Client: FreeStar Media, LLC, Canoga Park, CA
Summary:
- In 2005, I helped to inspire the creation of a funny yet principled grassroots project to respond to wildly unjust US Supreme Court decision, regarding property rights and eminent domain (Kelo v New London)
- Throughout the gestation and development of the project, I provided key creative copywriting, graphic design and strategic counsel to the project leader
- The project exploded onto the American news cycle, and catapulted my client into the prime-time TV news spotlight for two weeks
- The project helped inspire state legislatures to enact property ownership protections that effectively neutered the SCOTUS’s decision
Overview
Do you really own your home? Are you sure?
This is a project that inspired Americans from across economic, racial and ethnic backgrounds to rally around a rational, satirical effort to fight for property rights. These efforts inspired state-level legislative efforts to enact laws to secure citizens’ property rights, within their borders.
Although I did not conceive of the “Lost Liberty Hotel” project, I helped to inspire it, rewrote the debut press release, created the visual branding, designed all key infographics, and provided extensive counsel on every facet of the media and PR campaign.
One of the most joyful moments in my life came when, as described on this page, for the first time I heard my own words read to a national audience by Rush Limbaugh, 24 hours after the press release I rewrote was issued. An excerpt (read Rush’s full commentary here):
“I LOVE this… THIS is how you fight this stuff, folks… this is how you do it … you turn it right around on them… the ‘Lost Liberty Hotel’… you just have to love this…”
– Rush Limbaugh, June 29, 2005
This in turn catapulted my client from obscurity into appearing on a variety of top-tier TV news programs and talk shows for the next two weeks, a video sampling of which is below. Ultimately, however, my greatest thrill was being able to help create something that brought together such a wildly diverse array of people, across the cultural spectrum, to ask a very simple question:
Do the decisions that Supreme Court justices make regarding property rights also apply to their own, personal property?
Contents
(1) Background
(2) Logan’s conception of the “Lost Liberty Hotel” — with a starting assist from me
(3) The critical first press release, June 28, 2005
(4) The next day, Rush Limbaugh opened his show by reading this press release, in full, and highly praising it
(5) The explosion of media attention on “The Lost Liberty Hotel” produced a torrent of volunteers and supporters
(6) Press release 2, July 22, 2005: A call to the grassroots
(7) My development of the “Lost Liberty Hotel” logo
(8) My development of a simple site map
(9) My website redesign recommendations
(10) My additional work on the project
(11) Logan’s testimonial for me
(1) Background
The Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution reads, in part:
“No private property shall be taken for public use without just compensation”
Since America’s founding, the eminent domain clause has been interpreted to mean that private property can only be taken by the government for purposes such as constructing a road, school, park or police station, etc., that all citizens would have the right to access and benefit from.
Freestar Media, LLC was founded by freedom activist Logan Darrow Clements, to produce a continuing series of documentary-style videos (“The Lexington League”), that expose outrageous government abuses, for syndication to television stations throughout the U.S. One episode of the program, “Grand Theft Building,” details how in 2004 a California city council “partnered” with a private developer to seize – under the supposed power of eminent domain – the property & business of an immigrant entrepreneur, and give it to said developer, to transform it into a hotel.
On Thursday, June 23, 2005, by a 5-4 margin, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed this new definition of “eminent domain,” by ruling in Kelo v. City of New London that a city has the right under eminent domain to seize private property and transfer it to another private party, if the latter’s use would provide greater tax revenue or economic benefits to the community “as a whole.” In her scathing dissenting opinion, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor wrote:
“Any property may now be taken for the benefit of another private party, but the fallout from this decision will not be random… (N)othing is to prevent the State from replacing any Motel 6 with a Ritz-Carlton, any home with a shopping mall, or any farm with a factory… (T)he beneficiaries are likely to be those citizens with disproportionate influence and power in the political process, including large corporations and development firms. As for the victims, the government now has license to transfer property from those with fewer resources to those with more. The Founders cannot have intended this perverse result. ‘(T)hat alone is a just government,’ wrote James Madison, ‘which impartially secures to every man, whatever is his own’.”
(2) Logan’s conception of the “Lost Liberty Hotel” — with a starting assist from me
Although Logan and I were acquaintances, regarding our shared views on limited government and individual rights, we had not yet had the opportunity to work together… until now.
In the days after the Kelo ruling, Logan and I chatted several times by phone on its implications, and on how they could fight back.
Logan was extremely cynical. I urged him to maintain a positive attitude, explaining that as this interpretation of eminent domain was so faulty, and would be disproportionately affecting the most humble of property owners most, perhaps this could help inspire a very cross-cultural, concerted effort to fight back against government takings. Logan remained convinced that there was no way to undo this ruling, and that the American experiment in self-government was crushed by one ruling. And on a personal note, he was quickly tiring of my unfounded sunny optimism, atop the freshly-dug grave or property rights in America, that there was some way to un-kill them.
Then, on Sunday, June 26, however, Logan called in the middle of the night and asked me if I would help edit a press release regarding a “big idea” he had regarding Kelo.
Upon reading it, I burst out laughing, and agreed to put my creative skills to work to polish it, and to help make sure it got attention.
(3) The critical first press release, June 28, 2005 – and the explosion of media attention and accolades for the “Lost Liberty Hotel”
I worked for the next 24 hours to deconstruct, then reconstruct what Logan had written, and polished it until I felt it was ready to be released.
After some additional minor edits, Logan submitted this first, critical press relase to PRWEB on June 28:
27June05 Press Release 1 by jonsutz
Neither he nor I could anticipate what this press release would do.
(4) The next day, Rush Limbaugh opened his show by reading this press release, in full, and highly praising it
The next day, June 29, Rush Limbaugh opened his show by reading the press release, verbatim, and spent the next half hour talking about it. Excerpt:
“THIS is hilarious. FreestarMedia, LLC, it’s a website… ‘The Greatest 
Story Is The Battle Between Freedom And Force,’ (Rush reads press release)… (laughs)… This… I LOVE this… THIS is how you fight this stuff, folks… this is how you do it … you turn it right around on them, and now, it sounds like a parody, but I know that this Clements is serious about this… he’ll do everything he can to get that property and build a big hotel, the ‘Lost Liberty Hotel’… you just have to love this…”
Rush then referred listeners to Logan’s website, and even posted the link at the top of RushLimbaugh.com.
(5) The explosion of media attention on “The Lost Liberty Hotel” produced a torrent of volunteers and supporters
In the weeks that followed, Logan — who until this point had no media presence — was invited onto top-tier national TV and radio talk shows, including “Hannity & Colmes,” “Nightline” and more, and was interviewed by newspapers throughout North America.
I also rewrote and edited a vital follow-up press release (in 7), and provided Logan and Freestar Media with ongoing creative consulting, research, graphic design, copy writing, editing and support services.
In the following weeks:
- Logan was featured on or interviewed by most top-rated TV and radio news programs and talk shows, including “Nightline,” which dedicated half a show to the “Lost Liberty Hotel.”
- Almost 6,000 people contacted Logan to voice their support and offer financial contributions or their time as volunteer activists, to see the “Lost Liberty Hotel” turned into reality.
- Logan’s website traffic went from approximately 400 hits per day to nearly 400,000.
- Almost every major U.S. newspaper and newsmagazine ran a story on the “Lost Liberty Hotel” project, including the Washington Post, Boston Globe, Washington Times, Los Angeles Times, National Review, Weekly Standard, and hundreds of smaller papers.
- Newspapers from as far away as Taiwan (Taipei Times) ran stories on the “Lost Liberty Hotel” project
The following is a brief montage of these appearances:
By July 8, 2005, nearly 20,000 news articles and editorials around the world discussed the “Lost Liberty Hotel” project, and almost 6,000 people contacted Mr. Clements to voice their support and offer financial contributions or their time as volunteer activists, to see his project turned into reality. SFGate noted the broader aspects of the fight against Kelo:
Name another issue where House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas; Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Los Angeles; Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., the House’s lone self-described socialist, Rep. Bernie Sanders, Independant-Vt.; evangelical Christian groups, Rush Limbaugh and Ralph Nader all are on the same side.
Waters denounced the decision — which she said would weigh most heavily upon minority and poor neighborhoods — as “the most un-American thing that can be done.” DeLay called the ruling “a travesty.”
A few of the opponents of the Kelo decision are looking to mount direct action — sometimes tongue-in-cheek. A California group called Freestar Media Llc is organizing an effort to convince the town council of Weare, N.H., where Supreme Court Justice David Souter owns property, to condemn the land in order to give it to developers who promise to construct a hotel on the site, substantially raising town revenues and employment in the process.
Souter voted with the majority in the case. The name of the proposed project: the Lost Liberty Hotel, which will also feature a restaurant called the Just Desserts Cafe.
Logan Darrow Clements, chief executive officer of Freestar, insists, “This is not a prank. The Town of Weare has five people on the Board of Selectmen. If three of them vote to use the power of eminent domain to take this land from Souter, we can begin our hotel development.”
Just desserts indeed.
It was as if a meteor of awareness of the preciousness of property rights had been set on a course to intersect with American mainstream culture, and Main Street America was fighting back on a cross-partisan basis, via the “Lost Liberty Hotel” project.
(6) Press release 2, July 22, 2005: A call to the grassroots
Mid-afternoon EST on July 22, 2005, Logan called and asked me to help him edit a press release for distribution by the end of the day. The purpose of this document would be:
- To provide a powerful response to the Weare, NH government’s ruling that morning, claiming that they would not permit him to make a proposal regarding the “Lost Liberty Hotel”
. - To urge local residents to begin the process of (a) voting these local government officials out of office, and (b) circumventing these officials altogether, by petitioning to put the issue to a referendum vote in early 2006
Logan was understandably angry, and emailed Jon an inflammatory-sounding press release (available upon request). On a rush basis, Jon rewrote it into the following form, which was completed and distributed via PRWEB by day’s end:
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22July05 Press Release 2 by jonsutz
My development of the “Lost Liberty Hotel” logo
In early July 2005, I offered his services create an initial graphical identity for the “Lost Liberty Hotel.” Logan believed a logo would be extremely helpful, particularly in terms of:
- Maintaining the momentum that was building behind the project.
- Rapidly developing “Lost Liberty Hotel” merchandise (e.g. T-shirts).
The key to the logo, we agreed, was that it had to instantaneously convey the depth of the betrayal that we believed the Supreme Court had committed against the American people. Logan was concerned, however, that a quality graphic identity depicting this could not be created on such short notice.
I created this (preliminary) logo in less than three days:
Ultimately, my intention was to design and direct the production of a Flash animation that would show my full idea realized. As I explained in a now-defunct liberty magazine:
“The animation would open to just the graphic of the Statue of Liberty and the text ‘Liberty Hotel’ atop the blue background banner. Then, five caricaturized Supreme Court Justices would enter the frame and cluster right in front of the logo, blocking the viewer’s ability to see it, and engage in ‘animated’ discussion and debate, with their backs to the viewer. Finally, the Justices would walk out of frame, revealing for the viewer that they’ve hung on the Statue’s raised arm a piece of driftwood, with the word ‘LOST’ stenciled on it.”
Although deemed by some as unnecessarily inflammatory and disrespectful to the U.S. Supreme Court, I believe my logo is a fair representation of its decision in Kelo. Continuing from the same interview:
“The ‘Lost Liberty Hotel’ is a rational response to a violently irrational decision by the highest court in the U.S., that threatens every private property in America – particularly those owned by people of modest means, who don’t have the resources to wage a full-bore legal battle against government and well-funded developers. I was determined to rapidly craft an image that would help propel this project forward, create a professional aura around it, and if possible, to do so in a humorous, lighthearted way – yet with very serious undertones. I’m delighted that Freestar Media chose my logo to be the ‘face’ of this exciting project to advance liberty, and a rational interpretation of property rights.”
(8) My development of a simple site map
Another aspect of my work was to find out exactly what Justice Souter’s property and ranch looked like and consisted of, to help Logan and his prospective financial backers to determine how to proceed. This involved extensive phone calls, Internet research, analysis and image processing of source media as diverse as satellite photographs to Google Maps of the area.
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Ultimately, my mission was to sift through, analyze and distill all this information down into simple photos and graphics that would identify the property as it is now, and what it looks like “naked,” as a blank canvas from which the “Lost Liberty Hotel,” restaurant and museum could be constructed. The following is the graphic I developed, which became the centerpiece of these discussions:
(9) My website redesign recommendations
Another design task that I worked on was developing a more dynamic, consolidated and user-friendly “front end” for the Freestar Media website. At the time, the main screen of the website appeared as is shown below:
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The screen below is the concept that I developed:
My additional work on the project
I continued to work periodically on the project through 2006, on tasks including:
- Editing press releases and newsletters
- Researching and interviewing New Hampshire land-use attorneys.
To identify those who might be interested in working on the Project, and if so, under what circumstances, what they would charge, what experience they have, etc.
- Contacting top candidates for volunteers located in or near Weare, NH
To validate, as near as possible, any specific skill-sets or activist experience they may have, and forward this information to Logan so that he can have at least two or three responsible “on-the-ground” people in/near Weare.
- Researching the Town of Weare
To determine if there were any special facts or historical references that might be of value in mounting a campaign to see the Project through, such as linkages to America’s Founding Fathers, notable figures, land-use issues, etc.
- Identifying key contacts in and resources from the New Hampshire Film & Television Office
As Logan anticipated bringing a film crew to Weare to document the evolution of the project (which he ended up doing, on several occasions), he needed to know as much as possible about the local “players” in government and support services.
(11) Logan’s testimonial for me
“The pro-liberty movement is fortunate to have Jon Sutz among its ranks. Jon has helped Freestar Media and our ‘Lost Liberty Hotel’ project in a number of key areas:
- His optimistic philosophy helped to inspire the project
- He edited our first press release – which led to national media exposure, thousands in donations and a lasting political impact – and also a vital follow-up press release, and our first newsletter.
- He worked tirelessly on research and coalition-building at a critical stage in the life of the project.
- He designed and produced a beautiful logo for the Lost Liberty Hotel, which drives our core message home to millions of Americans.
“Jon’s creativity, passion and strong work ethic were vital assets to us, and any serious liberty-oriented organization would benefit by enlisting him in its development and outreach efforts.”
– Logan Darrow Clements, CEO, Freestar Media