From the Commonweal Organization Newsletter: EYE ON THE RIGHT

In the Dec. 27, 2002, edition of the Los Angeles Times, historians Eric Foner and Glenda Gilmore contributed an op-ed piece about the conservative effort to tar academics as "unpatriotic" when they oppose the Bush administration's policies. In the course of their argument, Foner and Gilmore refer to a variety of conservative individuals or organizations, including Campus Watch, William J. Bennett, the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, and Lynne Cheney.

What makes this particular list so interesting is not just that they express similar ideas, but that they all take money from the same few right-wing sources. Follow along:

Campus Watch is part of the Middle East Forum, which is funded by The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation. William Bennett is a fellow at the Heritage Foundation, funded by The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, Richard Mellon Scaife, the Olin Foundation, and the Coors' Castle Rock Foundation, among others. Bennett's organization Empower America is funded by The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, Richard Mellon Scaife, and the Olin Foundation. The American Council of Trustees and Alumni is funded by, yes, the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, Richard Mellon Scaife, the Olin Foundation, and Coors' Castle Rock Foundation, among others. Lynne Cheney, wife of Vice President Dick Cheney, is a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, funded by The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, the Olin Foundation, Coors' Castle Rock Foundation, and the Smith Richardson Foundation.

What this illustrates is the remarkable effectiveness of the right-wing movement in disseminating a narrow ideological perspective through a wide variety of channels. While readers might get the impression that there is a range of viewpoints being expressed, quite the opposite is true. A handful of right-wing foundations and philanthropists are systematically "seeding" political debate in an effort to create the impression of consensus and to shape conventional wisdom. They operate largely behind the scenes, while their paid minions present the public face of conservative ideology.

Commonwealth has a good collection of articles on the right-wing movement.