James O’Keefe, the founder of undercover news outfit Project Veritas, says he’s continuing his investigative work undeterred by the recent FBI raid of his and other Veritas reporters’ homes and a criminal investigation of Veritas by the Department of Justice regarding a diary allegedly belonging to President Joe Biden’s daughter, Ashley Biden.
O’Keefe says materials unrelated to the Biden diary probe were unlawfully seized from him and his team during the raids.
“In this case, a special master has been appointed by the Southern District of New York and we’re continuing on with new stories,“ O’Keefe told The Epoch Times. ”We’re not stopping at Project Veritas. We keep moving forward.”
O’Keefe had asked in November for the appointment of a special master to supervise the review of the information on his phones, telling U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres that the devices contained sensitive information related to Project Veritas investigations and legal matters.
“In addition to attorney-client privileged materials, both phones also contain newsgathering materials which are critical to the exercise of a free press and protected by the First Amendment,” states O’Keefe’s motion, a copy of which was seen by The Epoch Times.
He said journalists have to keep telling the truth regardless of whether their character is attacked or they are threatened.
“You have to do the right thing, no matter what,” O’Keefe told The Epoch Times during a Turning Point USA event on Dec. 28.
O'Keefe says Project Veritas’s purpose is to investigate and expose corruption and fraud in public and private institutions. He said whistleblowers seek out his organization because they know it has journalistic integrity, adding that many of the large corporate media outlets collude with those in power instead of questioning them.
“Rather than investigate the people in government, rather than challenge those in authority, they echo those in authority,” O’Keefe stated during a November interview with The Epoch Times.
O’Keefe is set to release a new book this month, “American Muckraker,” which covers what he and his organization have experienced and learned on the front lines of investigative journalism.
“I spent five years writing this book, and it covers all these themes about privacy, ethics, undercover journalism, power, whistleblowing, suffering,“ he said. ”And it really takes you in from the perspective of a muckraking journalist in the 21st century—what it means to be a journalist, to fight the powers that be. Where do the boundaries lie on privacy, ethics, consent? What does it take? This is a handbook.”
O’Keefe’s organization has been hailed by conservatives, defended by media ethics organizations, and criticized by many on the left. According to Project Veritas’s website, they have eight legal cases that are pending against several liberal organizations and individuals, including The New York Times and CNN. They have won all seven of their previous lawsuits.
Despite being maligned by certain media outlets, pundits, and politicians, O’Keefe says he’s still hopeful for the future.
“I’m at risk of sounding like a hippie here, but I think that the issues that unite us are, in fact, more powerful than what divides us, and that was evidenced by the fact that the ACLU defended me,” he said.
“I don’t think we’re as divided as people would have us believe.”
