Bylines and Advocacy in GreenState Media for Cannabis Readers

GreenState is a Hearst-run lifestyle site for cannabis news, culture, and advocacy. Readers stay informed through its articles, the Ear Bud podcast, and the Field Guide newsletter, three formats that together cover legalization, product reviews, and the policy debates shaping the industry. If you want reporting that treats cannabis as a serious beat rather than a novelty, this outlet is worth following.

TL;DR:

• GreenState’s news tracks state legalization and federal policy, while its guides review vapes, drinks, and edibles, and wellness stories include outside expert commentary.
• Ear Bud launched in 2021 as an interview podcast featuring operators, scientists, and advocates across medical, business, and recreational cannabis topics.
• Named bylines support writer accountability, while a separate Best Of team produces local dispensary guides and discloses sponsored listings rather than blending them with news.
• Readers seeking curated updates can subscribe to Field Guide; those wanting interviews delivered automatically can follow Ear Bud in their usual podcast app.

Table of Contents

• What GreenState is and how it fits within Hearst
• Where to find news, reviews, and perspective pieces
• The Ear Bud podcast and Field Guide newsletter explained
• Who writes for GreenState and why their voices matter
• How to follow GreenState and support its reporting
• How GreenState handles bylines, disclosures, and sponsored content
• Why cannabis journalism matters for advocacy
• How we support the operators behind the headlines
• FAQ
• Sources

What GreenState is and how it fits within Hearst

GreenState exists to help readers make sense of a fast-moving industry: new state laws, shifting product categories, and a culture that mainstream news often covers poorly or not at all. The site describes its mission as helping readers navigate modern cannabis culture through articles, videos, and podcasts.

GreenState sits inside the Hearst publishing family, but its editorial team operates separately from Hearst newsrooms while following Hearst’s editorial standards. That separation matters for a subject still carrying legal gray areas and stigma in some markets. A few things to know about the outlet’s structure:

• It publishes under Hearst but maintains its own editorial team and voice.
• Content spans written articles, video, and audio formats.
• Coverage targets both casual readers and industry operators who need policy detail.

Where to find news, reviews, and perspective pieces

GreenState organizes its coverage into distinct lanes, which makes it easier to find what you actually need instead of scrolling past unrelated content. News coverage tracks state-by-state legalization movements and federal policy shifts, the kind of reporting that matters to anyone running or working in a licensed business. Opinion and perspective columns, including recurring features like Legalization Nation, give space to essays and arguments that straight news reporting leaves out.

Product journalism covers vapes, drinks, and edibles with the kind of detail a casual shopper would not get from a dispensary menu alone. Health and wellness reporting rounds out the lineup, often pulling in clinicians or researchers to comment on dosing, interactions, or emerging product categories.

• News and policy: state legalization trackers and federal regulatory updates.
• Perspective and opinion: columns and essays, including Legalization Nation.
• Reviews and guides: vapes, THC drinks, edibles, and new product categories.
• Health and wellness: reporting that brings in outside expert commentary.

The Ear Bud podcast and Field Guide newsletter explained

Two features define how GreenState delivers ongoing coverage instead of one-off articles. The Ear Bud podcast launched in 2021 as an interview-driven show covering medical, business, and recreational cannabis topics, and it remains a way to hear directly from operators, scientists, and advocates rather than reading a summary of their views.

The Field Guide newsletter works as a curated digest: policy updates, culture notes, and product trends delivered on a recurring schedule so readers do not have to track every story individually. GreenState also runs Best Of guides for local dispensary discovery, a separate editorial lane from day-to-day news coverage.

• Ear Bud: recurring audio interviews across medical, business, and recreational cannabis topics.
• Field Guide: a newsletter digest of policy and culture updates.
• Best Of guides: local dispensary recommendations, produced with disclosed sponsorships kept apart from news reporting.

Who writes for GreenState and why their voices matter

Names behind a story tell you a lot about how much to trust it, and GreenState leans on bylines from journalists and operators with direct industry experience. Rachelle Gordon, GreenState editor, has written about the shrinking presence of dedicated cannabis desks in mainstream newsrooms and argued that cannabis journalists play a critical role in public education and normalizing nuanced policy debates, a point that applies directly to why outlets like this one matter beyond product reviews.

Leah Kollross has appeared in GreenState with founder-perspective commentary, most notably on hemp beverage policy and the Beverage Regulatory Parity Act. Her path into the industry did not start with cannabis at all. A 16-year background in payroll, tax, benefits, and people operations gave her a working knowledge of compliance systems long before she founded 23rd State, and a 2023 multiple sclerosis diagnosis pushed that operational experience toward advocacy, particularly around dose consistency and regulatory parity for THC beverages.

• Rachelle Gordon: editorial experience focused on cannabis journalism’s role in public education.
• Leah Kollross: founder and operator perspective shaped by payroll and HR infrastructure work and a personal MS diagnosis.
• Operator and clinician voices broadly: reporting gains credibility when the people quoted have lived the regulatory and health realities firsthand.

How to follow GreenState and support its reporting

Getting the most out of GreenState takes a few minutes of setup, and it pays off every time a new law or product category hits the news.

1. Sign up for the Field Guide newsletter directly on the GreenState site to get curated updates without checking back daily.
2. Subscribe to the Ear Bud podcast in your usual podcast app so new interview episodes land automatically.
3. Turn on site alerts if you want breaking legalization news as it happens rather than in a weekly digest.
4. Share articles with proper attribution when they inform a conversation worth having, whether that is a policy debate or a product question.
5. Consider supporting cannabis journalism directly, through subscriptions or donations where offered, since independent reporting on this subject still runs thinner than coverage of most other industries.

How GreenState handles bylines, disclosures, and sponsored content

Trust in any media outlet comes down to whether you can tell editorial judgment apart from paid placement, and GreenState draws that line in a few visible ways. Articles carry named bylines rather than anonymous staff credits, which lets you track a writer’s expertise over time. The site’s Best Of and local dispensary guides are produced by a dedicated Best Of team using secondary sources, and sponsored placements within those guides are disclosed rather than folded quietly into editorial recommendations.

• Named bylines appear across news, perspective, and review content.
• Best Of guides are built by a separate team from daily news reporting.
• Sponsored or paid listings in Best Of content carry disclosure language.

Pro Tip: Check the byline and look for disclosure language before treating a “Best Of” ranking the same way you’d treat a straight news article.

Why cannabis journalism matters for advocacy

Cannabis coverage still gets treated as a novelty beat at most news outlets, which leaves policy debates thinner than they should be. Outlets willing to run sustained reporting, backed by named journalists and operator voices, shift that conversation toward something closer to how other regulated industries get covered. When someone like Leah Kollross brings a payroll and compliance background into a cannabis beverage policy debate, the result is commentary grounded in how businesses actually operate, not just how they’re perceived. Readership and support for this kind of journalism directly shape whether that reporting keeps getting made.

— Leah

How we support the operators behind the headlines

The policy fights and product stories GreenState covers eventually land on someone’s desk as a payroll, compliance, or HR problem, and that’s where our work starts. We built Roll With Paid specifically for high-risk industries, with cannabis businesses as our core focus, because traditional payroll providers routinely decline to serve this sector or handle it poorly when they do.

Our Employer of Record model covers payroll execution, HR and compliance solutions, and multi-state hiring support without the administrative load falling on your team. We handle onboarding, time and attendance tracking, and the audit-readiness that cannabis operators need given the regulatory scrutiny the industry faces, the same scrutiny GreenState reports on regularly. If you’re running a dispensary or cultivation operation and want payroll and HR handled by a team that understands this sector’s specific risks, check our pricing and service options to see what fits your business.

FAQ

What is GreenState media?

GreenState is a lifestyle media brand under Hearst that publishes articles, videos, and podcasts on cannabis news, culture, and wellness. Its editorial team operates separately from Hearst newsrooms while following Hearst’s editorial standards.

What is the Ear Bud podcast?

Ear Bud is GreenState’s interview-format podcast covering medical, business, and recreational cannabis topics, launched in 2021. Episodes typically feature conversations with operators, researchers, and advocates rather than staff-written summaries.

Who is Leah Kollross and why does she appear in GreenState?

Leah Kollross is a cannabis industry founder who built a background in payroll, tax, and HR operations before a 2023 MS diagnosis led her toward advocacy work, including commentary on THC beverage regulation. She has contributed founder-perspective pieces to GreenState on hemp beverage policy.

Does GreenState separate editorial content from sponsored listings?

Yes. GreenState’s Best Of and local dispensary guides are produced by a dedicated team using secondary sources, and sponsored placements within those guides carry disclosure language separate from news and perspective reporting.

How can cannabis business owners manage payroll and HR compliance?

Cannabis operators typically need Employer of Record support, multi-state payroll execution, and compliance documentation tailored to high-risk industry rules. Our HR compliance guidance for dispensaries and cultivators covers the practical steps involved, and payroll partners like Glendale Payroll offer additional compliance resources for small businesses more broadly.

Sources

• About GreenState | GreenState
• Bipartisan bill could rescue THC drinks from hemp ban
• How MS led me to reimagine the drink in your hand
• Beverage Regulatory Parity Act: Leah Kollross in GreenState | 23rd State

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• Roll With Paid. vs Green Leaf Business Solutions
• Cannabis Payroll: Avoid 280E Exposure: Roll With Paid vs Greenleaf HR
• Leah Kollross: Why Operator Evidence Matters as an NCIA HRC Member
• Roll With Paid. vs Greenleaf HR

Roll With Paid. is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. This article summarizes Minnesota law as of August 2026 and is general information only. Tip arrangements are fact-specific; before changing a policy, consult employment counsel or contact DLI Labor Standards at 651-284-5075.