Amid the defamation and fraud allegations against Media Matters, the outlet has unknowingly revealed the identities of its sponsors. Media Matters prides itself as a media “watchdog” and liberal activist group. However, some people see it as a political organization by the Democrats.
David Brock, an influential left-wing political consultant, founded Media Matters for America in 2004. According to him, the outlet dedicates itself to “comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media.”
Therefore, the organization does not have to declare its funding or contributors to the public. However, while filing its 2022 tax forms in New Mexico, they unwittingly disclosed the identities of their donors. Of these donors, most of them are Democrats who gifted it millions of dollars that year.
The contributors’ names were on a page of its financial disclosures reading “Do Not File” and “Not Open to Public Inspection.” The file shows five contributors to the organization, with a total of $12.3 million. Without a doubt, this is a lot of money, and it shows how wealthy liberals may be behind the organization after all.
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The timing of the funding also coincides with the legal battle they’re currently fighting. Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) filed a defamation lawsuit in November against Media Matters after the group released a report claiming Nazi content ran on the platform next to corporate ads.
Furthermore, some GOP star attorneys general opened investigations into Media Matters for allegedly engaging in fraudulent activity due to its targeting of X. The media outlet got its highest source of funding in 2022 from Deborah Simon. She gave Media Matters a whopping $4 million.
Simon, a philanthropist, has given major donations to Democratic lawmakers in the past and also affiliates herself with the party. She was also a bundle for Joe Biden when he ran for office. As a bundle, she helped him collect money for his campaign and other political activities.
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Another source of funding for the outlet was the Gill Foundation, and they gave them $2.97 million. The foundation is “dedicated to the advancement of equality for all LGBTQ Americans and every Coloradan.” Its founder, Tim Gill, is also a Democratic mega-donor whom many believe distributes “dark money.”
Media Matters also received $1.75 million from co-chairman Joshua Bekenstein of the Bain Capital investment firm and his wife, Anita Bekenstein. Thanks to their lavish wealth, they are regular donors to Democratic organizations, including American Bridge 21st Century.
In addition, the tax filing shows that Media Matters received 1.9 million from another democratic megadonor, Stephen Silberstein. They also got $1.75 million from the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, thanks to its founder, Warren Buffet.
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Therefore, it is not hard to see why people think it is a democratic organization in disguise. Several news outlets, including The Federalist, also believe that Media Matters is a biased organization.
“The tactics of Media Matters are generally acknowledged as politically aggressive in a way many seem at odds with the organization’s 501(c)(3) nonprofit tax status, which stipulates nonpartisanship,” longtime conservative writer Mark Hemingway wrote in the Federalist in 2020.
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