Carlos Watson of OZY Media on the Nightmare Success Podcast with Brent Cassity

“Carlos Watson: The Visionary Entrepreneur Railroaded by Injustice”

11 min readNov 28, 2024

Episode on YouTube Above

Carlos Watson of OZY Media on the Nightmare Success Podcast with Brent Cassity

“Carlos Watson: The Visionary Entrepreneur Railroaded by Injustice”

Carlos Watson of OZY Media was recently interviewed by Brent Cassity days before Carlos’s upcoming sentencing in the U.S District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Brent and Carlos are members of our White Collar Support Group that meets on Zoom on Monday evenings.

Nightmare Success show notes: “Carlos Watson: The Visionary Entrepreneur Railroaded by Injustice. On this episode of Nightmare Success with Brent Cassity, we explore the shocking and deeply troubling story of Carlos Watson — a pioneering Silicon Valley entrepreneur who built OZY Media from the ground up, transforming it into a near-billion-dollar powerhouse.

But in 2019, everything changed. When Watson refused to sell OZY to East Coast competitor Ben Smith (formerly of BuzzFeed) — not once, but five times — the trouble began. By 2021, as Watson prepared for a pre-IPO round, he was smeared in the press, and over the last two years, he faced a stunning indictment and conviction in Brooklyn — despite having no ties to the borough. Disturbingly, the judge in his case, Eric Komitee, had millions of dollars invested in entities tied to Watson’s adversaries but never disclosed these conflicts.

Award-winning filmmakers Candice Conley and Brenae Perkins have captured this unsettling saga in “The Troubling Case of Carlos Watson: Whose Son Is Next?” (link below). Duke Professor David Robinson has also analyzed the case in “Conflict, Bias, and the Railroading of Carlos Watson.”

Join us as Carlos Watson shares his incredible journey, the fight against a deeply conflicted judicial process, and what lies ahead in his battle for truth. This is a story of resilience, injustice, and the ongoing struggle for fairness that you won’t want to miss…”

Spotify link:https://open.spotify.com/episode/61P8rLDuqkVu9ir9LbwqOM?si=2c14aa04cd5149f8

White Collar Support Group™, The World’s First Support Group Devoted to Those Navigating the White Collar Criminal Justice System

Greenwich CT & Nationwide

Start Here™

It’s the isolation that destroys us. The solution is in community.

Visit our Website

White Collar Support Group™ 441st Meeting Online on Zoom, Start Here™

Mon. Dec. 2, 2024, 7 pm ET, 6 pm CT, 5 pm MT, 4 pm PT

We meet every Monday. Featured in the New Yorker.

We are a community of individuals, families and groups with white collar justice issues who have a desire to take responsibility for our actions and the wreckage we caused, make amends, and move forward in new way of life centered on hope, care, compassion, tolerance and empathy. Our experience shows us that many of us are suffering in silence with shame, remorse, and deep regret. Many of us have been stigmatized by our own families, friends and communities, and the business community. Our goal is to learn and evolve into a new spiritual way of life and to reach out in service to others. This is an important thing we are doing!

Over 1200 Fellow Travelers have participated in our support group meetings from Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming — and Canada, South America, Central America, Israel, Mexico, Europe, Scandinavia, and the Caribbean. All have agreed this has been a valuable, important experience in which everyone feels less alone, and gratified in the opportunity to talk about things in a safe space only we could understand.

WCSG members have free access to our private on-line community which features peer and mentoring support, our white collar job and career board, news and events relevant to our community, advocacy initiatives and partnerships with other nonprofits, and a wide array of other resources. We sponsor a monthly newsletter, a Tuesday Night Speaker Series (open to family and friends), social media channels, and our website hosts our widely-read blog with over ten years of important content.

All freely given on a volunteer basis by group members at no cost!

Thank you for referring other justice-impacted people and families. We send out welcome packets to every new member: info@prisonist.org.

Email for Tru-lincs/Corrlinks: info@prisonist.org.

For press/media inquiries: press@grantlaw.com.

IMPORTANT!: If you are currently on supervised release, probation or parole, it is important that you first discuss this with your P.O. To assist in this regard, information about our ministry is available on prisonist.org.

Please feel free to contact any team member if you are in need of support, or with any questions you might have regarding this group, our weekly meetings, or anything else whatsoever.

Blessings, לשלום

Jeff

For details, invitation or to make referrals…

Please Consider Us for Your

Holiday & Year-End Giving!

We have no dues or fees but we do have expenses!

Thank you for your tax deductible support!

As the World’s First White Collar Support Group™, we strive to be a beacon of compassion, empathy, hope and support for individuals and families impacted by the white collar criminal justice system. Guided by our core values, our members learn to navigate the criminal justice system and its lifelong consequences. We empower our Fellow Travelers to come Out of Isolation and Into Community, to make better decisions, to take responsibility for their actions, to make amends, and to transform to a more spiritual way of life.

Progressive Prison Ministries has important and impactful initiatives planned for 2025. We rely on the generosity of our members, families and friends to help us continue our mission, expand our reach, and touch the lives of more individuals navigating the white collar criminal justice system. Your generosity and support makes all we do possible. As a 501(c)(3), your donations are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law. Thnak you for your support!

Please send your check payable to “Progressive Prison Ministries, Inc.’ to 516 S. Dixie Hwy., Box 222, West Palm Beach, FL 33401, or make your online donation here:

YouTube Video #5 “Online Reputation Management” Now Available!

White Collar Conference 2024, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024

The First-Ever Conference by and for White Collar Justice-Impacted People

For those of you who missed our White Collar Conference 2024 on Sat., Oct. 19th, the videos are now up on on our YouTube channel. It was the first-ever conference by and for people prosecuted for white collar crimes and their families, friends, colleagues, clients and anyone in need. I just watched the whole conference and it absolutely blew me away! Again!

The theme of the conference was “Starting Over: Out of Isolation and Into Community”. It is divided into four videos (the opening keynote/fireside chat and then three incredible panels) plus a mini-video on Reputation Management.

Above is the link to Video #5, “Online Reputation Management”.The video was created by Fellow Traveler Drew Chapin of The Discoverability Company. “ It offers specific solutions and take-ways on how to reinvent yourself online and remove difficult and erroneous search results that impede your career and relationship progress.

I hope you will join in and watch the entire White Collar Conference 2024 for all of the heartfelt stories, thoughtful advice, and life-changing takeaways. And please leave your thoughts and comments, they are most welcome and appreciated.

Blessings, לשלום , Jeff

The Discoverability Company: “Online discoverability isn’t just a nice-to-have — it’s essential for survival. With that in mind, we’re thrilled to announce the launch of The Discoverability Company, a firm dedicated to ensuring that you’re front and center everywhere your audience lives, works, and plays online. Why This? Why Us? Why Now?”

Episode on YouTube Above

Jeff Grant

on the Locked In Podcast

with Ian Bick

“Lawyer Reveals Why He Went

to Federal Prison, Life Inside

& How He Got His Law License Back”

Jeff Grant is a member of our White Collar Support Group™

that meets on Zoom on Monday evenings.

A big thank you to Ian Bick for having me on his Locked In true crime podcast. My wife Lynn watched it and told me that this was probably the most authentic, interesting — and even funny — I’ve ever been as a podcast guest. And she’s seen a lot of them. I agree. I’m sure it was because Ian made me super comfortable. The result was specific details about my story I’ve never before shared, and a fountain of useful information that should be extremely helpful for people prosecuted for white collar crimes and their families. This one is a must-watch! Please let me know what you think. — Jeff

From the Locked In podcast show notes: “Jeff Grant, a former lawyer (and lawyer again) who served time in federal prison, shares his unique journey from a successful legal career to incarceration and back. In this episode, Jeff opens up about the circumstances that led to his conviction, what life was like inside federal prison, and the challenges he faced while fighting to restore his law license. Jeff’s story sheds light on the realities of the legal system, the impact of incarceration, and the power of second chances.” To reach Jeff Grant: GrantLaw.com

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/37wFPfVIf0isXHHxc5RNEK?si=0ea08a6fbd504768&nd=1&dlsi=ba149d4b6a444f12

White Collar Week News & Events

1. White Collar Support Group in The New Yorker, “Life After White Collar Crime”, by Evan Osnos: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/08/30/life-after-white-collar-crime

2. WCSG Slack Chat Group: If you are directly justice-impacted, you are invited to join our Slack chat group for 24/7 support. To request link to join: info@prisonist.org.

3. Career Information Slack Channel: We are dedicated to helping our members to find career opportunities and acquire soft-skills and other training to be successful. All new job listings are posted in real time in the Career Information channel of our WCSG Slack Chat Group. We encourage all members to post on Slack any information you might discover.

4. Early Release/ First Step Act Slack Channel: We have a WCSG Slack Chat Group channel dedicated to sharing early release information.

5.Skool Group: Our friends at the Justice Impacted Support Forum have an online group in which they share vital information for our community. For info and to join: https://www.skool.com/justice-impacted-support-forum-6039/about

6. Fellow Travelers in Prison: If you would like to send letters and/or books from a major bookseller (e.g. Amazon, Barnes & Noble) to Fellow Travelers currently in prison and need contact information, please let us know at info@prisonist.org.

7. Spiritual Urgent Care 1/2 Hour Mini Meeting, Online on Zoom, Thursdays, 9:30 am ET, 6:30 am PT: Please join us for a 1/2 hour midweek check-n. Open to friends and family members too!: https://zoom.us/j/397962564

8. YouTube Video: Fellow Traveler Jeff Grant on the Rich Roll Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anln-8bBm7M

9. YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series — Fellow Traveler Sabrena Morgan, Criminal Justice Advocate, Blogger, Tik Tok Influencer: https://youtu.be/UHMCHfL1mG0

10.YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series — Molly Parmer, Esq., Criminal Defense Attorney & CourtTV Commentator: https://youtu.be/eBwtQBJxHjM

11. YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series — Fellow Traveler Glenn E. Martin, Founder of JustLeadershipUSA, GEMtrainers and GEMrealestate: https://youtu.be/a5WR4bTcv9s

12.YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series — Doug Berman, Esq., Sentencing Law & Policy Expert: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPnQ1dya8dQ

13. YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series -Tarra Simmons, Lawyer, Civil Rights Advocate, Washinton State Legislator, Formerly Incarcerated Person: https://youtu.be/82FgCNZb9wI

14. YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series — Elizabeth Kelley, Esq., Criminal Defense Attorney for People with Mental Health Disabilities: https://youtu.be/s6FL5CjyEkI?si=VNnn7psaxguO9tYI

15.YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series — Michele Weinstat Miller, Esq., General Counsel of The Fortune Society, Author, Formerly Incarcerated Person: https://youtu.be/S1SBgjtIn_s

16. YouTube Video: We Presented at the American Bar Association Criminal Justice Section Fall Conference, “Prosecuted Lawyers’ Reflections on Prosecutions & Reentry’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGFKuSAHBY8&t=330s

17.YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series: Jason Bowles, Esq., Criminal Defense Attorney for Hannah Gutierrez, Armorer for the “Rust” Movie Case: https://youtu.be/OlHiafJwpnM

18.YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series — Fellow Traveler Brent Cassity, Author, Speaker and Host of the “Nightmare Success” Podcast: https://youtu.be/I3dtA7dG4_k

19. YouTube Video: White Collar Week Tuesday Speaker Series — David B. Smith, Esq., Federal Restitution & Forfeiture Collection Expert: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfZweg0EL6s

20. Entrepreneur: I Went to Prison for SBA Loan Fraud — 7 Things to Know When Taking Government Money: by Fellow Traveler Jeff Grant: https://www.grantlaw.com/hurricane-ian-fraud-alert-entrepreneur-article-redux-i-went-to-prison-for-sba-loan-fraud-7-things-to-know-when-taking-covid-19-relief-money-by-jeff-grant-j-d-m-div/

21. Entrepreneur: 9 Things to Know when Hiring a White Collar Criminal Defense Attorney, by Fellow Traveler Jeff Grant: https://www.grantlaw.com/entrepreneur-9-things-to-know-when-hiring-a-white-collar-criminal-defense-lawyer-by-jeff-grant-esq/

22. Donations: Thank you for your generosity in supporting Progressive Prison Ministries, Inc. and our White Collar Support Group™. We suggest a minimum donation of $5 per meeting. Please make your check payable to “Progressive Prison Ministries, Inc.,” a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and send to our mailing address: 516 S. Dixie Hwy., Box 222, West Palm Beach, Florida 33401. Or, please make your online donation here: https://www.paypal.com/donate?campaign_id=LP57G6978Q7SS. All donations are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law.