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Project Veritas Action
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| Project Veritas | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Mamaroneck, N.Y. |
| Type: | 501(c)(4) |
| Top official: | James O'Keefe III |
| Founder(s): | James O'Keefe |
| Year founded: | 2011 |
| Website: | Official website |
Project Veritas Action (PVA) is a 501(c)(4) political advocacy group that investigates politicians and private institutions for perceived corrupt practices using undercover journalists and "guerilla reporting." The organization was founded by James O'Keefe III and has a related 501(c)(3) organization, Project Veritas.
Mission
As of November 2017, the website for PVA listed the following mission statement: The mission statement for PVA is:[1]
| “ | The mission of the Project Veritas Action Fund is to further the common good and general welfare of the citizens of the United States by conducting investigations into waste, fraud, abuse, corruption, dishonesty, self-dealing and other misconduct for the purpose of educating the public, stakeholders, policymakers and communities in order to create a more ethical and transparent society.[2] | ” |
Work
PVA was founded by James O'Keefe III as an organization devoted to exposing any perceived dishonesty and corruption by secretly recording and then producing and editing videos of undercover reporting as well as staged encounters with politicians and public figures. Before forming the organization, O'Keefe had earned a reputation for undercover video journalism when he posed as a pimp for an undercover investigation of ACORN. Along with Hannah Giles, O'Keefe staged an encounter with low-level employees of a voter registration drive organized by the group.[3] The group aimed further undercover videos at National Public Radio, U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), and Rev. Al Sharpton.[4][5][6]
The group applied for and received nonprofit status in 2011, although O'Keefe and other filmmakers had been working on this kind of work since the ACORN investigations in 2009. Earlier videos, O'Keefe claimed, had been produced out of the filmmakers' own pockets: "Up 'til now, my friends and I have financed all of our work on our own -- running up major credit card debt. We made a lot of sacrifices -- personally and financially -- because we fight for what we believe in."[7] As a nonprofit organization, the group continues its work in "guerilla journalism" while also training activists to shoot, produce, and edit similar videos themselves. The organization's website notes that PVA was founded as a 501(c)(4) organization to ensure that the group's videos complied with the law; the related 501(c)(3), called Project Veritas, cannot legally advocate for particular electoral outcomes.
Voter registration video, October 2016
| Project Veritas Action voter fraud investigation |
|---|
| Project Veritas Action |
| •Project Veritas Action •James O'Keefe III |
Individuals in videos |
| •Scott Foval •Bob Creamer •Aaron Black •Zulema Rodriguez |
Organizations in videos |
| •Democracy Partners •Americans United for Change •People For the American Way •Alliance for Retired Americans |
In October 2016, PVA released video footage of a number of Democratic operatives appearing to describe illegal voter registration activity as well as methods for agitating then-Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and his supporters at rallies. In an article outlining the first videos Project Veritas released on October 17 and 18, 2016, Time reported:[8]
| “ | In one video, a contractor seems to brag about sending homeless and mentally ill people to harass Republicans. Someone identified as a Democratic National Committee staffer appears to claim credit for pushing Republican contender Donald Trump’s rally in Chicago toward violence. In another, consultants look like they are describing a plan to bus voters across state lines and registering immigrants in the country illegally to vote.[2] | ” |
Roy Moore allegations to The Washington Post, November 2017
In November 2017, a woman appearing to work for PVA approached The Washington Post claiming that Roy Moore (R), the then-Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Alabama, had impregnated her when she was 15 years old. According to the paper, after weeks of discussions with the woman, they decided not to publish the story because it was unverified; they then witnessed her entering PVA's headquarters. The allegations came at the same time that the paper had reported that Moore had initiated sexual encounters with teenagers when he was in his 30s.[9]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Project Veritas Action. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Project Veritas Action, "About," accessed November 28, 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Undercover Reporting, "ACORN Investigation - James O'Keefe, Hannah Giles - Project Veritas," accessed September 3, 2015
- ↑ Politico, "O’Keefe releases another NPR video," March 10, 2011
- ↑ Politico, "Anti-ACORN filmmaker arrested," January 26, 2010
- ↑ Project Veritas, "Eric Garner and Trayvon Martin Families, Michael Brown’s Lawyer, and Others Accuse Al Sharpton of Exploiting Their Tragedies in New James O’Keefe Video," February 24, 2015
- ↑ Talking Points Memo, "O'Keefe Says He Racked Up 'Major Credit Card Debt,' Needs To Raise $50K," March 23, 2011
- ↑ Time, "Everything We Know About the Latest James O’Keefe Video Sting," October 18, 2016
- ↑ The Washington Post, "A woman approached The Post with dramatic — and false — tale about Roy Moore. She appears to be part of undercover sting operation," November 27, 2017
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