A television news anchor for KTVA in Anchorage, Alaska unexpectedly quit during the station’s Sunday night broadcast on September 21.
The reporter, Charlo Greene, had just concluded a special report about the Alaska Cannabis Club, a local marijuana consulting resource. The club’s website explains that it “connects Medical Marijuana patients in need to Alaskan cardholders with green.” Following the story, Greene revealed that she had an ulterior motive for reporting this and other news stories about the Alaska Cannabis Club.
“Now everything you heard is why I, the actual owner of the Alaska Cannabis Club, will be dedicating all of my energy towards fighting for freedom and fairness, which begins with legalizing marijuana here in Alaska,” she revealed. Outing herself as the owner of a business she had reported on and sourced in other stories presented a clear conflict of interest. So, before she concluded her segment, Greene bluntly stated, “And as for this job, well, not that I have a choice, but f**k it, I quit.”
The station was quick to post apologies on Facebook and Twitter.
Viewers, we sincerely apologize for the inappropriate language used by a KTVA reporter on the air tonight. The employee has been terminated.
— KTVA 11 News (@ktva) September 22, 2014
In addition to dropping the F bomb on the air, and announcing that she is the owner of a marijuana club, Greene revealed that her name isn’t actually Charlo Greene. It’s Charlene Egbe.
Medical marijuana is currently legal in Alaska, but commercial possession is illegal. An initiative seeking to “Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Alaska” will appear on the November ballot in Alaska. Green (or Egbe) and her cannabis club are using crowdfunding platform Indiegogo to raise funds for their campaign to educate voters about the ballot initiative.
