Breitbart News is suing a 'major media company' for calling it a white nationalist website
Breitbart News is preparing a lawsuit against a "major media company" after it says it was unfairly labeled a "white nationalist website," The Hill reports.
While it is unclear what website specifically Breitbart is taking aim at, many critics of Donald Trump have raised concerns about his naming of former Breitbart executive chairman Stephen Bannon to senior White House counselor and strategist. "Stephen Bannon, head of white nationalist 'alt-right' website Breitbart News, becomes Trump's senior counselor," Media Matters said, while a Washington Post op-ed described the website as "a party organ, a pathetic cog in the Trump-Media Complex and a gathering place for white nationalists." Mother Jones also wrote that "under Bannon's leadership, the site has plunged into the fever swamps of conservatism, cheering white nationalist groups as an 'eclectic mix of renegades,' accusing President Barack Obama of importing 'more hating Muslims,' and waging an incessant war against the purveyors of 'political correctness.'"
The Southern Poverty Law Center, a hate-watch group, has also deemed Breitbart "a white ethno-nationalist propaganda mill," BuzzFeed News reported.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Breitbart News said in a statement that such charges are "baseless and defamatory," claiming that it "cannot allow such vicious racial lies to go unchallenged, especially by cynical, politically-motivated competitors seeking to diminish its 42 million monthly readers and its number one in the world political Facebook page."
Breitbart added that it aims to have a "colorblind" approach to the news: "Breitbart News rejects racism in all its varied and ugly forms," the statement said. "Always has, always will."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Could Trump run for a third term?The Explainer Constitutional amendment limits US presidents to two terms, but Trump diehards claim there is a loophole
-
Political cartoons for November 28Cartoons Friday's political cartoons include economic diagnosis, climate distractions, and more
-
What does the fall in net migration mean for the UK?Today’s Big Question With Labour and the Tories trying to ‘claim credit’ for lower figures, the ‘underlying picture is far less clear-cut’
-
US mints final penny after 232-year runSpeed Read Production of the one-cent coin has ended
-
Warner Bros. explores sale amid Paramount bidsSpeed Read The media giant, home to HBO and DC Studios, has received interest from multiple buying parties
-
Gold tops $4K per ounce, signaling financial uneaseSpeed Read Investors are worried about President Donald Trump’s trade war
-
Electronic Arts to go private in record $55B dealspeed read The video game giant is behind ‘The Sims’ and ‘Madden NFL’
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fineSpeed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in IntelSpeed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to ChinaSpeed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with DisneySpeed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
