Pioneer Behind Grass-Roots Conservative Web Site Gets Ready to Do Battle Again (Free Republic)

AP via St. Louis Today ^ | Tuesday, November 18, 2008 | John Ellis

[kristinn]

A Democrat is poised to take the reins of power in Washington, D.C., and Fresno resident Jim Robinson is feeling a sense of deja vu.

It was President Bill Clinton's 1992 election that sparked Robinson's political activism, driving him to create a Web site that made him a grass-roots leader among conservatives before Clinton's term was over.

This year, as Barack Obama prepares to sweep into office on another tide of Democratic votes, Robinson and denizens of that Web site, freerepublic.com, are preparing to do battle again.

"We'll double and redouble our efforts to fight for what is right," Robinson says. "We've got people just spitting nails."

Free Republic, founded by Robinson in September 1996, doesn't attract much attention from the national press and is not well-known among political experts. Many of its postings have a decidedly fringe feel.

But long before Red State, Daily Kos and Little Green Footballs arrived on the Internet political scene, Free Republic was building an audience -- and becoming a formidable political force among conservatives and libertarians that is admired even by some who disagree with its political philosophy.

In a study last month by the Internet ratings firm comScore, Free Republic ranked fifth among political blogs, just behind heavyweights The Huffington Post, Politico, Drudge Report and RealClearPolitics.

[kristinn]

The Associated Press has picked up the Fresno Bee article published last week without editing it, as far as I can tell.

Congrats, Jim!

[TribalPrincess2U]

FR is more then a blog site. We hash existing news.

[TonyInOhio]

Kudos, Jim!

[goldstategop]

Congrats Jim! Now get us the social network tools the Left has to organize conservatives on the Internet. We can't afford to outmanned and outorganized. EVER AGAIN!

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[SueRae]

Keep up the great work. We need this place now more than ever!!

[mdittmar]

Thanks all for all you do.

[roaddog727]

Woo hoo Hoo!

Bump-er-oo!

[TribalPrincess2U]

Or is that rehash? Whatever.

Congrats guys!

[Kevmo]

Thanks for posting this cool article.

I’m ready to spit nails. Just say the word.

[AU72]

Emerging from obscurity will have its good and bad effects.

[LiberConservative]

Congrats Jim!!

[mmanager]

Taken from the article:
“University of California at Santa Cruz psychology professor Anthony Pratkanis sees similarities in Free Republic and Daily Kos, though they come from different ends of the political spectrum. “Both put out the spin that their supporters want to hear; both either exaggerate facts or just plain make them up,” he said.”

University of California....need I say more!

[Domandred]

From the excerpt seemed like a pretty fair article too, unlike say something Bill O’Rly would have put out on us.

[TheDon]

A nice walk down memory lane. One very notable story was missing however....Rathergate.

[lilylangtree]

Hail to the Chief! Chief Jim Robinson.

[wastedyears]

We post small-town local papers, and throw up breaking news for all the world to see before the lame-stream media covers it.

Imagine when freerepublic.com becomes a household name...

[Tijeras_Slim]

Many of its postings have a decidedly fringe feel.

I am there!

[BlueStateBlues]

The legacy grows. Now, more than ever, FR will be a major voice for freedom, truth, and investigative reporting and discussion.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

I'm feeling kind of fringed...

[VOA]

bump

[wastedyears]

Did you get that longarm from the Pirates of the Caribbean ride?

=)

[MarineBrat]

I see this bringing in new blood. The Viking Kitties are going to be working overtime. :)

[Grams A]

Spin from FR? B.S. Don’t let the truth jump up and bite them in the butt!!

[RaceBannon]

Huff is a heavyweight?????

[houeto]

BTTT!

[AppyPappy]

We are not a blog. If we were a blog, the articles would all come from Jim. We are a forum.

[Jen]

Congrats Jim. Get the kitties on alert for the incoming trolls.

[DTogo]

Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition!!

[antiRepublicrat]

Actually not a bad article. But in the search for FR’s notability surrounding high-profile events, it should have included exposing the fake Rather memos.

[KansasGirl]

[Many of its postings have a decidedly fringe feel.]

Huh? I guess I’ll take that as a compliment, considering what the media defines as “mainstream.”

[2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten]

Yeah they always say “blogosphere” without ever really knowing the difference between a “blog” and a “message board” and whatever else happens to be out there. There’s a lot of clueless people out there.

[pollywog]

Horray!!!! Horray!!!!
This is by far the best conservative spot anywhere!
I think Free Republic IS NUMBER ONE though!!
Polly.... who has been here since 2000

[SmithL]

Many of its postings have a decidedly fringe feel.

They say that like it's a bad thing.

[umgud]

Free Republic, founded by Robinson in September 1996, doesn't attract much attention from the national press and is not well-known among political experts

Yet no political hack worth his or her salt doesn't monitor FR daily.

[Gene Eric]

>> Many of its postings have a decidedly fringe feel.

Welcome to the edge of tomorrow. Christ and our Founding Fathers were fringe in their day too.

[tioga]

Awesome site, awesome job from all on FR. They made a few digs in the article, but all in all it was ok. I suppose considering the election results, we are a fringe group......oh, well, that can change.

[RegulatorCountry]

Drudge is an old-style news aggregator, with no feedback mechanism for readers that I am aware. Politico and RCP are blogs. Not sure how to categorize Puff Ho. Free Republic is a forum in the old bbs tradition, the granddaddy of them all. Long may it prosper.

[GloriaJane]

Count down to new trolls 10.... 9.... 8.... 7

Congratulations Jim! And Thank You!

[ConservativeMind]

Except for vanities, our threads mostly come from news sites, with plenty of AP posts.

But, at least it’s nice the AP admits their stuff is made up.

[BenLurkin]

To the well indoctrinated liberals, things which were decidedly normal only a few decades ago -- -- have somehow become "fringe".

[Responsibility2nd]

Many of its postings have a decidedly french feel.

I SO disagree.

Except for the whine and cheese threads.

[wolfcreek]

Now, if we can just keep it up and running. *8>)

[TYVets]

It is better to light one candle than to sit and curse the darkness.

Thank You Sir

[mainerforglobalwarming]

FR’s the best site on the web, and provides me with free therapy in these troubled times. God bless Jim!

[Viking2002]

'Many of its postings have a decidedly fringe feel.'

Who, me? SADDLE UP!

[bert]

John Who? was he born day before yesterday?

[Falconspeed]

Bravo, Jim. This is the home for people who spot a problem, carefully look at options and then quickly promote the best solution.

When the Somali pirates started taking boats, I turned to FR to find possible solutions and then found the best solution: allow the U.S. Navy to do its job.

[NellieMae]

There is a reason that this is the main site I go to for info. Seems to me like FR has news way before a lot of other sites do. There are so many brilliant people on this forum that really impress me with their knowledge and I really enjoy learning from them. Oh, by the way, which Freeper do I thank for my Sore/Loserman bumper sticker? I use it for a book mark now and laugh every time I see it.

[NCBraveheart]

This means we are on the Obama “enemies list”

[Uncle Miltie]

Correction:

"FR is more then a blog site. We hash existing disprove mainstream 'news'."