officials Admit Protest Rules 'Don't Work,' Mock Other Administrators in New Texts . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240708152940/https://freebeacon.com/campus/columbia-officials-admit-protest-rules-dont-work-mock-other-administrators-in-new-texts/ . 8 July 2024 . 9 August 2024 . The Washington Free Beacon.
  26. News: Douglas-Gabriel . Danielle . 8 August 2024 . Columbia deans involved in texts evoking ‘antisemitic tropes’ resign . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240809142150/https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2024/08/08/columbia-deans-involved-texts-evoking-antisemitic-tropes-resign/ . 9 August 2024 . 9 August 2024 . The Washington Post.
  27. News: A Conservative Provocateur, Using a Blowtorch as His Pen . Jim . Rutenberg . The New York Times . 23 February 2014 . 8 September 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170312154117/http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/24/us/politics/michael-goldfarb-gleeful-provocateur-at-intersection-of-many-worlds.html . March 12, 2017 . live .
  28. News: The ascendant 'smear wing' of the conservative movement . Conor . Friedersdorf . The Atlantic . 8 January 2014 . March 11, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170731154109/https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/01/the-ascendant-smear-wing-of-the-conservative-movement/266903/ . July 31, 2017 . live .
  29. News: Howe . Ben . 11 May 2018 . Dear Conservative Media: Do Some More Damn Reporting . The Daily Beast . 19 September 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180920055509/https://www.thedailybeast.com/dear-conservative-media-do-some-more-damn-reporting . September 20, 2018 . live .
  30. News: Coppins . McKay . 19 September 2018 . What if the right-wing media wins? . Columbia Journalism Review . 19 September 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180920084003/https://www.cjr.org/special_report/right-wing-media-breitbart-fox-bannon-carlson-hannity-coulter-trump.php/ . September 20, 2018 . live .
  31. Heer . Jeet . 2017 . Democrats like Jon Ossoff should welcome the Washington Free Beacon. . The New Republic . 20 September 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180921153050/https://newrepublic.com/minutes/143419/democrats-like-jon-ossoff-welcome-washington-free-beacon . September 21, 2018 . live .
  32. Baumann . Nick . March–April 2015 . The Washington Free Beacon Is Unapologetically Conservative. It's Also Kind of Good. . Mother Jones . 20 September 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180921153104/https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/03/washington-free-beacon-conservative-investigative-media/ . September 21, 2018 . live .
  33. Beaujon . Andrew . 6 August 2015 . The Problem with the Mainstream Media: It's Not More Like The Washington Free Beacon . Washingtonian . 20 September 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160624163825/https://www.washingtonian.com/2015/08/06/the-problem-with-the-mainstream-media-its-not-more-like-the-washington-free-beacon/ . June 24, 2016 . live .
  34. Web site: A Top White House Reporter Is Taking Over The Washington Free Beacon . 2021-05-18. . September 4, 2019 . en.

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