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'''Mike Cernovich''' is an American [[alt-right]]<ref name="namc">{{cite web|publisher=''[[CNN]]''|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/17/politics/kfile-michael-flynn-social-media/|title=Michael Flynn's son and chief of staff pushed conspiracy theories, obscene memes online|author=Kaczynski, Andrew|author2=McDermott, Nathan|date=November 18, 2016}}</ref><ref>Park, Andrea (November 8, 2016). [http://www.cbsnews.com/news/lady-gagas-jacket-draws-nazi-comparisons-from-alt-right/ Lady Gaga's jacket draws Nazi comparisons from alt-right.] ''CBS News.'' Retrieved: December 6, 2016.</ref><ref>Smith, Allan (December 27, 2016). [http://uk.businessinsider.com/alt-right-civil-war-twitter-cernovich-milo-alaska-2016-12?r=US&IR=T Alt-right movement descends into civil war after leading figure is booted from Trump inauguration event.] ''Business Insider UK.'' Retrieved: December 28, 2016.</ref> social media personality, self-published author, and law school graduate. Cernovich's own views on whether or not he is part of the alt-right have been contradictory.<ref>{{cite web|date=October 24, 2015|url=https://twitter.com/Cernovich/status/657950659883438080?lang=en|title=Twitter|accessdate=December 26, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=February 16, 2016|url=https://twitter.com/cernovich/status/699761058605469696|title=Twitter|accessdate=December 12, 2016}}</ref>
'''Mike Cernovich''' is an American [[alt-right]]<ref name="namc">{{cite web|publisher=[[CNN]]|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/17/politics/kfile-michael-flynn-social-media/|title=Michael Flynn's son and chief of staff pushed conspiracy theories, obscene memes online|author=Kaczynski, Andrew|author2=McDermott, Nathan|date=November 18, 2016}}</ref><ref>Park, Andrea (November 8, 2016). [http://www.cbsnews.com/news/lady-gagas-jacket-draws-nazi-comparisons-from-alt-right/ Lady Gaga's jacket draws Nazi comparisons from alt-right.] ''CBS News.'' Retrieved: December 6, 2016.</ref><ref>Smith, Allan (December 27, 2016). [http://uk.businessinsider.com/alt-right-civil-war-twitter-cernovich-milo-alaska-2016-12?r=US&IR=T Alt-right movement descends into civil war after leading figure is booted from Trump inauguration event.] ''Business Insider UK.'' Retrieved: December 28, 2016.</ref> social media personality, self-published author, and law school graduate. Cernovich's own views on whether or not he is part of the alt-right have been contradictory.<ref>{{cite web|date=October 24, 2015|url=https://twitter.com/Cernovich/status/657950659883438080?lang=en|title=Twitter|accessdate=December 26, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=February 16, 2016|url=https://twitter.com/cernovich/status/699761058605469696|title=Twitter|accessdate=December 12, 2016}}</ref>


Cernovich's website ''Danger & Play'' started in 2012 and was originally known mainly for self-improvement content. However, during the [[United States presidential election, 2016|2016 US presidential election campaign]], it focused mainly on pro-[[Donald Trump presidential campaign, 2016|Donald Trump]] and anti-[[Hillary Clinton presidential campaign, 2016|Hillary Clinton]] commentary.<ref name="Marantz-31-10-16">{{cite journal|last1=Marantz|first1=Andrew|title=Trolls for Trump|journal=The New Yorker|date=31 October 2016|url=http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/31/trolls-for-trump|accessdate=4 November 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.salon.com/2016/08/10/from-fringe-to-mainstream-conspiracies-baseless-accusations-and-lunacy-is-the-new-normal-for-republicans/|title=From fringe to mainstream: Conspiracies, baseless accusations and lunacy is the new normal for Republicans|last=Legum|first=Gary|date=August 10, 2016|work=Salon}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2016/03/15/trump_s_first_believers_from_joe_scarborough_to_a_masculinity_expert.html|title=They Totally Knew: The People Who Foresaw the Rise of Donald Trump|last=Neyfakh|first=Leon|date=March 15, 2016|work=Slate}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/201656/what-fuels-trump-supporting-twitter-trolls|title=What Fuels Trump-Supporting Twitter Trolls?|last=Rosen|first=
Cernovich's website ''Danger & Play'' started in 2012 and was originally known mainly for self-improvement content. However, during the [[United States presidential election, 2016|2016 US presidential election campaign]], it focused mainly on pro-[[Donald Trump presidential campaign, 2016|Donald Trump]] and anti-[[Hillary Clinton presidential campaign, 2016|Hillary Clinton]] commentary.<ref name="Marantz-31-10-16">{{cite journal|last1=Marantz|first1=Andrew|title=Trolls for Trump|journal=The New Yorker|date=31 October 2016|url=http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/31/trolls-for-trump|accessdate=4 November 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.salon.com/2016/08/10/from-fringe-to-mainstream-conspiracies-baseless-accusations-and-lunacy-is-the-new-normal-for-republicans/|title=From fringe to mainstream: Conspiracies, baseless accusations and lunacy is the new normal for Republicans|last=Legum|first=Gary|date=August 10, 2016|work=Salon}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2016/03/15/trump_s_first_believers_from_joe_scarborough_to_a_masculinity_expert.html|title=They Totally Knew: The People Who Foresaw the Rise of Donald Trump|last=Neyfakh|first=Leon|date=March 15, 2016|work=Slate}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/201656/what-fuels-trump-supporting-twitter-trolls|title=What Fuels Trump-Supporting Twitter Trolls?|last=Rosen|first=
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In 2016 Cernovich said, "Someone like me is perceived as the new [[Fourth Estate]]".<ref>{{cite web|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/07/business/media/medias-next-challenge-overcoming-the-threat-of-fake-news.html|title=Media’s Next Challenge: Overcoming the Threat of Fake News|author=Rutenberg, Jim|date=November 6, 2016}}</ref>
In 2016 Cernovich said, "Someone like me is perceived as the new [[Fourth Estate]]".<ref>{{cite web|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/07/business/media/medias-next-challenge-overcoming-the-threat-of-fake-news.html|title=Media’s Next Challenge: Overcoming the Threat of Fake News|author=Rutenberg, Jim|date=November 6, 2016}}</ref>


[[Michael G. Flynn]], son and chief of staff for the [[Presidency of Donald Trump|Trump Administration]]'s [[National Security Advisor (United States)|National Security Advisor]] [[Michael T. Flynn]], has called Mike Cernovich, "a source I trust".<ref name="namc">{{cite web|publisher=[[CNN]]|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/17/politics/kfile-michael-flynn-social-media/|title=Michael Flynn's son and chief of staff pushed conspiracy theories, obscene memes online|author=Kaczynski, Andrew|author2=McDermott, Nathan|date=November 18, 2016}}</ref>
[[Michael G. Flynn]], son and chief of staff for the [[Presidency of Donald Trump|Trump Administration]]'s [[National Security Advisor (United States)|National Security Advisor]] [[Michael T. Flynn]], has called Mike Cernovich, "a source I trust".<ref name="namc/">


== References ==
== References ==

Revision as of 20:41, 9 January 2017

Mike Cernovich
BornMichael Cernovich
Illinois, United States
OccupationAuthor, writer, lawyer
LanguageEnglish
Alma materUniversity of Illinois
Pepperdine University School of Law
Notable worksGorilla Mindset
MAGA Mindset: Making YOU and America Great Again
SpouseShauna Ghofranian Cernovich (2016 to Present)
Website
dangerandplay.com

Mike Cernovich is an American alt-right[1][2][3] social media personality, self-published author, and law school graduate. Cernovich's own views on whether or not he is part of the alt-right have been contradictory.[4][5]

Cernovich's website Danger & Play started in 2012 and was originally known mainly for self-improvement content. However, during the 2016 US presidential election campaign, it focused mainly on pro-Donald Trump and anti-Hillary Clinton commentary.[6][7][8][9][10][11] During September 2016, when Cernovich's #HillarysHealth alleged that Clinton had health problems making her unfit to serve as president and that those health problems were being suppressed by the mainstream media, Cernovich's tweets were seen more than 100 million times.[6]

Early life

Cernovich grew up in a conservative Christian family in Kewanee, a farming town in Illinois. He graduated from the University of Illinois and later attended the Pepperdine University School of Law.[12]

Personal life

Cernovich married his first wife as a law student in 2003. Cernovich has stated that his “first marriage was ruined by feminist indoctrination.” His wife became an attorney in Silicon Valley and "earned millions of dollars in stock from an I.P.O."[6] She filed for divorce in 2011, and Cernovich received over one million dollars in the divorce settlement.[6] Cernovich met his second wife shortly thereafter.[6]

Cernovich states that he was falsely accused of raping a woman in 2003.[13] According to The New Yorker magazine, the charge was later dropped (and his record has since been expunged), but a judge ordered him "to do community service for misdemeanor battery".[6]

Cernovich lives south of Los Angeles.[6]

Writing career

In 2012, he launched the website Danger & Play, a blog focused on politics, men's issues and self-improvement,[12] and how to pick up women. The title comes from a quote by Friedrich Nietzsche, “The true man wants two things: danger and play. For that reason he wants woman, as the most dangerous plaything.”[6]

In 2014 Cernovich was a self-proclaimed "champion" of GamerGate, the campaign against feminists in the video-game industry, infuriating opponents with tweets such as: "Who cares about breast cancer and rape? Not me."[6]

In 2015, Cernovich self-published the self-help book Gorilla Mindset: Timeless Strategies to Unleash the Animal Within You. With the appearance of Donald Trump, he recognized "a kindred spirit" and began to make political commentary.[6]

In 2016, Cernovich wrote the foreword to the book Cuckservative: How "Conservatives" Betrayed America written by John Red Eagle and Vox Day.[14]

In 2016, Cernovich wrote the self-help book MAGA Mindset: Making YOU and America Great Again, inspired by the Donald Trump presidential campaign.[15] The book was published by Castalia House, a Finnish publishing house that specializes in Science Fiction and Fantasy.

Media and views

Cernovich's "policy preferences" include "borders" and not allowing people with an IQ smaller than 115 "regardless of country" to immigrate, free speech but "no white guilt allowed" and identity politics either for all groups or for none, "guns", no federal funding for universities, student loan bankruptcy protection, "no wars" and no Wall Street bail outs, ending the use of tax havens by American companies, and a ban on "Saudi Arabian money" in US banks and companies.[16][self-published source]

Describing his political beliefs, Cernovich uses the label “American nationalist.”[6] He dismissed reports calling him a white nationalist several times, pointing out that actual white supremacists have attacked him for being a "race-mixer" (Cernovich's second wife is Persian).[17][18][self-published source] Responding to reports referring to him as a white nationalist, he wrote that he "disdains" identity politics, including white identity politics, but tries to explain them as a part of his work without condoning or judging them. He also doesn't regard himself as alt-right and claims to be generally opposed to joining ideological movements. He has criticized the movement, but also stated that he shares some "interests" with the alt-right and therefore hopes to see it "have some success".[16][self-published source]

He has emphasized the importance of simplicity in social media commentary, noting that when he made his posts "too complex", none of it got "through to people".[6] He gives as an example of "more visceral" and successful posts, #HillarysHealth, which commented on the health of Trump opponent Hillary Clinton during the 2016 United States presidential election—alleging among other things that Clinton had "both a seizure disorder and Parkinson's disease".[6] By September this hashtag had got 240,000 page views and had become a national trending topic on Twitter. During the month of September, Cernovich's tweets were seen more than 100 million times.[6] According to Scott Greer, of The Daily Caller, “Cernovich memed #SickHillary into reality. Never doubt the power of memes”.[19]

The New Yorker quotes a statement on Cernovich's website: "To beat a person, you lower his or her social status. Logic is pointless,"[20] in relation to Cernovich's frequent references to adversaries as "cucks" (cuckolds and "cuckservatives").[6]

While Cernovich admits to sometimes being an Internet troll, he states: “I use trolling tactics to build my brand,” and not for his own amusement.[6]

Cernovich opposes the two-party system and his support for Trump is not based on public policy. “What are Trump’s policies? I don’t particularly care”. In another post on his website he stated: “If Trump offends you, it’s because you live in a cucked world where no one speaks their minds”.[6]

In an October 2016 interview with The New Yorker Cernovich said:

The left likes to talk about power structures, right?" he said. "Well, the media still thinks of itself as speaking truth to power. What they don't realize is that someone like me is perceived as the new Fourth Estate. Maybe they should check their structural privilege." The "paternalistic" media, he said, was giving way to a more democratic one. "It makes journalists crazy, because they used to be in control," he said. "They can't control people anymore. Everyone has a voice now.[6]

Following an August 2016 appearance on Fox News Channel's Red Eye, the show's producers felt compelled afterwards to say that they had made a mistake in booking him when later learning of Cernovich's Internet history of ugly online disputes.[13]

A number of Cernovich's public comments have been criticized. According to Salon.com, Cernovich has accused the Democratic Party of attempting to assassinate him.[21] In 2016, Cernovich criticized Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for speaking at a gender-segregated mosque.[22][23] In August 2016, Lloyd Grove, an editor for The Daily Beast, referred to Cernovich as a "date rape apologist" because of Cernovich's comments on Twitter in August 2012 when Cernovich tweeted "Have you guys ever tried 'raping' a girl without using force? Try it. It's basically impossible. Date rape does not exist".[13]

In 2016 Cernovich said, "Someone like me is perceived as the new Fourth Estate".[24]

Michael G. Flynn, son and chief of staff for the Trump Administration's National Security Advisor Michael T. Flynn, has called Mike Cernovich, "a source I trust".<ref name="namc/">

References

  1. ^ Kaczynski, Andrew; McDermott, Nathan (November 18, 2016). "Michael Flynn's son and chief of staff pushed conspiracy theories, obscene memes online". CNN.
  2. ^ Park, Andrea (November 8, 2016). Lady Gaga's jacket draws Nazi comparisons from alt-right. CBS News. Retrieved: December 6, 2016.
  3. ^ Smith, Allan (December 27, 2016). Alt-right movement descends into civil war after leading figure is booted from Trump inauguration event. Business Insider UK. Retrieved: December 28, 2016.
  4. ^ "Twitter". October 24, 2015. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
  5. ^ "Twitter". February 16, 2016. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Marantz, Andrew (October 31, 2016). "Trolls for Trump". The New Yorker. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  7. ^ Legum, Gary (August 10, 2016). "From fringe to mainstream: Conspiracies, baseless accusations and lunacy is the new normal for Republicans". Salon.
  8. ^ Neyfakh, Leon (March 15, 2016). "They Totally Knew: The People Who Foresaw the Rise of Donald Trump". Slate.
  9. ^ Rosen, Armin (May 4, 2016). "What Fuels Trump-Supporting Twitter Trolls?". Tablet.
  10. ^ Stockton, Dustin (July 29, 2016). "Breitbart News Interviews Mike Cernovich in Middle of Commie Protest". Breitbart News.
  11. ^ Ching, Frank (October 4, 2016). "Did Trump leak his own tax returns?". The New Zealand Herald.
  12. ^ a b Greenfield, Scott (February 24, 2016). "Cross: Mike Cernovich, The 800 lb. Gorilla Lawyer". Mimeis Law.
  13. ^ a b c Grove, Lloyd (August 9, 2016). "Why Did Fox News Welcome Date Rape Apologist Mike Cernovich?". The Daily Beast.
  14. ^ "Cuckservative: How "Conservatives" Betrayed America". Amazon.com.
  15. ^ Holiday, Ryan (October 27, 2016). "Exclusive Interview: How This Right-Wing 'Troll' Reaches 100M People a Month". Observer. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
  16. ^ a b Cernovich, Mike (August 31, 2016). "Is Mike Cernovich Part of the Alt-Right?". Danger & Play. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  17. ^ Cernovich, Mike (October 29, 2016). "Media Hoax Alert – The Atlantic and Esquire Caught Lying!". Danger & Play. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  18. ^ Cernovich, Mike (October 31, 2016). "Know Thy Enemy (Myopia)". Danger & Play. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  19. ^ Greer, Scott (September 11, 2016). "Scott Greer @ScottMGreer Sep 11". Retrieved November 4, 2016 – via Twitter.
  20. ^ Cernovich, Mike. "How We are Changing the Culture and Destroying SJWs [Social Justice Warriors]". Danger & Play. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  21. ^ Legum, Gary (August 10, 2016). "From fringe to mainstream: Conspiracies, baseless accusations and lunacy is the new normal for Republicans". Salon.
  22. ^ della Cava, Marco; Molina, Brett (September 27, 2016). "Facebook millionaire Luckey aligns himself with alt-right, but only if you squint". USA Today.
  23. ^ "Mike Cernovich". Twitter. September 13, 2016. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  24. ^ Rutenberg, Jim (November 6, 2016). "Media's Next Challenge: Overcoming the Threat of Fake News". The New York Times.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mike_Cernovich&oldid=759203680"