D. J. Byrnes
Ruffles Feathers with The Rooster Substack
Table of Contents
Introduction
Breaking the Urban Meyer Story
Writing for The Rooster Substack
Political and Personal Background
Impact and Reception
Introduction
D J Byrnes is an Ohio resident who pens the substack newsletter The Rooster, which takes a critical look at Ohio politics and leaders. Byrnes gained national attention in 2021 when he was the first to post video of football coach Urban Meyer with a woman dancing on his lap, but he also has a background in political writing and activism in his home state. Amber LeMay had the chance to chat with D.J. Byrnes about all of this and more in the video above.
Breaking the Urban Meyer Story
In October 2021, Byrnes received and publicly posted a video showing Urban Meyer, then-coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars, with a young woman dancing provocatively on his lap. The video soon went viral, picked up by national news outlets.
As Byrnes told a local Columbus news station, "I knew what I saw, I know who Urban is, I covered him for a very long time so I decided hey, why not.” The ensuing attention and criticism led to an apology from Meyer. This story brought Byrnes significant notoriety, with The Wall Street Journal dubbing him "The Electrician Who Shocked the World."
Writing for The Rooster Substack
Prior to and following the Urban Meyer video, Byrnes has been publishing The Rooster on Substack, a newsletter platform. Columbus Monthly highlighted The Rooster as one of the top Columbus-based Substacks, describing his writing:
"D.J. Byrnes, a former Ohio House candidate from [Marion, Ohio] and the person who broke the Urban Meyer lap dance story, digs for dirt and casts a jaundiced eye on what he calls the “corrupt lizard cabal that controls Ohio’s local and state governments.”
Some of Byrnes' most notable Rooster articles have exposed local leaders and business owners for unethical practices. His top article uncovered abuse and exploitation of employees by Jeni Britton Bauer, founder of Columbus-based Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams.
Political and Personal Background
Byrnes has a long background in Ohio politics and activism. In 2018, he ran unsuccessfully as a Democratic candidate for State Representative in District 80. A documentary, Touch the Boulder, was made about this run for office. Prior to his writing, he had a range of life experiences ranging from attending Ohio State to alleged criminal activity out of state.
A profile in another publication described some of these past activities: “[D.J.] Byrnes, 34 years old, has worn many hats. He once got in trouble for allegedly trying to rob some drug dealers in Montana. He currently pens a newsletter, The Rooster, that mainly focuses on local politics...”
Impact and Reception
Thanks to breaking major local stories and his confrontational political writing style, Byrnes and The Rooster have made waves in Ohio and drawn some national media attention. His writing taking on influential figures has also unsurprisingly garnered criticism from some.
But The Rooster has received praise as well, featured in major outlets like The Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, and Columbus Dispatch. And Byrnes told a local station after the Meyer story that he enjoys the impact: “A lot of people think it's awesome...”
Through The Rooster substack as well as his role in revealing the Urban Meyer video, D J Byrnes has made a name for himself in Ohio politics and media. His provocative writing continues to ruffle feathers across the state. And despite some backlash, Byrnes relishes his reputation as a rabble-rouser taking on the powers that be through his unique perch at The Rooster.
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—This article was written, restructured, or adapted by Russell with information gathered from sources around the internet. Russell is the producer of Amber Live and is greatly overworked to pull it all together. If it’s on the internet, it must be true. (We’re kidding.) BUT, if you find any errors or omissions in the article, please let us know so that we may correct the issue. Thanks for your support!
