Think Tank CAP Selling Its News Site

Here is more from Daily Beast:

ThinkProgress, the flagship news site of the Democratic think tank Center for American Progress, is up for sale. 

Staff were informed on Monday afternoon that the site would be sold off and a CAP official told The Daily Beast that the organization would begin looking for prospective buyers for the website, which has come under severe financial strains during the Trump era.

“Unfortunately, like so many other news outlets that have relied on advertising to fund its work, ThinkProgress has seen a significant drop in revenue in recent years, along with other financial strains. In addition, events over the last few years have underscored the divergent missions of American Progress and ThinkProgress,” said Navin Nayak, executive director of the Center for American Progress Action Fund.

Launched 14 years ago during the height of the Bush administration, ThinkProgress made a name for itself over time as an unapologetically progressive source of news and a launching pad for several major progressive luminaries. But the site, which is editorially independent from CAP, has struggled in recent years as advertising revenues have dried up and traffic has dipped.

 ThinkProgress has never been profitable. In the past, it has made up its shortfalls with contributions from CAP and CAP donors. Several ThinkProgress alums told The Daily Beast that they believed that CAP could continue covering the deficit but had concluded that the site was too much of an editorial headache and too big a financial drain for them to rationalize doing so. 

 Despite its troubles, ThinkProgress continues to be a strong draw for progressive readers, with more than 12 million pageviews and 7.5 million unique visitors in June 2019 alone, a CAP official said. 

Last month, it was reported that ThinkProgress had been bleeding money and staff.

Dems Seek Answers on Heritage Foundation Law Clerk Training

Here is more from Bloomberg Law:

Six Democratic senators want to know if law clerks participating in a conservative organization’s training program violated the judicial codes of conduct.

The Heritage Foundation, which held the training program in February, has advocated for “repealing reproductive rights; dismantling affirmative action policies; limiting voting rights; and restrictive immigration policies,” the Judiciary Committee members said in a letter to James Duff, the director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.

The organization has touted its role in helping President Donald Trump select nominees to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The anonymously-funded program originally made participants pledge their secrecy and promise not to use their training for purposes contrary to the interests of the Heritage Foundation, the senators said.

It also held a session about immigration law on the same day that the foundation released a report concerning its immigration agenda, the letter said.

The senators asked whether any current or future judge or judicial employee asked the office for advice about attending that program, and what conclusion the office reached if they did. 

The letter cited guidance that the office issued after the program, which listed situations in which attending certain events could violate judicial codes of conduct.

Concerns are raised when the event sponsor engages in contentious debates over public policy and the program is funded by unknown sources, according to that guidance.

In response to the letter from the US senators, Heritage Foundation's John Malcolm issued this response, which denies any wrong-doing.

Here is more about the think tank's Federal Clerkship Training Academy.  And here is what the New York Times had to say about it.

Think Tanker Arrested on Drug, Prostitution Charges

A think tanker who worked at George Washington University's (GWU) Center for Cyber & Homeland Security (CCHS) has just been arrested on drug and prostitution charges.  Here is more:

Jesse Morton made national headlines when he was accused in federal court of using his Revolution Muslim website to encourage attacks against the creators of “South Park” and others he said were enemies of Islam.

After he was convicted, the Virginia man became an FBI informant. Once released from prison, he joined a D.C.-area think tank focused on studying extremism, saying he hoped to “make amends” through his work.

But Morton, now 38, again faces legal troubles after being arrested and accused of bringing cocaine to meet a prostitute. He is due in court next week and could return to prison.

Morton is no longer working as a research fellow at George Washington University’s Program on Extremism, a spokesman confirmed.

Here is a previous Think Tank Watch article on Jesse Morton.