The COO left the group this week after enduring a barrage of attacks from a website named FreedomWoke, which had been agitating for his dismissal by citing his record lobbying for the legislative arm of the Humane Society and his work on behalf of Animal Wellness Action. “Why is FreedomWorks Going ‘Woke’?” the site read.
The entity behind that anti-Irby campaign is Berman and Co., a public relations firm founded by the PR executive Richard Berman, whose work for corporate interests led him to be dubbed by his critics as “Dr. Evil.” Berman is no longer with the firm, but Berman and Co. confirmed its involvement.
“Donors and FreedomWorks staff deserved to know about Marty Irby’s record of supporting Big Government liberals,” said Will Coggin, FreedomWoke spokesperson and vice president at Berman and Co. “He should go pursue his animal rights agenda elsewhere.”
It’s fairly uncommon for PR shops to wade into specific leadership battles within non-governmental…
This article was written by By Hailey Fuchs and originally published on www.politico.com