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Markos Moulitsas

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Markos "Kos" Moulitsas Zúniga.

Markos Moulitsas Zúniga (born September 11 1971), often known by his username and former military moniker "Kos" (kōs), is the founder and main author of Daily Kos, a weblog focusing on progressive, liberal, and Democratic Party politics. Moulitsas currently resides in Berkeley, California, with his wife and two children.

Early life

"Kos" in the Army.

Moulitsas was born in Chicago, Illinois to a Salvadoran mother and Greek father, and grew up in El Salvador. (Following the Spanish language custom for surnames, his last name is actually "Moulitsas", not "Zúniga" – See Spanish naming customs.) His family moved back to the United States in 1980 due to the Salvadoran civil war. He served in the U.S. Army from 1989 through 1992; while stationed in Germany, and after missing "by a hair" deployment to the Gulf War, he changed his political affiliation from Republican to Democratic. He has described the military as "perhaps the ideal society – we worked hard but the Army took care of us in return."[1]

After leaving the army, he attended Northern Illinois University and wrote for (and eventually managed) the Northern Star college newspaper. He later received his Juris Doctor degree from Boston University School of Law.[citation needed]

Political advocacy through Daily Kos

Main article: Daily Kos

Moulitsas founded Daily Kos in May 2002, and the site quickly rose to prominence. In its first year, Daily Kos received over one million unique visitors.

Moulitsas attended the California State Democratic convention in Sacramento in March, 2003 with Jerome Armstrong of MyDD. According to Instapundit, they may have been the first bloggers to be officially accredited at a political convention.[citation needed]

Growth and Controversy

The Daily Kos blog lost some of its political advertisers when Moulitsas published a controversial blog post in April, 2004, about the non-US military Blackwater USA employees, whom he described as mercenaries, who were killed and mutilated in Fallujah, saying, "Let the people see what war is like. This isn't an Xbox game. There are real repercussions to Bush's folly. That said, I feel nothing over the death of merceneries. [sic] They aren't in Iraq because of orders, or because they are there trying to help the people make Iraq a better place. They are there to wage war for profit. Screw them." [2] John Kerry's website removed a link to Daily Kos. The next day, Moulitsas said he was wrong to make those comments,[3] and over time advertisers returned to Daily Kos. Jimmy Carter, John Kerry, Barbara Boxer, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, and many other Democratic senators, congressmen, governors, and candidates now post there regularly. The site now has more than 100,000 registered members.

Daily Kos has spawned an annual conference. The inaugural YearlyKos was held from June 8 to June 11, 2006, in Las Vegas, Nevada, and was widely seen as successful. Guests included Nevada U.S. Senator and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, former Virginia Governor Mark Warner, DNC chairman and 2004 presidential candidate Howard Dean, and other well-known figures.

Effectiveness

Prior to the 2006 elections, a common criticism of Moulitsas had been that his endorsed candidates rarely won their races. Kos answers this by pointing out that he does not endorse sure-things and instead picks long shots where the progressive candidate has very little chance. This approach, he argues, is consistent with Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean's "50 State Strategy," advances long term political change, and forces normally safe Republican incumbents to defend themselves (and expend resources) instead of helping their colleagues. Kos also notes that he has endorsed several victorious candidates in upsets, including Howard Dean for chair of the DNC, Jon Tester in the Democratic U.S. Senatorial primary in Montana in 2006, James H. Webb in the Democratic U.S. Senatorial primary in Virginia in 2006, and Ned Lamont in the U.S. Senatorial primary in Connecticut in 2006. High-profile losses include Paul Hackett in Ohio's 2nd Congressional District in 2005 and Francine Busby in California's 50th Congressional District in a special election in 2006. However, both districts are widely described as heavily Republican. Ned Lamont did win the widely publicized Democratic Senate primary race with incumbent Senator Joseph Lieberman on August 8, 2006. His victory was partially credited to grassroots activism, and the support from the blogosphere, with Kos in particular. [4] In a post to his website, Moulitsas wrote that he prefers not to be given credit for such things, because it undermines the efforts of grassroots contributors.[5].

Consultant, author, and entrepreneur

During the United Kingdom general election in 2005, Moulitsas was hired by the British daily newspaper The Guardian to write elections analysis for their weblog. His book with Jerome Armstrong (of MyDD), entitled Crashing the Gate: Grassroots, Netroots, and the Rise of People-Powered Politics, was published in March 2006.

In addition to political pursuits, Moulitsas, along with Tyler Bleszinski (of Athletics Nation), is a cofounder of SB Nation, a network of sports blogs. The network now covers all thirty teams of the MLB and has a few blogs covering the NBA, NFL, College Sports and Pro Cycling.

Moulitsas was a political consultant for a single year -- in 2003. He hasn't done any consulting since then.

Trivia

  • Moulitsas appears in a television commercial for Ned Lamont's Senate campaign, peering through Lamont's window and storming his house as an enthusiastic supporter.[citation needed]
  • Moulitsas is a 2007 inductee into the Northern Star Hall of Fame [6], an honor bestowed by the alumni association of his college newspaper.
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