Andrew Breitbart encourages bolder conservatives

Conservative political commentator and blogger Andrew Breitbart spoke to students in Doheny Library on Wednesday night, in an event hosted by the USC College Republicans, to highlight the differences between liberals and conservatives.

Activism · Andrew Breitbart is the publisher of the blogs BigHollywood, BigPeace, BigGovernment and BigJournalism. He spoke in Doheny Memorial Library Wednesday. - Matthew Wunderlich | Daily Trojan

Breitbart said he became interested in politics during his time at Tulane University in the late 1980s. Although he originally held more liberal beliefs during his college years, he gradually shifted his political viewpoints to the right.

“I just found myself naturally entering the conservative power realm. I started to realize and think through some of these things that, wherever the left exists, it tries to shut down dissent,” Breitbart said. “Well, I’m a loudmouth and I don’t want to be shut up, so I didn’t like this.”

Many view Breitbart as a strict Republican, but he said he is just focused on improving society.

“I’m not as political as people think I am,” he said. “I simply care about changing our culture and neutralizing the pernicious influence that the left has on society. They control the megaphone.”

Rosemary Meyerott, a junior majoring in business administration, is a new member to the College Republicans who said she wanted to see what Breitbart had to say to USC students.

“I wanted to know what he had to share specifically with college students and how his beliefs operate in the university setting,” Meyerott said.

Breitbart said he has found that liberals have control over cultural institutions, including Hollywood and American universities, because conservatives have a hard time expressing their viewpoints.

He said many of his acquaintances in the entertainment industry, ranging from models to directors to comedians, would tell him about their conservative views, but keep them private for fear of not getting hired.

Breitbart said he thinks university professors also hide their true political beliefs for fear of not being able to receive tenure.

“Everywhere that I go that reflects the cultural vanguard whether it be USC or Hollywood or the offices of The New York Times you see the same traits of leftist intolerance to other ideas and those ideas reflect a great majority of the American people,” Breitbart said.

Breitbart delineated the different definitions of tolerance between those on the left and those on the right.

“[The left’s] definition of tolerance is that if you disagree with the proper progressive position of what something is, that’s intolerance,” he said. “You’re living in their little matrix of political correctness where they’re saying if you disagree with us, we’re going to shut you down and call you an ‘ist’ — a racist, a sexist and so on.”

Anjali Naskar, a junior majoring in international relations (global business), said she often feels intimidated to speak up in class about her Republican views.

“I know that in my classes, I’m scared to speak up because I’m afraid my more liberal professors will throw my beliefs in my face,” Naskar said. “There could be more Republicans in my class, but I wouldn’t really ever know. But Breitbart’s speech got me inspired, so now I’m thinking that I might speak up more about my political views.”

Breitbart is the publisher of the news portals Breitbart.com and Breitbart.tv and the blogs BigHollywood, BigGovernment, BigJournalism and BigPeace. His new book, Righteous Indignation: Excuse Me While I Save the World, will be published later this spring.