Lauren Chen

Last updated

Lauren Chen
Lauren Chen (52588551360) (cropped).jpg
Chen in 2022
Personal information
Born
Lauren Yu Sum Tam
NationalityCanadian
SpouseLiam Donovan
Children1 [1]
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2016–2024
Subscribers572 thousand [2]
(September 2024)
Total views100,717,306 [2]
(September 2024)
Channel is now suspended

Lauren Chen (born Lauren Yu Sum Tam) is a Hong Kong-Canadian conservative [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] political commentator and former YouTube personality. She has been involved with Glenn Beck's BlazeTV and Turning Point USA and has contributed opinion pieces to RT, a Russian state media outlet. [8] [9] Her husband, Liam Donovan, was president of the now-defunct Tenet Media, a company they co-founded.

Contents

Early life and education

Lauren Yu Sum Tam [4] was born in Quebec, Canada, [6] and spent much of her childhood in Hong Kong. She has lived in Shanghai, Singapore, and London. Chen attended the University of Southern California and Brigham Young University, where she studied political science and screenwriting. [10]

Career

Chen began her online career in 2016, using the moniker "Roaming Millennial" on YouTube. Her videos focused on various political and social issues from a conservative viewpoint, including critiques of immigration, LGBTQ+ rights and feminism. These views helped her gain a significant following among conservative audiences. [11] [4] [10]

Throughout her rise in the conservative media sphere, Chen's platform facilitated connections with both mainstream conservative figures and more controversial individuals. In 2017, she interviewed Richard Spencer, a white supremacist and prominent figure in the alt-right movement, though she publicly distanced herself from his white nationalist views. By positioning herself as a more moderate voice while engaging with controversial figures, she became a bridge between mainstream conservatism and the far-right online ecosystem. [10]

By 2019, Chen had accumulated over 400,000 subscribers on her (now-suspended) YouTube channel and continued to expand her presence. She became a contributor to CRTV, which later merged with Glenn Beck's TheBlaze, where she hosted her own show, Pseudo-Intellectual. [12] [13] [14] She contributed to Turning Point USA, [15] [16] an American conservative nonprofit organization. [17]

In 2021, she began contributing op-eds to RT, a Russian state media outlet, publishing articles with headlines such as "America’s 'white supremacy' is a myth" and "If you’re American and oppose war with Russia, expect to be smeared as unpatriotic." According to a federal indictment, Chen, identified as "Founder-1," was allegedly compensated by RT to create and publish over two hundred videos on her personal YouTube channel without disclosing the source of funding. [10]

Tenet Media and alleged Russian connections

On January 19, 2022, [18] Chen co-founded Tenet Media with her husband, Liam Donovan. [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] In January 2023, Chen allegedly received a contract from RT to recruit other commentators for Tenet Media as part of the former's efforts to influence U.S. public opinion. Chen recruited conservative or conservative-adjacent commentators Matt Christiansen, Tayler Hansen, Benny Johnson, Tim Pool, Dave Rubin, and Lauren Southern to be a part of the Tenet Media network. [23] Despite her role at Tenet, her name did not appear on the company’s website, nor did she publicly associate her title with the organization on social media. [10]

During this period, Chen made public statements that aligned her with fringe and extremist voices. She expressed support for white supremacist streamer Nick Fuentes's anti-Israel stance on the Israel–Hamas war and criticized U.S. support for Ukraine. For instance, she suggested that former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley should "move to Ukraine and run for its presidency." These positions contributed to a decline in support from some of her previous mainstream conservative audience. [10] [24]

United States federal indictment

A federal indictment unsealed in September 2024 accused Tenet Media of receiving funding and direction from a covert operation funded by Russia to disseminate pro-Russian propaganda within the United States. [25] [26] [27] The indictment, filed in the Southern District of New York, alleged that Russian state-controlled media company RT funneled nearly $10 million to Tenet Media to create and distribute content favorable to Russian interests, aimed at amplifying U.S. domestic divisions. The indictment specifically named Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, employees of RT, as the main operatives behind the funding. [28] [23]

The Justice Department said that Tenet Media, referred to as "US Company 1" in the indictment, produced numerous videos that supported Russia's geopolitical aims and received significant views on platforms such as YouTube, Twitter, and TikTok. These activities were part of broader Russian efforts to influence U.S. public opinion ahead of the 2024 elections. [11] Although the indictment suggested that not all individuals affiliated with Tenet were aware of the source of funding, it highlighted that founders, including Chen, were cognizant of their financial backers and actively concealed this information. [23]

The indictment was revealing: "The unsealed indictment said the founders of the unidentified company — widely reported to be Tenet Media — knew their funding came from 'the Russians.'" [29] It alleges the Tenet founders masked their Russian funding by creating a fictitious persona of a wealthy European sponsor, "Eduard Grigoriann." [9] The charged Russian nationals, Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, were involved in day-to-day operations of Tenet by fall 2023, using false names to conceal they were Russian RT employees. The indictment alleges the founders acknowledged in private communications that their "investors" were actually the "Russians." [18] [11]

Attorney general Merrick Garland said Tenet "never disclosed to the influencers or to their millions of followers its ties to RT and the Russian government." [30] Prosecutors also allege the $10 million was a Russian money laundering operation. [11]

Canadian government reaction

On September 10, five Canadian members of parliament issued a letter calling for Chen to testify before a Canadian parliamentary committee. [31]

After being summoned, Chen appeared with counsel during the hearing on November 5, 2024, and refused to answer any questions, citing the American criminal investigation. This prompted the committee, comprising MPs from all parties, to unanimously vote to send the matter to the House of Commons as a potential contempt of parliament case. [32]

Response and public statements

Following the indictment's public release, Tenet Media and the involved commentators, including Chen, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. As of September 6, two days after the indictment was revealed publicly, Chen had not posted on social media since the indictment. [33]

In response to the indictment, BlazeTV officially fired her. [34] [35] Her Turning Point USA profile was also removed. [33] Her channels, as well as that of Tenet Media, were taken down by YouTube. [36] [37] Tenet Media has since been shuttered. [38]

See also

Related Research Articles

CounterPunch is a left-wing online magazine. Content includes a free section published five days a week as well as a subscriber-only area called CounterPunch+, where original articles are published weekly. CounterPunch is based in the United States and covers politics in a manner its editors describe as "muckraking with a radical attitude".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conservative Political Action Conference</span> Annual meeting in the US and other countries

The Conservative Political Action Conference is an annual political conference attended by conservative activists and elected officials from across the United States. CPAC is hosted by the American Conservative Union (ACU). The first CPAC took place in 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RT (TV network)</span> Russian state-controlled international television network

RT, formerly Russia Today, is a Russian state-controlled international news television network funded by the Russian government. It operates pay television and free-to-air channels directed to audiences outside of Russia, as well as providing Internet content in Russian, English, Spanish, French, German, Arabic, Portuguese and Serbian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave Rubin</span> American political commentator (born 1976)

David Joshua Rubin is an American libertarian-conservative political commentator. He is the creator and host of The Rubin Report, a political talk show on YouTube and on the network BlazeTV. Launched in 2013, his show was originally part of TYT Network, until he left in 2015, in part due to widening ideological differences. Previously, Rubin, who is gay, hosted LGBT-themed talk shows, including The Ben and Dave Show from 2007 to 2008 and The Six Pack from 2009 to 2012, both of which he co-hosted with Ben Harvey. Rubin has written two books.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungary–Russia relations</span> Bilateral relations

Hungary–Russia relations are the bilateral foreign relations between the two countries, Hungary and Russia. Hungary has an embassy in Moscow and two consulate-generals. Russia has an embassy in Budapest and a consulate-general in Debrecen. Both countries are full members of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RT America</span> Part of the RT TV network that folded in 2022

RT America was a U.S.-based news channel headquartered in Washington, D.C. Owned by TV Novosti and operated by production company T&R Productions, it was a part of the RT network, a global multilingual television news network based in Moscow and funded by the Russian government. The channel said it reached an audience of 85 million people in the United States, but this figure is disputed. It was distributed through select cable providers, over-the-top services, a live stream through its website, and three low-power digital subchannels. Since the channel's closure, viewers who tune into the cable channel or their live stream are being shown a live feed of an RT International broadcast instead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tim Pool</span> American right-wing political commentator (born 1986)

Timothy Daniel Pool is an American right-wing political commentator and podcast host. He first became known for live streaming the 2011 Occupy Wall Street protests. He joined Vice Media and Fusion TV in 2014, later working on YouTube and other platforms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abby Martin</span> American citizen journalist

Abigail Suzanne Martin is an American journalist, TV presenter, and activist. She helped found the citizen journalism website Media Roots and serves on the board of directors for the Media Freedom Foundation which manages Project Censored. Martin appeared in the documentary film Project Censored The Movie: Ending the Reign of Junk Food News (2013), and co-directed 99%: The Occupy Wall Street Collaborative Film (2013).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lauren Southern</span> Canadian alt-right political activist (born 1995)

Lauren Cherie Southern is a Canadian alt-right YouTuber, political activist and commentator. In 2015, she ran as a Libertarian Party candidate in the Canadian federal election, finishing last in her riding with 535 votes, or 0.9% of the total. Southern worked for Rebel Media until March 2017, when she began to work independently.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benny Johnson (columnist)</span> American political columnist (born 1987)

Benny Johnson is an American conservative political commentator and YouTuber.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Candace Owens</span> American conservative political commentator (born 1989)

Candace Amber Owens Farmer is an American political commentator and pundit. She is mostly described as conservative or far-right.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maria Butina</span> Russian activist and convicted spy (born 1988)

Maria Valerievna Butina is a Russian politician, political activist, journalist, and former entrepreneur who was convicted in 2018 of acting as an unregistered foreign agent of Russia within the United States.

YouTube may suspend accounts, temporarily or permanently, from their social networking service. Suspensions of high-profile individuals from YouTube are unusual and when they occur, often attract attention in the media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lauren Boebert</span> American politician (born 1986)

Lauren Opal Boebert is an American politician, businesswoman, and gun rights activist serving as the U.S. representative for Colorado's 3rd congressional district since 2021. From 2013 to 2022, she owned Shooters Grill, a restaurant in Rifle, Colorado, where staff members were encouraged to carry firearms openly.

Rumble is an online video platform, web hosting, and cloud services business headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, with its U.S. headquarters in Longboat Key, Florida. It was founded in 2013 by Chris Pavlovski, a Macedonian Canadian technology entrepreneur. Rumble's cloud services business hosts Truth Social, and the video platform is popular among American conservative and far-right users. Rumble has been described as "alt-tech".

Lauren Elena Witzke is an American far-right political activist known for her anti-LGBT views and promotion of QAnon. Witzke was the Republican nominee in the 2020 United States Senate election in Delaware, which she lost to incumbent Democrat Chris Coons. She is a former TV show host for TruNews.

Russian disinformation campaigns have occurred in many countries. For example, disinformation campaigns led by Yevgeny Prigozhin have been reported in several African countries. Russia, however, denies that it uses disinformation to influence public opinion.

The Russian government has interfered in the 2024 United States elections through disinformation and propaganda campaigns aimed at damaging Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and other Democrats while boosting the candidacy of Donald Trump and other candidates who support isolationism and undercutting support for Ukraine aid and NATO. Russia's efforts represent the most active threat of foreign interference in the 2024 United States elections and follows Russia's previous pattern of spreading disinformation through fake social media accounts and right-wing YouTube channels in order to divide American society and foster anti-Americanism. On September 4, 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice indicted members of Tenet Media for having received $9.7 million as part of a covert Russian influence operation to co-opt American right-wing influencers to espouse pro-Russian content and conspiracy theories. Many of the followers of the related influencers were encouraged to steal ballots, intimidate voters, and remove or destroy ballot drop offs in the weeks leading up to the election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 Tenet Media investigation</span> American far-right media company

Tenet Media was an American right-wing media company founded by conservatives Lauren Chen and Liam Donovan in 2022. Describing itself as a "network of heterodox commentators that focus on western political and cultural issues", Tenet Media featured six right-wing influencers: Matt Christiansen, Tayler Hansen, Benny Johnson, Tim Pool, Dave Rubin, and Lauren Southern.

Disinformation is "false information that is purposely spread to deceive people". Misinformation is information that is false or misleading, that contradicts consensus by experts in the field or by the "best available evidence".

References

  1. ↑ Lauren, Chen [@TheLaurenChen] (April 19, 2022). "Last week had some unexpected turns! But now we're going home with little Riley 🥰" (Tweet). Retrieved September 8, 2024– via Twitter.
  2. 1 2 "About YouTube channel". YouTube.
  3. ↑ Bonn, Tess (July 11, 2019). "Conservative commentator: US women's soccer team pay should be proportionate to earnings 'if everything else is equal'". The Hill. Archived from the original on September 8, 2024. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 Roush, Ty. "Who Is Lauren Chen? What To Know About The Influencer Behind Alleged Russia-Funded Outlet". Forbes. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  5. ↑ "How a Canadian influencer targeted this Florida bar for its drag shows". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on September 8, 2024. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  6. 1 2 Cherry, Paul (September 6, 2024). "Quebec-born commentator and her husband alleged to have helped Russia spread misinformation". Montreal Gazette. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  7. ↑ "Canadian tied to alleged Russian influencer op received thousands in fees: U.S." Toronto Sun. September 6, 2024. Archived from the original on September 8, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  8. ↑ Reilly, Ryan J.; Rubin, Lisa; Zadrozny, Brandy; Ingram, David (September 5, 2024). "Russian money was funneled to right-wing creators through a pro-Trump media outlet: prosecutors". NBC News. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  9. 1 2 Bond, Shannon; Joffe-Block, Jude; Thompson, Caitlin (September 5, 2024). "How Russian operatives covertly hired U.S. influencers to create viral videos". National Public Radio. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Before she allegedly became a Russian asset, Lauren Chen was the darling of conservative YouTube". NBC News. September 11, 2024. Retrieved September 11, 2024.
  11. 1 2 3 4 Nakamura, David; Belton, Catherine; Sommer, Will (September 4, 2024). "Justice Dept. charges two Russian media operatives in alleged scheme". The Washington Post.
  12. ↑ Suderman, Alan; Swenson, Ali (September 5, 2024). "Right-wing influencers were duped to work for covert Russian influence operation, US says". AP News . Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  13. ↑ Murray, Conor (July 21, 2023). "'Barbie' Largely Praised For Feminist Themes—But Draws Anger From The Anti-Woke". Forbes. Archived from the original on July 24, 2023. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  14. ↑ Stanton, Andrew (May 2, 2024). "Republicans voting for bill that could make "Bible illegal" outrages MAGA". Newsweek. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  15. ↑ Jones, Ja'han (October 18, 2023). "Right-wingers start to turn on this pro-Trump propaganda group". MSNBC . Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  16. ↑ Eckstein, Griffin (September 4, 2024). "Right-wing media group allegedly took $10 million in Russian financing: DOJ indictment". Salon. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  17. ↑ Pearce, Georgia (July 17, 2024). "'They STILL blame the right!' Lauren Chen blasts MSM's 'very violent rhetoric' after Trump assassination attempt". GB News . Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024– via MSN.
  18. 1 2 3 Becket, Stefan; Quinn, Melissa (September 5, 2024). "U.S. says Russia funded media company that paid right-wing influencers millions for videos". CBS News. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  19. ↑ "Right-Wing Influencers Were Duped to Work for Covert Russian Influence Operation, US Says". US News And World Report. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  20. ↑ Schmunk, Rhianna (September 4, 2024). "U.S. accuses Russia of using unwitting influencers, fake news sites to sway presidential election". CBC. Archived from the original on September 5, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  21. ↑ Kovensky, Josh (September 4, 2024). "Is This Right-Wing Media Platform the Product of a $10 Million Russian Plot?". Talking Points Memo . Archived from the original on September 5, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  22. ↑ Sommer, Will (September 6, 2024). "Inside Tenet Media, the pro-Trump 'supergroup' allegedly funded by Russia". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  23. 1 2 3 Couts, Andrew (September 4, 2024). "Right-Wing Influencer Network Tenet Media Allegedly Spread Russian Disinformation". Wired. ISSN   1059-1028. Archived from the original on September 5, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  24. ↑ Talcott, Shelby; Weigel, David (October 17, 2023). "Conservative influencers battle over Israel, 'America First,' and antisemitism after Hamas attack". Semafor . Archived from the original on May 29, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  25. ↑ "Well-known right-wing influencers duped to work for covert Russian operation, U.S. prosecutors say". PBS News. September 5, 2024. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  26. ↑ "Dave Rubin, Benny Johnson, Tim Pool Exposed as Working For Alleged Russian Influence Operation in New DOJ Indictment". Mediaite. September 4, 2024. Archived from the original on September 4, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  27. ↑ "Tenet Media: All about 'Russia-funded' US media company linked to right-wing influencers - CNBC TV18". CNBCTV18. September 5, 2024. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  28. ↑ Merlan, Anna (September 4, 2024). "Federal prosecutors charge a conservative media company took millions in Kremlin cash". Mother Jones. Archived from the original on September 5, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  29. ↑ Dyer, Evan (September 11, 2024). "Washington's indictment shines a bright light on the dark corners of Russian disinformation operations". CBC.ca . Retrieved September 12, 2024.
  30. ↑ McCausland, Phil (September 5, 2024). "Right-wing US influencers say they were victims of alleged Russian plot". BBC. Archived from the original on September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  31. ↑ Major, Darren (September 10, 2024). "Liberal MPs call for probe into Canadian connections to alleged Russian propaganda scheme". CBC. Archived from the original on September 12, 2024. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
  32. ↑ Tunney, Catharine (November 5, 2024). "Canadian linked to Russian influence campaign refuses to answer MPs' questions". CBC News . Retrieved November 5, 2024.
  33. 1 2 Montpetit, Jonathan; Wong, Aloysius (September 6, 2024). "Meet the right-wing Canadian influencers accused of collaborating with an alleged Russian propaganda scheme". CBC News . Archived from the original on September 7, 2024. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  34. ↑ Smith, Ben (September 5, 2024). "Blaze fires contributor linked to alleged Russian operation". Semafor. Archived from the original on September 5, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  35. ↑ Korach, Natalie (September 5, 2024). "Blaze Fires YouTube Contributor Linked to Alleged Russian Influence Campaign". TheWrap. Archived from the original on September 5, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  36. ↑ Vynck, Gerrit De (September 6, 2024). "YouTube takes down right-wing channels linked to DOJ Russia indictments". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  37. ↑ "YouTube terminating Tenet Media channel after US indictment". Reuters.
  38. ↑ Merlan, Anna. "Tenet Media shutters after being accused of taking $10 million in covert Kremlin funding". Mother Jones. Archived from the original on September 7, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
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.