Blaze Media
Nickie Koskinen
Blaze Media is an American conservative[1][2] media company. It was founded in 2018 as a result of a merger between TheBlaze and CRTV LLC. The company's leadership consists of CEO Tyler Cardon and president Gaston Mooney.[1] It is based in Irving, Texas, where it has studios and offices, as well as in Washington, D.C.
TheBlaze was a pay television network founded by Glenn Beck. Originally, it was called Glenn Beck TV, created after Beck's departure from Fox in 2011. In 2012, the network took the name of Beck's popular website, TheBlaze. From 2014 to 2017, the company had four different CEOs, followed by Beck himself. Months after Beck took the position, the company laid off over a fourth of its staff. CRTV LLC, which operated the Conservative Review and CRTV (Conservative Review Television), was an online subscription network.
On August 31, 2010, three days after his Restoring Honor rally at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., conservative political commentator Glenn Beck launched the TheBlaze website, describing it as an alternative to "mainstream media outlets".[3] TheBlaze headquarters are located in Irving, Texas, at the Mercury Studios (formerly the Studios at Las Colinas).[4][5]
Beck announced the creation of an online-only network replacing Insider Extreme as a result of his Fox News departure on June 7, 2011. On September 12, 2011, Beck launched GBTV (Glenn Beck TV) as an exclusive internet streaming network, produced and operated by Mercury Radio Arts. GBTV would air a television adaptation of his radio show, his television show, and other original programming, including Real News from TheBlaze, a nightly news program hosted by former CNN personality Amy Holmes.[6] On June 18, 2012, Mercury Radio Arts announced the consolidation of all of its outlets under the "TheBlaze" brand, thus renaming the internet television station from GBTV to TheBlaze.[7]
Betsy Morgan was named CEO of TheBlaze on December 9, 2014, replacing Chris Balfe, who had been CEO since the beginning. Morgan left the company in June 2015.[10] Chief Revenue Officer Kraig Kitchin replaced Morgan until he resigned in January 2016, taking the position of Interim Head of Sales and being replaced by Stewart Padveen, a digital startup entrepreneur, who resigned in February 2017. Beck took over as CEO of the company in May 2017.[11]
On December 3, 2018, TheBlaze Inc. television arm merged with CRTV LLC, combining resources, personalities, personnel, subscribers, and programming. The merged entity, named Blaze Media, retained TheBlaze's channel slot and incorporated two of CRTV's programs into the channel's schedule (Steve Deace Show and Wilkow!).[17][18]
Gavin McInnes, the co-founder of Vice Media and Vice magazine,[19][20] founder of the Proud Boys,[21] was expected to host his programs Get Off My Lawn and CRTV Tonight for the new company, whose co-president, Gaston Mooney, called McInnes "a comedian and provocateur, one of the many varied voices and viewpoints on Blaze Media platforms." Less than a week after the merger, however, it was announced that McInnes was no longer associated with Blaze Media, with no details given as to why.[22][23] Former contributor Michelle Malkin likewise followed McInnes out the door after CRTV's merger with TheBlaze in December 2018.[24]
TheBlaze Radio Network was launched on September 5, 2012, and is available for free online via the company's website, iOS and Android apps, and the iHeartRadio app. TheBlaze Radio Network is the only host airing conservative talk-show host Pat Gray.
TheBlaze website launched on August 26, 2010. According to Beck, the site took two months to design.[3] At launch, the site's chief editor was Scott Baker, with its associate editor-video producer Pam Key and with Jon Seidl and Meredith Jessup as reporters. Key is known for her blog, Naked Emperor News: Smoking Gun Video and Images. Baker is a former Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, broadcast journalist who previously worked at The Huffington Post and Breitbart TV. Seidl, of the Manhattan Institute, previously worked at The American Spectator. Jessup previously worked at Townhall. Journalists joining TheBlaze later included S. E. Cupp and David Harsanyi.
In January 2011, Betsy Morgan became president and Kraig Kitchin director of sales. Morgan had helmed The Huffington Post until 2009. Kitchin had formerly been the president of Premier Radio.[31]
TheBlaze (entitled Fusion prior to September 2012) was a monthly news magazine published by Mercury Radio Arts and TheBlaze in New York City and circulated throughout the United States. Its former title, Fusion, was taken from Beck's talk radio program's slogan, "The Fusion of Entertainment and Enlightenment." The editor-in-chief was Scott Baker.[33] The magazine was sixteen pages and was published monthly except for February and August. It was available digitally and in print.[34] The last edition of TheBlaze magazine was published in April 2015.
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Glenn Beck and Mark Levin are teaming up by merging TheBlaze and CRTV to create a conservative-media entity dubbed Blaze Media, which they say will reach 165 million people via television, digital platforms and social media.
Beck and Levin are set to officially announce what they are calling a merger of equals Monday, but Beck tells The Hollywood Reporter that the move could be just a next step in building a powerhouse, independent media company.
Beck founded TheBlaze in 2011 after leaving Fox News, where his show drew a large audience though it was constantly attacked by progressive groups that discouraged advertisers. TheBlaze grew quickly, but in recent years has scaled back in order to preserve money.
TheBlaze is seen on Dish Network, Verizon Fios, Roku, SlingTV and several regional cable outlets, and it is heard on Sirius XM Radio, iHeartRadio and elsewhere. Next year, it will launch a live tour with the working title Blaze Live.
Beyond Levin, some of the talent at CRTV includes Michelle Malkin, Steven Crowder, Matt Kibbe, Deneen Borelli, Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty fame and Gavin McInnes, the co-founder of Vice Media who hosts the show Get Off My Lawn at CRTV.
Blaze Media will be run by Tyler Cardon and Gaston Mooney, who were named co-presidents of the merged company. Previously, Mooney was president of CRTV and Cardon was president of TheBlaze. Levin had no management authority at CRTV and will have none at Blaze Media, according to insiders.
The Blaze has been going through a rocky stretch, laying off about 20 percent of its staffers and losing talent like NRA spokeswoman Dana Loesch and Tomi Lahren, the latter after publicly feuding with Beck over pro-choice remarks she made on her former show. Beck says the incident was misreported without context.
Steve Baker, who has written articles about the Jan. 6, 2021, riot for Blaze News, faces four misdemeanor counts, including trespassing and disorderly conduct charges. Baker was released from custody after he made his initial court appearance in Dallas on Friday, according to defense attorney William Shipley.
Blaze News is part of an online platform that conservative political commentator Glenn Beck founded in 2011 after leaving Fox News. Baker started writing for the media outlet after the Jan. 6 siege. He was working as a freelance journalist on Jan. 6 and later sold videos of the riot to The New York Times and HBO, according to Shipley.
Shipley said all journalists should be concerned about the charges against Baker. The lawyer said the defense will argue that this is a case of selective prosecution and that Baker has been charged because he is a conservative writer.
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