By Kevin P. McVicker
The shocking news of the death of conservative blogger and activist Andrew Breitbart was broken on the Internet and followed by chatter on cable television and talk radio -- reminiscent of the way Breitbart himself often made news.
While I had been familiar with Breitbart for years, I became closely tied with him last year while our firm, Shirley & Banister Public Affairs, was coordinating publicity for his memoir, "Righteous Indignation: Excuse Me While I Save the World."
True to form, Breitbart was an enthusiastic promoter and tireless as he was interviewed morning, noon and night. Breitbart and I were the same age and it fascinated me to see someone of my generation to achieve influence. He did not possess a great deal of “power,” but his influence and reach was incredible.
He began his memoir with stories of his youth in Southern California. Like many suburban kids of our era, born after Woodstock but who clearly remember cheering the election of Ronald Reagan, Breitbart grew up a voracious consumer of movies, television shows and rock music. We drank in the popular culture as if entertainment were our divine right.
When it came time to choose a college, Breitbart went to Tulane University in New Orleans. He recalled in" Righteous Indignation" that The Big Easy lived up to its reputation. Breitbart’s college guide book said a Tulane student could go to a different bar every night for four years and not go to the same one twice. He tried hard to prove that statement correct.
After procrastinating, he chose to major in American Studies. Like many of us who studied humanities, he waited until his last semester to complete his math requirement. He persuaded his Chinese-speaking teaching assistant to give him a passing grade, as friends and relatives had booked flights to attend his graduation.
After graduating from Tulane in 1991, Breitbart was faced with grim prospects for employment. It was tough finding a job that year. It was even tougher being a new college graduate. Breitbart did what many of us were forced to do: work at menial jobs until our dream jobs came along. He waited tables and delivered movie scripts to Hollywood’s power players. During this time he began to listen to conservative talk radio and form his political identity.
The fall of 1991 gave us the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings. It seems quaint now, but this was the closest thing to a reality show. It was politics at its most visceral. Frank discussions of alleged sex acts were never discussed, and certainly not part of any respectable news report until now. This was a preview of the Clinton presidential campaign that was just being launched. After Thomas prophetically pronounced those proceedings a “high-tech lynching,” Breitbart saw his future.
Those of us who were in our early twenties at the time of the Thomas nomination grew up watching authoritative newscasters tell us the most important stories of the day in stentorian voices. Breitbart could see the worlds of politics, entertainment, and controversy mashing together, and he quickly found his calling.
Breitbart stumbled on the Internet, but thanks to insatiable curiosity he learned how to work it to his advantage. His collaborations with Matt Drudge on the The Drudge Report and Arianna Huffington on The Huffington Post are well known. His vision of how the news could be communicated most of all, how it could be changed, qualify him as a pioneer of his generation.
While Andrew Breitbart’s life was far too short, he leaves a big legacy in the media. However, it is just as important to understand and appreciate his political maturation, his entrepreneurial spirit and his refusal to settle for the status quo.
*
* *
Kevin P. McVicker is an account supervisor with Shirley & Banister Public Affairs in Alexandria, Va. |