A Note About the Weather, and "That" Reporter

The weather widget on my sidebar says it's 43 somewhere in Anchorage. Perhaps so, but it's 32 here La Casa del Pablo. So there.

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Since the national media rarely care to devote the time to fully cover local stories, here's the local story on the foul-mouthed reporter you've probably already heard a snippet about:

ANCHORAGE - A reporter for Anchorage CBS-affiliate KTVA quit on live television Sunday night, using the f-word to punctuate an announcement that she will work to legalize marijuana as the owner of the Alaska Cannabis Club.

The reporter, known professionally as Charlo Greene, made the announcement during the station's 10 p.m. newscast at the end of a story titled "Voting for easier access." Greene told viewers that she is owner of the group, which describes itself as a liaison between people who hold medical marijuana cards and those who can supply the drug.

"Everything you heard is why I, the actual owner of the Alaska Cannabis Club, will be dedicating all of my energy toward fighting for freedom and fairness, which begins with legalizing marijuana here in Alaska," she said.

"And as for this job," Greene continued, "Well, not that I have a choice, but f--- it, I quit."

Greene soon explained the event with a post on the crowd-funding site Indiegogo.com. The reporter wrote that she left her job in order to "end a failed drug policy that has ruined the lives of far too many Americans." She asks visitors to the site to donate money for marketing and travel in support of legalization.

KTVA News Director Burt Rudman issued an apology on the station's Facebook page at about 11:20 p.m.

"We sincerely apologize for the inappropriate language used by a KTVA reporter during her live presentation on the air tonight. The employee has been terminated," he wrote.

Alaska voters will decide whether to decriminalize pot in November.

Alaska corporation records show the Alaska Cannabis Club was formed on April 20 of this year, owned by Charlene Egbe, Greene's real name. Greene reported stories about the Alaska marijuana debate after the creation of the Cannabis Club group, without disclosing her connection to the corporation.

The Alaska Dispatch News, which published a story in August that anonymously quoted a club founder who didn't want to reveal her name because she feared "potential repercussions from her employer," posted a clip of the video here. 

I'm sure she'd want me to publish her photo.