AP White House Reporter Loven Jumps to Liberal Democratic Political PR/Lobbying Shop
Jennifer Loven, an 18-year AP veteran and the wire service's chief
White House correspondent, has decided to put her communications
talents to work for The Glover Park Group, a DC-based "strategic communications
firm" founded in 2001 by a bunch of Clinton and Gore staffers, most
prominently Joe Lockhart, who found themselves unemployed after the 2000
election. She'll be "Managing Director in its Public Affairs
practice," a Thursday press release from the Glover Park Group, plugged by Politico's Mike Allen, announced.
She's the second President in a row of the White House
Correspondents' Association to leave journalism for a left-wing, or at
least left-leaning, lobbying outfit. In June, Bloomberg's White
House reporter, Ed Chen, formerly of the Los Angeles Times, jumped to the Natural Resources Defense Council as
Federal Communications Director. (My complete Obama-journalism revolving door list.)
Loven held the WHCA position for 2008-2009 and was succeeded by Chen.
Amongst the clients touted on the Glover Park Group's Web site:
American Civil Liberties Union, Alliance for Climate Protection,
Campaign for Women's Lives, Better World Campaign and the Center for
Interfaith Action on Global Poverty. They also list some corporate
clients, but no conservative activist groups.
The firm's
leaders include a who's who of ex-Clinton and Gore operatives, such
as "Founding Partner and Managing Director" Joe Lockhart, "the former chief spokesman and senior
adviser to President Bill Clinton from 1998-2000" who "served as Senior
Advisor to Sen. John Kerry's 2004 presidential bid." Earlier, he toiled
as "Deputy Press Secretary for the 1988 Dukakis-Bentsen campaign, and
Assistant Press Secretary for the 1984 Mondale-Ferraro campaign." In
between all that, he put in stints as "Assignment Editor at ABC News and
Deputy Assignment Manager for CNN in Washington."
Another "Founding Partner and Managing Director," Carter Eskew, "was Chief Strategist for the Gore
2000 presidential campaign, leading the message and creative team that
helped Vice President Gore win every primary and caucus, secure the
nomination, then make up a 20 point deficit in the polls to a victory in
the popular vote."
Susan Brophy, "Managing Director," from 1993-1998
was "Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of
Legislative Affairs, where she developed, implemented and directed
legislative strategy with the White House, administration and Congress
in support of President Clinton's policy priorities."
Loven's husband, by the way, is a liberal environmental activist. A
2009 National Review "Media Blog" post provided an
excerpt from this bio for him:
Roger Ballentine is the President of Green Strategies Inc., where he advises and represents businesses, associations, government agencies and non-profit entities on domestic and international public policy issues and business strategies, focusing on energy, conservation and environmental matters. Roger is also a Senior Fellow at the Progressive Policy Institute in Washington D.C. where he works to develop cutting edge, third way approaches to public policy challenges in the areas of energy and the environment. He also served as Senior Advisor to the Kerry-Edwards Campaign on energy and environmental matters.
Roger previously was a senior member of the White House staff, serving President Bill Clinton as Chairman of the White House Climate Change Task Force and Deputy Assistant to the President for Environmental Initiatives. Prior to being named Deputy Assistant to the President, Mr. Ballentine was Special Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs, where he focused on energy and environment issues.
... He and his wife, journalist Jennifer Loven, reside in Chevy Chase, Maryland.
-- Brent Baker is Vice President for Research and Publications at the Media Research Center. Click here to follow him on Twitter.
