Reading · Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture

Pat Rynard and Liz Fleming, aka Liz from Iowa

All photos are by Iowa Creator Corp member and one of Iowa’s best political photographers and videographer, Greg Hauenstein. Thanks, Greg!

A new generation of media has formally arrived in Iowa with the launch last week of New Day Iowa and the Iowa Creator Corp. The immediate collaborative power of this new organization was seen, heard, and felt at Curate in the East Village on Wednesday night as hundreds gathered for the launch party. It also displayed its impact over the weekend, as members of the Corps descended on the Iowa State Fairgrounds providing coverage that more traditional media didn’t.

The Iowa Creator Corp and New Day Iowa are led by Pat Rynard, founder of the Iowa Starting Line, and Liz Fleming, aka “Liz from Iowa,” one of the most powerful progressive voices on social media in the state. She has over 110,000 followers on TikTok and over eight million likes and nearly 27,000 followers on Instagram. My occasional collaborator Jason Walsmith and I profiled Liz here.

From New Day Iowa’s Facebook invite page:

New Day Iowa is empowering a new generation of social media-savvy Iowans to fight for their state and their neighbors (and training up others to better communicate online).

Our creators are leading the way to better inform Iowans through creative, always-on social media communications programs. By uplifting personal stories and key policy issues from content produced by trusted neighbors, we can connect voters with the tools they need to build a more prosperous Iowa.

Maddie Houser Webb is also an important force in the Iowa Creator Corps. Maddie, like Liz, is a powerful public intellectual for our age. As legacy media stumbles, people like Maddie, Liz, and other informed, honest, and passionate individuals, including members of the Iowa Creator Corps, are stepping in to provide truthful and timely digital news and commentary to the masses that is, at times, in direct opposition to MAGA media propaganda.

Maddie has over 141,000 followers on TikTok, over 13 million likes, and at least one of her videos has received over one million views. She also has 148,000 followers on Instagram.

Below are some photos of the announcement party. Following these photos is a discussion of what happened as several members of the Iowa Creator Corp encountered politicians running for office at the Iowa State Fair.

Here are some of the videos produced by members covering political events at the fair:

Liz with Senator Mark Kelly on water quality and home ownership. Liz on RFK Jr., Zach Lahn and MAHA. Liz asking Ashley Hinson about the Epstein files. Liz asking Zach Nunn about rural hospitals closing. Liz on the out-of-state Turning Point USA paid staff harassing Democratic candidates at the Iowa State Fair.

Maddie on the plane towing the banner saying “ASHLEY HINSON SOLD OUT IOWA TO CHINA.” Maddie addressing the hypocrisy of the GOP in trashing Pastor Sarah Trone Garriott about her faith.

Sara Booz interviews Democratic candidates Josh Turek and highlights Sarah Trone Garriott’s speech at the Register’s political Soapbox. She also argues how Zach Nunn’s support of Trump has made us all poorer.

Katie Rock, seeing the John Deere tractors at the State Fair, reminds us how Trump’s tariffs and the support of Iowa’s Republican legislators have led to layoffs at John Deere. She also juxtaposes video of Turning Point USA’s out-of-state paid staff harassing candidates with Democratic Governor candidate Rob Sand’s commentary here.

I first met Sarah McGriff, from New Sharon, at a Mahaska County Board of Supervisors meeting in Oskaloosa. Sarah was challenging the use of a racist term by a Mahaska County Supervisor. Shamefully, the supervisor who used the racial slur doubled down on its use, and the other two supervisors said nothing. Thanks to Sarah, we know that racism is acceptable by Mahaska County government leaders. I have the story here.

After visiting the fair, Sarah challenges Republican gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn on his commitment to improving water quality in Iowa, and documents paid Turning Point USA staffers from out of state harassing Democratic candidates, and much, much more.

Tara Carpenter challenges Joe Mitchell’s lobbyist connections, as does Josh Helmick.

These are just a few of the members of the Iowa Creator Corps who went to the fair, and I would like to share more of what they have done, but you get the point.

I’d also like to point out that Zachary Oren Smith and other staff are also doing remarkable new media journalism at the Iowa Starting Line.

I don’t know exactly how many people—mostly young people- are in the Iowa Creator Corp. Maybe 50? They come from all walks of life, backgrounds, and experiences—something that rarely happens in other media.

Are they journalists? Google says a journalist is:

A professional who collects, writes, edits, and presents news and information to the public through print, broadcast, or digital media. They investigate events, interview sources, and check facts to keep people informed.

If “professional” means that they make a living at it, I doubt many in the Iowa Creative Corps do. It’s also irrelevant. These are honest, well-meaning Iowans who are doing amazing work that fits the rest of the criteria above. They are also compelled to do it, even if they don’t make money at it, which speaks to their integrity.

Look at this creaky old definition of journalist from the Cambridge English Dictionary:

A person who writes news stories or articles for a newspaper or magazine or broadcasts them on radio or television.

I don’t have to tell you that the legacy (a nice word for old) media is in decline. Reuters reports that young people have turned to fast-paced short-form videos for news over traditional sources. I didn’t have to tell you that either. You already knew it.

And here is where New Day Iowa and the Iowa Creator Corp step in. Join us.

New Day Iowa and the Iowa Creator Corp

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