Ryan Reilly, NBC Justice Reporter, discusses his book 'Sedition Hunters: How January 6th Broke the Justice System.' Peter Sallet from The Hometown Project explains using celebrities to elect local officials.
The Hometown Project connects celebrities with local political candidates to endorse them through short videos, aiming to flip state legislatures through targeted endorsements.
The collaborative efforts of online 'sleuths' played a crucial role in identifying Capitol attackers, filling gaps in technology and investigative capabilities within the FBI.
Deep dives
The Power of Local Celebrity Endorsements in Political Campaigns
The Hometown Project is an organization that connects well-known individuals with local political candidates in their hometowns. Started after the 2016 election, the project aims to bring support from celebrities who can leverage their influence to endorse local candidates. Rather than big rallies, the focus is on creating short videos that feature the well-known person supporting the candidates. These videos are then distributed digitally within the district to reach the right voters. The project emphasizes local connections and shared values, avoiding negative campaigning and generalized political causes. The goal is to raise name recognition for local candidates and flip state legislatures through these targeted endorsements.
The Crowdsourcing Efforts that Helped Identify Capitol Attackers
Following the January 6th Capitol attack, online communities known as 'sleuths' emerged to help identify and track down the individuals involved in the assault. These sleuths utilized crowdsourcing techniques on platforms like Twitter and developed their own apps to organize and identify the attackers. They actively collaborated with law enforcement agencies, particularly the FBI, by sharing information and aiding investigations. The sleuths played a crucial role in identifying individuals through facial recognition technology and analyzing online photos and videos. Their efforts filled gaps in technology and investigative capabilities within the law enforcement agencies and highlighted the importance of collaborative citizen efforts in solving complex cases.
Challenges and Limitations of FBI Technology in Investigating January 6th Cases
The FBI's technology infrastructure and capabilities were shown to be outdated and inadequate in handling the scale and complexity of the investigations following the January 6th attack. The FBI struggled with leveraging technology effectively, faced limitations in facial recognition capabilities, and had outdated communication systems. The bureaucratic nature of the organization hindered swift adaptation to new platforms and tools. As a result, the FBI relied on outside groups of sleuths for technological expertise, collaboration, and assistance in identifying suspects and gathering evidence. The January 6th attack revealed the need for significant technological upgrades within the agency to keep pace with the evolving landscape of digital investigations.
The Personal Stories and Mindsets of Capitol Attackers
Through interactions with the sleuths, it was discovered that Capitol attackers came from diverse backgrounds and held a range of political beliefs. While some retained their loyalty to former President Trump and subscribed to conspiracy theories surrounding the election, others experienced moments of realization and remorse for their actions. The narratives of these individuals challenged stereotypes surrounding their motivations and backgrounds. The sleuths involved in the investigations expressed a desire to shatter myths and highlight the complicated stories of those involved in the attack. Their goal was to explore the psychological and ideological factors that contributed to the events of January 6th.
NBC Justice Reporter Ryan Reilly details his new book, 'Sedition Hunters: How January 6th Broke the Justice System.' Peter Salett of The Hometown Project explains how they are using celebrities to elect local officials.
