Elizabeth Spiers runs a political consulting firm called The Insurrection, which specializes in polling and digital messaging and works with progressive candidates and organizations. Prior to The Insurrection, she was a journalist and media entrepreneur. Most recently, she was the editor in chief of The New York Observer, and at the beginning of her career, the founding editor of Gawker. She also teaches a class on media and innovation in the graduate school of journalism at NYU, and advises media startups.