SF Chronicle’s New Cannabis Editor Helps Readers Achieve a Green State of Mind

New Editor to Expand Chronicle’s Focus on Rapidly Growing Industry

SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Leading the charge on coverage of the burgeoning cannabis industry, the The
San Francisco Chronicle has hired award-winning journalist,
best-selling author and industry expert, David Downs as its first
cannabis editor.

The Chronicle expanded its cannabis coverage with a 24-page special
section, which appeared on March 19; however, Green State will
officially launch in May. It will highlight cannabis culture throughout
the Bay Area, California, the seven other legalization states, and
beyond. Green State will be the go-to source for anything and everything
cannabis related including daily cannabis news, product reviews,
medical, legal, lifestyle and cultivation information, and more.

“David is one of the country’s best-sourced and most knowledgeable
journalists covering cannabis, and he will help ensure that the
Chronicle remains a top source for news and information about this
emerging recreational market,” said Chronicle Editor-in-Chief Audrey
Cooper. “Adding David’s expertise to our newsroom provides all readers
with the best reporting on Northern California lifestyle topics.”

Downs is the author of “The Medical Marijuana Guidebook” (2016,
Whitman), co-author of “Marijuana Harvest” (2017, Quick American), and
contributing author to the best-selling “Beyond Buds” (2014, Quick
American). As a freelance journalist, his work has appeared in
Scientific American, WIRED, The New York Times, and the San Francisco
Chronicle. For the past three years, Downs edited the marijuana blog
Smell the Truth on SFGATE.com, and wrote the syndicated column
Legalization Nation for the East Bay Express. He’s also been the senior
editor of Cannabis Now Magazine, and co-founded The Hash podcast. Downs
graduated from University of California Santa Barbara, and was a Fellow
at Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism in the Academy of
Alternative Journalism. He is based in San Francisco.

At the Chronicle, Downs’ reporting includes numerous facets and
influences of cannabis in California. Beyond the impact of the
legalization of cannabis on the industry, its users, and government,
Downs also reports on the nuances of marijuana trends and major cannabis
events in the Bay Area as well as senior access to medical marijuana,
common medical cannabis terms, and more.

“Green State offers a fresh look at the topic and the culture around
it,” said Chronicle Cannabis Editor David Downs. “We’re excited that we
can serve readers everywhere who want to know how cannabis might affect
their lives.“

For interviews with Downs or to secure him for a speaking engagement,
email him at ddowns@sfchronicle.com.
Downs is also on Twitter @davidrdowns.

With April 20, also known as 4/20 – cannabis enthusiasts’ national
holiday – only days away, stay tuned for announcements of new cannabis
media products from the San Francisco Chronicle.

About The San Francisco Chronicle

The San Francisco Chronicle (www.sfchronicle.com)
is the largest newspaper in Northern California and the second largest
on the West Coast. Acquired by Hearst Corporation in 2000, The San
Francisco Chronicle was founded in 1865 by Charles and Michael de Young
and has been awarded six Pulitzer Prizes for journalistic excellence.
With name-brand voices and a keen editorial eye, the Chronicle is an
authority that still surprises. Follow us on Twitter @SFChronicle.

About Hearst Corporation

Hearst Corporation (www.hearst.com)
is one of the nation’s largest diversified media and information
companies. Its major interests include ownership of 15 daily and 36
weekly newspapers, including the Houston Chronicle, San Antonio
Express-News and Albany Times Union; hundreds of magazines around the
world, including Good Housekeeping, Cosmopolitan, ELLE and O, The Oprah
Magazine; 29 television stations, which reach a combined 18 percent of
U.S. viewers; ownership in leading cable networks, including Lifetime,
A&E, HISTORY and ESPN; significant holdings in automotive, electronic
and medical/pharmaceutical business information companies; a 50 percent
stake in global ratings agency Fitch Group; internet and marketing
services businesses; television production; newspaper features
distribution; and real estate. Follow us on Twitter @HearstCorp.

Contacts

The San Francisco Chronicle
Sarah Morse Cooney, 415-777-7852
smorse@sfchronicle.com