H.A. Goodman vs. Jordan Chariton: Why Are They Fighting Online? [VIDEOS]

Screenshots from Jordan Chariton and H.A. Goodman’s videos about each other. (YouTube & Facebook)

Two popular Progressive reporters have started battling online, and anyone who’s just jumping on social media and seeing their angry tweets and videos might be a little confused as to exactly what is going on. H.A. Goodman and Jordan Chariton of The Young Turks both grew in popularity during the Presidential campaign. Goodman has been an avid supporter of Bernie Sanders, calling out the Democratic party when he saw signs of dishonesty. Chariton has been a popular reporter on Progressive topics, even when Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks lost some followers when he supported Hillary Clinton after Sanders endorsed her. (Note: Chariton once interviewed this reporter during the primaries about voter fraud, and this reporter has quoted both Chariton and Goodman in previous stories.)

In the last 24 hours, these two reporters (along with other Progressives) have seemingly been battling over the definition of Progressivism and other accusations.

So what exactly is happening and how did this all get started? We’ll walk you through it step by step and let you draw your own conclusions about who is right and who is wrong (or if both sides are.) Leave your comments at the end of this story and let us know what you think.

The Battle Began When Chariton Went Live on The Young Turks’ Facebook Page, Saying that Goodman And Others Were Acting Unreasonably

The battle began yesterday, with a live video from Chariton. He had a message that he really wanted to share, about concerns he had that certain Progressives were acting unreasonably. He shared the video live and even waited to start his message because he wanted as many people to hear it as possible. The message is 30 minutes long and you can watch it below.

Chariton started out by saying that he felt some Progressives were trying to build audiences fraudulently. He said that early in his career, he worked for Fox News and learned “how successfully media and individuals can be when they prey on people’s anger… economic insecurity… (and) worst instincts.” He said people can build a huge following that way.

“Being Progressive is supposed to mean progress, not censorship, not ‘if you disagree, you’re a sellout.’ Not ‘if you say something and you’re not as angry as me, I’m boycotting you.’”

He went on to talk about how some people viewed The Young Turks that way, because after the primary, they pivoted to supporting Hillary Clinton following Bernie Sanders’ endorsement.

But the part that was most controversial and started the online battle you’ve been seeing was when he spoke about specific members of the media. In particular, he called out H.A. Goodman, saying that he reported “a lot of things that were not factual” and after the primary “came up with half-baked theories about how Bernie was still going to win.” Chariton went on to say that he believed Goodman was doing this “because he was getting clicks.” He added: “There was a very large, angry following of Bernie Sanders supporters that were susceptible to people like him… And he’s not the only one. But this is a Fox News method…”

At one point Chariton called out Tim Black in his video too, but later said that was a mistake and got his name mixed up with someone else.

“I don’t have a problem with H.A. Goodman… with Niko. I think the more independent media the better. But what I do have a problem with is … Because a segment was done and some things were said that you don’t agree with, you are essentially calling for people to not watch TYT. To basically boycott it because the two hosts…aren’t true believers. … I’m not going to do a channel where I have to cater to people who only want to see the world in one way. … I believe there’s a real enemy… [it’s] Chuck Schumer … Nancy Pelosi … the Clintons … Mitch McConnell … Paul Ryan… big oil… big pharma… corporate media…”

Here’s the original video that Goodman made about the DNC lawsuit, which Chariton referenced in his video above and that Goodman later referenced in his response to Chariton:

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H.A. Goodman Shared an Angry Video Response Saying That Chariton Was Wrong And He Had Never Reported Anything Not Factual

When Goodman found out about Chariton’s video, he shared his own angry video response, refuting some of the things Chariton had said about him. You can watch the video below. (Note: There is some foul language in the video):

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Goodman responded first by listing his credentials and saying he had built all his subscribers on his own, without anyone’s help. He started out by addressing Chariton and said he respected Chariton greatly, and said that he thought Cenk had Chariton say those things.

Goodman said, in part: “I never said anyone’s a sellout. Go to that YouTube segment… did I ever say that anyone was a sellout? … The Young Turks is a neoliberal machine. You’re not Jordan, you do amazing work … But you called me out because your boss told you to… He’s viewed as a sellout by millions of people. Sorry, that’s just the way people view him. So don’t come at me.”

Goodman then went on to reiterate that he doesn’t manipulate people or post things that are fabricated. “I never silence anyone. …  You said that I reported on things that weren’t factual. Why don’t you list them and I will tear them apart? They will published in places that don’t publish things that aren’t factual… After he [Bernie] endorsed Clinton, I never said he was going to win.”

Goodman went on to say that he was suspicious about TYT.  “You are an amazing journalist Jordan… but at the same time there’s a philosophical dilemma… If you continually point out Democratic corruption…and then suddenly embrace the establishment pick, it’s the same recipe for a Trump win. If it’s not Bernie Sanders or Nina Turner or Tulsi Gabbard in 2020, Trump will win…”

Goodman concluded by saying that he planned to write more about The Young Turks in the future and he believed TYT was a “neoliberal powerhouse.”

“Maybe Ill write articles that go viral,” Goodman said. “Bottom line is, you talk about fearmongering and silencing and not even debating, how about debating me?”

Since the First Two Videos, There Have Been Many Exchanges on Social Media

Since the video, Goodman has been on a tweet storm with response after response. Here are a few of his tweets about the whole thing:

In his original video, Goodman said he had never called anyone a sellout, but had reported that other people were doing so. After Chariton’s video, he decided to start calling Cenk a sellout:

Although Chariton initially said he wasn’t going to say anything else about the topic after his first video, he has made some responses online since then too. First, he disputed Goodman’s video and said that Cenk had no idea what he was going to talk about and had not instructed him to make the video about Goodman and other Progressives:

He also had some other responses about the whole thing:

Chariton wrote a longer note about the whole thing on Facebook:

Now Some Progressives Are Taking Sides

Unfortunately, this disagreement is furthering the divide that Progressives were already experiencing. After the election, a number of different groups emerged trying to be the Progressive leader for the next elections. Our Revolution, Justice Democrats, Draft Bernie, and several other groups wanted to “rally the troops” and take over Congress. But so far, many of these groups haven’t been pooling resources and working together. Meanwhile, other Progressives split off from the Democratic Party entirely and moved to the Green Party. Some of them really want to continue working with non-establishment Democrats, even as they run campaigns of their own. But others want nothing to do with Democrats ever again, establishment or not.

Now, some Progressives are taking sides in the Chariton vs. Goodman debate. Here are a few responses online. First, here are some comments supporting Chariton:

And here are people supporting Goodman:

Meanwhile, others are concerned that the online battles between Goodman and Chariton may divide Progressives even more.

What do you think? Do you agree with Chariton or Goodman? Are you concerned this will divide Progressives more than they already are? Let us know in the comments below.

Stephanie Dube Dwilson is a news, entertainment & science/tech contributor to Heavy. She’s also a cat blogger, runs a post-apocalyptic blog, and is an attorney (currently not practicing, so she can write more!) In her spare time, Stephanie writes screenplays and novels. You can follow her on Twitter at @StephanieDube or contact her by email here.
May 5, 2017 8:16 pm