Over a decade ago, Amy Jo Clark and Miriam Weaver set up Chicks on the Right. Fast forward ten years and they’re not only still going strong, they're doing better than ever. Townhall recently spoke to Clark and Weaver about their endeavors, which, in addition to an active social media presence (especially on Facebook), now includes a full-time devotion to their political commentary. They refer to themselves as the "cool aunts” of conservative commentary because they "don't preach to or scold," which has helped them gain viewers young.
Chicks on the Right came about after Weaver hired Clark to work at the company she was recruiting for, and the two ladies became "instantaneous best friends." They would discuss politics during lunch breaks, despite not being political up until that point. Clark added, "we saw a need for political punditry" that was not being met, and thus the idea for the Chicks on the Right came about with a blog that ‘was more mini skirt and less suit."
Clark refers to themselves as the "OGs," which also applies to how cancel culture via social media censorship came after them long before it became a more recent trend.
In 2013, Weaver had written a post with colorful language about Jay Carney, who was then Obama's press secretary. Users reported Weaver's post about Carney "en masse," which set algorithms to go off and blocked Weaver from their account.
Fortunately, such cancellation ultimately only strengthen Chicks on the Right, and their popularity only grew from there. Facebook also later apologized.
Clark was able to blast it out there, which was picked up by Todd Starnes, among others, and actually provided Clark and Weaver with their radio opportunities.
When it comes to political issues like cancel culture, Weaver also offered that those in the conservative movement "are the rebels now" and part of "the counter-culture," when historically one would equate the Left with questioning authority.
"It's rebellious to have patriotism, it's rebellious to care about freedom of speech," Weaver said incredulously, emphasizing how these are "weird, weird concepts."
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And, when it comes to those lockdowns under the guise of the pandemic, Clark offered those lockdowns are "part of a broader umbrella" and "government trying to have a bigger role in our lives period," emphasizing that the Founding Fathers did not want this, adding "it's just simply not," which is what they "try to fight back against every day."
Now, with Clark and Weaver going full-time, Chicks on the Right has a podcast with Radio America, which Clark raved about being their favorite, especially since they have the most freedom to say what they want to say. The podcast has been on for two months, and is enjoying rave reviews.
To commit to this full-time is to "do what we love," Weaver shared, "which is focus 100 percent of our energy on Chicks on the Right, which is the podcast and our website."
Clark explained they had never done that before, always having had other jobs, "so, you know what, it's time to do this and really put 100 percent of our energies and our love and our efforts into our little baby, our Chicks on the Right baby."
Weaver acknowledged that it is a risk to quit a corporate job, but also that it was the right decision. "We felt comfortable about our relationship developed with Radio America," especially as "we saw some success with the podcast and we felt like okay, it's now or never, right? We need to take this moment in time and take advantage of it." She and Clark agreed that it's been "so far so good," and that they "feel really good about where they're going."
This includes upcoming meet-and-greets. They are particularly excited about these events because, as Clark shared, what they are most proud of, and how they see themselves as "sort of an anomaly" compared to other commentators, is "the way that we build our community and the community that we have established, the people that are in it, because we get out there and we really want to meet the people, we want to talk to them, we want to, you know, rub elbows with them so to speak, we want to be part of that community," as opposed to just talking to them. Clark indicated it's "a huge priority."
Weaver also doubled down on how they "are not performers," but rather "we are who we are," and that their podcast is about how they "simply have a conversation as best friends who share a lot of political interests, cultural interests," and "we're just having our best friend chat, and for whatever reason, people have decided that that is relatable and that they want to sit in on that conversation," which is "what we intend to do at the meet-and-greets."
Clark shared that their followers have also developed similar connections with each other to what Clark and Weaver have, which Clark offered "people yearn for that nowadays," especially in "the age of social media" when "everybody feels connected, but they're disconnected." She offered that Chicks on the Right has "provided the community where people get together, they talk, they pray for each other, they're there for each other, they have become this close-knit, amazing community of people that help each other."
This is what they are most proud of: "being able to provide that space and build that community of like-minded people," which Weaver also referred to as "a catalyst of friendships."
The Florida meet-and-greet that Clark and Weaver are doing in September sold out almost immediately, but they hope to do more in the future. A west coast meet-and-greet is expected to come in spring 2023.
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