In his final semester at Georgetown University, James Kotecki started a video blog to analyze YouTube’s growing role in the 2008 presidential campaign. Congresman Ron Paul stopped by his dorm room for an interview and The Economist said he was “probably the world’s foremost expert on YouTube videos posted by presidential candidates.”
After graduating, James joined Politico.com where he developed, wrote, produced, and hosted a new video series called KoteckiTV. The show delivered rapid-fire political news and analysis using biting satire, frequent pop culture references, and the occasional musical interlude. James also took his show on the road, reporting from the Iowa caucuses, the New Hampshire primary, two presidential debates in California, and the Democratic and Republican Party conventions. KoteckiTV won the Golden Dot Award for Best Vlog in 2008 and 2009.
Highlights of James’ time at Politico include an epic feud with MSNBC anchor David Shuster, spending election night as FOX panelist with Shepard Smith, and placing second to Mike Huckabee in the 2008 DC’s Funniest Celebrity competition.
James has provided analysis and commentary on CNN, FOX News, NPR, CBS, BBC, and The Huffington Post. He has been profiled by the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, Yahoo! News, and US News & World Report.
He has spoken at events sponsored by Google, YouTube, the Library of Congress, the International Finance Corporation, Harvard University, Georgetown University, George Washington University, the University of Texas at Austin and numerous student and non-profit organizations.
James is happily married to his high school sweetheart, Emily, who is a terrific cook and food blogger.