Peter Daou

Peter J. Daou (born April 25, 1965) is a Democratic strategist who has advised major political figures, including Hillary Clinton, Arlen Specter, and John Kerry. He was described by the New York Times as "one of the most prominent political bloggers in the nation." The Washington Post said that his early work in digital politics helped innovate "a whole new way of campaigning." Daou is the co-founder of the media platform Verrit, the prior chief executive of progressive news website Shareblue, and a former producer/engineer/keyboardist. 2Early life Daou was born in Lebanon, to Arthur Daou, a Lebanese businessman, and Suzanna Mann, an American from New York City. Mann is the sister of author Erica Jong. Daou was a child conscript in a Christian militia during the Lebanese Civil War. 2Music career During his music career, Daou appeared on hundreds of recordings by artists ranging from Björk to Miles Davis to Mariah Carey. His first band The Daou were a New York-based dance music quintet. Their only album Head Music was released by Columbia Records/Sony Music in 1992, with its debut single "Surrender Yourself" rising to number one on the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart, where it remained for 11 weeks. 2Huffington Post Daou and James Boyce claimed to have performed a founding role in the Huffington Post and said they were shut out of any profits from its sale to AOL. A suit was filed in 2010 by Daou and Boyce, which was settled in 2014. 2Political campaigns Daou worked for John Kerry's 2004 campaign, and led Hillary Clinton's digital operation in her 2008 campaig