The Daily Signal - This Site Is Trying to Bring 'Snark Brevity' Into Media

Episode Date: June 25, 2021

How can the culture of the current news cycle—never ending and never positive—be tempered? Jonathan Grella, the founder of JAG Public Affairs and Daily Malarkey, has some ideas. "We really think that there is a place in the market for 'snark brevity,' as we call it. Like Axios coined the phrase, 'smart brevity,' and we do 'snark brevity,'" Grella said. "There's a lot of competition for people's attention nowadays. So, you've got to be quick and to the point and in order to get and keep people's attention, you have to be creative and clever. So, we bring those couple of things together." "It's not terribly difficult to come up with inspirations for our daily email blast because there's just a deluge of malarkey out there that we can opine on and poke fun at," Grella adds. We also cover these stories: The New York Supreme Court has suspended the law license of former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, saying that the former mayor made “demonstrably false and misleading statements” when he was representing former President Donald Trump in his efforts to contest the 2020 presidential election.  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Thursday that House Democrats will soon create a special congressional committee to investigate the Jan. 6th capitol riot.  A judge in Florida is halting a $4 billion relief program from the Biden administration for farmers that leaves out farmers who are white.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is the Daily Signal podcast for Friday, June 25th. I'm Virginia Allen. And I'm Rachel Daldudis. How can the culture of the current news cycle that is never ending and never positive be tempered? Jonathan Grella, the founder of JAG Public Affairs and Daily Malarkey, says there is a place in media for snark brevity to bring a lighter yet thoughtful and instructive presence to the current media climate. Jonathan joins me today on the Daily podcast to talk about how he does this with his site, Daily Malarkey. And don't forget. If you're enjoying this podcast, please be sure to leave us a review and a five-star rating on Apple

podcasts and encourage others to subscribe. Today's interview was recorded at the Heritage Foundation Resource Bank Conference, so please excuse any background noise. Now, on today's top news. The New York Supreme Court has suspended the law license of former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani saying the former mayor made demonstrably false and misleading statements when he was representing former President Donald Trump in his efforts. to contest the 2020 presidential election.

In its decision, the New York Supreme Court wrote via the Hill that, we conclude that there is uncontroverted evidence that respondent communicated demonstrably false and misleading statements to courts, lawmakers, and the public at large in his capacity as lawyer for former President Donald J. Trump and the Trump campaign in connection with Trump's failed effort at re-election in 2020. The lawyers who represent Giuliani, John Leventhal, and Barry Kamens, who are retired, said of the decision via the Hill, we are disappointed with the appellate decision,

First Department's decision, suspending Mayor Giuliani, prior to being afforded a hearing on the issues that are alleged. This is unprecedented, as we believe that our client does not pose a present danger to the public interest. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Thursday that House Democrats will soon create

a special congressional committee to investigate the January 6th Capitol riot per Reuters. I'm announcing that the House will be establishing a select committee on the January 6th insurrection. Again, January 6th was one of the darkest days in our nation's history. I've said it now three times. It is imperative that we establish the truth of that day and ensure that an attack of that kind cannot happen and that we root out the causes of it all. The Select Committee will investigate and report on the facts and the course.

causes of the attack and it will report recommendations for the prevention of any future attack. Pelosi's announcement comes after Senate GOP members block the creation of an independent commission to investigate the attack. Pelosi did not announce who will sit on the House commission, but it will include both Democrats and Republicans and focus solely on investigating the events of the January 6th attack. A judge in Florida is halting a $4 billion relief program from the Biden administration for farmers that leaves out farmers who are white. In her decision, U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard said the program was governmentally imposed discrimination based on race. She also wrote that Congress must heed its obligation to do away with governmentally imposed

discrimination based on race, adding that it appears that an adopting Section 1005 strict race-based debt relief remedy, Congress moved with great speed to address the history of discrimination, but did not move with great care. Mumford and Sons' band member Winston Marshall is leaving the group so he can freely talk about politics. The popular folk rock group came under scrutiny earlier this year when Winston, the band's banjo and guitar player, wrote in a post on Twitter praising Andy No's book Unmask. Winston was criticized for endorsing No's book, which details the violence of Antifa. Winston issued an apology afterwards and said he was taking some time off from the band, but now the banjo player has decided to leave Mumford and Sons entirely, so he can freely express his political views without harming the band.

On Thursday, Winston explained his decision on Medium, writing, For me to speak about what I've learned to be such a controversial issue, will inevitably bring my bandmates more trouble. My love, loyalty, and accountability to them cannot permit that. I could remain and continue to self-censor, but it will erode my sense of integrity, not my conscience. I've already felt that beginning. The only way forward for me is to leave the band. Winston wished his bandmates all the best, saying they did not ask him to step away, but he made the choice freely. Now stay tuned for my conversation. station with Jonathan Grella, founder of Dealing Malarkey. Virginia Allen here, I want to tell you all

about a great way you can stay in the know on all the news the Daily Signal covers, social media. The Daily Signal has an active presence on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. We are constantly posting news stories, clips from interviews, videos, and more across all our social platforms. Follow the Daily Signal on social media so you can get all the latest content for from Reels on Instagram to video clips on Facebook and political commentary on Twitter. I'm joined today on The Daily Signal by Jonathan Grella. He's the founder of JAG Public Affairs. Jonathan, it's great to have you with us on The Daily Signal.

It's great to be here in Texas. Well, it's great to be with you. Thanks for making time to join us. So can you just start off, Jonathan, by telling us about yourself, and where was your start in conservative media? How did that happen? Yeah, sure. Came down to D.C. after undergrad to pursue my master's degree.

and started working on Capitol Hill, specifically at the National Republican Senatorial Committee, then worked in House leadership for a number of years, and then to the private sector, PR firms, foreign into sports, even, association world, and now as an entrepreneur and doing public relations, public affairs advocacy. And now this new project, I'm sure we'll get to. Yeah, well, let's talk about JAG Public Affairs. Can you tell us? us about it, what led you to create it? You bet. So for the past six years, I had run advocacy as Executive Vice President for Public Affairs for the U.S. Travel Association, and then thought that entrepreneurship

was the next challenge and decided to start my own sole proprietorship called JAG, and then about a year after that started Protean Public Affairs for other sole proprietors so we can kind of have the best of both worlds. the independence and small hands-on feel of a sole proprietorship. And then also we could bring different experts together with different specialties and chase bigger business together. So it's being great to combine the two of them. And there's something to be said for entrepreneurship and learning how to fish

in that you can have the peace of mind that you can make a living and make ends meet without too much difficulty. You're, of course, hustling. The downside of it, as many people have warned me, is you never feel like it's okay to take a break, but you kind of have to train yourself to do that. Otherwise, you won't recharge the way you need to be your best. Well, on that note, before we get back to talking about conservative media,

what was it like starting your own small business, being an entrepreneur. And for people who maybe have that entrepreneurial bug in them, what kind of advice would you give them to say, hey, this is what you need to be aware of, but this is like the good things about it if you want to go this route. Yeah, so truth be told,

I started my LLC about nine months before I ended up needing it, not thinking I would ever actually need it. And I thought of it like the first time I bought a tuxedo where if you buy the tuxedo, you could say yes to more things. and you could have that flexibility that if you ever got a last minute invite, you could say yes. So that's how I viewed having the LLC. I picked out the name, picked out the web domain, and filed the paperwork,

and I knew that in a moment's notice I could be ready to go. And sure enough, several months later, I decided to take the plunge. And I would say my advice to aspiring entrepreneurs, not that I haven't figured out, but I certainly do not, is to buy the tuxedo. To pick something out, have it ready. You never know when you're gonna need it. And it eliminates a major hurdle and a major sort of block between you and that next career.

So a lot of times it's kind of tough to fix your resume, you know, like, you just get like, like, I shouldn't have to do that. I don't want to update my bio. Some of that drudgery, like, you just like kind of dread it. And this was one of those things where I said, I got to take care of this thing and have it. Otherwise, I won't get around to it. And I'm glad I did. That's a great pep talk. I love it. Thanks. So, also the founder of Daley Malarkey. What is Daly Malarkey? And can you tell us the story behind it? Yeah, sure. So there are four of us. Garrett, Bubba, Ian and myself, and Ian's going to be down here later on today. And in January, we began talking, I should say, that a couple of them had talked previously

about the need for a daily email blast, like a newsletter of sorts, that's very short and to the point, very clever and piffy, and they recruited me to write. for it and to be one of the co-founders. And so our first issue was on inauguration day. And so we're, you know, we're a few months into the thing. And it's really blown up in such a great way over the past few months. We get great feedback not just on Twitter and online, but also, you know, fan mail and emails and such. And our list has grown.

Our readership is great. Our open rate is fantastic. We really think that there is a place in the market for snark brevity, as we call it, like Axios coined the phrase, smart brevity, and we do snark brevity. So certainly there's a lot of competition for people's attention nowadays, so you've got to be quick and to the point. And in order to get and keep people's attention, you have to be creative and clever. So we bring those couple things together.

And then certainly the news media is not going to scratch that itch for people as things currently stand. And certainly it's not terribly difficult to come up with inspirations for our daily email blast because there's just a deluge, unfortunately, a deluge of malarkey out there that we can opine on and poke fun at. Well, on that note, with the current culture of the news cycle that we see, it's honestly, ever-ending, they're always in our hands, on our phones, in our living rooms, it's everywhere, and it's not positive, really, ever. Do you see daily malarkey is sort of something that is going to counteract that constant deluge of just negative news that just brings people down that's constantly hyped up and spun

different ways and take it with different angles and just kind of regurgitated in different aspects? Yeah, I feel like the media is being disrupted. It's long overdue. It's not over yet, and we don't know what the next phase will be. But there certainly is a growing awakening that the mainstream media does not speak to everyone, does not care for about half the country, and you're not really getting, people are, people are now aware that the media is not covering reality as they see it, and that there are narratives and there are,

versions of reality, manufactured realities that are instead covered. So there is some demand out there for someone to bring what's important to them and certainly to speak to people who feel like common sense is out the window and not provided online or on TV. And that's what we try to do. And so it could be one development in a given day. A lot of times, some of my favorite stuff to write about are trends where you take things that may not look like they're connected and connect them. So it's fun to be able to do that.

And you say, you know, I only need a couple of minutes of your time. At 4 o'clock every day, I'm going to send you this very quick, clever blast. And you'll be in and out. You'll be smarter for it. You'll be a little entertained. And it's kind of a good deal. So we feel like the models, models been validated thus far. And, you know, you kind of have to plug away in it every day over time.

And as I've learned from entrepreneurship and my whole career, great ideas are a dime a dozen. It's execution where it's all where it's at. We also have something called the Anti-Malry Avengers. Can you tell us about the genesis behind that? Yes. So glad you asked about that. So another thing I've noticed in the, you know, in the current environment is certainly there's cancel culture.

And who is not only breaking through nowadays and at the height of their superpowers, but also as part of their superpowers are seemingly impervious to cancellation. There are a number of names that I could bring up and will, but before I get, the names can be distracted. The real common thread, the shared DNA between all of them is a certain personality type, a larger than life,

I don't care, bravado that they bring, and they don't give their detractors the power and the satisfaction of sweating them. So whether it's, you know, I mean, heck, you could say, you know, obviously Trump had, regardless of what you think of Trump, Trump, Trump had some, has, some of this DNA, as is Tucker Carlson, as is Dave Portnoy, as does Clay Travis, and so many other folks who are Lightning Rods, Joe Rogan is another one, and they aren't always conservative, but they are sort of no nonsense, you're not going to intimidate me. I'm going to tell you what I think about things from my, from my perspective, my take on common sense is this. And they are, they are the masters of the universe right now as far, or at least the media

universe as far as I'm concerned these days. And, and we're trying to do some of that. So there is, they are to be admired because of how strong and robust they are, how brave they are to stand tall and not be intimidated. But they've got the authenticity also that people crave nowadays. And there's a whole bunch there. And they're also scratching the edges we mentioned earlier and giving people a not the sanitized, politically correct version of reality. They're not afraid to call balls and strikes. And nobody on it. them, right? They don't, they don't feel like they're beholden to one side or the other.

And that's, I think, where their strength comes from. So they have our, they certainly have our attention and our respect and admiration. Well, big picture, Jonathan. What's your perspective of the media today? Completely and utterly broken. The lack of self-awareness is breathtaking in that if you were inside CNN, MSNBC, New York Times, Washington Post, and knew what everybody was saying about you, you wouldn't continue to conduct yourself the same way you have, but yet they do. And I would be going way out of my way to prove the point that I'm fair, right? There was that line that we poke fun at today in the Mararchy about how journalists don't root for a side.

And that is malarkey. That is the essence of malarkey. Of course they do. Of course they do. And so it's got to be broken to be rebuilt in something that's worthy and believable. And to restore journalists. to what it should be. And if the media, if journalists were what they said they were,

which is that, you know, guardians of democracy and freedom, there wouldn't be such animosity from the general public toward them. And certainly in the other direction where the news media basically has nothing to say, certainly nothing good to say to half the country. So we're in the middle of disruption. It's long overdue. it's still, there's a lot of pain between here and the end of the process, but hopefully good will come of it. I'll certainly say that, that the last few years as painful as they've been,

in many ways, has unmasked a media that, you know, insisted for the longest time that they're, that they're not biased, and I don't think there's any pretending anymore, and they just look foolish every day that they continue to deny that and insist that the only people who think that there's bias are conspiracy theorists because it's pretty plain to see now. Well, diving into the notion about biased media, as someone who's worked in media in public affairs, what have you learned or noticed or just observed about how the mainstream media generally covers and operates under a Democrat administration versus a Republican administration? That's very funny because today's malarkey is going to be about that.

on the occasion of the president stepping out yesterday and making yet another racially insensitive comment. And I'm not here to hate on Biden. Like, I mean, he doesn't bug me the way he might bug some other people, but I can see through the stuff, right? See through the malarkey. And no politician gets to make dozens of racially insensitive comments and live to tell. I mean, ask Trent Lott and any number of other ones. And, you know, whether Biden is talking about Obama being clean and articulate several years ago. And then any number, you ain't black, hit that comment.

And, you know, that black folks don't know how to muster up an ID to vote. And now they can't find themselves lawyers and accountants. It's just this patronizing brand. of condescending, you know, progressivism. And my view is not only do the media hated Trump so much, they would do anything to get him out, and they did, but they are obviously very protective of Biden, not just because he's liberal, but I think, to borrow a phrase from George W. Bush, this is the soft bigotry of low expectations when it comes to Biden. is he's not held to account for his gaffs for putting his foot in his mouth

because they, they deep down inside, know that he's not 100%. And I hate to say that. And I, it's sad that we're in such a spot, but I think he's graded on a curve because they know he's not completely coherent all the time. Well, on that note, Jonathan, where do you see challenges and where do you see opportunities for growth. All right. So challenges, we don't seem to be anywhere close to the end of woke culture, political correctness, critical race theory, media bias, and any number of the topics that we tend to focus on at the malarkey. So there will be, there's no shortage of things to cover.

But, you know, it's unfortunate that the things that we view as sort of common sense and plain to see are still being grappled with around the country, right? I even have these conversations with family members and they'll say, well, what's so bad about this thing or that thing? And they'll say, don't you understand? Like, you know, we've got a lot of work to do to educate folks. But we've also come a long way rather quickly, too. I think the public's wise to a lot of the nonsense that's out there. I hate to keep saying Markey, so I'll say nonsense now. And so there's a lot of, there is no shortage of things to cover.

There's still a ton of work to do, but we believe we're on to something just based on the response we've gotten. The, you know, the subscribership, the growth, the open rates, et cetera. There is an appetite out there for someone to kind of cut through the, nonsense, there's another synonym nonsense, and deliver to them snark brevity every day at four o'clock, make them chuckle a little bit, maybe make them a little bit peeved from time to time, but ultimately delivering information in a way that was worth the five minutes you spent, you know, taking it in. So that's what we hope to do. Jonathan, before we wrap up, you mentioned cancel culture. It's become rampant everywhere.

What is the way out of cancel culture? As someone who knows media, where do we need to go to address this and move on? It's a great question because having worked in corporate communications and sports and some high-profile entities, you know, the old textbook says that you're supposed to acknowledge the gravity of the situation and offer a very contrite apology and be and and hold yourself to a standard that's higher than the law and ethics moving forward. forward and, you know, turn the page. And, like, there are all these sort of maxims out there about how you navigate

crisis. And I'm not saying there's nothing to them. But when it comes to this kind of crisis where in it, where a bunch of cancel culture cannibals are coming for your scalp. And essentially, it's not about what you say, but they, they, you got stuck by saying something that they were able to, you know, seize on or even pounce. I know the left can't pounce, only Republicans can pounce. But they dislike you for who you are.

And no matter what your apology sounds like or how contrite you actually are, you're not going to be forgiven. That's not the game. The game is, the game is, you know, is about destruction of everyone who's not them. So our tactics need to change consequently. And so the answer to that question is, don't give them the satisfaction. Their condescension and self-righteousness is so central to their identity. They insist upon themselves.

And if you don't even give them that basic acknowledgement and respect and you laugh at them, and I say mock them mercilessly, I am on a human level. a kind and caring and friendly person to anybody, regardless in their politics. But when we're in the ring, right? Like when we're duking it out, I fight hard. And they, their kryptonite is not being taken seriously. And so I, thankfully, it's not, it's not,

doesn't require much acting on my part to not care what they happen to think. And, you know, we all know the story of the boy who cried wolf. And if you're, if you, you know, scream and yell over every last thing, then it's hard for me to take seriously when there actually is a problem. So I think they've done that to the culture. They've cheapen terms like racist and misogynist and sexist and all the other ists that are out there. So that they're rendered less valuable, sadly, for when they're actually needed. And so for that, I think we've got to fight back. Don't commit yourself to playing offense.

Don't think that you're ever for a minute going to befriend or win over or persuade them. Just go about doing your thing. Make no apologies for it. And more than anything else, and this is the best part is they could be screaming mad. And if you're, if you still have a smile on your face, there's nothing that will drive them crazier than that. So thankfully, the smile that's on our faces is sincere. We're having a blast, and that's just who we are.

So we feel like we're uniquely positioned to deliver this message to the people. Well, on that note, Jonathan, thank you so much for joining us on the Daily Signal. It's been great having you with us. Thanks for having me. It's been fun. And that'll do it for today's episode. listening to The Daily Signal podcast. You can find the Daily Signal podcast on Google Play, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and IHeart Radio. Please be sure to leave us a review and a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts and encourage others to subscribe. Thanks again for listening and we'll be back with you all on Monday.

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