Crooked Con’s Hottest Takes

Meeting up with podcasters, creator-journalists, and political operatives against a dominant blue backdrop.

On Saturday, in downtown Washington, DC, six thousand people descended on Crooked Con, a political conference hosted by Crooked Media—the company founded by former Obama administration staffers Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, and Tommy Vietor, best known for Pod Save America. Hanging from the ceiling was a blue sign: “The bigger the tent, the closer to God.” Jubilation was in the air, Beyoncé and Chappell Roan on the playlist. A ticket cost two hundred bucks. Between panels (​​“Making Liberalism Cool Again,” “From Anti-Trump to Pro-Something”) and smoothies in the MS Now Lounge, speakers made their way to the Take Center, where event organizers encouraged journalists and creators to produce and publish à la minute. Phone tripods were set up in front of branded Crooked Media backdrops that read “Freedom and Content for All.”