An Exciting Announcement from Our CEO & CJ Pearson | More with Marissa

what's up guys I'm sitting here with CJ how did my WhatsApp go it was good it was good it was expertly delivered there yeah well I learned from you friends we wanted you to be the first to know that we have some bittersweet news uh this is particularly bitter for me I don't know why I'm so emotional about this but I I like we we started working together when you were just so young I mean you're still so young but like you're you're definitely one of my kiddos and you will always be my kiddos and those are listening are probably already guessing uh that CJ is graduating from Prager U um and moving on to do even greater things and we want to share some of that with you some of the plans and maybe go down some memory lane and um see what of the things that we've done together uh things that we're super proud of um but before we get started CJ why don't you share what are your plans yeah exactly you know the past year has been absolutely incredible here at prer you I I feel as if if I've learned more in the one year that I spent here at prageru than I probably would have gotten for a four-year college education we talk about that often but you know also too is the people that work here the team um that we get to interact with every single day there are so many people here who just have such an unbridled passion for America who love this country and who are fighting every single day to ensure that Generation Z has a country to inherit and you know also you you you talk about you know me being uh you know one of your kiddos you've definitely become a mother-like figure to me and I think learning from you as a leader as someone who is able to you know uh just really command any room that she's in I respect it a lot and and I definitely have taken a lot of notes and I'm going to put that towards these future endeavors but you know George Soros is pumping millions of dollars into building influencer networks to Pedal lies to America's Next Generation it's absolutely horrific we look at the the content that's being posted onto Tik Tok demonizing the state of Israel demonizing conservative values demonizing a love of this country the United States of America it's disgusting but we have a choice we can either throw up our hands and complain about how bad or evil George Soros is or we can fight back and that's exactly what we intend to do so what we're working on it's so incredible and I'm so excited about it is we're going to cultivate influencers to beat back all of this content we're going to train them teach them how to be better content creators equip them with the tools they need to be fierceful and forceful advocates for Freedom Liberty and the conservative cause and agenda and uh in the same way in which Prager U has been an incubator for me and so formative and and instrumental in my growth we hope to do that with creators who have just 3,000 followers 4,000 followers giving them a platform to maybe one day work here at prageru as well to to continue to do the good work that America is in such desperate need for so is this a new organization that you're joining or starting or like what does this mean who is the new Wii that you're joining so we'll be starting it from the ground up it's going to be an organization called influence America and it's going to be you know I don't have as As Nice of a kitchen as Marissa but it's going to start in the kitchen which I don't really spend much time in by the way guys if you if you know me I'm a big proponent of Uber Eats um but we're going to spend time in my kitchen in your kitchen yes in your kitchen um but it's going to be it's G to be great I'm so excited to have the opportunity to grow something from the ground up and again really rely on the lessons that I've watched not only from just you know interacting with you and and working with you but just also observing from you and I think it's going to be it's going to be critical 2024 is going to be a big year for many many reasons it's bigger than politics it's about the direction of this country and the type of America the next generation will inherit and we are uh we're tinto's uh down for fighting for the best there is to come gosh we've just done such amazing things together how old were you when you did the five minute video I think I was freshly 18 I had just started a college at the University of Alabama came out here and filmed the uh you know what happened on 911 video and it was uh the beginning of a of a great relationship never thought that I would ever live in Los Angeles California but when the opportunity arose and the opportunity came to work with you know such an incredible organization like Prager youu you know I couldn't pass it up so you did a five minute video uh you did a whole bunch of stuff but two pillar shows that you started here one was the wrapup you know any fun memories from that one yeah it was great to have the opportunity to really start that show from the ground up taking it from the concept and and launching it and you know finding an audience for it of people who are just you know looking to stay up the date uh without the entire fog and spin of the mainstream media and that was exactly what we did left verus is right was also an incredible project that we worked on it's a great five-part Series so you mentioned that you learned some things from me but I certainly have learned quite a bit from you uh I did try to teach you how to cook uh and you always taught me about you know genz sling which I'm going to continue calling you about uh but I thought it would be fun to just share uh with you and with our audience some of the fun things that we have done together uh some behind the scenes stuff so the team prepared a little surprise for us busing means like really good and great and like had a busting night last night yeah this is when you were giving me an education on how to speak uh J so have you been using these words in in your casual conversation yes I try to use the word gas as often as possible but people think that something's legitimately wrong with me it's it's so multi-purpose it's like ah that food is gas you know that food gave me gas funny story here so the other week me and Marissa we were at a little bit of a speaking engagement and I used a word you know us Jin's ears we have our words and I use the word gas and you you didn't know what that word meant well you know as a mom when you say the word gas I'm like CJ are you okay are you passing gas you know are you colic what's going on but it doesn't fit if you're in your 40s and you use 20-year-old language something is wrong with you I think you pull it off though it just fits I think it flows really well yeah well thanks for everything you taught me well I also taught you how to cook cuz you don't eat vegetables which is really a problem so I I try to teach you here how to make salad in my kitchen which which you you at least remember if you've learned anything from me I know how to make a good Israeli salad we're going to make a Israeli Sal so how does that go okay let's do it so the most important thing is the chopper okay okay because do you want me to send you a chopper to the east coast oh my freri I'll send you the chopper put this in here see some muscles here pour the Cucumbers into the bowl perect there you go you can do you want to cut it in half I'm going to trust you with the knife guys never mind I'm not going to trust you with the knife just when you think you get a promotion watch this pour all the tomatoes in and then now to the olive oil you could try this at home yeah I I can make this at home have you made this on any of your dates no no usually we go to catch a l that's why you're not married you don't marry the girl you'll get married if you make the salad CJ this is cultural appropriation I'm not okay with this Shalom I love so fun this is before we went to Israel any sweet memories from Israel aside from the whole thing with Xavier and the dirt that was definitely the one of my favorite memories from that trip but I think going to that place especially with all that's going on in the world and seeing just the downright slander that so many people have sought to spread about the state of Israel and the people of Israel was particularly Illuminating to literally have the opportunity to walk where Jesus walked um as a history buff and as someone who is a person of Faith who is a Christian it was incredible and there not many places you can do that at and so that was definitely one of my favorite moments um here um at Prager U yeah well it's uh pretty incredible that we were in Israel around June July and then October 7th happened uh just a few months later I mean you've been so outspoken about what you saw in Israel just the timing was just it's mindboggling it's it's it was also scary too it was like to build so many relationships over there and to have people that you know had their entire lives turned upside down just on one day but I think that it's so incredible to see such a resilient country uh bounce back I think it's a testament um to the Persistence of the human Spirit yeah so many lessons for us oh Thanksgiving so good all right well this is I think this was your first Thanksgiving at my house yeah and it was the first time I you I had your mashed potatoes you were convinced to show me that mash potato could be good you do make some good mashed potatoes it almost did changed my mind about them well you know you really are part of my family so you know we had you over for Thanksgiving when you just moved out here and uh my kids know you my family knows you uh nobody ever leaves me so you're not leaving yeah you know one of the things that I'm a big fan of is some adversity I say that calluses actually build character uh makes you stronger we talked a lot about the special Beautiful Moments we've had together anything that you remember as something that was hard for you that you wrestled through around here I know that it's not easy to work for prer youu I'm not going to claim it's easy to work for me I have really high expectations it's certainly not the environment uh that you see on most college campuses any sweet memories or hard memories that have built your character from here you know I would say uh I'm I'm much of the same persuasion as you I think pressure builds diamonds and I think there's a reason why you look across college campuses across the country and you see a whole lot of coal but you come here and you see people who are doing the work that America is required to do and it's not an easy path it's not always going to be a road of comfort it's going to be a road that requires sacrifice it's going to be something that requires long hours and long days but the end will be worth it and I think the the Bible talks about that you know if you do the labor um you will reap the benefits of what you sow and I think that we are definitely planting great seeds here at prageru it's been fun this has been uh the opportunity of a lifetime an incredible experience and I wouldn't have passed up uh it for the world well it's not good it's mostly you know good luck and keep going and you're going to keep doing things with us cuz nobody ever leaves Prager you uh and with that said you know wishing you all the love in the world all the luck in the world and just keep doing the great things that you do really love you to pieces definitely well you can't get rid of me that easy