Free to Choose Network
Background
The Free to Choose Network is a a non-profit foundation that arose from Milton Friedman‘s 1980s PBS series, โFree To Chooseโ and the resulting book. The group’s founder, Bob Chitester, was the PBS program’s executive producer and sought to โexpose a world hindered by big government to Friedmanโs concepts of limited government, individualism, and the US Constitution.โ1 โCompany: Our Beginnings ,โ Free to Choose Network. Archived October 25, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/lyobk 2 โCompany: Our Founder,โ Free to Choose Network. Archived October 25, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/sQ1gb
The late Milton Friedman was an advocate of free markets and past was fellow at the Hoover Institution which SourceWatch reports has received grants from ExxonMobil, Koch Foundations and other right wing foundations such as the Sarah Scaife Foundation.3 โMilton Friedman,โ The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. Archived October 19, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7d5CS
Bob Chitester also ran the now-defunct Palmer R. Chitester Fund, a libertarian 501(c)(3) nonprofit ย based in Pennsylvania which appears to have merged/now operates as Free to Choose Network (they share the same EIN).4 โProduction Team for ‘The Ultimate Resourceโ (PDF), Free to Choose Media, July 31, 2007.ย Archived .pdf ย on file atย DeSmog. Free to Choose Media and a group called Izzit.olrg were both โoperating divisionsโ (PDF) of the Palmer R. Chitester Fund and work toย reproduce programs and videos regarding classical liberal ideas.ย Izzit.org, (formerly In the Classroom Media)ย describes itself as an โeducational initiative of the Free to Choose Networkโ andย produces media for children. Izzit.org notablyย distributed climate change denial videos funded by the Heartland Institute to schools in the United States.5 โAbout Us ,โ Izzit.org. Archived October 25, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gB2I7 6 Richard Littlemore. โHeartland Institute Tricked Video Subject in ‘Unstoppable Solar Cycles ‘,โ DeSmog, May 5,ย 2008.
Free to Choose Network describes it’s purpose as โTo use accessible and entertaining media to build popular support for personal, economic and political freedom thus advancing human well-being.โ7โCOMPANY: Our Purpose,โ Free to Choose Network. Archived October 25, 2015. ArchiveURL: https://archive.ph/ZnbNE
Stance on Climate Change
The following is a quote from Roy Spencer, promoted in an Izzit DVD (a group supported by the Free to Choose Network):8 โRoy Spencer: Climate Realism v. Junk Science ,โ Ideas Matter . Archived May 6, 2012.
โSo the truth is out. And it really is inconvenient: The earth is probably warming a little bit โ and man probably doesn’t have that much influence. If we were to take draconian measures to change our miniscule contribution, we’d be shooting ourselves in the economic foot (especially when we can currently do absolutely nothing about the behavior of the sun).โ
Funding
The following funding are taken from the Conservative Transparency Project, based on publicly-available 990 tax returns. Note that not all funding values have been verified by DeSmog.9โFree To Choose Network,โ Conservative Transparency. Data retrieved July 5, 2016.
View the attached spreadsheet for additional details on Free to Choose Network funding by year (.xlsx).
Donor | Free To Choose Network | Palmer R. Chitester Fund | Grand Total |
John Templeton Foundation | $5,230,990 | $5,230,990 | |
Donors Capital Fund | $4,385,230 | $4,385,230 | |
DonorsTrust | $3,058,500 | $3,058,500 | |
Dunn’s Foundation for the Advancement of Right Thinking | $661,000 | $661,000 | |
Barbara and Barre Seid Foundation | $660,575 | $660,575 | |
Bochnowski Family Foundation | $480,000 | $480,000 | |
The Rodney Fund | $363,966 | $14,000 | $377,966 |
Cato Institute | $355,000 | $355,000 | |
Sarah Scaife Foundation | $350,000 | $350,000 | |
Diana Davis Spencer Foundation | $225,000 | $225,000 | |
The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation | $35,000 | $181,000 | $216,000 |
Hickory Foundation | $135,000 | $40,000 | $175,000 |
Schwab Charitable Fund | $22,500 | $126,000 | $148,500 |
The Challenge Foundation | $130,000 | $130,000 | |
Searle Freedom Trust | $100,000 | $100,000 | |
Smith Richardson Foundation | $100,000 | $100,000 | |
Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation | $93,058 | $93,058 | |
Bradley Impact Fund | $85,000 | $85,000 | |
Dorothy D. and Joseph A. Moller Foundation | $30,000 | $50,000 | $80,000 |
Armstrong Foundation | $55,000 | $17,500 | $72,500 |
Charles and Ann Johnson Foundation | $50,000 | $50,000 | |
Earhart Foundation | $50,000 | $50,000 | |
William E Simon Foundation | $45,000 | $45,000 | |
Atlas Economic Research Foundation | $26,350 | $26,350 | |
The Randolph Foundation | $25,000 | $25,000 | |
Center for Independent Thought | $22,000 | $22,000 | |
Pierre F and Enid Goodrich Foundation | $20,000 | $20,000 | |
The Vernon K. Krieble Foundation | $15,000 | $15,000 | |
Gilder Foundation | $10,000 | $10,000 | |
John William Pope Foundation | $5,000 | $5,000 | |
Grand Total | $16,063,594 | $1,189,075 | $17,252,669 |
DonorsTrust & DCF Funding
The Free to Choose Network has received over $600,000 from Donors Trust, and nearly $3 million from Donors Capital Fund, two groups that anonymously distribute donations.
DCF has been a major funder of the Heartland Institute, and has given money to numerous other organizations skeptical of man-made climate change. Mother Jones has described the Donors Capital Fund as the โDark money ATM of the conservative movement.โ10โExposed: The Dark-Money ATM of the Conservative Movement,โ Mother Jones, February 5, 2013. Archived October 26, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2rZro 11 โThe case for Barre Seid as the Heartland Institute’s Anonymous Donor, Part 3 ,โ Daily Kos , February 26, 2012. Archived October 26, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/wfXTw
990 Forms
Key People
Board of Directors
As of October, 2015:12 โCompany: Our Board of Directors,โ Free to Choose Network. Archived October 26, 2015. Archive.today URL: https://archive.ph/3bVnJ
- Sarah Humphreys Atkins
- Robert J. Chitester โ Chairman, President and CEO
- David Jorgensen โ Vice Chairman
- Wayne Olson
- Chris J. Rufer
- Suzanne Beach
- Preston Cody
- Michael L.S. Keiser
- John Reese
- Brian Singer, CFA
- James J. Bochnowski
- Maryjo Cohen
- Ronald H. Muhlenkamp
- Elizabeth Rose
- Andy Walters
Past Directors
As of 2011, the following directors were also listed on Free to Choose’s website:13 โBoard of Directors,โ Freetochoose.net. Archived November 26, 2011. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/3bVnJ
- Jonathan Thomas Beach โ Executive Director, Beach Foundation.
- Ron Farmer
Social Media
- @FreeToChooseNet on Twitter.
- โFree To Choose Networkโ on Facebook.
- โFree To Choose Networkโ on LinkedIn.
Actions
April 2015
FreeToChoose Media promoted a program by Cato Institute Senior Fellow Johan Norberg titled โPower to the People,โ which aired on PBS.14 โPower to the People,โ Free to Choose Media. Archived October 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ClGGX
According to Cato Institute’s description:15 โUnderstanding the Worldโs Energy Needs,โ Cato Institute, May 7, 2015. Archived October 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ZAX0z
โWhile bringing electricity to many remote villages in India and the Sahara causes an increase in carbon emissions, it also allows families to have refrigeration for their food, electricity to light their homes and the time to develop their lives beyond working just to sustain themselves every day. ‘Donโt they deserve the same kinds of life changing benefits that power has brought the west?’ Norberg asks.โ
May 21โ23, 2012
Free to Choose Network is listed as a โSilver Sponsorโ of the Heartland Institute’s Seventh International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC7).16 โCosponsors,โ 7th International Conference on Climate Change. Archived May 10, 2012. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/VAY3r
DeSmog researched co-sponsors behind the conference and discovered that they had received a total of over $67 Million from ExxonMobil, Koch, and Scaife family foundations.17 โA Closer Look at Heartland’s ICCC7 Denial-a-Palooza Speakers and Sponsors ,โ DeSmog, May 23, 2012.
May 16โ18, 2010
The Free to Choose Network was a co-sponsor (PDF) of the Heartland Institute’s Fourth International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC4).184th International Conference on Climate Change Conference Program (PDF), The Heartland Institute.
DeSmog found that 19 of the 65 sponsors (including Heartland itself) had received a total of over $40 million in funding since 1985 from ExxonMobil (who funded 13 of the organizations), and/or Koch Industries family foundations (funded 10 organizations) and/or the Scaife family foundations (funded 10 organizations).19 Brendan DeMelle. โDenial-a-palooza Round 4: ‘International Conference on Climate Change’ Groups Funded by Exxon, Koch Industries,โ DeSmog, May 13, 2010.
June 2, 2009
The Free to Choose Network was a co-sponsor of the Heartland Institute’s Third International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC3).20 โCo-Sponsors,โ Third International Conference on Climate Change. Archived July 14, 2010.
March 8โ10, 2009
The Free to Choose Network was a co-sponsor of the Heartland Institute’s Second International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC2) in New York.21 โCo-Sponsors,โ The 2009 International Conference on Climate Change. Archived April 28, 2011.
DeSmog found that the conference’s sponsors had received over $47 million in funding from energy companies and right-wing foundations.22 โHeartland Institute’s 2009 Climate Conference in New York: funding history of the sponsors,โ DeSmog.
2008
The Idea Channel produced a video that was funded and distributed by the Heartland Institute titled โUnstoppable Solar Cycles: Rethinking Global Warming.โ
A version of the video was distributed to schools by the advocacy organizationย Izzit.org, which describes itself as the โeducational initiative of the Free To Choose Networkโ23 โAbout Us ,โ Izzit.org. Archived October 25, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gB2I7 and included a โTeacher’s Guideโ (PDF ) and lessonย plan24โUnstoppable Solar Cycles: RethinkingโฆGlobal Warmingโ (PDF), Izzit.org.ย Archived .pdfย on file atย DeSmog. โ Which the Heartland Institute co-promoted on their own website. 25โUnstoppable Solar Cycles: Rethinking Global Warming,โ Heartland Institute. Archived October 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Jt4u5 26โUnstoppable Solar Cycles: Production Team,”ย Free to Choose Network. Accessed May, 2012. **URL no longer available on liveย web.
According to Free to Choose Network, โWhat we learn in this program is that earthโs climate is always changingโfrom The Middle Ages and the ‘Little Ice Age’ to the modern warming that has been going on since 1850โwell before human-generated CO2 began increasing in our atmosphere.โ
View sample of the video, produced by the Idea Channel, below:
Speakers featured in the program included prominent climate change skeptics Willie Soon and David Legates. Notably, in the same year Free to Choose Network gave Willie Soon a $19,383 grant to study โThe sun’s influence on climate change.โ27 โCASE STUDY: Dr. Willie Soon, a Career Fueled by Big Oil and Coal ,โ Greenpeace. Archived October 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7thK2
Rie Oldenburg, curator of the Narsaq Museum was interviewed in the video. She later said that she had been tricked into participating. She had thought she was contributing to a video on Norse history, and was shocked to learn that the DVD denied the human contribution to climate change.28 Richard Littlemore. โHeartland Institute Tricked Video Subject in ‘Unstoppable Solar Cycles ‘,โ DeSmog, May 5, 2008.
Related Organizations
- Izzit.org โ โEducational initiativeโ of Free To Choose Network.
- FreeToChoose.tv
- Ideas Matter (Blog) โ Appears Inactive.
- Free to Choose Media
Other Resources
Resources
- 1โCompany: Our Beginnings ,โ Free to Choose Network. Archived October 25, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/lyobk
- 2โCompany: Our Founder,โ Free to Choose Network. Archived October 25, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/sQ1gb
- 3โMilton Friedman,โ The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. Archived October 19, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7d5CS
- 4โProduction Team for ‘The Ultimate Resourceโ (PDF), Free to Choose Media, July 31, 2007.ย Archived .pdf ย on file atย DeSmog.
- 5โAbout Us ,โ Izzit.org. Archived October 25, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gB2I7
- 6Richard Littlemore. โHeartland Institute Tricked Video Subject in ‘Unstoppable Solar Cycles ‘,โ DeSmog, May 5,ย 2008.
- 7โCOMPANY: Our Purpose,โ Free to Choose Network. Archived October 25, 2015. ArchiveURL: https://archive.ph/ZnbNE
- 8โRoy Spencer: Climate Realism v. Junk Science ,โ Ideas Matter . Archived May 6, 2012.
- 9โFree To Choose Network,โ Conservative Transparency. Data retrieved July 5, 2016.
- 10โExposed: The Dark-Money ATM of the Conservative Movement,โ Mother Jones, February 5, 2013. Archived October 26, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2rZro
- 11โThe case for Barre Seid as the Heartland Institute’s Anonymous Donor, Part 3 ,โ Daily Kos , February 26, 2012. Archived October 26, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/wfXTw
- 12โCompany: Our Board of Directors,โ Free to Choose Network. Archived October 26, 2015. Archive.today URL: https://archive.ph/3bVnJ
- 13โBoard of Directors,โ Freetochoose.net. Archived November 26, 2011. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/3bVnJ
- 14โPower to the People,โ Free to Choose Media. Archived October 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ClGGX
- 15โUnderstanding the Worldโs Energy Needs,โ Cato Institute, May 7, 2015. Archived October 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ZAX0z
- 16โCosponsors,โ 7th International Conference on Climate Change. Archived May 10, 2012. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/VAY3r
- 17โA Closer Look at Heartland’s ICCC7 Denial-a-Palooza Speakers and Sponsors ,โ DeSmog, May 23, 2012.
- 184th International Conference on Climate Change Conference Program (PDF), The Heartland Institute.
- 19Brendan DeMelle. โDenial-a-palooza Round 4: ‘International Conference on Climate Change’ Groups Funded by Exxon, Koch Industries,โ DeSmog, May 13, 2010.
- 20โCo-Sponsors,โ Third International Conference on Climate Change. Archived July 14, 2010.
- 21โCo-Sponsors,โ The 2009 International Conference on Climate Change. Archived April 28, 2011.
- 22
- 23โAbout Us ,โ Izzit.org. Archived October 25, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gB2I7
- 24โUnstoppable Solar Cycles: RethinkingโฆGlobal Warmingโ (PDF), Izzit.org.ย Archived .pdfย on file atย DeSmog.
- 25โUnstoppable Solar Cycles: Rethinking Global Warming,โ Heartland Institute. Archived October 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Jt4u5
- 26โUnstoppable Solar Cycles: Production Team,”ย Free to Choose Network. Accessed May, 2012. **URL no longer available on liveย web.
- 27โCASE STUDY: Dr. Willie Soon, a Career Fueled by Big Oil and Coal ,โ Greenpeace. Archived October 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7thK2
- 28Richard Littlemore. โHeartland Institute Tricked Video Subject in ‘Unstoppable Solar Cycles ‘,โ DeSmog, May 5, 2008.