American Greatness

American Greatness is an American conservative news and opinion website founded in July 2016 by Chris Buskirk. The publication promotes populist and nationalist perspectives and describes its editorial framework as representing a next generation of conservatism distinct from the pre-2016 conservative movement. It is published by the Center for American Greatness, Inc., a nonprofit organization.

Buskirk created American Greatness in response to what he saw as the established conservative movement's failure to adequately address certain policies such as immigration, trade, and foreign policy. Peter Thiel provided early funding. The site takes its name from the Journal of American Greatness, a website that appeared earlier in 2016, though the two were not formally affiliated.

Media Bias/Fact Check classifies American Greatness as right-leaning, noting that the site draws from sources it considers credible, including left-center, least-biased, and right-center outlets.

Overview

American Greatness is describes its editorial orientation as representing the next generation of American conservatism, with a focus on populist and nationalist conservative perspectives. According to the site, it receives approximately 2.4 million visits per month. The outlet states that it is not affiliated with any political candidate or party.

History

Chris Buskirk founded American Greatness in July 2016 as an online magazine. According to Buskirk, the publication was established to offer a new articulation of conservatism. Early funding for the outlet was provided by Peter Thiel, who had been introduced to Buskirk through a mutual acquaintance. In July 2016, its editors published a founding declaration in which they announced their independence from the established conservative movement. The publication took its name and drew inspiration from the Journal of American Greatness, a short-lived online publication that had appeared earlier that year, though the two outlets were not formally affiliated.

The publication has argued that the conservative movement prior to 2016 failed to adequately address issues of immigration, trade, and foreign policy. Its stated editorial framework, which it calls the "Greatness Agenda," prioritizes American national interests, particularly on immigration, international trade, and national security. In its founding editorial, the outlet accused the pre-2016 conservative movement of placing excessive emphasis on ideological identity at the expense of American interests.

Organization

American Greatness is organized as a nonprofit organization, based in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. It received tax-exempt status on September 1, 2015, and operates on a fiscal year running from April through March.

American Greatness is published by its parent organization Center for American Greatness, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Paradise Valley, Arizona. The parent organization received tax-exempt status in July 2017 and is categorized under public policy analysis and social science research. Donations to the organization are tax-deductible. The Center for American Greatness, Inc. lists three members on its board of directors: Chris Buskirk, Seth Leibsohn, and J. Eric Wise.

American Greatness does not publicly disclose its ownership. According to public records, the publication operates through a nonprofit entity called the Center for American Greatness, Inc., with Buskirk listed as a principal. The outlet's funding sources are not publicly disclosed; the website carries online advertising and offers paid subscriptions that remove advertisements.

According to its most recent publicly available tax filings, the Center for American Greatness, Inc. reported revenue of $1,685,257, expenses of $1,092,339, and net income of $592,918. The organization reported total assets of $1,374,603 and no liabilities.

Notable coverage

In 2021, the outlet published an article alleging an extramarital affair between South DAKOTA Governor Kristi Noem and former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski. The story relied on anonymous sources and was disputed by Noem, who denied the allegations. Other journalists who investigated the claims found no corroborating evidence.

American Greatness also published articles questioning mainstream media coverage of the January 6, 2021 attack on the United States Capitol. Among these, one article raised questions AbOUT whether an FBI operation had played a role in the events of that day. The outlet also reported on the alleged mistreatment of individuals detained in connection with the Capitol riot.

Following the 2020 presidential election, an assistant editor at the publication wrote that Donald Trump had departed from the populist principles that defined his 2016 campaign, arguing that he had governed in a manner more consistent with the Republican establishment by the end of his first term.

Leadership

Chris Buskirk is the publisher and editor of American Greatness. He has contributed commentary and analysis to outlets including the New York Times, the Washington Post, Fox News, NPR, and PBS, and is the author of several books, including Trump vs. The Leviathan. Buskirk serves as president of the Center for American Greatness, Inc., and as publisher and senior editor of American Greatness. He co-hosts The Seth & Chris Show on 960 KKNT in Phoenix, Arizona. He has appeared as a guest on NPR's Morning EDition and The Hugh Hewitt Show. Buskirk was a Publius Fellow at the Claremont Institute and received a fellowship from the Earhart Foundation. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Claremont McKenna College. He is also co-founder and CFO of conservative venture capital firm 1789 Capital, and of the Executive Branch, a conservative social club in Washington, D.C.

In 2023, Buskirk authored America and the Art of the Possible. Vice President JD Vance has described Buskirk as an "original thinker" who recognized early how a combination of IDeaS, organizing, and funding could produce lasting Republican political success. Buskirk and Vance co-founded the Rockbridge Network together in 2019.

Ben Boychuck serves as managing editor. He previously worked as a columnist for the Sacramento Bee and Tribune Media. Boychuck a columnist for the Sacramento Bee and a syndicated columnist with Tribune Media. His writing has also appeared in Investor's Business Daily and the Claremont Review of Books.

Julie Ponzi is a senior editor at the publication. Prior to joining American Greatness, she served as director of academic programs at the Claremont Institute and taught at Azusa Pacific University. Within the parent organization (Center for American Greatness), Ponzi serves as vice president. She holds a Master of Arts degree and is a doctoral candidate at Claremont Graduate University. Her writing has appeared in the Claremont Review of Books, Law and Liberty, the Columbus Dispatch, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and the Washington Times. She was a long-time Contributor to No Left Turns, a blog published by the Ashbrook Center.

Media ratings

Media Bias/Fact Check, a website that rates news outlets for bias and factual accuracy, classifies American Greatness as having a right-leaning bias. The site rates the outlet's factual reporting as "Mixed" and assigns it a credibility rating of "Medium Credibility."

Media Bias/Fact Check describes American Greatness as a news site featuring a variety of writers covering American politics. According to the site's review, most articles favor a right-leaning perspective and make moderate use of emotionally charged language. MBFC notes that the outlet GeneRally draws from sources it considers credible, including outlets it rates as left-center, least-biased, and right-center.

American Greatness (book)

In 2017, Buskirk and conservative radio host Seth Leibsohn co-authored American Greatness: How Conservatism Inc. Missed the 2016 Election and What the D.C. Establishment Needs to Learn, with a foreword by William J. Bennett. The book was published on July 13, 2017, by WND Books.

Leibsohn is a senior editor at American Greatness. He is a senior fellow at the Claremont Institute, where he previously served as vice president; he also previously served as vice president of Empower America. Leibsohn produced and co-hosted Bill Bennett's Morning in America, a nationally syndicated radio program. He has provided counsel and speechwriting services to candidates for national office and several former Cabinet officials. He is the co-author, with William J. Bennett, of The Fight of Our Lives.

The foreword to the book was written by William J. Bennett, who served as United States Secretary of Education under President Ronald Reagan and as Drug Czar under President George H.W. Bush. At the time of the book's publication, Bennett served on the advisory boards of Udacity and Viridis Learning, Inc., and was a member of the Trump Leadership Council, a private citizen advisory group to the president.