theoldschoolpatriot.

com
The website of retired Lieutenant Colonel Allen B. West, a former
This website generally maintains
Florida congressman and conservative commentator, publishing U.S. basic standards of credibility
political news. and transparency—with
significant exceptions.

Score: 62.5/100
Ownership and It is not clear whether Allen West personally owns
Financing
TheOldschoolPatriot.com. Florida business records list Does not repeatedly publish
 false content (22points)
an Allen B. West Inc., but the site makes no mention of
that company. West links to TheOldSchoolPatriot.com Gathers and presents
 information responsibly (18)
on his official Facebook page and Twitter account.
Regularly corrects or clarifies
TheOldschoolPatriot.com generates revenue through  errors (12.5)
advertising. The site also links to West’s books on
Handles the difference between
Amazon and promotes his public speaking services.
 news and opinion responsibly
(12.5)

Content The Old School Patriot publishes conservative
commentary, generally written by West, on politics and
current events. West comments on topics such as
gender, abortion, immigration. He regularly refers to
Democrats as the “socialist left” and often blames them
 Avoids deceptive headlines (10)
Website discloses ownership
 and financing (7.5)
 Clearly labels advertising (7.5)

for what he perceives to be society’s ills. Reveals who's in charge,

 including any possible conflicts
Typical stories have run under headlines including of interest (5)

“Freedom of Religion is a Right,” “Feudalism: Alive and

The site provides names of
Well in Our America,” and “Gun Grabbers.” content creators, along with
 either contact or biographical
The site links to West’s Twitter feed and YouTube information (5)

videos, which also include his commentary.

TheOldSchoolPatriot.com also promotes West’s media Criteria are listed in order of
appearances, speaking engagements, and books. importance.
More information.
After West announced a campaign in 2019 to become
chairman of Texas’ Republican party,
TheOldSchoolPatriot.com included messages about
West’s campaign at the end of every article, reading,
“LTC West is running for Chair of the Republican Party
of Texas! To support his efforts, please visit his
campaign website!”

Credibility TheOldSchoolPatriot.com does not appear to produce

original reporting. Articles generally include West’s
commentary on articles that first appeared on
conservative websites such as Fox News, the National
Review, and TownHall. Headlines, while often
opinionated, generally reflect the content of stories.

TheOldSchoolPatriot.com has published some

misleading stories about the COVID-19 pandemic in
2020.

An April 2020 story about the virus, headlined

“Something Smells,” claimed, “It cannot be debated, we
have been hit with a massive biological agent. The
question is not whether there was intent, but rather the
level of intent.”

The notion that COVID-19 was manmade and

intentional has been refuted by numerous studies and
experts. A March 2020 study published in the journal
Nature Medicine concluded that the virus “is not a
laboratory construct or a purposefully manipulated
virus.” An earlier study, published in February 2020 in
the journal Nature, found that the COVID-19 virus is
“96% percent identical at the whole-genome level to a
bat coronavirus.” Both the World Health organization
and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention have stated that the virus was passed from
animals to humans.

In approximately a dozen stories published in May

2020, West reported that the “recovery rate” from the
COVID-19 virus is 99.6 percent. Typical examples
include the May 2020 story “Vote Democrat?
YGTBSOS!” in which West stated, “Have you ever
asked yourselves why some are advocating for the
shutdown of our nation’s economy over a virus that has
a 99.6 percent recovery rate?”

West did not cite a source for the claim, nor could
NewsGuard find one. Health authorities have cited the
lack of available testing in the pandemic’s early stages
and unreported deaths as factors that make the actual
recovery rate difficult to determine.
Despite this content cited above, because
TheOldSchoolPatriot.com does not appear to regularly
distort information, NewsGuard has determined that the
site does not gather and present information
irresponsibly.

TheOldSchoolPatriot.com does not articulate a

corrections policy, nor does it appear to make
corrections.

The site’s About page provides a biography of West,

which identifies him as a “Christian constitutional
conservative,” details his military career, and describes
some of the legislation he introduced as a
congressman. The page states West believes, “it will be
conservative, free market policies -- not politics -- that
secures a sound economic future for Americans -- with
growth, opportunity and returning the promise of the
American dream for this generation and those to come.”

TheOldSchoolPatriot.com does not have an opinion

section or label opinion articles. Virtually all stories
contain commentary, although they often include tags
such as “world news,” “U.S. politics,” and “business.”

For example, a May 2020 story, tagged “U.S. politics,”

stated, “If there is one thing you can count on the
progressive socialist left to do, it is loudly broadcasting
their nefarious intent.”

Another May 2020 story, tagged as “business,” claimed,

“the last thing Texas needs are more progressive
socialist locusts gathering in the Lone Star State.”

A third May 2020 article said that the stay-at-home

measures taken to curb the spread of COVID-19 was
about “the government’s usurpation of our freedoms
and the imposition of a vision of tyranny.”

Because TheOldSchoolPatriot.com regularly publishes

opinion in stories labeled as news, NewsGuard has
determined that the site does not handle the difference
between news and opinion responsibly.
 The site did not respond to NewsGuard’s three emails
seeking comment on its handling of news and opinion
and its lack of corrections.

Transparency TheOldSchoolPatriot.com does not disclose its

ownership or identify its editorial leadership. The About
page provides West’s biography, without specifying any
role in the website’s production.

Display advertising is distinguishable from editorial

content. Messages that announce West’s campaign for
the Republican party chairmanship at the end of news
articles state, “Political advertisements paid for by LTC
Allen West for State Chairman.”

West did not respond to NewsGuard’s four emails

seeking comment on the site’s lack of ownership
disclosure and information about editorial leadership.
NewsGuard was not able to reach West through his
Facebook page.

The site generally attributes stories to West. His

biography is available on the site’s About page.

History West served in the Army in Operation Desert Shield

and Operation Desert Storm during the Gulf War.
West’s military pay was reduced in 2003 as punishment
for threatening to shoot an Iraqi detainee during an
interrogation, according to The New York Times and
other news organizations. West retired from the military
in 2004 and moved to Florida, where he taught high-
school social studies.

In 2010, West was elected to represent Florida’s 22nd

congressional district. He served from 2011 to 2013. He
has served as a contributor at Fox News and
contributing columnist at the conservative site
Townhall.com.

West is known for making provocative comments such

as, “if Joseph Goebbels was around, he’d be very
proud of the Democrat party” and that Obama
 supporters are “threat[s] to the gene pool.” West has
also described himself in interviews as an “old school
patriot.”

TheOldSchoolPatriot.com launched in 2018.

Editor’s Note: This Nutrition Label was updated on June

1, 2020.

Written by: Evan Haddad

Edited by: Amy Westfeldt, Jim Warren

Send feedback to NewsGuard:Click Here

Sources
Ownership https://mailchi.mp/01afc6b057c9/the-old-school-patriot-
memo?e=be5b51ffc5
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/ads/
https://twitter.com/AllenWest?lang=en
https://www.facebook.com/AllenBWest
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/books/

Content https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/tale-of-two-accusations/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/bizarro-world-gender-
dysphoria/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/new-change-planned-
parenthood/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/islamic-terrorists-want-
nov-dem-win/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/doesnt-kill-makes-
stronger/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/abolish-ice-idiots/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/traitorous-revision-
history/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/situational-ethics-left/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/right-religious-freedom/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/gun-grabbers/

Credibility https://web.archive.org/web/20200526192211/https://th
eoldschoolpatriot.com/coronavirus-something-
stinks/(virus claim)
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/vote-democrat-
ygtbsos/(recovery rate claim)
https://www.google.com/url?
q=https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/voter-fraud-covid-
19/&sa=D&ust=1590596049285000&usg=AFQjCNHi1J
8Ii91gYoR5GNCsPLu-AAEN6A(recovery)
https://www.google.com/url?
q=https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/covid-19-courage-
cowardice/&sa=D&ust=1590596049288000&usg=AFQj
CNFqLk4H3tv-1Y6kmnNrdO61gWbaOw(recovery)
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2020/0
5/05/covid-19-fact-check-coronavirus-mortality-rate-
misleading/3019503001/(USA Today fact check)
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/covid19/index.htm(
CDC mortality data)
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/story-broke-my-
heart/(recovery claim)
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/locust-effect-
progressive-socialism/(opinion)
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/voter-fraud-covid-
19/(opinion)
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/de-blasio-v-
constitution/(opinion)
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/about-allen-west/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/left-enables-real-war-
women/
https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-
meter/statements/2018/may/24/donald-trump/donald-
trumps-false-claim-nancy-pelosi-came-out-fa/
https://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/susan-
jones/pelosi-trump-does-he-not-believe-spark-divinity-
dignity-and-worth-every
https://www.factcheck.org/2018/05/trumps-and-pelosis-
immigration-spat/
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2018/05/17/nan
cy_pelosi_ms-
13_gang_members_are_not_animals.html
https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-
meter/article/2018/may/17/context-donald-trumps-
comments-about-immigrants-an/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/evil-leftists-enabling/
 https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/islamic-terrorists-want-
nov-dem-win/
https://www.un.org/unispal/document/waiver-and-
certification-of-statutory-provisions-regarding-plo-office-
us-presidential-memorandum-for-secretary-of-state-
non-un-document/
https://www.politico.com/story/2009/04/obama-signs-
plo-office-waiver-021096
https://www.jta.org/2008/04/14/news-opinion/bush-
extends-plo-office-waiver-2
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/rule-of-law/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/tale-two-protests/
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/ct-
tyshawn-lee-the-march-turner-20151104-column.html
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/tale-of-two-accusations/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/category/news/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/bizarro-world-gender-
dysphoria/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/situational-ethics-left/
https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-
meter/statements/2017/sep/11/eric-schneiderman/has-
daca-been-ruled-unconstitutional/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/destroy-republic-
constitution/
https://washington.cbslocal.com/2014/01/14/obama-on-
executive-actions-ive-got-a-pen-and-ive-got-a-phone/
https://www.state.gov/j/ct/rls/other/des/123085.htm

Transparency https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/security-clearances-
constitutional-right/
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/site-policies/disclosure/
http://www.foxnews.com/person/w/allen-west.html
https://theoldschoolpatriot.com/abw/mrctv-ltc-west-
addresses-media-censorship/

History https://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/27/world/struggle-for-
iraq-interrogations-colonel-risked-his-career-menacing-
detainee.html
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-2004-05-27-
0405270137-story.html
https://www.politico.com/story/2012/11/how-allen-west-
blew-it-084108
https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2003/1
1/30/army-officers-actions-raise-ethical-
issues/758ec173-c119-4da1-9f47-d3072d9bbf32/
https://thinkprogress.org/rep-allen-wests-15-most-
outrageous-statements-5eab1b70d7f4/
http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/12/12/sprj.nirq.west.ruling
/
https://www.waynedupree.com/facebook-restores-
stolen-page-to-allen-west-includes-2-7-million-followers/
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jul/31/insi
de-the-beltway-allen-west-ready-to-run-again/