Conservative provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos says he raised $12 million to start his own media company and got a $1 million signing bonus out of the deal, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Yiannopoulos resigned from right-wing website Breitbart News in February amid a controversy about past comments in which he appeared to condone sexual relationships between “younger boys and older men.”
“Obviously, I’ve done a lot of soul searching over the past few months and I’ve come to a conclusion: I’ve realized that I’m really, really important,” Yiannopoulos told The Hollywood Reporter. “There’s a war being waged out there for free speech and I’m the only one who can win it for the forces of light.”
During the fallout in February, Simon & Schuster canceled a book deal he’d signed, and the Conservative Political Action Committee rescinded his invitation to give the keynote speech at their annual convention. He was banned from Twitter last year after an unrelated incident involving him mocking actress Leslie Jones.
Yiannopoulos’ new venture will reportedly be called Milo, Inc. He told The Hollywood Reporter that he hired a “seasoned media executive,” whom he did not name, to lead a 30-person team in Miami. Yiannopoulos also declined to name the investors from whom he raised the $12 million.
“This isn’t some vanity nameplate on a personal blog,” Yiannopoulos said of his new venture. “This is a fully tooled-up talent factory and management company dedicated to the destruction of political correctness and the progressive left.”
Yiannopoulos also said he’s working on a new book, a reality show for YouTube, and a new live tour.
