Stephen Forester Hayes is an American journalist and author. In October 2019 Hayes co-founded the online opinion and news publication The Dispatch. Previously, he was a senior writer for National Journal and Editor-in-chief of The Weekly Standard. He was a staunch proponent of the Iraq War and an influential figure in promoting the debunked conspiracy that Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda had an operational relationship.
In 2019, Hayes along with Jonah Goldberg and Toby Stock, formed the conservative media company, The Dispatch. In 2021, Hayes was hired by MSNBC as a "contributor across all our platforms".
