Project Veritas has released a video saying they want James O’Keefe back after losing hundreds of thousands of followers and begging donors not to abandon them.
The video came on the same day that a dozen Project Veritas whistleblowers published a video and penned a letter to the organization’s board of directors saying they stand with the ousted founder.
“We, the staff at Project Veritas, are at a crossroads,” the video begins. “High-level disputes between our leader and founder, James O’Keefe, and the volunteer Board of Directors who are responsible for oversight of the nonprofit have resulted in James no longer being here.”
A message from the Project Veritas staff
We have and always will remain loyal to James’ vision, our mission, our country, and our supporters#Resilience pic.twitter.com/ldQYtbP7q5
— Project Veritas (@Project_Veritas) February 24, 2023
The video continues, “James is not only the founder of Project Veritas, but the creative visionary of our mission. This devastated us and the audience we exist for,” the video continued. “James hasn’t resigned, nor was he fired. These events confuse, and they hurt us — leaving all of us in a state of limbo.”
“So, we have a choice to make. We want James back, but we have a duty to our generous supporters, to all of you, and to our journalistic integrity to break record stories which impact our culture, and most importantly, the future of our country,” the video states. “The board may have their obligations, but we are Project Veritas. James assembled this team of over sixty individuals who have bonded together in a common mission to expose waste, fraud, and abuse.”
It goes on, “We expose everybody. This band of journalists, editors, producers, and all staff are still here to ensure the work gets done. Jame taught us to move mountains. We know that evil exists, we fight it every day. We don’t blame anyone for assuming the worst or thinking we’ve been co-opted by some outside force. But this fact still stands: no board or donor ever tells us what to report, and they never will.”
“We will never replace James O’Keefe,” one of the narrators says. “But for now, we see it as our job to hold the torch for him while keeping the door wide open for his return. We will keep the spirit of James’ mission alive for as long as we are able. We have investigations underway and stories to release. Our reporters are in the field. As James has always told us, ‘content is king.’ Our visionary may not be with us right now, but Project Veritas mission is vital. We will produce stories and break news until a day comes when we can’t.”
“”Until then, we will keep this mission going for our country, for the truth, and for James. We know the world is watching and that some are hoping that we fail. We need you to know that as the Project Veritas team, we don’t want to see a Project Veritas without James O’Keefe,” it concludes. “Due to decisions made outside our control, it’s possible we never earn back the trust of this audience — but we owe it to all of you to try.”
O’Keefe was removed from his position as CEO by the Project Veritas board earlier this month. The blowback against the organization was swift, as hundreds of thousands of people unfollowed them on social media.
Many, including people within Project Veritas, referred to the move as a coup.
A leaked email from the organization, sent to large donors, claimed that O’Keefe was placed on “temporary suspension until the audit was completed,” noting the founder “specifically said he did not resign, and the board did not fire him.”
