Ken Kurson

Kenneth Kurson (born 1968)[1][2] is an American political consultant, musician, journalist, and writer who formerly served as Editor-in-Chief of The New York Observer. In 2020 he was charged by prosecutors with cyberstalking, for which he was pardoned by President Donald Trump in January 2021.

Ken Kurson
Born1968
United States
NationalityAmerican
EducationGlenbrook North High School
OccupationAuthor
Known forJournalism, political consulting
Notable work
Green Magazine and The Green Magazine Guide to Personal Finance; co-author of Leadership and The Faber Report

Education and family

Kurson was the son of a traveling salesman of motorcycle parts, and once recounted that "some years were good; others we had to sell our piano and all our furniture."[2] He graduated from Glenbrook North High School in Northbrook, Illinois, in 1986,[3] and is the younger brother of bestselling author Robert Kurson.[3] He University of Chicago for two years, an experience he called ''soul-deadening.''[2]

Career

Early career

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Kurson played bass for the Chicago punk rock band Green.[2][4] After leaving Green in 1990, Kurson founded The Lilacs with David Levinsky.[4]

A debut EP, The Lilacs Love You, was produced by Material Issue frontman Jim Ellison, who is also credited with naming the band The Lilacs.[5] A follow-up EP, The Lilacs Hate You, was the band's next release.[6] A full-length CD, The Lilacs Rise Above the Filth, was produced by Brad Wood and released in 1992.[7]

In 1993, he headed to New York to break into journalism, and landed internships and jobs at Rolling Stone, Harper's and Worth. In 1995, he began an irreverent eight-page publication on financial topics, The Kenny Quarterly, while working as an editor at United Media. It was to friends desiring financial advise. Later that year, he and a friend, John Packel, turned The Kenny Quarterly into Green.[2] It was acquired by Bankrate in 1999.[8] Kurson was a contributing editor at Esquire from 1997 to 2001, covering investing.[9] Kurson first became interested in finance when he played bass for Green. He took charge of the band's books and contracts.[2]

A New York Times profile in 2000 said that Kurson "has made personal finance palatable for people who might otherwise believe that it belongs on the shelf with Geritol and Dentu-Creme."[2]

Doubleday published Kurson's first book, The Green Magazine Guide to Personal Finance in April 1998.[10] He was co-author of a book with journalist David Faber published by Little, Brown in 2002.

Political consulting

From 2002 through the end of 2006, Kurson was Deputy Director of Communications for Giuliani Partners, the consulting company founded by Rudy Giuliani, with whom he had co-authored the book, Leadership. Kurson served as chief operating officer (COO) during Rudy Giuliani's unsuccessful 2008 campaign for the Republican presidential nomination.[11] Kurson co-authored Giuliani's October 2002 book, Leadership.

Kurson hired by the Rudy Giuliani Presidential Committee and put in charge of the Mid-Atlantic Region – New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland. In May 2007, he was promoted to chief operating officer, reporting to Michael DuHaime, and served in this role until Giuliani withdrew from the race on January 30, 2008.

After the campaign, Kurson worked at Jamestown Associates, a Republican political consulting firm based in New Jersey.[12]

Kurson ran in the 2003 New Jersey General Assembly election for the 34th Legislative District as a Republican. He received 17.6% of the vote and ran a distant third behind Democratic incumbent Peter C. Eagler (with 33.2%) and his running mate Sheila Oliver (31.0%).[13][14]

In 2010 he was the co-author of the personal memoir of biotechnology executive John Crowley entitled Chasing Miracles: The Crowley Family Journey of Strength, Hope and Joy. .[15]

New York Observer

In January 2013, Kurson was named the editor of The New York Observer by the newspaper's publisher, Jared Kushner.[16] His tenure as editor marked by questions about his ties to Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, and to the Trump campaign, especially after he acknowledged that he had worked on a Trump speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. After criticism, Kurson said that he would no longer advise the Trump campaign. As editor, Kurson oversaw the publication's decision in 2016 to end its print edition and drop “New York” from its title, in a break with its past under former editor Peter W. Kaplan.[17][18] In May 2017, Kurson stepped down from the Observer to work as a senior managing director at Teneo Strategies, a firm run by allies of Hillary Clinton and Bill Clinton.[17][19]

He was a board member of the payments company Ripple Labs from February 2017[20] until October 2020, when federal prosecutors charged him in federal court with interstate cyberstalking and related offenses.[21]

In 2018 he founded Sea of Reeds Media, a media company based in Washington, D.C.[22]

Harassment allegations

In March 2018, journalist Deborah Copaken wrote an article in The Atlantic titled "How to Lose Your Job From Sexual Harassment in 33 Easy Steps," in which she claimed that Kurson withdrew a job offer to write for the New York Observer after not responding favorably to sexual advances from him.[23][24] Kurson said he "categorically denied any claim of inappropriate behavior."[18]

In May, 2018, Kurson revealed he was under consideration for an unpaid position in the Trump Administration.[25][26][27] It later became known that he was considered for the board of the National Endowment for the Humanities.[27] In undergoing a FBI background check, agents interviewed Copaken in June 2018. She told the agents that she had been contacted by a female Mount Sinai Hospital physician who alleged in that Kurson had harassed her. The FBI contacted Mount Sinai and interviewed the doctor and other employees about Kurson.[27][28][24]

When the list of appointees to the Endowment was released in July 2018, Kurson was not on the list. He said at the time that he had withdrawn from consideration the previous month due to too much paperwork in the vetting process.[27]

On October 23, 2020, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn unsealed a criminal complaint charging him with interstate cyberstalking and harassment of the doctor.[1] According to the federal prosecutors, Kurson used aliases to post a flood of negative Yelp reviews about the physician, sent her threatening emails, harassed her with anonymous calls and delivered messages to other Mount Sinai employees claiming the physician was having an affair with her boss.[21] Mount Sinai hospital was so concerned about the harassment at the time that it hired someone to protect the doctor for a few days.[27]

Presidential pardon

Kurson was granted a full pardon by President Trump on January 19, 2021, the last full day of the Trump presidency. The White House said in a statement that Kurson's ex-wife wrote a "powerful letter to the prosecutors" on his behalf saying that "she never wanted this investigation or arrest," that the investigation only took place because of the vetting process, and that "Kurson is an upstanding citizen and father to five beautiful children."[29]

Elizabeth Spiers, Kurson's predecessor at the Observer, noted in The Daily Beast that the White House statement did not mention the other alleged victims, and that the pardon stood out from the other persons pardoned "because of the ongoing threat that some of the people he allegedly stalked and harassed fear that he may pose to them now." Copaken said she was "terrified" by the pardon.[30]

Personal life

A New York Times profile in 2000 described Kurson as not having "an ounce of pretension" and said he was "slightly rumpled, chronically bemused. During a conversation, a mischievous glint leaps out of his eye."[2]

Kurson lives in Maplewood, New Jersey. [1]

References
  1. "Individual Charged with Cyberstalking Three Victims". www.justice.gov. 2020-10-23. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
  2. Ellin, Abby (2000-08-20). "PRIVATE SECTOR; Finance, by an Ex-Punk Rocker". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
  3. Feder, Robert (2013-01-08). "NBC 5 adds busy Ivy Leaguer to sports lineup". TimeOut Chicago. Archived from the original on 2017-09-08. Retrieved 2017-09-08.
  4. Kot, Greg. "The Lilacs rise above the 'filth' once more for first show in 24 years". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2017-09-08. Retrieved 2017-09-08.
  5. Hieggelke, Jan Archived 2016-11-11 at the Wayback Machine"Immaterial World: Ken Kurson Examines the Void Left by Jim Ellison’s Death"; Newcity Music JUNE 27, 1996.
  6. "The Lilacs". Chicago Tribune. 1991-07-26. Archived from the original on 2017-09-08. Retrieved 2017-09-08.
  7. Robbins, Ira. "Green". Trouser Press. Archived from the original on 2017-09-08. Retrieved 2017-09-08.
  8. http://www.allbusiness.com/banking-finance/personal-finance/6703150-1.html
  9. Archived 2012-10-14 at the Wayback Machine Article by Ken noting career.
  10. Kurson, Ken (16 March 1998). Green Magazine: No B.S. Book. Main Street Books. ISBN 0385487592.
  11. Harris, Ben Archived 2017-12-09 at the Wayback Machine Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA); January 22, 2008.
  12. Shaw, Lucas (2013-01-04). "New York Observer Names Former Giuliani Adviser Ken Kurson Editor". TheWrap. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
  13. Golway, Terry. "Politics; Well-Connected" Archived 2017-12-29 at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, September 14, 2003. Accessed November 23, 2017. "And now a rarity -- a young Republican Assembly candidate from Montclair -- is gaining unexpected attention because of his unusual (for an aspiring state legislator) background, his enviable connections and his association with another Republican who defied expectations, Rudolph W. Giuliani. Ken Kurson, a 34-year-old writer and journalist, was Mr. Giuliani's co-author for the former New York mayor's bestseller, Leadership. Mr. Giuliani was sufficiently impressed with Mr. Kurson to hire him as deputy communications director for Giuliani Partners, which the former mayor founded after leaving office in 2001."
  14. Official List Candidate Returns for General Assembly For November 2003 General Election Archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine, New Jersey Department of State, December 2, 2003. Accessed November 24, 2017.
  15. "An 'Extraordinary' welcome - Fans crowd aisles for 'Chasing Miracles' author". The Times (Trenton). 2010-01-24. Archived from the original on 2010-09-28. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
  16. Carr, David (January 4, 2013). "New York Observer Hits Reset Again, Names Ken Kurson New Editor". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved 2013-01-24.
  17. "Ken Kurson Steps Down as Editor of the Observer". The New York Times. 2017-05-24. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2018-03-31. Retrieved 2018-05-13.
  18. "The Trump Administration Considers an Old Friend: Ken Kurson". The New York Times. 2018-05-11. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2018-05-12. Retrieved 2018-05-13.
  19. Grynbaum, Michael M. (2017-05-24). "Ken Kurson Steps Down as Editor of the Observer". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2018-03-31. Retrieved 2018-03-30.
  20. "Ripple Welcomes Ken Kurson to its Board of Directors". Ripple. 2017-02-23. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
  21. Hong, Nicole; Drucker, Jesse (2020-10-23). "Trump Family Ally Is Arrested on Cyberstalking Charge". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
  22. "About KK". KenKurson. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  23. Copaken, Deborah (9 March 2018). "How to Lose Your Job From Sexual Harassment in 33 Easy Steps". The Atlantic. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  24. Mangan, Dan (2020-10-23). "Jared Kushner friend, Giuliani associate Ken Kurson charged with cyber stalking". CNBC. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
  25. Tani, Andrew Kirell|Asawin Suebsaeng|Maxwell (2018-05-11). "Kushner Ally Ken Kurson Being Vetted for 'Honorary' White House Role". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on 2018-07-19. Retrieved 2018-05-13.
  26. "The Trump Administration Considers an Old Friend: Ken Kurson". The New York Times. 2018-05-11. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2018-05-12. Retrieved 2018-05-13.
  27. "A Kushner Ally Was Up for a Federal Post. Then the F.B.I. Began Digging". Archived from the original on 2018-07-26. Retrieved 2018-07-26.
  28. Bowden, John (2018-07-26). "Kushner ally lost out on administration job after background check: report". TheHill. Archived from the original on 2018-07-27. Retrieved 2018-07-27.
  29. "Statement from the Press Secretary Regarding Executive Grants of Clemency – The White House". trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
  30. Spiers, Elizabeth (2021-01-23). "Is Accused Stalker and Kushner Family Friend Ken Kurson Donald Trump's Most Disturbing Pardon?". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
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