Kathleen McLaughlin made her first appearance on the ButteCast in September. She was guest No. 2.

She returns to the podcast for this latest episode, which was recorded at Mike Hamblin’s Studio No. 7 in Walkerville, to talk about her new book, Blood Money: The story of Life, Death, and the Profit Inside America’s Blood Industry.

Thanks Mike.

I have never been one for book reports, but I can tell you this. Read the book. It is worth it. It is an amazing work of journalism that examines an aspect of economic inequality in America.

You probably never realized how many people sell their plasma for blood. You probably had no idea how badly the big-money industry takes advantage of people who are struggling to make ends meet.

Kathleen is a 1989 Butte High graduate. After pursuing her passion for journalism at the University of Montana, she worked at the Great Falls Tribune before going to work at the Lee State Bureau in Helena. There, Kathleen worked under the great Chuck Johnson, who we lost unexpectedly last month.

In an article in The Nation this week, Kathleen wrote about Johnson and how legendary local journalists are not and cannot be replaced. Click here to check it out.

Listen in to hear Kathleen talk about Chuck. Listen to her talk about her book and all the hard work that went into it. Listen as we discuss the sad state of local journalism and how it is threatening our democracy.

If you haven’t checked it out yet, also listen to her first appearance on the ButteCast from September.