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特朗普70亿美元的媒体业务可能给他带来麻烦

PAOLO CONFINO
2025-01-26

随着唐纳德·特朗普重返白宫,特朗普媒体科技集团正处于特朗普商业与政治利益的交汇点。

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图片来源:PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY FORTUNE; (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT) PHOTOS BY MICHAEL M. SANTIAGO; CHRIS UNGER/ZUFFA LLC; ANNA MONEYMAKER; CELAL GUNES/ANADOLU; PETER CASOLINO/NEW HAVEN REGISTER, ALL FROM GETTY IMAGES

• 在唐纳德·特朗普的媒体公司,董事会成员被提名担任内阁成员,前政治幕僚在公司新的流媒体平台Truth+上主持脱口秀节目。

2024年10月,唐纳德·特朗普名下陷入困境的社交媒体公司真相社交(Truth Social),通过从类似推特(现为X)的平台扩展到视频流媒体领域,扩大了其迅速增长的技术资产。尽管Truth+的发布几乎没有引起轰动或关注,但该平台已经启动并投入运行。它有18个频道,涵盖了新闻、天气和旅行节目。

这项免费服务提供直播节目和一系列点播电视节目和电影。Truth+的资源库无法与Netflix或迪士尼(Disney)等流媒体巨头相媲美。然而,除了经常充斥免费流媒体服务的B级电影之外,它确实提供了一些可靠的资源。例如,好莱坞黄金时代的影迷可以找到分别由詹姆斯·迪恩和查理·卓别林主演的《死刑宣判》(Sentence of Death)(1953年)和《淘金记》(The Gold Rush)(1925年)。还有由Entertain Me制作的关于足球超级明星基利安·姆巴佩和贝利的体育纪录片。

但真正展现出Truth+及其母公司特朗普媒体科技集团(TMTG)的影响力的是直播新闻和脱口秀节目,这些节目主要来自保守派新闻频道。几乎所有主要的右翼新闻媒体现在都加入了Truth+平台,包括One America News Network(OANN)、Newsmax、基督教媒体公司Salem Media Group、Real America’s Voice及其姊妹天气频道WeatherNation。

值得注意的是,其中缺少了它们最著名的竞争对手福克斯新闻(Fox News)。

TMTG对Truth+的所有权,使其在政治、商业和媒体领域都具有独特的影响力。特朗普是TMTG的大股东,但他在该公司没有担任正式职务。文件显示,去年12月17日,特朗普将持股全部转让给特朗普可撤销信托,该信托基金由他的长子小唐纳德·特朗普控制,转移后,特朗普不再直接持有公司股份,信托持有的股份市值在当时约为40亿美元。

特朗普的许多政治盟友,包括律师、代理人和顾问等,现在都是Truth+节目的主持人。至少有十几人目前受雇于Truth+上的广播公司或TMTG,或由这些广播公司发布他们的内容。特朗普也是Truth+上的媒体报道的主要对象。

事实上,特朗普的政治网络、媒体业务和个人财富之间的重叠,为新任总统带来了一系列潜在的冲突。前总统乔治·W·布什的首席道德律师理查德·佩因特表示,没有法律要求总统在任职期间必须剥离其商业利益,只有一系列规范,而特朗普在第一个任期内已经规避了这些规范。在第一个任期内,特朗普将其商业资产置于由他的儿子小唐纳德·特朗普和埃里克·特朗普管理的信托基金中。佩因特表示,这样做转移了这些资产的控制权,但没有转移所有权。

他说道:“除了特朗普之外,最近几任总统都避免了与其公职相关的财务利益冲突。特朗普在2016年仍然持有酒店、高尔夫球场和全球各地业务,是唯一一位这样做的总统。我看不出现在会有什么不同。只是他正在进入新的业务领域。”

以下是特朗普的新社交媒体业务与他的政治和商业利益的联系:

(除迈克·林德尔外,TMTG或本文提及的任何人士均未回应置评请求。)

罗伯特·希格——Real America’s Voice和WeatherNation的母公司Performance One Media的创始人

希格名下总部位于科罗拉多州的Performance One Media拥有并经营右翼新闻频道Real America’s Voice(RAV)。虽然目前知名度不如Newsmax或OANN,但该平台的目标是成为它们真正的竞争对手。在获得史蒂夫·班农的《War Room》脱口秀的发行权后,RAV的内容阵容得到了加强,该节目在频道上一次直播数小时。

希格从原始创始人、明尼苏达气象员保罗·道格拉斯手中夺取了WeatherNation的控制权后,Performance One开始建立自己的媒体网络。2014年,Performance One起诉客户WeatherNation拖欠120万美元咨询费。两个月后,Performance One撤诉,该网络易手。协议的具体细节从未公开。

一名前员工对《财富》杂志表示,到2016年,希格开始着手进军新闻业务领域。两年后的2018年,希格成立了新闻频道America’s Voice News。班农在2022年告诉《华盛顿邮报》,希格在2020年与特朗普会面后决定将网络更名为Real America’s Voice,当时特朗普认为原名称听起来太像联邦政府资助的国际广播公司美国之音(Voice of America)。

在成为媒体大亨之前,希格曾多次面临法律问题。2006年,他在一起联邦案件中被判抵押贷款欺诈罪。他还曾因袭击、骚扰、持有毒品、酒后驾驶、家庭暴力和入室盗窃在科罗拉多州被捕。Performance One Media的代表没有回应置评请求。

罗伯特·赫林——One America News Network的母公司Herring Networks的创始人

在2019年与前员工的一起劳资纠纷中,赫林在证词中提到,2013年,美国电话电报公司(AT&T)的高管告诉赫林,需要有另外一家有线电视频道与福克斯新闻竞争,赫林根据他们的建议创立了One America News Network。在那之后的11年里,该频道变得比福克斯新闻更偏右翼,更深入激烈地探讨了从新冠疫情否定论到2020年总统大选存在选民欺诈等各种阴谋论。去年4月,OANN最终与投票技术公司Smartmatic就该网络的选举舞弊指控提起的诽谤诉讼达成了和解。

赫林发迹于电路板行业。他先后卖掉了两家工厂,第一家工厂在1988年以5,200万美元的价格卖给了日本公司Toppan West,第二家工厂在2000年以全股票交易的形式卖给了泰瑞达(Teradyne)。当泰瑞达的股价因互联网泡沫破裂而暴跌时,赫林持有的股票贬值,于是他提起诉讼,声称他在该公司未来的问题上受到了误导。败诉后,赫林起诉他的律师对此次诉讼处理不当。他也输掉了那场官司。这种咄咄逼人和热衷于诉讼的经营方式,让赫林对特朗普惺惺相惜。赫林在2021年接受路透社采访时表示:“对于特朗普的观点,我几乎完全同意。”

尽管赫林对特朗普有好感,但他在2019年表示,他创立OANN的“第一目标是为了赚钱”。

卡什·帕特尔,唐纳德·特朗普提名的联邦调查局局长候选人,于2024年12月9日在哈特大楼会见德克萨斯州共和党参议员约翰·科宁。图片来源:TOM WILLIAMS—CQ-ROLL CALL, INC./GETTY IMAGES

卡什·帕特尔——TMTG董事会成员兼联邦调查局局长提名人

特朗普决定提名帕特尔担任新政府的联邦调查局局长,让他得以从华盛顿的一名政府律师,跻身美国的政治高层。

帕特尔以其对特朗普的忠诚而闻名。这种忠诚使帕特尔成功接近特朗普,在政治和商业上都担任了有权势的职位。根据美国证券交易委员会(SEC)的文件,帕特尔自2022年4月以来一直在TMTG董事会任职,年收入12万美元。(关于帕特尔被确认为FBI局长后是否会从该公司辞职,TMTG没有回应置评请求。)作为TMTG董事,帕特尔主持了对TMTG两位联合创始人韦斯·莫斯和安德鲁·利廷斯基的内部调查,原因是他们被指控对公司首次公开募股处理不当。公司以帕特尔的调查报告为依据提起诉讼,试图剥夺莫斯和利廷斯基作为公司联合创始人应得的股份,但未能胜诉。

在特朗普的第一个任期内,帕特尔曾在国家安全委员会担任反恐高级主任。在此之前,他曾担任加利福尼亚州国会议员兼众议院情报委员会主席德文·努涅斯的高级顾问,努涅斯现任TMTG首席执行官。在担任努涅斯的高级顾问期间,帕特尔通过撰写“努涅斯备忘录”给特朗普留下了深刻印象,而这份备忘录为共和党破坏2017年的穆勒调查奠定了基础。

当特朗普要求乌克兰官员调查乔·拜登以换取军事援助而面临第一次弹劾时,他曾考虑过让帕特尔审查所有白宫助手的忠诚度。前特朗普国家安全副顾问查尔斯·库珀曼在10月对《纽约时报》表示:“他想让卡什成为政治刽子手。”

琳达·麦克马洪——TMTG董事会成员兼教育部长提名人

麦克马洪至少从20世纪80年代末就认识特朗普,当时当选总统在大西洋城的特朗普广场赌场酒店(Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino)举办了两场“摔角狂热”(WrestleMania)活动。2007年,特朗普参与了世界摔角娱乐(WWE)的“亿万富翁之战”剧情,在比赛中,他在场边击倒了WWE创始人文斯·麦克马洪,显然是在抗议鲍比·莱斯利和乌玛加比赛时的裁判质量。琳达·麦克马洪当时是该摔角公司的总裁兼首席执行官。她与特朗普的关系从商界延伸到政界,在特朗普的第一个任期内,她曾担任小企业管理局局长。在最近的选举活动中,麦克马洪与坎特·菲茨杰拉德公司(Cantor Fitzgerald)首席执行官、商务部长提名人霍华德·拉特尼克被任命为特朗普-万斯过渡团队的联合主席。11月,特朗普提名麦克马洪为教育部长。自特朗普2015年进入政界以来,麦克马洪一直是他最可靠的捐助者之一。麦克马洪向特朗普的各种竞选活动捐款数千万美元,包括2024年向一个政治行动委员会一次性捐款1,000万美元。

德文·努涅斯——TMTG首席执行官兼董事会成员,前加利福尼亚州第22国会选区共和党众议员

努涅斯曾是最保守的国会议员之一,他于2021年辞去议员职务,担任TMTG的首席执行官。在任职期间,他是特朗普坚定而强硬的捍卫者。作为众议院情报委员会主席,努涅斯积极反对穆勒对俄罗斯涉嫌干预2016年大选的指控展开调查。在1月6日叛乱发生前两天,特朗普在闭门仪式上授予努涅斯总统自由勋章,部分原因是他在国会中为特朗普辩护,这一举动遭到对手的嘲讽。自担任TMTG首席执行官以来,努涅斯带领公司扩展了技术基础设施,并探索了与加密货币公司的交易。迄今为止,在他的管理下,公司业绩乏善可陈:公司在2024年第三季度的收入仅为260万美元,亏损3.632亿美元。

迈克·林德尔——FrankSpeech Network的首席执行官兼创始人

MyPillow首席执行官因强烈支持2020年选举舞弊阴谋论而在全美崭露头角。2021年1月6日的骚乱事件发生后一周左右,有报道称林德尔在白宫与特朗普会面,当时他被拍到手持文件,其中概述了一项任命帕特尔为中央情报局(CIA)局长的计划。林德尔对《财富》杂志表示,这些文件来自一位白宫的律师,但他“从未读过”。

在2020年大选结束后,投票机公司Dominion Voting Systems和Smartmatic因林德尔的主张对其提起诉讼。这两起诉讼仍在进行中。林德尔表示,他相信案件结果将对他有利。林德尔在电话采访中表示:“令人惊讶的是,他们没有直接撤诉并对我说:‘迈克,我们会为你付出一切,因为我们曾试图摧毁你。’”

虽然林德尔可能是特朗普的狂热支持者,但在针对保守派的另类媒体方面,他也可能被视为特朗普的竞争对手。林德尔创立的FrankSpeech Network,是一个类似于真相社交平台的右翼社交媒体和流媒体平台。目前,FrankSpeech只是一个尚不成熟的视频播放器,提供直播和点播节目,还有一个独立的社交媒体应用FrankSocial。这两家公司是合作伙伴,林德尔的新兴媒体公司在Truth+上播出其内容。林德尔否认FrankSpeech和TMTG之间存在任何竞争关系。他表示:“在这个领域有足够大的空间,公众需要获得不同的选择。”

唐纳德·特朗普的前政治顾问史蒂夫·班农在Truth+上播出他长达一个小时的脱口秀节目。图片来源:ADAM GRAY—AFP/GETTY IMAGES

史蒂夫·班农——前白宫高级顾问和《War Room》节目主持人

班农的在线节目《War Room》被YouTube封禁后,登上了希格的Real America’s Voice频道。关于与希格的公司达成的协议,班农在2022年1月对《华盛顿邮报》表示:“他们把我的节目传播到全国各地。”

现在,通过Truth+和Truth Social与希格的Real America’s Voice达成的内容协议,班农的节目每天在该平台上播出至少三个小时。

班农是特朗普2016年首次选举胜利的关键策划者。10月,班农在因两项藐视国会罪服刑四个月后从联邦监狱获释,他的两项罪名分别是拒绝出庭作证和拒绝向众议院1月6日事件调查委员会提供文件。

迈克·弗林——前特朗普国家安全顾问和Patriot.TV主持人

退役中将和前特朗普国家安全顾问迈克·弗林仍然是美国右翼阵营的重要人物。在Patriot.TV上,弗林坐在写有美国宪法的绿幕前主持脱口秀节目《Inside the SCIF》。弗林是特朗普第一次总统竞选期间最早支持他的建制派政治人物之一。然而,他只担任了22天国家安全顾问就被迫辞职,因为他显然没有如实向FBI说明他与俄罗斯大使谢尔盖·基斯利亚克之间的通信。他承认对联邦调查局撒谎,特朗普在2020年11月将其赦免。

近年来,弗林围绕选举阴谋论创建了一个小型产业,包括巡回演讲、纪录片和一家非营利组织,该组织到去年10月获得了2,100万美元捐款。在Dominion Voting Systems公司的高管提起的诉讼中,弗林在作证时被问及他是否看到过该公司操纵选举的“可信证据”,当时弗林回答说:“不,我真的不知道。”在被进一步追问时,他主张自己享有第五修正案赋予的权利,不自证其罪。

马克·沙夫特莱恩——Patriot.TV母公司保守派广播媒体与新闻公司(Conservative Broadcast Media & Journalism,CBMJ)首席执行官

在CBMJ,沙夫特莱恩兼任公司首席执行官和旗舰节目《沙夫特莱恩报告》(The Schaftlein Report)的主持人。这位前花旗集团(Citigroup)的银行家后来创办了一家私募股权公司Capital Consulting和几家媒体公司。通过两次收购小型右翼媒体初创公司,沙夫特莱恩悄然扩张了CBMJ的在线媒体资产。虽然CBMJ的内容阵容不像一些竞争对手那样拥有众多家喻户晓的名字,但它招募了著名的保守派人物弗洛伊德·布朗加入了董事会。

布朗长期担任共和党媒体顾问,以在1988年总统竞选期间制作威利·霍顿广告而闻名。人们普遍认为,这则广告通过利用美国白人的种族恐惧,使民主党候选人迈克尔·杜卡基斯在选举中败北。他还是公民联合会(Citizens United)的创始人,该组织因最高法院的一起案件而得名。这起案件彻底改革了美国的竞选财务规则,允许公司和政治行动委员会在选举期间无限制地花费资金。(财富中文网)

译者:刘进龙

审校:汪皓

• 在唐纳德·特朗普的媒体公司,董事会成员被提名担任内阁成员,前政治幕僚在公司新的流媒体平台Truth+上主持脱口秀节目。

2024年10月,唐纳德·特朗普名下陷入困境的社交媒体公司真相社交(Truth Social),通过从类似推特(现为X)的平台扩展到视频流媒体领域,扩大了其迅速增长的技术资产。尽管Truth+的发布几乎没有引起轰动或关注,但该平台已经启动并投入运行。它有18个频道,涵盖了新闻、天气和旅行节目。

这项免费服务提供直播节目和一系列点播电视节目和电影。Truth+的资源库无法与Netflix或迪士尼(Disney)等流媒体巨头相媲美。然而,除了经常充斥免费流媒体服务的B级电影之外,它确实提供了一些可靠的资源。例如,好莱坞黄金时代的影迷可以找到分别由詹姆斯·迪恩和查理·卓别林主演的《死刑宣判》(Sentence of Death)(1953年)和《淘金记》(The Gold Rush)(1925年)。还有由Entertain Me制作的关于足球超级明星基利安·姆巴佩和贝利的体育纪录片。

但真正展现出Truth+及其母公司特朗普媒体科技集团(TMTG)的影响力的是直播新闻和脱口秀节目,这些节目主要来自保守派新闻频道。几乎所有主要的右翼新闻媒体现在都加入了Truth+平台,包括One America News Network(OANN)、Newsmax、基督教媒体公司Salem Media Group、Real America’s Voice及其姊妹天气频道WeatherNation。

值得注意的是,其中缺少了它们最著名的竞争对手福克斯新闻(Fox News)。

TMTG对Truth+的所有权,使其在政治、商业和媒体领域都具有独特的影响力。特朗普是TMTG的大股东,但他在该公司没有担任正式职务。文件显示,去年12月17日,特朗普将持股全部转让给特朗普可撤销信托,该信托基金由他的长子小唐纳德·特朗普控制,转移后,特朗普不再直接持有公司股份,信托持有的股份市值在当时约为40亿美元。

特朗普的许多政治盟友,包括律师、代理人和顾问等,现在都是Truth+节目的主持人。至少有十几人目前受雇于Truth+上的广播公司或TMTG,或由这些广播公司发布他们的内容。特朗普也是Truth+上的媒体报道的主要对象。

事实上,特朗普的政治网络、媒体业务和个人财富之间的重叠,为新任总统带来了一系列潜在的冲突。前总统乔治·W·布什的首席道德律师理查德·佩因特表示,没有法律要求总统在任职期间必须剥离其商业利益,只有一系列规范,而特朗普在第一个任期内已经规避了这些规范。在第一个任期内,特朗普将其商业资产置于由他的儿子小唐纳德·特朗普和埃里克·特朗普管理的信托基金中。佩因特表示,这样做转移了这些资产的控制权,但没有转移所有权。

他说道:“除了特朗普之外,最近几任总统都避免了与其公职相关的财务利益冲突。特朗普在2016年仍然持有酒店、高尔夫球场和全球各地业务,是唯一一位这样做的总统。我看不出现在会有什么不同。只是他正在进入新的业务领域。”

以下是特朗普的新社交媒体业务与他的政治和商业利益的联系:

(除迈克·林德尔外,TMTG或本文提及的任何人士均未回应置评请求。)

罗伯特·希格——Real America’s Voice和WeatherNation的母公司Performance One Media的创始人

希格名下总部位于科罗拉多州的Performance One Media拥有并经营右翼新闻频道Real America’s Voice(RAV)。虽然目前知名度不如Newsmax或OANN,但该平台的目标是成为它们真正的竞争对手。在获得史蒂夫·班农的《War Room》脱口秀的发行权后,RAV的内容阵容得到了加强,该节目在频道上一次直播数小时。

希格从原始创始人、明尼苏达气象员保罗·道格拉斯手中夺取了WeatherNation的控制权后,Performance One开始建立自己的媒体网络。2014年,Performance One起诉客户WeatherNation拖欠120万美元咨询费。两个月后,Performance One撤诉,该网络易手。协议的具体细节从未公开。

一名前员工对《财富》杂志表示,到2016年,希格开始着手进军新闻业务领域。两年后的2018年,希格成立了新闻频道America’s Voice News。班农在2022年告诉《华盛顿邮报》,希格在2020年与特朗普会面后决定将网络更名为Real America’s Voice,当时特朗普认为原名称听起来太像联邦政府资助的国际广播公司美国之音(Voice of America)。

在成为媒体大亨之前,希格曾多次面临法律问题。2006年,他在一起联邦案件中被判抵押贷款欺诈罪。他还曾因袭击、骚扰、持有毒品、酒后驾驶、家庭暴力和入室盗窃在科罗拉多州被捕。Performance One Media的代表没有回应置评请求。

罗伯特·赫林——One America News Network的母公司Herring Networks的创始人

在2019年与前员工的一起劳资纠纷中,赫林在证词中提到,2013年,美国电话电报公司(AT&T)的高管告诉赫林,需要有另外一家有线电视频道与福克斯新闻竞争,赫林根据他们的建议创立了One America News Network。在那之后的11年里,该频道变得比福克斯新闻更偏右翼,更深入激烈地探讨了从新冠疫情否定论到2020年总统大选存在选民欺诈等各种阴谋论。今年4月,OANN最终与投票技术公司Smartmatic就该网络的选举舞弊指控提起的诽谤诉讼达成了和解。

赫林发迹于电路板行业。他先后卖掉了两家工厂,第一家工厂在1988年以5,200万美元的价格卖给了日本公司Toppan West,第二家工厂在2000年以全股票交易的形式卖给了泰瑞达(Teradyne)。当泰瑞达的股价因互联网泡沫破裂而暴跌时,赫林持有的股票贬值,于是他提起诉讼,声称他在该公司未来的问题上受到了误导。败诉后,赫林起诉他的律师对此次诉讼处理不当。他也输掉了那场官司。这种咄咄逼人和热衷于诉讼的经营方式,让赫林对特朗普惺惺相惜。赫林在2021年接受路透社采访时表示:“对于特朗普的观点,我几乎完全同意。”

尽管赫林对特朗普有好感,但他在2019年表示,他创立OANN的“第一目标是为了赚钱”。

卡什·帕特尔——TMTG董事会成员兼联邦调查局局长提名人

特朗普决定提名帕特尔担任新政府的联邦调查局局长,让他得以从华盛顿的一名政府律师,跻身美国的政治高层。

帕特尔以其对特朗普的忠诚而闻名。这种忠诚使帕特尔成功接近特朗普,在政治和商业上都担任了有权势的职位。根据美国证券交易委员会(SEC)的文件,帕特尔自2022年4月以来一直在TMTG董事会任职,年收入12万美元。(关于帕特尔被确认为FBI局长后是否会从该公司辞职,TMTG没有回应置评请求。)作为TMTG董事,帕特尔主持了对TMTG两位联合创始人韦斯·莫斯和安德鲁·利廷斯基的内部调查,原因是他们被指控对公司首次公开募股处理不当。公司以帕特尔的调查报告为依据提起诉讼,试图剥夺莫斯和利廷斯基作为公司联合创始人应得的股份,但未能胜诉。

在特朗普的第一个任期内,帕特尔曾在国家安全委员会担任反恐高级主任。在此之前,他曾担任加利福尼亚州国会议员兼众议院情报委员会主席德文·努涅斯的高级顾问,努涅斯现任TMTG首席执行官。在担任努涅斯的高级顾问期间,帕特尔通过撰写“努涅斯备忘录”给特朗普留下了深刻印象,而这份备忘录为共和党破坏2017年的穆勒调查奠定了基础。

当特朗普要求乌克兰官员调查乔·拜登以换取军事援助而面临第一次弹劾时,他曾考虑过让帕特尔审查所有白宫助手的忠诚度。前特朗普国家安全副顾问查尔斯·库珀曼在10月对《纽约时报》表示:“他想让卡什成为政治刽子手。”

琳达·麦克马洪——TMTG董事会成员兼教育部长提名人

麦克马洪至少从20世纪80年代末就认识特朗普,当时当选总统在大西洋城的特朗普广场赌场酒店(Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino)举办了两场“摔角狂热”(WrestleMania)活动。2007年,特朗普参与了世界摔角娱乐(WWE)的“亿万富翁之战”剧情,在比赛中,他在场边击倒了WWE创始人文斯·麦克马洪,显然是在抗议鲍比·莱斯利和乌玛加比赛时的裁判质量。琳达·麦克马洪当时是该摔角公司的总裁兼首席执行官。她与特朗普的关系从商界延伸到政界,在特朗普的第一个任期内,她曾担任小企业管理局局长。在最近的选举活动中,麦克马洪与坎特·菲茨杰拉德公司(Cantor Fitzgerald)首席执行官、商务部长提名人霍华德·拉特尼克被任命为特朗普-万斯过渡团队的联合主席。11月,特朗普提名麦克马洪为教育部长。自特朗普2015年进入政界以来,麦克马洪一直是他最可靠的捐助者之一。麦克马洪向特朗普的各种竞选活动捐款数千万美元,包括2024年向一个政治行动委员会一次性捐款1,000万美元。

德文·努涅斯——TMTG首席执行官兼董事会成员,前加利福尼亚州第22国会选区共和党众议员

努涅斯曾是最保守的国会议员之一,他于2021年辞去议员职务,担任TMTG的首席执行官。在任职期间,他是特朗普坚定而强硬的捍卫者。作为众议院情报委员会主席,努涅斯积极反对穆勒对俄罗斯涉嫌干预2016年大选的指控展开调查。在1月6日叛乱发生前两天,特朗普在闭门仪式上授予努涅斯总统自由勋章,部分原因是他在国会中为特朗普辩护,这一举动遭到对手的嘲讽。自担任TMTG首席执行官以来,努涅斯带领公司扩展了技术基础设施,并探索了与加密货币公司的交易。迄今为止,在他的管理下,公司业绩乏善可陈:公司在2024年第三季度的收入仅为260万美元,亏损3.632亿美元。

迈克·林德尔——FrankSpeech Network的首席执行官兼创始人

MyPillow首席执行官因强烈支持2020年选举舞弊阴谋论而在全美崭露头角。2021年1月6日的骚乱事件发生后一周左右,有报道称林德尔在白宫与特朗普会面,当时他被拍到手持文件,其中概述了一项任命帕特尔为中央情报局(CIA)局长的计划。林德尔对《财富》杂志表示,这些文件来自一位白宫的律师,但他“从未读过”。

在2020年大选结束后,投票机公司Dominion Voting Systems和Smartmatic因林德尔的主张对其提起诉讼。这两起诉讼仍在进行中。林德尔表示,他相信案件结果将对他有利。林德尔在电话采访中表示:“令人惊讶的是,他们没有直接撤诉并对我说:‘迈克,我们会为你付出一切,因为我们曾试图摧毁你。’”

虽然林德尔可能是特朗普的狂热支持者,但在针对保守派的另类媒体方面,他也可能被视为特朗普的竞争对手。林德尔创立的FrankSpeech Network,是一个类似于真相社交平台的右翼社交媒体和流媒体平台。目前,FrankSpeech只是一个尚不成熟的视频播放器,提供直播和点播节目,还有一个独立的社交媒体应用FrankSocial。这两家公司是合作伙伴,林德尔的新兴媒体公司在Truth+上播出其内容。林德尔否认FrankSpeech和TMTG之间存在任何竞争关系。他表示:“在这个领域有足够大的空间,公众需要获得不同的选择。”

史蒂夫·班农——前白宫高级顾问和《War Room》节目主持人

班农的在线节目《War Room》被YouTube封禁后,登上了希格的Real America’s Voice频道。关于与希格的公司达成的协议,班农在2022年1月对《华盛顿邮报》表示:“他们把我的节目传播到全国各地。”

现在,通过Truth+和Truth Social与希格的Real America’s Voice达成的内容协议,班农的节目每天在该平台上播出至少三个小时。

班农是特朗普2016年首次选举胜利的关键策划者。10月,班农在因两项藐视国会罪服刑四个月后从联邦监狱获释,他的两项罪名分别是拒绝出庭作证和拒绝向众议院1月6日事件调查委员会提供文件。

迈克·弗林——前特朗普国家安全顾问和Patriot.TV主持人

退役中将和前特朗普国家安全顾问迈克·弗林仍然是美国右翼阵营的重要人物。在Patriot.TV上,弗林坐在写有美国宪法的绿幕前主持脱口秀节目《Inside the SCIF》。弗林是特朗普第一次总统竞选期间最早支持他的建制派政治人物之一。然而,他只担任了22天国家安全顾问就被迫辞职,因为他显然没有如实向FBI说明他与俄罗斯大使谢尔盖·基斯利亚克之间的通信。他承认对联邦调查局撒谎,特朗普在2020年11月将其赦免。

近年来,弗林围绕选举阴谋论创建了一个小型产业,包括巡回演讲、纪录片和一家非营利组织,该组织到今年10月获得了2,100万美元捐款。在Dominion Voting Systems公司的高管提起的诉讼中,弗林在作证时被问及他是否看到过该公司操纵选举的“可信证据”,当时弗林回答说:“不,我真的不知道。”在被进一步追问时,他主张自己享有第五修正案赋予的权利,不自证其罪。

马克·沙夫特莱恩——Patriot.TV母公司保守派广播媒体与新闻公司(Conservative Broadcast Media & Journalism,CBMJ)首席执行官

在CBMJ,沙夫特莱恩兼任公司首席执行官和旗舰节目《沙夫特莱恩报告》(The Schaftlein Report)的主持人。这位前花旗集团(Citigroup)的银行家后来创办了一家私募股权公司Capital Consulting和几家媒体公司。通过两次收购小型右翼媒体初创公司,沙夫特莱恩悄然扩张了CBMJ的在线媒体资产。虽然CBMJ的内容阵容不像一些竞争对手那样拥有众多家喻户晓的名字,但它招募了著名的保守派人物弗洛伊德·布朗加入了董事会。

布朗长期担任共和党媒体顾问,以在1988年总统竞选期间制作威利·霍顿广告而闻名。人们普遍认为,这则广告通过利用美国白人的种族恐惧,使民主党候选人迈克尔·杜卡基斯在选举中败北。他还是公民联合会(Citizens United)的创始人,该组织因最高法院的一起案件而得名。这起案件彻底改革了美国的竞选财务规则,允许公司和政治行动委员会在选举期间无限制地花费资金。(财富中文网)

译者:刘进龙

审校:汪皓

• At President-elect Donald Trump’s media company board members have been nominated to cabinet positions and former political staffers host talk shows on the company’s new streaming platform Truth+.

In October, Truth Social, the struggling social media company owned by President-elect Donald Trump, expanded its burgeoning tech holdings by branching out from its Twitter-like platform into video streaming. The announcement received little fanfare or attention. And yet, “Truth+” is up and running. It carries 18 channels that offer news, weather, and travel shows.

The free service has live programming and a collection of on-demand TV shows and movies. Truth+’s library doesn’t rival that of streaming’s largest players, Netflix or Disney. However, it does offer a few credible titles beyond the B movies that often populate free streaming services. For instance, fans of the golden age of Hollywood can find Sentence of Death (1953) and The Gold Rush (1925), starring James Dean and Charlie Chaplin respectively. There are also sports documentaries produced by Entertain Me about soccer superstars Kylian Mbappé and Pelé.

But it is the live news and talk programming, mostly from conservative news channels, that show the influences behind Truth+ and its parent company, Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG). Almost all of the major right-wing news outlets are now on Truth+, including One America News Network (OANN), Newsmax, the Christian media company Salem Media Group, Real America’s Voice, and its sister weather channel, WeatherNation.

Their most famous competitor—Fox News—is conspicuously absent.

TMTG’s ownership of Truth+ puts it at an unusual intersection of politics, business, and media. Trump is the majority shareholder of TMTG, though he has no formal role at the company. With a market cap of $7.6 billion, Trump’s $4 billion stake accounts for about two-thirds of the incoming president’s $6.4 billion personal net worth, according to Forbes.

Many of Trump’s political allies—lawyers, surrogates, and advisors—are now hosts on shows carried by Truth+. At least a dozen of them are currently employed by, or have content distributed by, broadcasters on Truth+ or TMTG itself. Trump is also the subject of the lion’s share of coverage on the outlets distributed on Truth+.

In fact, the overlap between Trump’s political network, his media business, and his personal wealth presents an array of potential conflicts for the incoming president. There are no laws obligating a president to divest their business interests when in office, only a series of norms that Trump already shunned in his first term, according to Richard Painter, former chief ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush. During his first term in office, Trump placed his business assets in a trust managed by his sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump. The move transferred control but not ownership of those assets, Painter said.

“Recent presidents other than Trump have avoided financial conflicts of interest with their official duties,” Painter said. “Trump is the only one who held on with his hotels and the golf courses and with businesses all over the world in 2016. I don’t see why it’s going to be any different now. It’s just that he]s getting into new businesses.”

Here is how Trump’s new social media business connects with his political and business interests:

(Neither TMTG nor any of the individuals mentioned in this article, with the exception of Mike Lindell, responded to requests for comment).

Robert Sigg – Founder of Performance One Media, parent company of Real America’s Voice and WeatherNation

Sigg’s Colorado-based Performance One Media owns and operates the right-wing news channel Real America’s Voice (RAV). Currently less well-known than Newsmax or OANN, it aims to become a genuine competitor. RAV’s lineup was bolstered when it secured the distribution rights to Steve Bannon’s War Room talk show, which airs live for hours at a time on the channel.

Performance One started building its roster of networks when Sigg wrested control of WeatherNation from its original founder, Minnesota weatherman Paul Douglas. In 2014, Performance One sued its client WeatherNation for $1.2 million in unpaid consulting fees. Two months later Performance One dropped the suit, and the network changed hands. The exact details of the agreement were never made public.

By 2016, Sigg had set his sights on getting into the news business, a former employee told Fortune. The news channel launched two years later in 2018 under the name America’s Voice News. Sigg decided to rename the network Real America’s Voice after a 2020 meeting with Trump, in which the then-president opined the original name sounded too much like Voice of America, the federally funded international broadcaster, Bannon told the Washington Post in 2022.

Before his career as a media impresario, Sigg faced repeated legal problems. In 2006 he was convicted of mortgage fraud in a federal case. He has also been arrested in Colorado for assault, harassment, drug possession, driving under the influence, domestic violence, and burglary. Representatives for Performance One Media did not respond to requests for comment.

Robert Herring Sr. – Founder of Herring Networks, parent company of One America News Network

Herring founded One America News Network in 2013 on advice from AT&T executives who told him the cable business needed another competitor to Fox News, according to comments he made in a 2019 deposition about a labor dispute with a former employee. In the 11 years since, the channel has gone further to the right than Fox News, delving deeper and with greater vehemence into conspiracy theories ranging from COVID-19 denialism to claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election. In April, OANN ended up settling a defamation lawsuit with voting technology company Smartmatic over fraud claims the network made about the election.

Herring made his fortune in the circuit board industry. He sold two factories, the first in 1988 for $52 million to Japanese firm Toppan West and the second in 2000 to Teradyne in an all-stock deal. When Teradyne’s stock price plummeted as a result of the dotcom bubble bursting, reducing the value of his shares, Herring sued, alleging he’d been misled about the company’s future. When he lost, Herring sued his lawyers for mishandling the case. He lost that case as well. That combative and litigious approach to business helped Herring find a kindred spirit in Trump. “There’s almost nothing you can mention that I don’t agree with him on,” Herring said in a 2021 interview with Reuters.

But despite Herring’s fondness for Trump he founded OANN, “to make money, number one,” he said in 2019.

Kash Patel – TMTG board member and FBI director designate

Trump’s decision to nominate Patel as FBI director in his incoming administration launched him into the upper echelon of American politics after a career as a government lawyer in Washington.

Patel has developed a reputation as a consummate Trump loyalist. That allegiance earned Patel powerful positions that are close to Trump in both politics and business. Patel has been on the board of TMTG since April 2022, a role which earns him $120,000 a year, according to SEC filings. (TMTG did not respond to a request for comment about whether Patel would resign if he were confirmed as FBI director.) As a TMTG director, Patel led an internal investigation into TMTG’s two cofounders, Wes Moss and Andrew Litinsky, over their alleged mishandling of the company’s IPO. That report served as the basis for an unsuccessful lawsuit in which the company sought to deny Moss and Litinsky the shares they were entitled to as cofounders of the company.

During the first Trump administration Patel worked at the National Security Council as senior director for counterterrorism. Prior to that he was a senior advisor to former California congressman and chair of the House Intelligence Committee Devin Nunes, who is now TMTG CEO. In that role Patel impressed Trump by authoring the “Nunes memo,” which served as the foundation for Republican efforts to undermine the 2017 Mueller investigation.

When Trump was facing his first impeachment—for asking Ukrainian officials to open an investigation into Joe Biden in exchange for military aid—he considered having Patel vet all White House aides for loyalty. “He wanted to make Kash a political executioner,” former Trump deputy national security advisor Charles Kupperman told the New York Times in October.

Linda McMahon – TMTG board member and secretary of education designate

McMahon has known Trump since at least the late 1980s when the president-elect hosted two WrestleMania events at his Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City. In 2007, Trump participated in WWE’s “Battle of the Billionaires” storyline, in which he floored WWE founder Vince McMahon ringside in apparent protest at the quality of refereeing in a bout between Bobby Lashley and Umaga. Linda McMahon was president and CEO of the wrestling company at the time. Her relationship with Trump crossed from business to politics during his first term, when she served as the head of the Small Business Administration. During the most recent election campaign, McMahon was named co-chair of the Trump-Vance transition team alongside Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary designate. In November, Trump nominated McMahon to be secretary of education. Since Trump entered politics in 2015, McMahon has been among his most reliable donors. McMahon donated tens of millions of dollars to Trump’s various campaigns, including $10 million to a single PAC in 2024.

Devin Nunes – TMTG CEO and board member, former Republican representative from California’s 22nd Congressional District

Once one of the most conservative members of Congress, Nunes resigned from his seat in 2021 to become CEO of TMTG. During his time in office he was a vociferous and pugnacious defendant of Trump. As chair of the House Intelligence Committee he actively opposed the Mueller investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election campaign. Trump awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, in part for defending him in Congress, in a closed-door ceremony two days before the Jan. 6 insurrection, a move which brought derision from his opponents. Since becoming TMTG CEO, Nunes has led the company’s expansion of its technology infrastructure and explored deals with crypto companies. So far his stewardship has yielded only modest financial results: The company brought in just $2.6 million in revenue and lost $363.2 million through the third quarter of 2024.

Mike Lindell – CEO and founder of FrankSpeech Network

The MyPillow CEO rose to national prominence for his impassioned support of election fraud conspiracy theories around the 2020 election. About a week after Jan. 6, 2021, Lindell reportedly met with Trump in the White House where he was pictured holding documents outlining a plan to install Patel as CIA director. Lindell told Fortune he was given those papers by a lawyer in the White House and “never read them.”

In the aftermath of the 2020 election, voting machine companies Dominion Voting Systems and Smartmatic sued Lindell over his claims. Both suits are still ongoing. Lindell said he was confident the case would go in his favor. “It’s a wonder they haven’t just dropped it and said, ‘Here, Mike, we’re going to pay you for everything, we tried to destroy you,’” Lindell said in a phone interview.

While Lindell may be an avid Trump supporter, he could also be considered his competitor in alternative media targeted at conservatives. Lindell founded the FrankSpeech Network, a right-wing social media and streaming platform similar to Truth Social. Currently FrankSpeech operates as a rudimentary video player that mixes live and on-demand programming and a stand-alone social media app called FrankSocial. The two companies are partners, with Lindell’s nascent media company broadcasting its content on Truth+. Lindell denied there was any competition between FrankSpeech and TMTG. “There’s so much room in this space where the public needs to get, they need to get different alternatives,” he said.

Steve Bannon – former White House senior advisor and host of the War Room

After Bannon’s online show War Room was booted from YouTube it got picked up by Sigg’s Real America’s Voice. “They get it out everywhere,” Bannon told the Washington Post in January 2022 of his deal with Sigg’s company.

Now, Bannon’s program can be found for at least three hours a day on Truth+ and Truth Social through the platform’s content deal with Sigg’s Real America’s Voice.

Bannon was a key architect of Trump’s first electoral victory in 2016. In October, Bannon was released from federal prison after serving a four-month sentence for two counts of contempt of Congress: for refusing to sit for a deposition and provide documents to the House Jan. 6 Committee.

Mike Flynn – former Trump national security advisor and host of Patriot.TV

The retired lieutenant general and former Trump national security advisor remains a fixture of the American right. On Patriot.TV, Flynn streams his talk show Inside the SCIF, where he sits in front of a green screen of the U.S. Constitution. Flynn was one of the first establishment figures to endorse Trump during his first presidential run. However, his tenure as national security advisor lasted only 22 days when he was forced to resign after it became apparent he had lied to the FBI about communications with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak. He pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI, which Trump pardoned him for in November 2020.

In recent years Flynn has created a cottage industry of election conspiracy theories, including a speaking tour, a documentary, and a nonprofit that collected $21 million in donations through October of this year. When asked during a deposition in a lawsuit brought by a Dominion Voting Systems executive if he’d seen any “credible evidence” the company had rigged the election, Flynn replied, “No, I don’t really know.” When pressed, he asserted his Fifth Amendment right to not incriminate himself.

Mark Schaftlein – CEO, Conservative Broadcast Media & Journalism, parent company of Patriot.TV

At CBMJ, Schaftlein pulls double duty as the company’s chief executive and the host of its flagship show, The Schaftlein Report. A former banker at Citigroup, he later started a private equity firm, Capital Consulting, and several media businesses. Through two acquisitions of small, right-wing media startups, Schaftlein has quietly expanded CBMJ’s roster of online media assets. While CBMJ’s content lineup doesn’t feature as many household names as some of its competitors, it has recruited one notable conservative figure to the boardroom—Floyd Brown.

Brown was a longtime Republican media consultant, best known for creating the Willie Horton ad in the 1988 presidential race that was widely considered to have cost Democratic candidate Michael Dukakis the election by playing on the racial fears of white Americans. He is also a founder of Citizens United, of the eponymous Supreme Court case. That case overhauled American campaign finance rules, allowing corporations and political action committees to spend unlimited amounts of money during elections.

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