“They’re manufacturing the hate they claim to oppose.”

Why was the SPLC indicted? The story is bigger than anyone expected.
In this episode of The Brief, host Shabbos Kestenbaum sits down with Tyler O’Neil, Senior Editor at The Daily Signal and author of Making Hate Pay: The Corruption of the Southern Poverty Law Center, to break down the explosive DOJ indictment against the SPLC.
In April 2025, a federal grand jury indicted the SPLC on 11 counts including wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured bank, and conspiracy to commit money laundering — all tied to a secret decade-long program that paid more than $3 million to informants embedded in the KKK, the Aryan Nations, the National Alliance, and the organizers of the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville.
But the real question Tyler raises: was the SPLC actually manufacturing the hate it was profiting from?

We also cover:
– Why the SPLC labels Moms for Liberty, PragerU, and the Family Research Council as “hate groups” on par with the Klan
– How the SPLC classifies groups (and why the criteria matter)
What was the SPLC’s role in Charlottesville
– How the SPLC became a weapon used by Big Tech, corporations, and Democrats to silence conservatives
– The bank fraud charges that Tyler says the SPLC cannot escape
– What the $800 million endowment means for the organization’s future
– The 2012 terrorist attack on the Family Research Council — and the SPLC’s role
– What is the SPLC’s defense against the indictment
– Was there fraud with the SPLC donor money
– If you’ve ever asked: “Is the SPLC credible?” “How do they pick ‘hate groups’?” “Why does the Hate Map have so much influence?”—this episode is the deep dive you’ve been looking for.

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