Mark Mckinnon is a political advisor, reform advocate, media columnist, and television producer. He was the chief media advisor to five successful presidential primary and general election campaigns and is cofounder of No Labels, an organization dedicated to bipartisanship, civil dialogue, and political problem solving.
McKinnon has worked for many causes, companies, and candidates, including former President George W. Bush, Senator John McCain, late former Governor Ann Richards, and Bono. He serves on the boards of numerous organizations dedicated to reforming the influence of money in politics. In 2014, McKinnon launched Mayday PAC to force ethics reform in the United States Congress, along with Harvard Law Professor Larry Lessig and tech moguls Steve Wozniak, Peter Thiel, and Reid Hoffman. McKinnon and Julian Castro, HUD Secretary, served as co-chairs of Southerners for the Freedom to Marry before the historic Supreme Court ruling affirmed the right of all Americans to wed.
For 20 years, McKinnon worked at Public Strategies, Inc., where he was an owner and served as vice chair. In 2010, Public Strategies merged with Hill+Knowlton Strategies, where McKinnon served as global vice chair. He remains an advisor to the firm. An award-winning media producer and communications strategist, McKinnon has been awarded more than 30 Pollie and Telly Awards, honoring the nation's best political and public affairs advertising.
President Bush appointed McKinnon to serve as a governor of the Broadcasting Board of Governors. He serves on the board of the Austin Film Society and he lectures frequently at universities, including the JFK School of Government at Harvard University and the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.
McKinnon has been a regular columnist for THE DAILY BEAST and THE DAILY TELEGRAPH (U.K.) and a consultant to the television series THE NEWSROOM and HOUSE OF CARDS.
Known For
Credits
Cast Credits
Katy Tur Reports (2023)
Guest starring as Mark McKinnon
- Episode 2024-02-26: Episode 39 (Feb 26, 2024)
The 11th Hour with Stephanie Ruhle (2022)
Guest starring as Mark McKinnon
(9 episodes)
- Episode 2024-05-01: Episode 82 (May 1, 2024)
- Episode 2024-04-03: Episode 62 (Apr 3, 2024)
- Episode 2024-03-18: Episode 50 (Mar 18, 2024)
- Episode 2024-03-04: Episode 42 (Mar 4, 2024)
- Episode 2024-02-19: Episode 32 (Feb 19, 2024)
- Episode 2024-02-05: Episode 22 (Feb 5, 2024)
- Episode 2024-01-25: Episode 15 (Jan 25, 2024)
- Episode 2024-01-11: Episode 7 (Jan 11, 2024)
- Episode 2023-12-14: Episode 242 (Dec 14, 2023)
Deadline: White House (2017)
Guest starring as Mark McKinnon
- Episode 2023-11-14: Episode 222 (Nov 14, 2023)
The Circus (2016)
Starring as Host
(44 episodes)
- Episode 8x12: Life During Wartime (Nov 12, 2023)
- Episode 8x11: The A.I. Election (Nov 5, 2023)
- Episode 8x10: This Thing of His (Oct 29, 2023)
- Episode 8x09: The Crucible (Oct 22, 2023)
- Episode 8x08: Piercing the Bubble (Oct 15, 2023)
- Episode 8x07: Exhaustion, Depression and Dread...Oh Vey (Oct 8, 2023)
- Episode 8x06: Nothing But the Truth (Apr 2, 2023)
- Episode 8x05: Wheels of Justice (Mar 26, 2023)
- Episode 8x04: Fake News? (Mar 19, 2023)
- Episode 8x03: Kevin's House (Mar 12, 2023)
- Episode 8x02: Off to the Races (Mar 5, 2023)
- Episode 8x01: The Year of Living Dangerously (Feb 26, 2023)
- Episode 7x16: Rip Tides (Nov 13, 2022)
- Episode 7x15: Here Comes the Flood (Nov 6, 2022)
- Episode 7x14: The Main Event (Oct 30, 2022)
- Episode 7x13: This Land is Greene-Land (Oct 23, 2022)
- Episode 7x12: Buckeyes and Bulldogs (Oct 16, 2022)
- Episode 7x11: State of Denial (Oct 9, 2022)
- Episode 7x10: Rule of Law (Oct 2, 2022)
- Episode 7x09: Not in Kansas Anymore (Sep 25, 2022)
- Episode 7x08: Tip of the Spear (Apr 24, 2022)
- Episode 7x07: Keystone Chaos (Apr 17, 2022)
- Episode 7x06: There Will Be Blood (Apr 10, 2022)
- Episode 7x05: The Home Front (Apr 3, 2022)
- Episode 7x03: The Information War (Mar 20, 2022)
- Episode 7x02: The Escalation Ladder (Mar 13, 2022)
- Episode 7x01: On the Brink (Mar 6, 2022)
- Episode 3x12: Senatorial Combat (Oct 21, 2018)
- Episode 3x11: California Dreaming (Oct 14, 2018)
- Episode 3x01: The Looking Glass War (Apr 15, 2018)
- Episode 1x14: Game On (Jul 10, 2016)
- Episode 1x13: Circus Recap (Apr 10, 2016)
- Episode 1x12: On Wisconsin (Apr 3, 2016)
- Episode 1x11: Home and Abroad (Mar 27, 2016)
- Episode 1x10: High Hopes (Mar 20, 2016)
- Episode 1x09: Dead or Alive (Mar 13, 2016)
- Episode 1x08: The Reckoning (Mar 6, 2016)
- Episode 1x07: The Confidence Game (Feb 28, 2016)
- Episode 1x06: Fear and Loathing (Feb 21, 2016)
- Episode 1x05: The Winnowing (Feb 14, 2016)
- Episode 1x04: The Big Mo (Feb 7, 2016)
- Episode 1x03: Tension City (Jan 31, 2016)
- Episode 1x02: Prisoner's Dilemma (Jan 24, 2016)
- Episode 1x01: The Outsiders (Jan 17, 2016)
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (2015)
Guest starring as Mark McKinnon
(5 episodes)
- Episode 2022-02-23: John Heilemann, Mark McKinnon, Jennifer Palmieri, Russell Howard (Feb 23, 2022)
- Episode 2021-01-15: John Heilemann, Mark McKinnon, Alex Wagner, The War On Drugs (Jan 15, 2021)
- Episode 2020 Special: Stephen Colbert's Election Night 2020: Democracy's Last Stand: Building Back America Great Again Better 2020 (Nov 3, 2020)
- Episode 2020-08-13: Mark McKinnon, Alex Wagner, Baby Rose (Aug 13, 2020)
- Episode 2019-01-30: John Heilemann, Mark McKinnon, Alex Wagner, Max Greenfield (Jan 30, 2019)
CNN Tonight (2014)
Guest starring as Mark McKinnon
(4 episodes)
- Episode 2020-11-10: Episode 190 (Nov 10, 2020)
- Episode 2020-10-09: Episode 173 (Oct 9, 2020)
- Episode 2020-09-11: Episode 155 (Sep 11, 2020)
- Episode 2020-08-14: Episode 144 (Aug 14, 2020)
Morning Joe (2006)
Guest starring as Mark McKinnon
(3 episodes)
- Episode 2023-11-14: Episode 227 (Nov 14, 2023)
- Episode 2023-10-31: Episode 217 (Oct 31, 2023)
- Episode 2023-10-16: Episode 206 (Oct 16, 2023)