Authoritarian Karens and the Fight-Back by Wine

Felicity Carter's new Health+Wine Podcast and her reporting is the tip of the fight-back spear

AUTHORITARIAN KARENS
(au·thor·i·tar·i·an • kar·ens)

NOUN

1. A meddling person of either sex with intent to impose rigid restrictions on large groups or populations

2. Individuals or groups accustomed to shouting at people who have different opinions from them; often seeking to impose draconian restrictions.

3. See also “Neo-Prohibitionists” or “Anti-alcohol Cabal”

The rise of the Authoritarian Karens surrounding the wine business may seem sudden. It’s not. There has been real animosity towards wine and other alcohols in the “recovery community” and public health sector for decades. What’s changed is the receptiveness among policymakers and government officials to the message that “alcohol is bad and something drastic must be done.”

What’s also changed is the wine industry has woken up to the threat posed by the Authoritarian Karens. It has been 30 years since the industry has trained its collective gaze on the works of those who are seeking to severely restrict the industry’s ability to grow, compete, and flourish.

The latest look at the actions of the Authoritarian Karens is a new podcast by reporter and journalist Felicity Carter who has already done as much as anyone to expose how the anti-alcohol cabal operates across the United States and the Globe:

THE WINE+HEALTH PODCAST

According to Carter, the new Podcast, which is a spinoff of her DrinksInsider Podcast and Substack, is explained this way:

It will be an occasional podcast series, focusing on alcohol and health. Although I’ve called the podcast Wine + Health, it will focus on alcohol in general. Topics I’ll be tackling include:

What we know and don’t know about the impact of alcohol on health (both good and bad news)

How this information is being used to shape policy

The rise of the anti-alcohol movement

Are there really 76 additives in wine?

The first episode of Wine+Health has already dropped: Anti-Alcohol Groups and Drinking Guidelines: A Discussion with David Clement

Clement is the North American Affairs Manager for Canada’s Consumer Choice Center and extensively covered efforts in Canada to attack alcohol and wine through government guidelines.

Felicity Carter is among the very few journalists who are looking closely at the very tight-knit cabal that is working to diminish the size and profitability of the wine industry. For example:

Wine & Health: Challenging the ‘No Safe Level’ Claim"

Wine’s Worst Enemy: Carter Combats ‘No Safe Level’ Claim

How Neo-Prohibitionists Came to Shape Alcohol Policy

Felicity Carter Exposes the Jaw-Dropping Truth of Who is Guiding Global Wine and Health Policy

WHO Shifts Its Alcohol Narrative and the Wine Industry Faces New Challenges