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  • 21 Aug, 2019

  • By, Wikipedia

Robby Starbuck
Robby Starbuck Newsom is an American conservative activist and former music video director. He ran in the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Tennessee as a write-in candidate and was unsuccessful. As an activist, he has campaigned against companies popular with conservatives because of their DEI initiatives.

Career

Starbuck directed music videos and commercials in California before moving to Williamson County, Tennessee in 2019. He transitioned to investing in real estate and the stock market.

Starbuck said he had received pushback from being a Republican in Hollywood and began posting about his beliefs on social media in 2015. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he campaigned against mask and vaccine mandates. In 2021, Starbuck declared his candidacy for the Republican nomination to represent Tennessee's 5th congressional district. The state Republican party removed him from the 2022 primary ballot, and this decision was ultimately upheld by the Tennessee Supreme Court. Starbuck instead ran as a write-in candidate, but did not get the nomination.

In June 2023, a photo agency issued a legal threat to Starbuck after he used a copyrighted paparazzi photo of Megan Fox and her family in a social media post accusing the actress of "child abuse" for having "forced" her children to "wear girls clothes". Fox responded to Starbuck's post, saying "Exploiting my child's gender identity to gain attention in your political campaign has put you on the wrong side of the universe."

In June 2024, Starbuck began campaigning on social media against companies popular with conservatives because of their DEI initiatives, support for LGBTQ+ events, climate change strategies, and other social policies. Starbuck chose brands that implemented these programs in recent years and may be less likely to resist pressure. His employees helped him research the companies’ policies and their executives’ backgrounds. He focused on one company at a time, posting dozens of times over the course of weeks urging his followers to protest with their voices and wallets. Tractor Supply was the first company to roll back their initiatives within that same month. John Deere announced that it would no longer sponsor “social or cultural awareness” events and would audit all its training materials in July. In August, Harley-Davidson, Brown-Forman, Lowe's, and Ford Motor Company rolled back several of their DEI initiatives and ended their respective relationships with Human Rights Campaign. In September 2024, Molson Coors did the same.

Starbuck's 2024 documentary The War on Children opposes gender-affirming care. The film promotes the conspiracy theory that toxic chemicals were responsible for causing children to identify as LGBTQ+. Several news outlets have described the film as "anti-trans" or "anti-LGBTQ+". During production of the film, a number of people that were approached for interview alleged that the producers had been deceptive about the nature and subject of the film. In Ottawa County, Michigan, a commissioner was questioned for promoting the film during a public meeting.

Personal life

Starbuck was raised by his mother and grandparents, who had fled Cuba in the 1960s. He is married to Landon Newsom, a musician who performed under the name of Matriarch. They have three children.

Filmography

DVD music

Music videos

Documentaries

References

  1. ^ Allison, Natalie (18 June 2021). "Robby Starbuck, a Franklin Republican, runs for Congress in Nashville with Rand Paul's endorsement". The Tennessean. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  2. ^ Ramirez, Nikki McCann (16 June 2023). "A New Documentary Is Courting Trans Voices. It Has a Big Right-Wing Secret". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
  3. ^ Bartlett, Kerri (June 21, 2022). "Starbuck files as write-in candidate in 5th Congressional District primary". The Daily Herald.
  4. ^ Guynn, Jessica. "Inside Robby Starbuck's anti-DEI war on Tractor Supply, John Deere and Harley-Davidson". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2024-08-06.
  5. ^ Meyersohn, Nathaniel (28 August 2024). "The right-wing activist riding a wave of opposition to DEI in corporate America". CNN. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  6. ^ Rogers, Taylor Nicole (September 4, 2024). "Robby Starbuck: the activist pushing US companies to ditch their DEI vows". Financial Times. Retrieved 2024-09-13.
  7. ^ McCall, J. Holly; June 10, Tennessee Lookout. "Tennessee Supreme Court ends Starbuck's congressional bid • Tennessee Lookout". Tennessee Lookout.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ Clark, Meredith (14 June 2023). "Republican politician Robby Starbuck given legal warning over 'desperate' attack on Megan Fox's kids". The Independent. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
  9. ^ Guynn, Jessica (29 August 2024). "Ford becomes latest high-profile American company to pump brakes on DEI". USA TODAY. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  10. ^ Styf, Jon (5 September 2024). "Molson Coors announces DEI changes in response to conservative activist". The Center Square. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
  11. ^ Adamczeski, Ryan (August 1, 2024). "Who is Robby Starbuck? This is the anti-LGBTQ+ conspiracy theorist convincing companies to drop DEI". Advocate. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  12. ^ McCann Ramirez, Nikki (10 February 2024). "Emails Reveal How Anti-Trans Doc Tried To Dupe LGBTQ Allies Into Participating". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
  13. ^ Crimmins, Tricia (8 February 2024). "Failed pro-Trump congressional candidate, wife team up for anti-trans doc starring Libs of TikTok". The Daily Dot. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
  14. ^ Mitchell, Hillary (11 February 2024). "Drag queen accuses anti-LGBTQ+ documentary of 'tricking' her into taking part". Pink News. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
  15. ^ Witkos, Matt (14 February 2024). "Local leader displays film ad which director claims 'there's a war on our children right now'". Fox 17 West Michigan. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
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