Church Militant (website)

This article is about the American Catholic media organization. For the British Anglican campaigning group, see League of the Church Militant.
Church Militant
Type of site
News and opinion
OwnerSt. Michael's Media, Inc.
Founder(s)Michael Voris
RevenueUSD$2.8 million (December 2018)[1]
Employees34 (December 2018)[1]
URLchurchmilitant.com
RegistrationOptional
Current statusDefunct (March 13, 2024)

St. Michael's Media was a conservative organization founded by Michael Voris which operated as a news website in Michigan under the officially registered assumed name of Church Militant[2] via the website ChurchMilitant.com. It was a Michigan 501(c)4 corporation.[3] It was known as Real Catholic TV until 2012, when the Archdiocese of Detroit notified Michael Voris and Real Catholic TV that "it does not regard them as being authorized to use the word 'Catholic' to identify or promote their public activities".[4] Voris responded by changing the name to Church Militant.[5][6]

While Church Militant made use of a paywall and offered premium content to subscribers, the website's main feature was its free segment The Vortex, simulcast on YouTube and hosted by Voris. As of December 2018, 34 employees were creating videos and writing content for Church Militant.[1]

Voris resigned from Church Militant in November 2023 due to violations of the organization's morality clause. After losing a defamation suit, Church Militant announced plans to cease operations altogether by the end of April 2024.[7] As of March 14, 2024, its website was no longer available.

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference ChurchOfNice was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Allen, Robert (2017-02-21). "How a right-wing Ferndale fringe group is building a multimedia empire". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2019-02-26.
  3. ^ "Federal Judge Rules Baltimore Cannot Block Church Militant Rally". 16 November 2021.
  4. ^ "Archdiocese of Detroit, Newsroom, Statements". 2011.
  5. ^ Freedman, Samuel G. (2016-12-30). "'Church Militant' Theology Is Put to New, and Politicized, Use". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331.
  6. ^ Voris, Michael. "On Claims of 'Disobedience'". Church Militant. Retrieved 2019-02-26.
  7. ^ Smith, Peter (5 March 2024). "Church Militant agrees to pay $500k in defamation case and is expected to close". Boston.com.