#CannabisJournalism — The final stretch
Yesterday was another great day in #CannabisJournalism.
During the first portion of class, we were fortunate enough to meet and chat with Lauren Gibbs, a social media aficionado and business owner, in addition to being one of the marketing directors for Willie Nelson’s cannabis line, Willie’s Reserve.
Over the past few years, Gibbs has definitely made a name for herself in the cannabis world, being recognized by publications like Newsweek for her work as a leading lady in the emerging world of marijuana, along with being a true advocate for a the cannabis industry on social media.
Gibbs shared that the cannabis industry has more women in power than any other sector in the United States economy, which is something I took note of, especially being a woman myself. For me, it was really powerful to hear from another lady in this industry and it was cool to see how many directions one can really go in when it comes to cannabis.
You look at Julie Berliner at Sweet Grass Kitchen, Gibbs with Willie’s Reserve or Kendal Norris with Mason Jar Events and its evident that the career and creative possibilities are truly endless in the cannabis world — which is pretty damn cool, especially if you’re a woman in business.
From chatting about “Mary Janes Film: The Women of Weed” (a new documentary that features Gibbs and will hopefully hit the big screen in the spring of 2017), to talking about what it’s like to attempt to #endthesocialcannaban on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram and then even talking about what it’s like to watch the Willie Nelson smoke weed, I took away a lot from our interaction with Gibbs.
After Gibbs’ presentation, we were able to discuss more of the legalities of the cannabis industry with policy consultant Emmett Reistroffer.
Reistroffer was a wealth of knowledge when it came to the ins and outs of things like “Yes on 300” and even the logistics of DUI penalties for both dispensaries and consumers.
Our conversations with Reistroffer were definitely a little heavy, especially if you don’t know much about law and policy. But, it was still very interesting to hear about yet another facet of this booming industry.
Before our meeting came to a close, I asked Reistroffer what he believed was the biggest threat to the cannabis industry. Being a policy guy, he replied with the “federal tax code”, but I do have to say I agree with him; cannabis and the business of this industry will continue to be under fire until something changes on the federal level to make this substance and it’s business model both legal and sustainable throughout our country.
Overall, I feel great about this class and my final project; we have definitely learned a lot and at times its been hard to process, but I can now say that I’m an educated citizen when it comes to the cannabis conversation.
