PLAYBOY HAS PULLED THE ARTICLE FROM THEIR WEBSITE AND ISSUED A PRIVATE APOLOGY TO THE DAILY BAIL.
The link below no longer works but I found a link with the original Playboy article cached in its entirety. It seems they not only didn't do their research on us, but they failed even to establish the basic thesis of their article. We assume that Santelli and FreedomWorks and perhaps others have filed a lawsuit for slander. One day you're a hero and the next day a liar. Marc Ames and Yasha Levine, get used to it.
Below is my original article.
I step away from the site for 24 hours and all hell breaks loose. Consider for a moment the succulent irony of Playboy magazine accusing someone else of being fake. Thanks for that collective moment as you become me for a second. I found out tonight that Playboy wrote about us yesterday. And we didn't get a happy ending. (last sex pun.)
It's the lead story on the Playboy Blog. It's a conspiracy-soaked read about Rick Santelli and the organizations loosely aligned behind the Chicago Tea Party. Writers Mark Ames and Yasha Levine did some mundane research and pieced together a decent story. There's only one problem, everything they wrote about us is completely incorrect. The writers tossed us under the bus as they headed to conclusion, simply because of our support for Santelli and the various tea party protests.
Laughably, the authors believe that we're part of a shadowy, right-wing conspiracy creating fake websites to influence public opinion. It specifically accuses us of being an 'astroturf' website, part of an imitation grassroots campaign to advance the corporate interests of the Koch family and others. The accusation might actually bother me if it weren't so comical. Had the writers bothered to contact me before going to press, they would have learned a few things about me politically and personally that would have kept The Daily Bail out of the mud.
I have responded to the authors privately:
Mark and Yasha,
What do they say about controversy when you're fighting for a cause, that any publicity is good publicity. Your article will test that theory for us, because you skewered us and you couldn't have been more wrong. Couldn't you at least have tried to contact me before lumping us into a right-wing conspiracy? You did absolutely no research on us beyond reading our Santelli articles. Nice job.
You made a mistake by lumping The Daily Bail in with these groups. We are an independent news site and categorically non-political. Though my opinions might sometimes coincide with one side or the other, I am not a member or fan of either political party. Bailout politics make for strange bed-fellows and the goal is to stop the giveaway not to solve our differences. Liberals, conservatives, libertarians and political drop-outs are all welcomed here. We are equal-opportunity revolutionaries.
As I said, I do not listen to talk radio or participate on any political websites. As a trader and private-client money manager, I'm completely focused on the markets and financial news. I really am just one person trying to make a difference. It might sound corny but it's the truth. My background in journalism was in radio and then at CNN Moneyline before becoming a sell-side equities analyst for a top-tier investment bank. Yes, I've been on the inside and know first-hand the sleaze that goes on at these joints.
My personal politics are simple and very non-radical: I'm a fiscal conservative and social liberal. I believe in a smaller federal government, fiscal sanity, and I support tolerance for all people and lifestyles. I am disgusted by both political parties and belong to neither.
I believe the bailouts are nothing short of generational rape. Particularly the bank bailouts, plus Fannie, Freddie and AIG. I believe Henry Paulson is a criminal. Both for his role in creating this crisis in 2004 with the SEC rule change that allowed leverage to expand, as well as his decision to bailout AIG so that Goldman Sachs (his former firm from whom he received a $600 million tax-free severance in 2006) would be protected.
Read the following story for more on Paulson's role in this crisis: Rule Bending Banking Bastards
Considering my views, I doubt the John Birchers or any other right-wing factions would claim me as you suggest. And I'd sooner lose my middle nut than be associated with either side. We are a completely independent news site focusing on stopping the goddamned bailouts, with absolutely no political affiliation. And we have received no funding from any source besides my wallet.
Please examine things from my perspective. I have one goal which is to help galvanize public opinion against the taxpayer bailouts of private failure. Period.