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The Lever
Type of site
News website
Available inEnglish
Predecessor(s)The Daily Poster
Created byDavid Sirota
Editors
URLwww.levernews.com
CommercialNo
LaunchedApril 2020 (April 2020)

The Lever is an American reader-supported investigative news outlet founded by David Sirota. The name The Lever is inspired by a quote from the Greek mathematician Archimedes, who said, "Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world."[1] Former CNN host Brian Stelter described The Lever as a "small but mighty news start-up," describing the life of its founder David Sirota as "one long campaign against plutocrats and the corrupt politicians who enable them."[1]

As of April 2024, The Lever has more than 112,000 active free and paying subscribers, and a staff of nineteen.[2] The Lever's mission, according to David Sirota, is to "hold power accountable."[1] According to Managing Editor Joel Warner, The Lever's "bread and butter" reporting and “core area of success” is reporting on "how corporate power is making everything worse for the rest of us".[2]

The investigative reporting from The Lever is frequently cited by other news outlets, including citations in the New York Times, NPR, The Washington Post, Politico, Al Jazeera, Rolling Stone, and The Baltimore Sun.[2] The Lever's reporting has also been cited in tweets and press releases by politicians such as Senator Sheldon Whitehouse,[3] Congressman Ro Khanna,[4] and Congressman Chris Deluzio.[5]

Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist David Cay Johnston praised The Lever's reporting on corruption at The Boeing Company, stating that The Lever’s coverage of this story "is worthy of the top honor in American journalism, the Pulitzer Gold Medal for public service."[6]

According to political commentator Krystal Ball, The Lever's reporting on the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (2023) and the 2023 Ohio train derailment "pushed the mainstream press to deal with the issues of political capture and deregulation that are at the heart of those crises... They beat the legacy press on both of those stories and shaped the mainstream coverage."[1]

Notable reporting

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Dark money influence on the U.S. Supreme Court

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A four-part series published in August 2022 by Andrew Perez of The Lever in partnership with ProPublica, titled "Inside The Right's Historic Billion-Dollar Dark Money Transfer," followed the money behind the architect of the conservative supermajority in the Supreme Court, Leonard Leo.[7] The investigation exposed Chicago businessman Barre Seid's $1.6 billion donation to Leo's political advocacy nonprofit in the largest known dark money transfer in United States history. The series won the 2023 Izzy Award for outstanding achievement in independent media.[8]

California Congressman Ro Khanna cited The Lever's reporting on this topic when advocating for legislation regarding term limits for Supreme Court justices.[4] Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse has also cited The Lever's reporting in asserting that the Supreme Court is "captured by special interests."[3]

2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio

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Following the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio in February 2023, The Lever was the first news outlet to report on the "railroad industry's history of fighting stricter safety regulations."[9] Based on this reporting, reporters from The Lever were interviewed on Democracy Now!,[10] On The Media,[11] The Problem with Jon Stewart,[12][13] and other news outlets.[14] The Lever reporting team was also invited to write an editorial on this topic for New York Times.[15][16]

The Lever's reporting on this topic was also cited by HuffPost,[9] The Guardian,[17] and other news outlets.

Pennsylvania congressman Chris Deluzio also cited The Lever's reporting in the context of introducing new legislation to regulate the railroad industry. DeLuzio stated:

Reporting by The Lever News has shown how rail regulations have been weakened and rolled back over the past years and helped raise awareness in the immediate aftermath of the East Palestine derailment.[5]

2023 Silicon Valley Bank collapse

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Following the collapse of the Silicon Valley Bank in March 2023, The Lever broke the story that the president of the bank had lobbied for less regulatory scrutiny.[1] The Lever's story, "SVB Chief Pressed Lawmakers to Weaken Bank Risk Regs," was cited by The New York Times the day after it was published.[1][18][19]

California Congressman Ro Khanna cited The Lever's reporting on "efforts of bank lobbyists to avoid paying more into the Deposit Insurance Fund."[20]

2024 mid-air door blow-out on a Boeing airplane

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Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist David Cay Johnston praised The Lever's reporting on corrupt practices at The Boeing Company, following an incident on Jan. 5 when a door panel blew out mid-flight on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282.[6]

According to The Lever's reporting cited by Johnston, the root cause of the incident (and other safety issues with Boeings aircraft) "is the corrosive effects of stock buybacks and government subsidies, elevating executive and corporate director greed above aviation safety."[6] Johnston states:

The Lever’s coverage [of this story] should prompt significant safety and financial reforms. Its reporting on this story is worthy of the top honor in American journalism, the Pulitzer Gold Medal for public service.[6]

2024 Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse

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Following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore in April 2024, The Lever reported that "eight months prior, the Labor Department sanctioned the cargo giant for taking action against a sailor who previously reported unsafe working conditions while aboard a Maersk-operated boat."[21][22] This reporting was cited by Rolling Stone[21] and The Washington Post.[23]

The Lever's related reporting on Maryland governor Larry Hogan, who (according to The Lever) touted megaships and ignored safety warnings before the Key Bridge disaster, was spotlighted on NPR's Morning Edition,[24] and cited by the New York Times Dealbook.[25]

History and organization

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Founder David Sirota launched an earlier version of this news outlet, called The Daily Poster, on Substack in April 2020.[26] In May 2021, The Daily Poster moved from Substack to an independent website.[26] In March, 2022, the site was expanded and renamed as The Lever.[27]

In 2023, The Lever’s website received almost two million visits, and its reporting was seen more than 14 million times through platforms like Apple News and Google News.[2]

As of April 2024, has more than 112,000 active free and paying subscribers, and a staff of nineteen.[2]

In addition to its investigative reporting, The Lever also publishes several podcasts, including Lever Time and Movies vs. Capitalism.[28]

The Lever also has a digital publication, "A Citizen's Guide to Guide to Following the Money and Holding the Powerful Accountable" that is available for free to subscribers of their website.[29][30]

Awards

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In March 2023, The Lever received an Izzy Award from the Park Center for Independent Media "for outstanding achievement in independent media."[31][32][8]

In March 2024, The Lever received an Honorable Mention in the category "Breaking News-Small Division" in the "2023 Best in Business Awards" from the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing.[33]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Stelter, Brian (2023-03-18). "Politics by Other Means". Air Mail. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
  2. ^ a b c d e Tobitt, Charlotte (2024-04-22). "The Lever gets reader backing to expose corporate corruption and grows editorial team". Press Gazette. Retrieved 2024-04-24.
  3. ^ a b Whitehouse, Sheldon [@SenWhitehouse]. (2022, June 25). More and more people are understanding what I’ve been saying is going on — how the Court got captured by special interests using gobs of dark money. [Tweet] Twitter: https://twitter.com/SenWhitehouse/status/1540803957953466368
  4. ^ a b Khanna, Ro [@RoKhanna]. (2023, May 9) .@DavidSirota & @AndrewPerezdc capture why Congress needs to pass my #SCOTUS term limit bill. [Tweet] Twitter: https://twitter.com/RoKhanna/status/1655928323338391552
  5. ^ a b Following Disastrous Train Derailment in East Palestine, Deluzio, Khanna Introduce Bill to Protect Americans and Hold Railroads Accountable, Press release from congressman Chris Deluzio
  6. ^ a b c d David Cay Johnston, Huge Boeing Scandal Behind Alaska Airlines Catastrophe, DCReport, Jan 15, 2024
  7. ^ "How a Secretive Billionaire Handed His Fortune to the Architect of the Right-Wing Takeover of the Courts". Propublica. 2022-08-22. Retrieved 2023-05-14.
  8. ^ a b "The Lever Celebrates Izzy Award: "We Just Won Something Huge"". The Edge. Apr 3, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Chris D'Angelo, "Ohio's Toxic Train Disaster Follows ‘Perfect Storm' Of Cuts, Deregulation", HuffPost, February 15, 2023
  10. ^ "Corporate Greed and Deregulation Fuel Threat of More Bomb Trains as East Palestine Demands Answers", Democracy Now, Feb 17, 2023
  11. ^ "An Ohio Train Derailment Reveals Structural Issues", On The Media, Feb 17, 2023
  12. ^ The Problem with Jon Stewart [@TheProblem]. (2023, Feb 15) When residents say fish are washing up dead but the EPA says "all clear," we talk to people on the ground to discuss the breakdown in trust following the train disaster in East Palestine, Ohio... [Tweet] Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheProblem/status/1625827266189213696
  13. ^ "The Ohio Train Disaster: A Tale of Corporate Greed and Civil War-Era Brakes", The Problem with Jon Stewart
  14. ^ Andrew Perez, "Driving The National Narrative", The Lever, Feb 20, 2023
  15. ^ "The Lever got the media to cover the real story behind the toxic train disaster in Ohio". The Lever. 2023-02-20. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
  16. ^ "Over 1,000 Trains Derail Every Year in America. Let's Bring That Number Down". The New York Times. 2023-02-17.
  17. ^ "What do we know about the Ohio train derailment and toxic chemical leak?", The Guardian, February 15, 2023
  18. ^ Andrew Ross Sorkin, et al, "Why Did Silicon Valley Bank Collapse?", New York Times, March 11, 2023
  19. ^ Rebecca Burns, et al, "SVB Chief Pressed Lawmakers To Weaken Bank Risk Regs", The Lever, March 10, 2023
  20. ^ Khanna, Ro [@RoKhanna]. (2023, May 13) .@LeverNews has reported on the successful efforts of bank lobbyists to avoid paying more into the Deposit Insurance Fund. This is shameful. Banks must pay higher premiums to fund depositors’ insurance. This will incentivize more responsible management and less risky behavior. [Tweet] Twitter: https://twitter.com/RoKhanna/status/1635459053349482498
  21. ^ a b Charisma Madarang, Cargo Giant in Baltimore Bridge Collapse Silenced Whistleblowers: Report, Rolling Stone
  22. ^ Feds Recently Hit Cargo Giant In Baltimore Disaster For Silencing Whistleblowers, The Lever
  23. ^ The Early 202 (March 27, 2024): The Media, The Washington Post
  24. ^ Ex-Md. governor criticized for pushing for larger ships at the Port of Baltimore, NPR
  25. ^ Sirota, David [@DavidSirota] (2024, Apr 1) Here’s @LeverNews reporting on @LarryHogan cited in NYT’s @DealBook Original story here: https://www.levernews.com/hogan-pressed-for-bigger-ships-despite-safety-warnings/ [Tweet] Twitter: https://twitter.com/davidsirota/status/1774976891893526535
  26. ^ a b "Welcome To The Daily Poster's New Website". The Lever. 2021-05-06. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
  27. ^ "Introducing THE LEVER". The Lever. 2022-03-20. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
  28. ^ "Podcasts from The Lever". the.levernews.com. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
  29. ^ Kalinowski, Alice. "BRASS Business Guides: 2021 BRASS Program - Follow The Money: Investigative News Sites to Follow". brass.libguides.com. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
  30. ^ "A Citizen's Guide to Guide to Following the Money and Holding the Powerful Accountable". the.levernews.com. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  31. ^ "2023 Izzy Award Goes to The Lever, Mississippi Free Press, Carlos Ballesteros and Liza Gross". Democracy Now!. Mar 31, 2023.
  32. ^ "Izzy Award for Independent Media to Be Shared by The Lever, Mississippi Free Press, and Journalists Carlos Ballesteros and Liza Gross". Ithaca College. Retrieved 2023-04-26.
  33. ^ 2023 Best in Business Awards, SABEW
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[[Category:American news websites]] [[Category:Investigative journalism]] [[Category:Internet properties established in 2020]]

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