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Allahpundit

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Nick Catoggio, who previously used the pseudonym Allahpundit, is a blogger and former senior editor[1] for the American political news and commentary website Hot Air from its founding in 2006 through his resignation on September 2, 2022. After moving to The Dispatch, Catoggio will write under his own name.[2]

Hot Air

The persona of Allahpundit first appeared through a parody blog, Allah Is In the House, which rose in popularity circa 2003 by being referenced throughout the conservative and anti-jihadist blogosphere. In March and April 2006,[3][4] Allahpundit guest-blogged for Michelle Malkin before becoming the most active contributor to Malkin's Hot Air.

Hot Air is widely referenced by political bloggers and news reporters[5] and Allahpundit's commentary has become a reliable source for those seeking a Libertarian-conservative take on the political news of the day—such as former The Daily Show host Jon Stewart, who cited Allahpundit as one of the bloggers he read for show preparation.[6] In February 2010, Salem Communications purchased Hot Air from Michelle Malkin and it was said Allahpundit and his co-blogger, Ed Morrissey, were a central part of the deal.[7] Salem is known for its social conservatism, but Hot Air has maintained its more social libertarian tone. On August 3, 2022, Allahpundit announced on Twitter that his last day at Hot Air would be September 2, 2022.

Viewpoints

Allahpundit's prominence on Hot Air has been a contentious issue for some of the site's ardent Christian conservative readers, as he is often criticized by his own readership for his atheism and for his frequent disagreement with "hard-right" political opinion, especially on social issues. But his viewpoints are not easily characterized; for instance, he is in favor of same-sex marriage[8] but does not support amnesty for illegal immigrants.[9][10] Allahpundit's overall writing tone is one of conversational, deadpan humor, and he is known particularly for his self-deprecating tone and general lack of enthusiasm, for which he has earned the nickname "Eeyore" or "Eeyorepundit."[11]

In September 2004, Allahpundit was key to debunking of the Killian documents controversy, in which 60 Minutes anchor Dan Rather aired a segment about documents purporting to prove that George W. Bush went AWOL from the Texas Air National Guard in 1973 - documents ultimately revealed to be forgeries. Mary Mapes, producer of 60 Minutes, blamed Allahpundit, among others, for "working anonymously in what appeared to be huge numbers, in unison, to destroy the Bush-Guard story."[12] Largely due to this controversy, the website was among the Top Blogs Cited in Political Postings for the 2004 United States presidential election.[13]

Allahpundit's moniker harkens back to his original blog, Allah Is In The House, which was a highly irreverent parody of "a jihadist's version of Allah" and a way to vent frustration about geopolitics in a post-9/11 political climate. He did note on his original blog a disclaimer to the effect that his moniker was not "anti-Muslim" and that he differentiated between extremists and peaceful practicing Muslims. Despite his relative fame, Allahpundit has managed to remain anonymous; "in an era when most bloggers treat their names like precious branding manna, his insistence on keeping a pseudonym has an anachronistic, early 2000s feel to it."[14]

In October 2021, Allahpundit expressed agreement with Bill Maher's criticism of Donald Trump's false claims of fraud in the 2020 presidential election and his ongoing attacks against the results and integrity of elections, saying "[Maher is right], even if Republicans don't want to hear it. And it's a show of integrity on his part that he felt obliged to drop this truth bomb at the very moment that he's gaining right-wing fans for his anti-woke commentary."[15]

Allah Is In The House Blog

Allah Is In the House began on August 27, 2003. The author wrote using the name of Allah, using similar language to that of terrorist organizations but assuming the viewpoint of Allah as interpreted by mainstream Muslims. The blog specialized in written and Photoshop-based political satire. After a hiatus in May 2004, the blog reemerged, continuing its satiric nature while largely abandoning the "Allah voice". However, after October 2004 the blog stopped being regularly updated and abandoned the web address allahpundit.com without explanation. After occasional entries at allahakbar.blogspot.com, the blog shut down altogether.

The blog's approach and humor caused it to become mocked days after its inception, though it was cited by many of the top conservative bloggers[16][17][18][19] and many blog-sympathetic writers [20][21] of the time including Roger L. Simon, who wrote, "These days I learn more from Allahpundit, where I found this link, than I ever do from Meet the Press."[22] Posts from Allahpundit's old Allah Is In The House blog are archived at the Internet Archive, although the image files are not.[23]

Ranking

"Hot Air is one of the biggest, most influential conservative sites on the Web" and has been since its 2006 founding.[24] In 2007, Michelle Malkin credited AllahPundit with "turn[ing] the site into a must-read," thus causing it to rise in popularity "from nowhere to a top-30 site on Technorati's Top 100 list."[25] To this date, Hot Air regularly places in the top ten rankings of politically conservative commentary websites.[26]

References

  1. ^ "About". Hot Air. Archived from the original on 2017-01-12.
  2. ^ "The Morning Dispatch: Big News!". The Dispatch. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
  3. ^ michellemalkin.com (March 2006 archives) Archived July 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ michellemalkin.com (April 2006 archives) Archived October 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ James Taranto, "Best of the Web Today Archived April 26, 2009, at the Wayback Machine", The Wall Street Journal Opinion Journal (October 17, 2006).
  6. ^ "Why the Worst of Times for Politics and Media Has Been the Best of Times for Jon Stewart and 'The Daily Show' -- New York Magazine". Archived from the original on 2016-11-10. Retrieved 2014-01-03.
  7. ^ "Exclusive: Hot Air Acquired By Salem Communications". Mediaite. 2010-02-17.
  8. ^ "Pelosi: Prop 8 supporters might have been too dumb to grasp what they were doing". Hot Air. November 8, 2008. Archived from the original on November 9, 2015. Retrieved January 3, 2014. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; September 9, 2015 suggested (help)
  9. ^ "Even 'candy-ass RINO' Allahpundit is disgusted by GOP mmnesty sellouts". Twitchy. June 21, 2013. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
  10. ^ "Who's up for a new Republican amnesty push?". Hot Air. October 24, 2013. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
  11. ^ "The Donald Keeps Getting Stronger". The Weekly Standard. September 10, 2015. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
  12. ^ Mapes, Mary (31 October 2006). Truth and Duty: The Press, the President, and the Privilege of Power. New York City: St. Martin's Griffin. p. 201. ISBN 978-0312354114.
  13. ^ Blogpulse Campaign Radar 2004.
  14. ^ "Mediaite Presents: 25 Need-To-Know Bloggers You May Not Know Already". Mediaite. October 21, 2009. Archived from the original on December 11, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
  15. ^ Stelter, Brian (October 11, 2021). "Bill Maher is right about Trump's 'slow-moving coup.' Here are 6 reasons to take it seriously". CNN Business. Archived from the original on 2021-10-11. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  16. ^ instapundit.com Archived January 4, 2014, at the Wayback Machine (September 17, 2004).
  17. ^ "Called To Ministry?" [dead link‍], hughhewitt.com (April 21, 2008).
  18. ^ "New York Times vs. News York Sun" Archived October 16, 2006, at the Wayback Machine, michellemalkin.com (September 13, 2004).
  19. ^ "Allah Has Got the Pictures" Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, captainsquartersblog.com (December 11, 2003).
  20. ^ James Taranto "Best of the Web Today Archived October 1, 2009, at the Wayback Machine", The Wall Street Journal Opinion Journal (March 22, 2004).
  21. ^ Jim Geraghty, "Interesting Suspects of who gave CBS the memos Archived April 26, 2009, at the Wayback Machine", National Review Online (September 14. 2004).
  22. ^ rogerlsimon.com Archived September 8, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
  23. ^ Archives of Allah Is in the House.
  24. ^ "Sale of 'Hot Air' Shakes up Conservative Blogosphere - the Wire". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2014-01-03.
  25. ^ Michelle Malkin, "Drudge disses Hot Air Archived December 20, 2016, at the Wayback Machine", hotair.com (March 19, 2007).
  26. ^ "The 40 Best Conservative Websites of 2013 | John Hawkins' Right Wing News". Archived from the original on 2016-06-12. Retrieved 2014-01-03.
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