This portrait of the New America Foundation, which had an original and formidable voice from its founding, is not just another story about money and mission in think tanks. Even before its controversy over the EU’s regulation of Google and before its president got caught in cahoots with Hillary Clinton’s campaign, the organization started working on government contracts, which was not altogether welcome:
“I think government dollars automatically change the character of an institution,” says the Atlantic’s Steve Clemons, one of New America’s first employees. “I was opposed completely, entirely, 9,000 percent. It dumbs down institutions, whether people want to believe it does or not.”
