David Brock, founder of the liberal Media Matters, says it’s on. Brock was quoted Saturday by Politico promising that his organization is mounting “guerrila warfare and sabotage” against Fox News, which he said “is not a news organization. It is the de facto leader of the GOP, and it is long past time that it is treated as such by the media, elected officials and the public.” Brock did not throated “guerrilla warfare and sabotage” against MSNBC nor did he accuse it of being a de facto leader of the Democrat Party and there lies the problem.
Media Matters is listed as a 501(C)(3) tax-exempt educational foundation. As a C3 it puts Media Matters in the non-profit, non-commercial sector which bars the organzation from participating in partisan political activity. The IRS application for 501(C)(3) tax-exempt educational foundation status, Section VIII, Question I asks the applicant: “Do you support or oppose candidates in political campaigns in any way?” In, ANY WAY. Media Matters, under David Brock, appears to run directly counter to the government’s requirements for maintaining a C3 tax status.
Mr.Brock also told Politico that Media Matter will “focus on [News Corp. CEO Rupert] Murdoch and trying to disrupt his commercial interests …” Explicitly declaring that your purpose as a tax-exempt non-profit public foundation is to interfere with the commercial interests of somebody else’s legal business enterprise falls nowhere within the scope of educational activities.
According to Media Matters’ 2009 tax return, it’s purpose is to, “notify activists, journalists, pundits and the general public about instances of misinformation, providing them with the resources to rebut false claims and take direct action against offending media institutions.” If Media Matters would like to stay within the confines of the law, it may want to stick with its 2009 tax return declaration.
Biography of David Brock
Before selling his soul, David Brock was a closeted gay conservative journalist who rose to fame with his books, The Real Anita Hill and Troopergate. Learning that he could make more money by demonizing conservatives, Brock published severals articles in Esquire critical of Republicans. In order to prove he had changed his politics, he apologized to the Clintons, claiming he had lied about the facts in his book, Troopergate. He later found Media Matters, where he is paid $300,000 a year, the same salary the conservative magazine, American Spectator, was paying him before they dropped him.
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