PJ Media

PJ Media
Privately held company
Industry Online Media
Founded 2004
Founder Charles Foster Johnson, Roger L. Simon
Headquarters United States
Key people
 Aubrey Chernick
Roger L. Simon
Products PJ Media, PJTV
Website PJ Media

PJ Media (originally known as Pajamas Media) is an American online media company and operator of an eponymous conservative news, opinion and commentary collaborative blog that was founded in 2004. Its majority owner is technology entrepreneur and angel investor Aubrey Chernick.[1]

PJ Media also operated the online television and video network PJTV, which ceased to exist on May 11, 2016.[1]

History

PJ Media was founded as Pajamas Media in 2004 by Charles Johnson, the blogger behind Little Green Footballs, and screen producer Roger L. Simon, after Johnson's contribution to the Killian documents controversy investigation in 2004, in which he helped lead to the retraction of a 60 Minutes story critical of President George W. Bush's service in the Air National Guard and Dan Rather's resignation from CBS News. Johnson and Simon set out to challenge the mainstream media with a network of citizen-journalists.[2][3][4] The network was primarily made up of conservatives and libertarians.[5] The network's original name was derived from a dismissive comment made by former CBS news executive Jonathan Klein during the 2004 Killian documents affair: "You couldn't have a starker contrast between the multiple layers of checks and balances at 60 Minutes and a guy sitting in his living room in his pajamas."[6][7]

Pajamas Media received venture capital funding in November, 2005. Pajamas used this funding for its operations and marketing while expanding its news and opinion coverage. Investors in this round of financing included Aubrey Chernick, an angel investor and technology entrepreneur, James Koshland, a venture capitalist, and a partnership formed by DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary.[8] It rebranded as Open Source Media shortly thereafter and had a launch party that included a keynote address by former New York Times journalist Judith Miller, presentations from John Podhoretz of Commentary magazine, Andrew Breitbart, Elizabeth Hayt of the New York Times, David Corn of The Nation, and others. Less than a week after its official launch Open Source Media changed its name back to Pajamas Media after discovering that Public Radio International distributed a radio show called Open Source produced by Open Source Media, Inc.[9]

Johnson and Pajamas split in 2007 by mutual agreement; Johnson's stake was bought out.[10][11]

In October 2011, Pajamas Media changed its name to PJ Media.[12]

PJTV

In the summer of 2008, Pajamas Media launched PJTV, an subscription based internet television service.[13] The Internet television service debuted at the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota. PJTV featured shows hosted by commentators such as Bill Whittle, Tammy Bruce, and Glenn Reynolds.[1]

On May 11, 2016, PJTV shut down operations after its majority investor Aubrey Chernick pulled out funds.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Grove, Lloyd (2016-04-15). "The Death of PJTV: How Aubrey Chernick's Right Wing Media Dream Died". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2016-05-19.
  2. ↑ Johnson, Charles; Simon, Roger L. (2005-11-26). "From the Founders". Pajamas Media. Retrieved 2016-11-06.
  3. ↑ Andrew Leigh (2005). "Pajama-Clad Revolutionaries". National Review (November 15, 2005).
  4. ↑ Peter Hannaford (May 12, 2005). "Pajama Game". The American Spectator.
  5. ↑ "An open letter to all bloggers" by Roger L. Simon, April 28, 2005
  6. ↑ "How the Blogosphere Took on CBS' Docs"
  7. ↑ American Dialect Society: 2004 Words of the Year.
  8. ↑ "Pajamas Media Closes $3.5 Million Venture Round" (Press release). Pajamas Media. November 14, 2005.
  9. ↑ ANICK JESDANUN (November 22, 2005). "Media Web Site Reverts Back to Old Name". Associated Press.
  10. ↑ "Conservative in Liberal Hands".
  11. ↑ Hillel Aron (Dec 4, 2009). "Charles Johnson And His Little Green Footballs: Holding Down The Center". Neon Tommy, online publication of the USC Annenberg School of Journalism. Archived from the original on Dec 13, 2009.
  12. ↑ "Pajamas Media Becomes PJ Media" (Press release). PJ Media. October 25, 2011. Retrieved April 10, 2012.
  13. ↑ "New Media 2.0 Venture to Cover RNC; Pajamas TV Internet Service Created in Response to Eroding Public Confidence in Mainstream Media" (Press release). Pajamas Media. September 3, 2008.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/20/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.