Pubdate: Thu, 13 Feb 2014
Source: USA Today (US)
Copyright: 2014 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc
Contact: http://mapinc.org/url/625HdBMl
Website: http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/index.htm
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/466
Author: Roger Yu

FOR HIGH TIMES MAGAZINE, A GAME CHANGER

Publication Front and Center As Pot Movement Grows

When staffers at the marijuana fan magazine High Times participated 
in an "Ask Me Anything " online forum at the website Reddit, they 
answered plenty of questions. But they danced around one that was the 
most frequently asked: Ever run into legal trouble?

Founded in 1974 by renegade journalist and pot trafficker Tom 
Forcade, New York-based High Times is a cult publication with a loyal 
following and a steady base of advertisers who have always tinkered 
with the boundaries of legality and legitimacy.

But with recreational marijuana now legalized in two states, the 
cannabis movement is picking up steam - both as a political issue and 
a commercial enterprise for those involved in growing and promoting the plant.

High Times is no exception. The monthly magazine - whose staffers 
frequent grow houses and "dispensaries" that are still illegal in 
most states - has always operated with one eye toward law 
enforcement. But it's becoming more comfortable with its place in 
conventional publishing as the legalization movement spurs reader 
interest and emboldened cannabis fans pack its events. An outdoor 
expo High Times held this past weekend near Los Angeles drew 13,000. 
Many in attendance were openly puffing pot.

Legalization of recreational marijuana in Colorado and Washington "is 
only going to make things better for High Times," says Dan Skye, pen 
name of the magazine's editorial director. Skye refused to give his 
real name and wouldn't explain, saying only that the decision was 
"personal." Several staffers use pseudonyms, perhaps fearful of legal 
jeopardy. "When a state legalizes, more people become aware of 
cannabis. People say 'What are you going to do when it's legalized?' 
But we're actually doing better."

The bulk of its revenue still comes from the magazine, owned by 
Trans-High Corporation. While the company has suffered along with the 
rest of the magazine industry as the print ad market shrinks, its 
page count has rebounded to about 150 in recent months, topping the 
levels seen before the 2008 financial crisis.

The magazine declined to provide circulation data and is not a member 
of any independent agency that collects subscription information. It 
has told advertisers that it has a circulation of 235,000, according 
to Samir Husni, director of the Magazine Innovation Center at the 
University of Mississippi.

The desktop traffic of unique visitors at HighTimes.com in December 
totaled 534,000 hits, up 254% from a year ago, according to ComScore.

Skye declined to disclose Trans-High's financial information. Its 
major shareholder, Michael Kennedy, who started working for the 
company at its inception as chief counsel, couldn't be reached for comment.

High Times is seeking to seize the cannabis momentum in areas beyond 
publishing. Cannabis Cup, the magazine's two-day trade show with a 
contest for the best marijuana strain, has expanded; it's in six 
cities a year. A Denver show, its largest event, drew 18,000 last 
year. The shows feature open booths and outdoor activities. Smoking 
is allowed in certain areas. The judges who select the best marijuana 
smoke in an undisclosed dislocation.

With marijuana-related startups often unable to secure funding, High 
Times also launched last month a private investment firm - run by 
Kennedy - to encourage more entrepreneurs in what it hopes is an 
emerging niche.

"High Times was the one publication to take marijuana seriously when 
nobody else did," says Dale Sky Jones, executive chancellor at 
Oaksterdam University, a school for marijuana growers.

Befitting its outlaw image that the magazine is trying hard to shed, 
High Times' colorful history doesn't disappoint.

Forcade, the magazine's founder, killed himself in 1978 after a 
series of run-ins with law enforcement officials. In 1976, his 
attempt to hide a 9-ton load of marijuana in his Winnebago from 
police went awry when he accidentally drove it into a Florida swamp, 
according to a 2012 article on The Daily Beast. The article relied on 
a retrospective published on the magazine's 20th anniversary by 
former High Times editor Albert Goldman

In its early days, High Times reveled in and actively promoted its 
renegade reputation. The magazine often published stories about other 
topics - cocaine use, UFOs, guerrilla fighters in Mexico. One 1978 
issue featuring President Carter on the cover - with an article 
insinuating that a White House doctor may have prescribed cocaine for 
medicinal purposes to the president - "sold off the hook," Skye says.

In 2005, the magazine's editors adopted a more laser-like focus on 
marijuana, with articles about grow houses, politics of legalization, 
popular dispensaries and product reviews. "Before, we were just a 
stoners' magazine," Skye says. "We narrowed our focus to make sure we 
are addressing the audience all the time. We're now going on all 
fronts - hemp, industrial, medical, (political) issues. We don't 
cover whack job stories anymore."

With about 20 staffers in the newsroom and advertising, it's a lean 
operation that relies heavily on freelancers. "The work they've done 
is extensive and far-ranging," says Al Byrne, co-founder of Patients 
Out of Time, a non-profit organization that advocates legalization of 
cannabis for medical purposes. "They've helped educate the public on 
what hemp is. But commingling of medical marijuana with the stoner 
image has been negative. They don't do that as often now."

Some traditions endure. Borrowing from Playboy, High Times runs a 
centerfold marijuana photo each month. It also seeks frequent 
interviews with celebrities, though they can be hard to come by, 
given the nature of conversations the magazine seeks.

Its relationship with law enforcement also remains tricky. While Skye 
says no editorial employees have been arrested for doing their jobs, 
an advertising executive, Matthew Woodstock Stang, was one of 40 
individuals arrested and charged in New York in 2010 for distributing 
marijuana in the area in "a massive marijuana trafficking ring." He 
was convicted and sentenced to time served, ordered to forfeit 
$250,000 in proceeds from his criminal activities and fined $3,000, 
according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in New York.

"I've shot hundreds of grow rooms and seen pounds and pounds of 
cannabis," Skye says, perhaps explaining why he and others at High 
Times use pseudonyms. "But (a police crackdown) is always a concern. 
There's always an amount of care."
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