Ask Rinella: What you need to know about MeatEater, Inc.

Steven Rinella Oct 10, 2018

If you’ve been paying attention here at MeatEater, you may have noticed a bunch of additional voices that are coming at you from various corners of the outdoor world. Voices like Mark Kenyon from Wired to Hunt, April Vokey from Anchored Podcast, Ben O’Brien from The Hunting Collective, Danielle Prewett, Eduardo Garcia, Patrick Durkin, and a bunch of others we’ll be announcing shortly. If you’re the inquisitive sort, you may have some questions that you’d like answered. Below is my attempt to anticipate those questions and lay some answers on you in return. Here goes:

Q: So what the hell’s going on?
A: MeatEater is getting bigger and better. We still make the TV show MeatEater with Zero Point Zero Production, and we still produce The MeatEater Podcast, but we’re now making a ton of other stuff in conjunction with some other proven personalities in the hunting, fishing, conservation, and culinary spaces. We conceive, create, and distribute digital and physical content experiences and products such as live events, a bitchin’ podcast network, tons of written and video content, wild game recipes, wildlife news, controversial opinions, funny stories, how-to information on everything that matters in the outdoors, and harrowing accounts of getting attacked by wild critters.

Q: So why is MeatEater working with these particular folks?
A: That’s easy. It’s because they regard the outdoors as sacred and they’re able to articulate often complex ideas in an honest, thoughtful, challenging, funny, and sometimes irreverent way. Also because they make me happy, they hit the nail on the head, they know what they’re talking about, and they care about the world that their children will inherit. For instance, we’re working with Mark Kenyon because he talks about whitetail deer and deer hunting in a loving and pragmatic way that makes his lifestyle accessible to everyone. We’re working with Ben O’Brien because he helps lead the conversation around what hunters need to do if they want to continue enjoying this lifestyle into the future, and he does so without worrying about the blowback. We’re working with April Vokey because she’s articulate, authentic, and highly skilled, and because she’s inspired countless people to pick up a rod and experience the thrill of catching a fish without losing sight of her moral obligation to the resources that she pursues. I could say similar things about everyone else, but you get the point: these folks know the outdoors, and they love it.

Q: So, like, are you becoming a big sellout?
A: I didn’t sell anything and I didn’t relinquish creative control of anything. I have always owned MeatEater in a partnership with others. That partnership has now expanded in order to gain some financial muscle that can be used to pursue the exact same mission that the MeatEater team has always pursued.

I couldn’t be more excited to officially welcome Mark, April, Ben, Eduardo, Danielle, and Pat to the MeatEater family. I am a big fan of all of their ideas and content. I’m sure that you’ll love it, too. Thanks for your support.