Project Veritas, the undercover journalism outlet formerly led by James O’Keefe, announced Hannah Giles as its new CEO on Thursday, months after O’Keefe’s departure.
In a press release Thursday, the organization announced Giles as its new head, highlighting that she “developed the idea for the 2009 ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) undercover camera investigation which she executed with fellow investigative journalist, James O’Keefe,” when she was 19 years old.
WATCH the announcement video:
Following that landmark moment, Giles founded the American Phoenix Foundation and “launched a community transformation consulting firm, C3Strategies, which grew to over 450 employees.”
She is now a wife and mother of three, working to build what the release described as a “sustainable” farm with her family.
The press release also noted O’Keefe’s past praise of Giles, deeming her a “national treasure” in his book Breakthrough.
“The recent void in leadership at Project Veritas has led us to today…As a news organization, Project Veritas must succeed,” Giles said in a statement.
“We need a free press, not corporate media, that regurgitates talking points from the powers that be. Courage and independence define Project Veritas,” she continued, adding that she is “honored to lead the most creative team of journalists in the United States…[in] their fight for truth”
The announcement comes nearly four months after O’Keefe’s departure from Project Veritas following a dispute with the board. That move followed the board placing O’Keefe on paid leave during an investigation into his management style, prompted by a leaked memo asserting that staffers were “troubled and frustrated” by his leadership style, even accusing him of being “cruel.”
O’Keefe, however, shared a video of his final statement to Project Veritas’s employees, explaining that he was “stripped of my authority as CEO and removed from the Board of Directors,” denying some of the board’s claims.
Over a dozen whistleblowers who worked with O’Keefe showed him strong support in a letter provided to Breitbart News.
“As individuals who trusted Project Veritas with our stories, the removal of James O’Keefe by the Board of Directors was extremely disappointing and shocking. Without James O’Keefe, there is no Project Veritas,” they wrote at the time.
The following month, O’Keefe announced his new project: The “O’Keefe Media Group.”
FLASHBACK — James O’Keefe After FBI Raid: “We Will Not Let Fear Dictate Our Actions”
Matt Perdie / Breitbart News
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