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Kit In Print: Find “Water Wars” In Hemp Magazine Issue 3
Kit O'Connell's article "Water Wars" appears in issue 3 of Hemp Magazin. This magazine is focused on small farmers and their unique struggles to grow legal hemp. (Kit O'Connell)
May 8, 2018
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Kit In Print: Find “Water Wars” In Hemp Magazine Issue 3

Posted in Hemp Magazine, and Journalism

For the first time, you can my journalism in a print magazine!

Last year, I interviewed a number of Western hemp advocates who were concerned about the issue of water rights. The U.S. government controls much of the water in the American West, and they’ve threatened to withhold it from legal hemp farmers. I expanded on that story in an article called “Water Wars” for the latest issue of Hemp Magazine. For this article, I interviewed Kim Phillips, a Montana farmer whose hemp crop languished last year because her government water permit was denied. Phillips is struggling with the government again this year, and it’s unclear if she’ll get her water in time for the 2018 season.

Look for the article online soon — but in the meantime you can probably find it in the magazine at a bookstore or newsstand near you.

Read moreKit In Print: Find “Water Wars” In Hemp Magazine Issue 3
scott crow On The Media In An Age Of Antifascist Conflict
A journalist films on a video camera while a row of riot cops advances on and sprays pepper spray at a crowd of protesters. (Pixabay / Stocksnap, public domain)
January 1, 2018
Kit
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scott crow On The Media In An Age Of Antifascist Conflict

Posted in Creative Commons, and Journalism

I sat down with anarchist organizer and author scott crow last month at my house in Austin when he delivered some copies of his book, “Emergency Hearts, Molotov Dreams: a scott crow reader” to use in my Gonzo Giveaway.

While our paths cross frequently in the Austin activist community, I don’t get a chance to formally interview him often. “Emergency Hearts” features another, a three-part interview I originally published when I edited for Firedoglake (now known as Shadowproof).

2017 was a historic year in so many ways, many of them disturbing ones, and I wanted his perspective on what often seems like the collapse of democracy as we’ve known it.

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You’re Never ‘Just’ A Journalist: Reporting From The Left & The Far Right (Gonzo Notes)
A photographer focuses his camera on a subject. (Unsplash / Dương Trần Quốc. free image)
June 20, 2017
Kit
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You’re Never ‘Just’ A Journalist: Reporting From The Left & The Far Right (Gonzo Notes)

Posted in Creative Commons, Gonzo Notes, and Journalism

It’s a gift to be a journalist in this moment.

Or at least that’s what we tell ourselves. It’s the only way to get through.

Freelancers (like I am right now) spend every month counting our pennies, making sure we’ll make rent and have a little left over for food and coffee and the other vices of our profession. For those lucky few with a steady job, they’re wondering how long until downsizing and budget cuts will put them out on the street.

In addition to journalism’s grim financial picture, we’re finding ourselves targeted by the government and by far-right fascists for violence and repression in a way we haven’t faced in decades.

Read moreYou’re Never ‘Just’ A Journalist: Reporting From The Left & The Far Right (Gonzo Notes)
What Is Gonzo Journalism? Interview By ProMosaik’s Dr. Milena Rampoldi
A portrait of Kit O'Connell, wearing a blue crushed velvet coat and holding an amber-handled cane, as he gazes out at the waves on Pensacola Beach, Florida on January 25, 2015. (Jane Michael Stallings)
December 10, 2016
Kit
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What Is Gonzo Journalism? Interview By ProMosaik’s Dr. Milena Rampoldi

Posted in Journalism

Milena Rampoldi, ProMosaik: What is gonzo journalism and what does it mean to you personally?

Kit O’Connell: Hunter S. Thompson, author of “Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas,” and many other books, coined the term “gonzo journalism,” but the practice goes back much further. A great example of an early gonzo journalist is Nelly Bly, who had herself committed to a mental hospital in 1887 to expose the horrific treatment of patients. Ken Kesey is another famous practitioner, though what he practiced was a variation called “New Journalism.”

Gonzo journalism is journalism which rejects the idea of neutrality and objectivity. I consider myself an activist first and a journalist second, even though it’s the journalism that pays my bills and lets me continue my activism. For me, journalism is a way to reveal important truths and try to share the knowledge that we need to build a better, more humane world.

Read moreWhat Is Gonzo Journalism? Interview By ProMosaik’s Dr. Milena Rampoldi
Laid Off, But Still Gonzo: A New Way To Support Kit’s Writing
Activists march with a puppet of slain Honduran climate justice activist Berta Caceres. Philadelphia, July 25, 2016. (Kit O'Connell)
November 28, 2016
Kit
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Laid Off, But Still Gonzo: A New Way To Support Kit’s Writing

Posted in Journalism, Life, and MintPress News

A little over a week ago, I learned that MintPress News is “restructuring,” and eliminating most of their original writing, including my position as staff writer. That means the end of the full time job I’ve held since October 2014.

I’ve had a lot of adventures with MintPress, from getting banned from Nieman Marcus while covering the American Legislative Exchange Council to traveling to Philadelphia for the protests at the Democratic National Convention. It’s been a shock to realize that my work there will come to an end in January, and just days before the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump.

2016 has been a bizarre year, full of unexpected losses, unbelievable stories and a few hard-won victories. Around the country, hundreds of organizations and thousands of activists and organizers are planning not just for January 20, but the next 4 years. I don’t want to lose my voice just as things are really popping off in America.

With your help, I can still be there on the front lines publishing stories of resistance. Today, I’m launching a Patreon account as a way of supporting my ongoing journalism. I’m asking my readers and fans to donate on a monthly basis as a way of keeping my writing alive.

Read moreLaid Off, But Still Gonzo: A New Way To Support Kit’s Writing
‘Fuck It, I Quit’: News Anchor-Turned-Cannabis Advocate Faces 54 Years In Prison
Charlo Greene at a cannabis convention. (Facebook / Charlo Greene)
October 13, 2016
Kit
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‘Fuck It, I Quit’: News Anchor-Turned-Cannabis Advocate Faces 54 Years In Prison

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Charlo Greene, the local news anchor from Alaska who became a viral sensation for quitting her job while voicing her support for cannabis legalization during a live broadcast, now faces decades in prison on a growing list of drug-related charges.

“Fuck it, I quit,” Greene famously declared live on KTVA on Sept. 22, 2014 at the end of a report on the Alaska Cannabis Club. In addition to revealing that she was actually the owner of the club, she said she was leaving the station to work on the business and push for cannabis law reform full-time.

In the November 2014 election, Alaska became the third state to legalize recreational cannabis, but Greene stands accused of illegally selling the drug in the time between when the vote to legalize took place and the state fully implemented the law. Alaskan police conducted multiple raids and undercover investigations of the club.

Read more‘Fuck It, I Quit’: News Anchor-Turned-Cannabis Advocate Faces 54 Years In Prison