High Times’ Josh Kesselman Calls B.S. on Big Alcohol’s Anti-Weed Panic

High Times publisher Josh Kesselman is calling out what he sees as a coordinated fear campaign against cannabis, driven less by public health concerns than by market pressure.

n a recent interview with TMZ, Kesselman pushed back hard against viral stories claiming cannabis use is causing people to vomit violently, a phenomenon often described online as “scromiting.” According to Kesselman, the timing is not accidental.

“Yeah, that’s big alcohol going nuts on us,” he said. “That all really kicked in once those beverages hit.”

Kesselman was referring to the rapid rise of THC beverages, including cannabis seltzers, sodas, and tonics, a category that has grown quickly as alcohol consumption in the U.S. continues to decline. He framed the backlash not as a moral or medical debate, but as a business one.

“Big alcohol is our biggest foe right now that we know of,” Kesselman said. “And it’s just about money and nothing else.”

Fear messaging vs lived experience

At the center of Kesselman’s criticism is the contrast between how cannabis risks are portrayed and how alcohol’s well-documented harms are treated.

“Imagine this,” he said. “Big alcohol’s out there telling people that weed’s going to make you puke. Alcohol saying another product might make 0.3% of people possibly puke if they smoke too much of it.”

Kesselman did not deny that cannabis can cause adverse reactions in some users. But he challenged the selective outrage and sensational framing.

“Like, dude, I have puked so many times from drinking,” he said. “I have ‘scromited’ by drinking too freaking much and then trying to eat my way out of it, which doesn’t work.”

For Kesselman, the issue is not whether cannabis has risks, but whether those risks are being discussed honestly or exaggerated to slow competition.

“The truth of the plant and what it does for our community, that’s what matters,” he said. “The truth ain’t about scromiting.”

“Compete fairly or get in the game”

Rather than calling for protectionism or special treatment for cannabis, Kesselman made a straightforward argument: let consumers decide.

“Let’s compete fairly,” he said. “If people like weed better, let them buy the weed.”

His message to alcohol companies was blunt.

“If you’re so concerned about it, make your own beverages,” Kesselman said. “Get into the weed game. Compete with those guys. You’ll do better anyway. But stop trying to hold the rest of us back.”

He also acknowledged that consolidation pressures do not come only from alcohol, noting that large agricultural interests and even major cannabis companies may benefit from heavier regulation that limits who can participate.

“Some of the big cannabis companies will be in there too,” he said. “Because they want it all to be regulated and given just to them.”

Context: CHS is real, but panic sells

Kesselman’s comments echo arguments High Times has made previously about the way cannabis harms are covered in mainstream media.

In December, High Times published “Big Alcohol Says Weed Will Make You Puke? Hmm…,” which examined the surge of alarmist reporting around Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome, or CHS. The article made clear that CHS is a real and documented condition, while also showing how it is rare, often misrepresented, and frequently stripped of statistical context in headlines designed to shock.

That piece also traced how the term “scromiting” originated on social media rather than in medical literature, and how dramatic language tends to travel faster than nuance.

Kesselman’s TMZ comments extend that critique, shifting the focus from media dynamics to market dynamics.

“This is about money,” he said. “Nothing else.”

A familiar pattern

Cannabis replacing alcohol is not a theoretical threat. Survey data, sales figures, and cultural trends have shown a steady shift, particularly among younger consumers, toward cannabis as a substitute for drinking. As that shift accelerates, Kesselman believes pushback is inevitable.

“We just want everyone to be merry,” he said. “And healthier, with the spirit of cannabis.”

For High Times, the position remains consistent. Acknowledge real risks. Reject hysteria. Follow the incentives.

Or, as Kesselman put it more bluntly: stop trying to scare people and start competing.