ThinkProgress

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ThinkProgress
Web address thinkprogress.org
Commercial? No
Type of site Political blog
Available language(s) English
Content license Proprietary
Owner Center for American Progress Action Fund
Created by Judd Legum
Editor Judd Legum[1]
Launched 2004
Current status Active

ThinkProgress is a liberal American political blog that "provide[s] a forum that advances progressive ideas and policies".[2] It is an outlet of the Center for American Progress.

Sections

Since a 2011 re-design, the blog operates a number of sections, including Climate, Economy, Health, Justice, LGBT, Security, and Culture.

The Wonk Room was a blog under ThinkProgress which was published until 2011.[3]

Climate Progress was founded by climate and energy expert Joseph J. Romm, the blog discusses the limited understanding of climate science by laypeople, climate and energy technology solutions and political news related to climate change.

Contributors

The blog is edited by Judd Legum, who founded it in 2005. It was edited by Faiz Shakir from January 2007 to May 2012 when it was announced that he would leave to join Nancy Pelosi's team as Director of New Media.[4] Other contributors include:[5]

  • Ben Armbruster, National Security Editor
  • Zack Beauchamp, reporter/blogger
  • Hayes Brown, National Security reporter/blogger
  • Tara Culp-Ressler, reporter/blogger
  • Josh Dorner, Communications Director
  • Nicole Flatow, Deputy Editor of ThinkProgress Justice
  • Zack Ford, editor of ThinkProgress LGBT
  • Josh Israel, senior investigative reporter
  • Scott Keyes, senior reporter
  • Rebecca Leber, reporter/blogger
  • Ian Millhiser, editor of ThinkProgress Justice
  • Sy Mukherjee, Health reporter/blogger
  • Adam Peck, reporter/blogger
  • Aviva Shen, reporter/blogger
  • Annie-Rose Strasser, Deputy Managing Editor
  • Jeff Spross, video editor/blogger
  • Igor Volsky, Managing Editor
  • Travis Waldron, reporter/blogger

Columnists

Alyssa Rosenberg

Alyssa Rosenberg is a contributor to The Atlantic and The Washington Monthly, and writes on culture for ThinkProgress.

Funding

Politico writes that “like the conservative groups that have drawn Democratic criticism, [ThinkProgress’] parent 501(c)4 nonprofit doesn’t disclose its donors.”[6]

Controversies

Israel

A 2011 article in Politico maintained that Media Matters and the Center for American Progress were utilizing ThinkProgress to criticize the Democratic party’s staunchly pro-Israel stance in the Congress, and have sometimes also challenged President Barack Obama's alliance with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.[7]

In 2011 a Jerusalem Post columnist charged some former ThinkProgress bloggers with having anti-Israeli tendencies. Gerald Steinberg, president of the Jerusalem-based NGO Monitor, especially criticized one ThinkProgress blogger's use of the term “Israel firsters” on his personal Twitter account.[8]

Islamophobia report

Think Progress issued “Fear, Inc.,” a report on Islamophobia which was widely praised in the progressive media.[9] The report was aimed at linking small groups of donors promoting their own style of Islamophobia and how they spread this through their network of media outlets. Some critics, such as the conservative Center for Security Policy, dismissed it as an effort “to shout down criticism of political Islamist efforts to influence American foreign and domestic policy.”[10]

Chamber of Commerce Article

An article posted on ThinkProgress on October 5, 2010, authored by Lee Fang, attracted attention and some controversy. The article alleged that the United States Chamber of Commerce funded political attack campaigns from its general fund, which solicits funds from foreign sources.[11] The story was repeated by the Huffington Post and the progressive activist group MoveOn.org asked the DoJ to launch a criminal investigation of the Chamber's funding.[12]

The non-partisan fact-checking website FactCheck.org analyzed the claim that "foreign corporations are 'stealing our democracy' with secret, illegal contributions funneled through the U.S. Chamber of Commerce," noting that ThinkProgress made the initial allegations.[13] FactCheck concluded that "It’s a claim with little basis in fact."[13] Others questioned the claims made in the article as well. Eric Lichtblau of the New York Times pointed out that the article "provided no evidence that the money generated overseas had been used in United States campaigns."[14]

References

  1. ↑ Think Progress Editor Joins Nancy Pelosi's Office
  2. ↑ Somanader, Tanya. "Think Progress blog". Thinkprogress.org. Retrieved 2011-07-07. 
  3. ↑ McDuffee, Allen (May 27, 2011). "CAP’s new sites and a goodbye to Wonk Room". The Washington Post. 
  4. ↑ "Nancy Pelosi Hires Think Progress' Faiz Shakir As Director Of New Media". The Huffington Post. 8 May 2012. 
  5. ↑ About ThinkProgress
  6. ↑ Smith, Ben. "Center for American Progress news team takes aim at GOP". Politico. Retrieved 18 July 2013. 
  7. ↑ Smith, Ben (7 December 2011). "Israel rift roils Democratic ranks". Politico. 
  8. ↑ Weinthal, Benjamin (28 December 2011). "Bloggers drag US think tank into scandal". Jerusalem Post. 
  9. ↑ "Islamophobia". CAP. 
  10. ↑ "Center for American Progress Defends Shariah, Charges America with Islamophobia". Center for Security Policy. Retrieved 16 May 2012. 
  11. ↑ Fang, Lee. "Exclusive: Foreign-Funded ‘U.S.’ Chamber Of Commerce Running Partisan Attack Ads". ThinkProgress. Retrieved August 30, 2012. 
  12. ↑ "MoveOn Asks DoJ To Launch Criminal Investigation Of Chamber's Funding". Huffington Post. Retrieved 30 August 2012. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Foreign Money? Really?". FactCheck.org. Retrieved 30 August 2012. 
  14. ↑ Lichtblau, Eric. "Topic of Foreign Money in U.S. Races Hits Hustings". New York Times. Retrieved August 30, 2012. 

External links

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