Americablog
Encyclopedia
AMERICAblog is a liberal
American
blog
founded by John Aravosis
in April 2004, with several co-bloggers. The blog helped expose Jeff Gannon
in 2005, and in 2006 helped make cell phone privacy an issue by obtaining Gen. Wesley Clark
's call records. The blog focuses on U.S. politics.
, a member of the White House press corps
with a reputation for asking 'softball' questions at opportune moments for Press Secretary Scott McClellan
, was actually James Guckert and had advertised his services as a gay male escort.
In 2006, Aravosis learned that anyone could buy someone else's cell phone records, as advertised by several websites. He purchased the call records of former Presidential candidate and Supreme Allied Commander
of NATO General Wesley Clark
for $89.95, bringing the issue widespread attention. In September 2006, California
passed a state law banning the practice of pretexting, or pretending to be someone else, used by the websites, with the bill's sponsor specifically citing the AMERICAblog coverage. Clark became an advocate of cell record privacy bills in Congress. Within months, Congress passed a law restricting these records.
AMERICAblog has courted controversy within the gay community for its support of 'outing' gay Republican Party workers who are seen as supporting anti-gay legislation and attempts to prevent same-sex marriage in particular. The blog had an adversarial relationship with the former editor of the Washington Blade, Chris Crain.
AMERICAblog is against reductions of gay rights, protections and community support from companies placating religious right organizations. Notable incidents include Microsoft's withdrawal of its support for state and federal gay civil rights legislation, and Ford's decision to stop advertising in gay oriented publications. After AMERICAblog launched campaigns criticizing both companies, management at the companies reversed their earlier anti-gay policy decisions. In January 2007, during Super Bowl XLI
, AMERICAblog joined TowleRoad.com in calling homophobic a Snickers
candy ad that aired during the game. The ad showed two men repulsed by an accidental "gay" kiss, then showed the men violently attacking each other. The candymaker pulled the ad, one of a series they had intended to run again.
ranked AMERICAblog is the 18th most popular liberal blog for October–November 2004.
During the height of the Jeff Gannon story in February 2005, AMERICAblog was ranked fifth in page views among all political blogs in an analysis done by MyDD
.
In 2008, PC Magazine ranked AMERICAblog as one of the "20 best political Web sites."
In 2009, AMERICAblog was ranked as one of the top ten political blogs by the Personal Democracy Forum, and as the 23rd most popular political blog by Wikio
.
And as of January, 2010, Technorati ranked AMERICAblog in the top 100 political blogs and top 100 US politics blogs.
Liberalism in the United States
Liberalism in the United States is a broad political philosophy centered on the unalienable rights of the individual. The fundamental liberal ideals of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion for all belief systems, and the separation of church and state, right to due process...
American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
founded by John Aravosis
John Aravosis
John Aravosis is an American Democratic political consultant, writer, gay activist and blogger. Aravosis, an attorney who lives in Washington, D.C., is the founder of AMERICAblog and a co-founder of StopDrLaura.com....
in April 2004, with several co-bloggers. The blog helped expose Jeff Gannon
Jeff Gannon
James Dale Guckert is a conservative columnist better known by the pseudonym Jeff Gannon. Between 2003 and 2005, he was given credentials as a White House reporter. He was eventually employed by the conservative website Talon News during the latter part of this period...
in 2005, and in 2006 helped make cell phone privacy an issue by obtaining Gen. Wesley Clark
Wesley Clark
Wesley Kanne Clark, Sr., is a retired general of the United States Army. Graduating as valedictorian of the class of 1966 at West Point, he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford where he obtained a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, and later graduated from the...
's call records. The blog focuses on U.S. politics.
Members
- John Aravosis, Democratic activist and political consultant, served five years as the senior foreign policy adviser http://www.wiredstrategies.com/international.htm to United States Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK), and wrote as a stringer for the Economist.
- Joe Sudbay, Democratic political consultant and former gun control activist, held staff positions with Violence Policy CenterViolence Policy CenterThe Violence Policy Center is a national 501 organization working to prohibit gun ownership in the United States, especially in relation to gun politics...
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0210/12/cst.05.html and Handgun Control, Inc.http://www.commondreams.org/news2000/0504-03.htm - Chris Ryan, who lives in ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. - Steven Kyle, a professor in economics at Cornell University.
- Naomi Seligman, a communications professional from Santa Monica, California.
History
AMERICAblog first received widespread media attention after it revealed that Jeff GannonJeff Gannon
James Dale Guckert is a conservative columnist better known by the pseudonym Jeff Gannon. Between 2003 and 2005, he was given credentials as a White House reporter. He was eventually employed by the conservative website Talon News during the latter part of this period...
, a member of the White House press corps
White House Press Corps
The White House Press Corps is the group of journalists or correspondents usually stationed at the White House in Washington, D.C. to cover the president of the United States, White House events and news briefings. Their offices are located in the West Wing....
with a reputation for asking 'softball' questions at opportune moments for Press Secretary Scott McClellan
Scott McClellan
Scott McClellan is a former White House Press Secretary for President George W. Bush, and author of a controversial No. 1 New York Times bestseller about the Bush Administration titled What Happened. He replaced Ari Fleischer as press secretary in July 2003 and served until May 10, 2006...
, was actually James Guckert and had advertised his services as a gay male escort.
In 2006, Aravosis learned that anyone could buy someone else's cell phone records, as advertised by several websites. He purchased the call records of former Presidential candidate and Supreme Allied Commander
Supreme Allied Commander
Supreme Allied Commander is the title held by the most senior commander within certain multinational military alliances. It originated as a term used by the Western Allies during World War II, and is currently used only within NATO. Dwight Eisenhower served as Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary...
of NATO General Wesley Clark
Wesley Clark
Wesley Kanne Clark, Sr., is a retired general of the United States Army. Graduating as valedictorian of the class of 1966 at West Point, he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford where he obtained a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, and later graduated from the...
for $89.95, bringing the issue widespread attention. In September 2006, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
passed a state law banning the practice of pretexting, or pretending to be someone else, used by the websites, with the bill's sponsor specifically citing the AMERICAblog coverage. Clark became an advocate of cell record privacy bills in Congress. Within months, Congress passed a law restricting these records.
AMERICAblog has courted controversy within the gay community for its support of 'outing' gay Republican Party workers who are seen as supporting anti-gay legislation and attempts to prevent same-sex marriage in particular. The blog had an adversarial relationship with the former editor of the Washington Blade, Chris Crain.
AMERICAblog is against reductions of gay rights, protections and community support from companies placating religious right organizations. Notable incidents include Microsoft's withdrawal of its support for state and federal gay civil rights legislation, and Ford's decision to stop advertising in gay oriented publications. After AMERICAblog launched campaigns criticizing both companies, management at the companies reversed their earlier anti-gay policy decisions. In January 2007, during Super Bowl XLI
Super Bowl XLI
Super Bowl XLI was an American football game that featured the American Football Conference champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference champion Chicago Bears to decide the National Football League champion for the 2006 season...
, AMERICAblog joined TowleRoad.com in calling homophobic a Snickers
Snickers
Snickers is a brand name chocolate bar made by Mars, Incorporated. It consists of peanut nougat topped with roasted peanuts and caramel, enrobed in milk chocolate. Snickers has annual global sales of $2 billion....
candy ad that aired during the game. The ad showed two men repulsed by an accidental "gay" kiss, then showed the men violently attacking each other. The candymaker pulled the ad, one of a series they had intended to run again.
Rankings
A study of blogs and the 2004 U.S. Presidential ElectionUnited States presidential election, 2004
The United States presidential election of 2004 was the United States' 55th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush defeated Democratic Party candidate John Kerry, the then-junior U.S. Senator...
ranked AMERICAblog is the 18th most popular liberal blog for October–November 2004.
During the height of the Jeff Gannon story in February 2005, AMERICAblog was ranked fifth in page views among all political blogs in an analysis done by MyDD
MyDD
MyDD is a collaborative politically progressive American politics blog. It was established by Jerome Armstrong in 2001. Its name was originally short for "My Due Diligence." In January 2006, the name was changed to "My Direct Democracy" as part of a site redesign, with the new tagline "Direct...
.
In 2008, PC Magazine ranked AMERICAblog as one of the "20 best political Web sites."
In 2009, AMERICAblog was ranked as one of the top ten political blogs by the Personal Democracy Forum, and as the 23rd most popular political blog by Wikio
Wikio
Wikio News is a European online portal for news and blogs. It was launched on June 19, 2006 in France and is also available in other countries since 2007....
.
And as of January, 2010, Technorati ranked AMERICAblog in the top 100 political blogs and top 100 US politics blogs.
External links
Coverage
- Democrats.com (On Aravosis's advocacy)
- DailyKos.com (Markos on Aravosis's blogging)
- Geek Philosophy (Aravosis named "Geek of the Week")
- Vanity Fair on Aravosis's role in Jeff Gannon story
- MoxieGrrrl on Aravosis