Joseph Farah

Last updated

Joseph Farah
Joseph Farah cropped.jpg
Farah in 2013
BornJoseph Francis Farah
(1954-07-06) July 6, 1954 (age 69)
Paterson, New Jersey, U.S.
OccupationJournalist, author
Alma mater William Paterson University (BA)
Notable awardsThe Washington Times Foundation National Service Award (1996)
SpouseJudy Smagula (divorced)
Elizabeth Graham
Children5, including Alyssa

Joseph Francis Farah (born July 6, 1954) is an American author, journalist, and editor-in-chief of the right-wing website WorldNetDaily (WND). [1] [2] [3] Farah gained prominence for promoting conspiracy theories surrounding the suicide of Vince Foster [4] [5] and is a proponent of birtherism, a debunked conspiracy theory that Barack Obama is not a natural-born citizen of the United States. [6] [7] [8]

Contents

Early years

Farah was born in Paterson, New Jersey, on July 6, 1954, to parents of Syrian and Lebanese ancestry. [9] His father was a schoolteacher. [9] He graduated from William Paterson University, in Wayne, New Jersey with a B.A. in Communications. [9]

Career

Farah worked for six years as executive news editor at the Los Angeles Herald Examiner until the paper shuttered in 1989. [10] [4]

On July 22, 1990, Farah became editor of The Sacramento Union . The paper had been losing up to $3 million annually, and in early 1990 it was purchased from Richard Mellon Scaife by Daniel Benvenuti Jr. and David Kassis. [11] Farah and the paper's owners envisioned the paper as a conservative alternative to The Sacramento Bee . [12] "We just thought the way to go was to be unabashedly conservative in our approach," explained Farah to The Washington Post . [12] Among other things, Farah convinced Rush Limbaugh to write a daily column, which ran on "Page 1." [10] Farah prohibited advertisement for films rated NC-17 in the newspaper. [4]

In 1991, Farah left the Union and co-founded the Western Journalism Center. [13] He writes a weekly print column for The Jerusalem Post which is nationally syndicated through Creators Syndicate. [14]

He launched the online WorldNetDaily in 1997. [15] The website has been categorized as far-right and is known for publishing unreliable or fringe material. [16] [17] [18] [19]

In April 2019, WorldNetDaily announced that Farah had suffered a stroke and would withdraw from the website's day-to-day operations until he recovers. [4]

Promotion of conspiracy theories

Farah gained prominence for promoting conspiracy theories surrounding the suicide of Vince Foster. [4] [5]

Farah is a proponent of birtherism, the conspiracy theory related to Barack Obama's status as a natural-born citizen of the United States and resultant eligibility to serve as U.S. president, [6] [7] stating, "It'll plague Obama throughout his presidency. It'll be a nagging issue and a sore on his administration, much like Monica Lewinsky was on Bill Clinton's presidency" and "It's not going to go away, and it will drive a wedge in an already divided public." [20] Despite the release of Obama's notarized birth certificate abstract, [21] he continued to promote birtherism. [8]

Personal life

He is married to Elizabeth Graham and is a conservative evangelical Christian. [9] He has five children, including a daughter from a previous marriage to Judy Smagula, Alyssa Farah Griffin, who served as the Press Secretary for Vice President Mike Pence and later served as Deputy Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Media Affairs and Press Secretary for the Department of Defense. [22] [9]

Books

Related Research Articles

<i>The Washington Times</i> American broadsheet newspaper published in Washington, D.C.

The Washington Times is an American conservative daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It covers general interest topics with a particular emphasis on national politics. Its broadsheet daily edition is distributed throughout Washington, D.C., and in parts of suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia. A weekly tabloid edition aimed at a national audience is also published. The Washington Times was one of the first American broadsheets to publish its front page in full color.

"Vast right-wing conspiracy" is a phrase popularized by a 1995 memo by political opposition researcher Chris Lehane and then referenced in 1998 by the then First Lady of the United States Hillary Rodham Clinton, in defense of her husband, President Bill Clinton, characterizing the continued allegations of scandal against her and her husband, including the Lewinsky scandal, as part of a conspiracy by Clinton's political enemies. The term has been used since, including in a question posed to Bill Clinton in 2009 to describe verbal attacks on Barack Obama during his early presidency. Hillary Clinton mentioned it again during her 2016 presidential campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Media Matters for America</span> Researches and contests conservative misinformation

Media Matters for America (MMfA) is a left-leaning 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and media watchdog group. It was founded in 2004 by journalist and political activist David Brock as a counterweight to the conservative Media Research Center. It seeks to combat conservative misinformation and disinformation. Two notable initiatives include the "Drop Fox" campaign (2011-2013) that sought to discredit Fox News' 'fair and balanced' claims; and a 2023 report about X that highlighted antisemitism on the platform. In addition to reports, the organization issues quick responses to conservative misinformation across a range of media outlets.

WND is an American far-right news website. It is known for promoting fake news and conspiracy theories, including the false claim that former President Barack Obama was born outside the United States.

<i>The Sacramento Union</i> Former daily newspaper in California

The Sacramento Union was a daily newspaper founded in 1851 in Sacramento, California. It was the oldest daily newspaper west of the Mississippi River before it closed its doors after 143 years in January 1994, no longer able to compete with The Sacramento Bee, which was founded in 1857, just six years after the Union.

The Arkansas Project was a series of investigative press reports, funded primarily by conservative businessman Richard Mellon Scaife, that focused on criticism of then-President Bill Clinton and his administration. Scaife spent nearly $2 million on the project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lionel (radio personality)</span> American radio personality

Michael William Lebron, better known as Lionel, is an American syndicated radio, television and YouTube legal and media analyst. He is known as a leading promoter of the far-right QAnon conspiracy theory.

Brian Jay Sussman is an American conservative talk radio host and former meteorologist in the San Francisco Bay Area who was most recently at San Francisco radio station KSFO.

The Western Journalism Center was founded in 1991 by Joseph Farah and James H. Smith. Based in Sacramento, California. The center produces a conservative newsletter.

<i>Breitbart News</i> American far-right news and opinion website

Breitbart News Network is an American far-right syndicated news, opinion, and commentary website founded in mid-2007 by American conservative commentator Andrew Breitbart. Its content has been described as misogynistic, xenophobic, and racist by academics and journalists. The site has published a number of conspiracy theories and intentionally misleading stories. Posts originating from the Breitbart News Facebook page are among the most widely shared political content on Facebook.

The Daily Caller is a right-wing news and opinion website based in Washington, D.C. It was founded by former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and political pundit Neil Patel in 2010. Launched as a "conservative answer to The Huffington Post", The Daily Caller quadrupled its audience and became profitable by 2012, surpassing several rival websites by 2013. In 2020, the site was described by The New York Times as having been "a pioneer in online conservative journalism". The Daily Caller is a member of the White House press pool.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerome Corsi</span> American conservative author (born 1946)

Jerome Robert Corsi is an American conspiracy theorist and author. His two New York Times best-selling books, Unfit for Command (2004) and The Obama Nation (2008), attacked Democratic presidential candidates and have been criticized by opposition.

<i>Wheres the Birth Certificate?</i> 2011 book by Jerome Corsi

Where's the Birth Certificate?: The Case That Barack Obama Is Not Eligible to Be President is a book by Jerome Corsi which promotes the false claim that then U.S. president Barack Obama was not a natural-born citizen of the United States and was thus constitutionally unqualified to hold the office. The book was released on May 17, 2011, and reached No. 6 on the New York Times list of best-selling hardcover non-fiction books. It has been publicized in politically conservative venues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Bongino</span> American political commentator

Daniel John Bongino is an American conservative political commentator, radio show host, author, and former law enforcement officer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Solomon (political commentator)</span> American media executive, political commentator, and conspiracy theorist

John F. Solomon is an American journalist who was a contributor to Fox News until late 2020. He was formerly an executive and editor-in-chief at The Washington Times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Posobiec</span> American conservative commentator and conspiracy theorist

Jack Michael Posobiec III is an American alt-right political activist, television correspondent and presenter, conspiracy theorist, and former United States Navy intelligence officer.

Frank Edward Wuco is a United States government official and former conservative talk radio host. He has served in multiple positions in the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. Wuco has been criticized for spreading conspiracy theories, including through a fictional character who supposedly is a former jihadist who now exposes aspects of Islam-inspired terrorism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alyssa Farah Griffin</span> American political strategist and television personality (born 1989)

Alyssa Farah Griffin is an American political strategist and television personality. She was the White House Director of Strategic Communications and Assistant to the President in 2020 during the presidency of Donald Trump. She is a co-host of the daytime talk show The View and also appears on CNN as a political commentator.

Paul E. Sperry is an American author, writer and conservative investigative journalist. He is currently a reporter for RealClearInvestigations.

References

  1. ↑ Black, Jane (August 28, 2001). "On the Web, Small and Focused Pays Off". Business Week. Archived from the original on October 24, 2001. Retrieved December 14, 2008.
  2. ↑ Bruno, Debra (February 21, 2016). "There's the major media. And then there's the 'other' White House press corps". The Washington Post .
  3. ↑ Massing, Michael (February 2009). "Un-American: Have you listened to the right-wing media lately?". Cjr.org.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Roig-Franzia, Manuel (April 2, 2019). "Inside the spectacular fall of the granddaddy of right-wing conspiracy sites". The Washington Post.
  5. 1 2 Holt, Jared (February 3, 2020). "Hiding in Plain Sight: The White Nationalist Who Toiled Inside a Right-Wing Media Powerhouse". Right Wing Watch . Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  6. 1 2 Martin, Jonathan (February 25, 2009). "Shelby says he has no doubts on Obama citizenship". POLITICO. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
  7. 1 2 Babington, Charles; Ramer, Holly (April 27, 2011). "In NH, Trump takes credit for Obama birth info". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
  8. 1 2 Stelter, Brian (April 27, 2011). "In Trying to Debunk a Theory, the News Media Extended Its Life". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Stephen Goode (March 4, 2003). "Putting faith in the founding fathers: WorldNetDaily.com cofounder Joseph Farah challenges all Americans to take back their country by embracing traditional values and spurning today's MTV culture". Insight magazine . p. 4. Archived from the original on October 23, 2004. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  10. 1 2 William Trombley (May 16, 1991). "Paper Chase; Media: The Sacramento Union is Trying to Attract Readers and Advertisers by Billing Itself as 'Pro-American,' 'Pro-Life,' and 'Pro-Business.'". The Los Angeles Times .
  11. ↑ Pat Guy (July 13, 1990). "New editor for 'Sacramento Union'". USA Today .
  12. 1 2 Howard Kurtz and Charles Trueheart (October 23, 1990). "At Sacramento Union, A Conservative Bent". The Washington Post .
  13. ↑ Dorothy Giobbe (September 17, 1994). "Western Journalism Center director says it's non-partisan, not pro-right wing". Editor & Publisher .
  14. ↑ "About Joseph Farah". Creators.com.
  15. ↑ Mark O'Keefe (November 24, 2002). "Conservative media flex muscles". Newark: The Star-Ledger.
  16. ↑ "WorldNetDaily". Southern Poverty Law Center . Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  17. ↑ "Shed a tear for WorldNetDaily — or maybe don't. But the downfall of a far-right site is instructive". Salon.com . April 5, 2019. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  18. ↑ Fisher, Max (September 9, 2009). "The Fringe-Fighting Pundit Who Fears Nothing". The Atlantic . Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  19. ↑ Coaston, Jane (November 28, 2018). "Jerome Corsi, the conspiracy theorist now entangled in the Mueller investigation, explained". Vox . Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  20. ↑ Tim Jones (December 8, 2008). "Court won't review Obama's eligibility to serve". Hartford Courant. Archived from the original on June 12, 2011. Retrieved March 12, 2009.
  21. ↑ "Born in the U.S.A". FactCheck.org. August 21, 2008.
  22. ↑ @PhilippeReines (August 15, 2019). "Alyssa Farah's mother Judy Farah..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.