In a June 5th piece about the relationship between politics and blogs, Cleveland reporter for the
Plain Dealer, Mark Naymik, wrote an article entitled "
Blogs reshape politics, news reports." In it, Naymik gives notable ink to Russell Hughlock, the man behind Buckeye State Blog -- which has recently been exposed as engaged in backroom deals to advance certain agendas for key Democratic campaigns, even going so far as to spread rumors.
Hughlock's recent behavior is particularly troublesome when viewed in the context of this excerpt from Naymik's article:
Among the most prolific Ohio bloggers is buckeyestateblog's Russell Hughlock, a British subject and engineer who lives in Newark. More than just a commentator, he covers rallies and grass-roots meetings on his own time and dime.
Hughlock, a former campaign consultant for the British Conservative Party and a founding member of the Licking County Pro Active Citizens, describes his political leanings as "economically conservative, socially progressive/libertarian."
"I hope to bring more people into the political process and provide a forum for regular people to have some influence and be listened to and to expose some of the backroom politics that goes on but doesn't get reported," he said.
As indicated by the graphic above, Buckeye State Blog sells advertising space to the Ohio Learn and Earn campaign. According to Hughlock, his income for that advertisement revenue is $200 monthly. This may or may not be a sizable chunk of change -- depending on your perspective and social class -- but it still indicates a relationship between both parties involving an exchange of money.
This relationship becomes more noteworthy given the level of support Hughlock gives Ohio Learn and Earn (and OLE's communications director, Democrat Todd Hoffman). Todd Hoffman has been working netroots for OLE, and when he encounters disagreement with the notion of legalized gambling, he works indefatigably to defeat and/or discredit his critics. In the most recent netroots attack, both Hoffman and Hughlock joined forces to oppose The Cincinnati Beacon. Opposition in the form of healthy debate is never a problem, but Buckeye State Blog has mounted a character-smear campaign against Andrew Warner, reminiscent of the types of unreported "backroom politics" Hughlock mentioned in the Plain Dealer article.
In one email to The Cincinnati Beacon, Hughlock accused Andrew Warner of holding a personal grudge against OLE for not giving him a job. Hughlock wrote:
FWIW
Did Warner inform you he applied for a job with OLE and was turned down ? That appears to be the context of Hoffman's point if that information was known.
In a later email, Hughlock seems to have recognized his slip -- and he tries to revise his statement above:
Seems to me what I told you ... was hardly an attack, just a heads up he had in fact applied for and not received a job with field works - something he is now admitting. how the fuck is that misinformation ? LOL.
This may seem like a small point -- but Hughlock switches the details, from accusing Warner of applying for a job with OLE and getting turned down, to applying with Field Words and then not ending up with a job. This moment serves as an entry-point into the kinds of dirty, back door dealings these characters will engage to attempt to control totally the media environments surrounding their campaigns.
It looks like someone leaked to Hoffman and/or Hughlock that Warner had applied for a job. These employment details have been spread in an act of defamation against Warner's character. These speculations seem more substantiated when we look at a threatening email Hoffman sent Warner:
Andrew,
I respect your voice and idealism, it is awesome. And I respect that you are blogging while just a college student. I wish blogs were around when I was a student. But if you want to get a job in Ohio politics, and from what I hear you do, you cannot attack personal people. Attack the issue, that's fine. But you need to build bridges, not burn them. Right now I would not recommend you for any job dealing with the netroots, and my recommendation goes far in the Democratic circles in Ohio. You can change my mind though. I think you are a talented writer and a passionate activist. Stick to your guns, but do not attack individual campaign workers who are trying to make a living of politics, and eventually change the world.
Take care,
Todd
It's a hedged threat, but a threat nonetheless: stop criticizing my work, or I'll make sure you never work for Democrats in Ohio. And check out this line: "But if you want to get a job in Ohio politics, and from what I hear you do..." From where did Hoffman hear such a thing?
Warner has recently given Field Works permission to release portions of any employment files they have, offering this as proof of the reality in this interpersonal drama. But the issue really is bigger than a pissing fight between Hughlock, Hoffman, and Warner. This gets to the heart of how politics are played in Ohio, and how far some will go to discredit and silence an outspoken critic. Warner writes:
<div class="blockquote">Speaking of April 19th, I have an e-mail from Brian Dunn from April the 20th asking for my references "at my earliest convenience" and wanting to tell me more about the "team leader" position he is offering me (what I've been saying all along). Mr. Dunn had already viewed my resume (which includes my websites with all my "wacky" views), and sat down with me on the 19th. Yet, he still wants to see my references and to talk to me about a position? Seems counter-intuitive to Russell's assertion that I was too wacky for the campaign.
Can Russell, who seems to be so well informed on the situation, produce my reply where I sent my references and was turned down? If so, I'd love to see it. If Fieldworks or Todd Hoffman has the copy of my references that I supposedly sent to them, then I am cooked. I grant them permission to show them on any blog to prove I am a big liar and Russell is a noble man who speaks nothing but the truth. If not, then that should be proof enough to everyone that he, along with Todd Hoffman and OLE, is fabricating "truths" to cover the fact that he tosses out lies to discredit those who don't agree with him</div>
It will be easy for Hughlock and Hoffman to ignore these details -- publishing insults at Buckeye State Blog and waiting for this latest drama to disappear. But the issue really is larger than Andrew Warner: this gets to the heart of how politics are played in Ohio. And what a shame, that a progressive voice like Andrew Warner gets silenced because he won't play party politics with Democrats like Todd Hoffman.