FreedomFest 2026

John Papola is a husband and father, Italian Catholic, a patriotic voluntarist and serial media entrepreneur committed to using storytelling for the advancement of civilization, human flourishing, and classical virtues. He is founder and CEO of Austin-based Emergent Order Foundation and best known for co-creating the Keynes vs. Hayek and Mises vs. Marx rap videos which have reached tens of millions of students and educators globally. He currently hosts Dad Saves America, a video and podcast series dedicated to exploring the biggest issues facing our next generation through the lens of heroic fatherhood.

Over the past decade, John’s collective mission-driven media enterprises have produced hundreds of hours of cinematic original content for over 100 million global viewers powered by over $50 million in total revenue.

As a film director and producer, John’s feature documentary At The Fork, produced in collaboration with Whole Foods Market and the HSUS, debuted to critical acclaim, an international premiere at the prestigious Berlin Film Festival and worldwide distribution by Samuel Goldwyn Films and Amazon Prime. His second film The Pursuit starring NY Times bestseller Arthur Brooks, about the search for happiness and global prosperity, debuted on Netflix. His newest film To My Father, starring Academy Award winner Troy Kotsur, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2023.

Papola began his career in New York City at major networks including MTV, Nickelodeon and Spike where, as one of the network’s creative directors, he launched numerous new shows with award-winning creative campaigns, including the True Dads and True Dads in Uniform initiatives.