Andrew Breitbart dies aged 43

Conservative media publisher and activist Andrew Breitbart has died at the age of 43. Breitbart's website bigjournalism.com announced Thursday he died of natural causes in Los Angeles in the early morning hours. His death was confirmed by Breitbart.com editor in chief Joel Pollak, who says he was at the hospital. Breitbart was an outspoken critic of the mainstream media. His efforts were behind controversial investigations that led to the resignations of former Rep. Anthony Weiner and former Department of Agriculture official Shirley Sherrod. He was lionized by his fans for his efforts at exposing government corruption and media bias. Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com