365: From Beauty Queen to Environmental Crusader: Jordan Gass-Pooré’s Inspiring Journey

Harry Duran [00:00:00]: So, Jordan Gasp for host of Hazard and Fumed and a lot of other projects we're going to get into. Thank you so much for joining me on podcast Junkies.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:00:08]: Thanks for having me, Harry.

Harry Duran [00:00:10]: So it always feels good to connect with someone and then immediately be greeted with some New York City energy.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:00:16]: I try. I've only had one latte today. After this, I'm going to get another one, but I'm not fully caffeinated like I normally am.

Harry Duran [00:00:23]: And you're in Queens, you were saying?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:00:25]: Yes, I've been in Queens now. This is my eighth year.

Harry Duran [00:00:28]: Okay. What part of Queens?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:00:30]: Long Island City.

Harry Duran [00:00:31]: Oh, yeah, perfect. You get the view across the water of the city.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:00:34]: It's nice. Yeah. My partner who I moved in with, he's been here since 2013, like, in the same apartment. And so we've kind of seen, and especially him, like, the evolution of this neighborhood where, like, used to be, you know, single people with not much money to now. I went to, like, the bank down the street and I was like, oh, I want to put in $20,000. I got a grant, like, for this organization and. And they were like, I just opened up an account for 20 million. And I was like, there's someone with 20 million. They're like, oh, this neighborhood has a lot of money.

Harry Duran [00:01:01]: Wow, that's crazy.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:01:03]: So it's changed. It's changed since I've been here, even. Yes.

Harry Duran [00:01:07]: Where'd you grow up?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:01:08]: I grew up in a town called Seguin in Texas. It's about, like 45 minutes south of Austin. So it's a very different experience than New York. Like, Long Island City has about, I think the last time I checked, about double the population of my town. That's like, just my neighborhood. So that's weird. And also, like, Seguin is not a walkable place. And, yeah, it's a very different vibe.

Harry Duran [00:01:30]: How long were you there in Seguin? Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:01:33]: Oh, I was born and raised there. So I left at 18 to go 25 minutes down the road to college. But officially I left Texas at 25.

Harry Duran [00:01:42]: Okay.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:01:43]: So I've moved around since then. But, yeah, I have no desire to move back to Texas at all. But I visit a lot and I do environmental reporting. Still in Texas?

Harry Duran [00:01:51]: Yeah. What's the one thing that you do miss about Texas?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:01:56]: What do I miss about Texas? Well, I would have said about three years ago that it was nice to have a winter that's 70 degrees, but now it snows.

Harry Duran [00:02:06]: Yep.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:02:07]: And now it's freezing, and so that's not there Anymore, I guess. I don't know. I do appreciate, though, the personalities, the, like, the cultural aspect of Texas, of the, like, Southern nicety. Like, it's very different and it's. It is slower pace of life, but people are generally, at least outwardly nicer. New Yorkers are nice, too, but it's a different. It's a different nice.

Harry Duran [00:02:30]: A different kind of nice.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:02:31]: Yes.

Harry Duran [00:02:32]: You don't always know what you're getting. I think the thing about New York is that they'll tell you to your face how they're feeling.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:02:38]: Yes. And Texans will not. Like, in my experience, you'll find out, like, so and so told me that so and so said about so and so. So and so. So they don't like you.

Harry Duran [00:02:45]: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's that Southern charm, I think, like, the someone said something because I used to live in Atlanta, too, for, like, three years. And so, like, they'll give you, like, the pie, but meanwhile they're like, muttering and talking shit about you, like, under their breath or something like that. So.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:02:58]: Yeah, it happens. Yeah, it happens. And like, you know, my hometown, too, at least when I was living there, everybody, you know, sort of knew each other and knew your family. And like, I went to, you know, kindergarten with the same. Most of the same people I graduated high school with.

Harry Duran [00:03:12]: Wow, that's wild.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:03:13]: That was good and bad at the same time. And like, teachers of mine, you know, either went to school with my parents who both went to the same high school as me, or they taught my parents. So they already, like, had this idea in their head. And, like, so many teachers. I was talking to my mom the other night about this. I was like, so many of my female teachers would be like, oh, is your dad Kevin Poiret? And I was like, yes. But how they would say it was like, oh, they liked him. They thought he was hot.

Harry Duran [00:03:37]: He was the hottie. Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:03:38]: Yeah. And I was like, this was weird, actually. Yes.

Harry Duran [00:03:42]: That's hilarious. The small town vibe is really interesting because I moved to Minnesota and then we went up north for my partner's. Her parents grew up in Hibbing, you know, where Bob Dylan was born. And they have an all class. They don't have a classroom. You don't even have an all class. So basically everyone who went to school, like, at any year, like, shows up. And so, like, her parents are, like, saying hi to, like, someone who was like, in grade school. And they're like, almost. They're 70 now, so they're just like, it's wild. And they close down the whole street and it's like the whole neighborhood comes out and. And it was just as a city person, like, I was just. It was just crazy. Like everyone like knew each other for like long time, like, you know, 20, 30, 40 years. Oh yeah. We were like, that's Joey from like sixth grade. I'm like, this is crazy. There's two 70 year olds like hanging out. And it was just interesting because you hear about like small towns in movies and stuff like that. But until you experience it and you see like the vibe, like everyone just kind of knows everyone's name and business, I would imagine too. So it's cool. Yes.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:04:40]: And your family member's business and know all this stuff. And like, it's so weird. I mean, like my best friend, we became friends in sixth grade when we went to school together. But we found out years later from a videotape. We actually had met when we were like three or four years old at my second cousin's birthday party. Anyway, watch this video. And I was like, wait, is that you, Kristen? We knew each other at like three.

Harry Duran [00:05:03]: That's hilarious. That's so crazy.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:05:05]: So weird.

Harry Duran [00:05:06]: So what was Austin doing at that time? Or just did it just pop off later?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:05:11]: So, yeah, I mean, Austin at the time. Because I have family that live in Austin and they've lived there since the 70s. And so like when I was a kid, I remember driving up i35 from Seguin and like there would just be nothing but fields along I35. And then I got to middle school and that's when he started seeing like land for sale. Buildings started popping up by College. Most of i35, like all of that was just filled with apartments, big box stores and Austin. Like when I was in college, I did a lot of my early journalism in Austin, like interning at publications there because I could take the bus from my college town. I didn't drive, I didn't get a license Till I was 23. And in Texas, like, and without smart, like early on, without smartphones. Like, my freshman year of college was a whole momentous thing that I don't even know how I did. And in the heat, waiting for a bus for like 30 minutes to an hour. But Austin was still like, Austin was the place, you know? Yes. Like, I would go with my friends, you know, as we got older to go and you know, go to the bars and like south by experience. And it was all relatively chill still. And then I would say like about the year I left, this was like 2014, 2015. That's when I saw, like, there was a shift and a lot of, like, the old timers that I like, my old editors, you know, who had been there since the 60s and 70s, were like, I'm priced out. I'm going to have to leave. You know, the salary's not going up. Most of them were working at, like, independent, like, the Austin Chronicle and, like, newspapers that, you know, they weren't making much money, but it was like, you know, they had been there for so long, and the signs started popping up in people's yards that said, californians go back home. I remember seeing so many signs and, like, people getting so angry at people from California in particular for ruining Austin. And it's just now every year I go back and it's just like, traffic is hellacious, like.

Harry Duran [00:06:58]: Yeah, it's crazy.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:06:59]: It's weird to see how things have changed because a lot of my favorite places are gone that I used to go to. Now I feel old where I'm like, I remember.

Harry Duran [00:07:06]: Yeah. What's that street that had all the, like, the quaint, like, bars and stuff like that? Sixth street and. No, not Sixth Street. No, no. It was a smaller one where there's, like, skyrise.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:07:16]: Oh, Rainy Street.

Harry Duran [00:07:17]: Rainy Street. It was so cute. It had all these, like, nice little bars and stuff like that. And we went years ago with my partner, and there was something still up, and there was a nice little stroll through there. And then we went recently and I was like, wow, they just totally decimated that. Just killed off that.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:07:31]: And that was supposed to be a. That that's something too. Like, it was supposed to be historical. Yeah. And it's really sad, like, when you read the history of that area and, like, what, you know, how it was, how it evolved, and then it became. Yeah. When I was in college, that was, like, the cute. I mean, there were bars and stuff and restaurants, but, like, all the cute houses. It really did. It makes me sad because I was back there in October and we stayed at a hotel near Rainey street, and my partner and I were walking around too, and I'm like, how did the city let this? How is there a sky that means they tore down these historic homes?

Harry Duran [00:07:58]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:07:59]: It made no sense to me.

Harry Duran [00:08:01]: Just really short term thinking. It's crazy.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:08:03]: I mean. Yeah, there's a lot with Austin. And, like, I get people in New York, though, whenever I say I'm from Texas, they're like, what do you think about Austin? And I'm like, don't move there.

Harry Duran [00:08:11]: Yeah, exactly. You missed the boat there already. So when you were in high school, like were you doing a lot of writing? Did you know like what your trajectory was? And was this. Just how far back does that passion go?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:08:21]: So I remember, cause my family brings this up that I was 8 years old. So I love horror. Like I love horror novels, books, any kind of horror medium. Like ever since I was a very small child, I've been obsessed with horror. So when I was eight, I had said I was reading Stephen King.

Harry Duran [00:08:35]: Oh yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:08:36]: And I was reading Carrie because I remember that too. Because my teacher saw me with Carrie and had a talk with my mom and asked her why would she allow her daughter to be reading Carrie. My mom was like, she understand, like, it's fine.

Harry Duran [00:08:50]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:08:50]: I told my family, I was like, I want to be the female Stephen King. And so I started writing horror short stories. And then I had this harebrained idea that, well, you know, early on, like, creative writing is not going to make me a lot of money, at least not at first. But there's this thing called journalism and I'm, I'm nosy. I like to write, I like people. Why didn't I do this to pay the bills and I could write creatively on the side. So in middle school I started actually getting involved in journalism. I reached out to the local newspaper in Seguin. I reached out with the local radio station that's like an AM Christian based station, kwed. And I started like doing random stuff for them. And then in high school I had a little column because KWED had this like print supplement called, what was it, like the Seguin Daily News or something. And they gave me a column about like, what was it like to be a high school student, you know, in this.

Harry Duran [00:09:39]: So you're just working around town, you got your little notebook. And I would interview microphone and so forth.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:09:44]: Yeah, and I interview people around town. I remember like I interviewed my high school English teacher, like, okay. And like they let me go on air a couple of times to talk and I, you know.

Harry Duran [00:09:52]: Oh, fun.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:09:53]: I learned some of the ropes especially too, like radio, like being able to see, you know, the basics of a radio station and like how to like work aboard. And early on, very early, I was just like, you know, it's there. I'm sure they need the help. I'll do it. I mean at that point I was like doing it for free. So sure. And then it just kicked off from there, like high school. I started getting really involved outside of Seguin. I started working freelancing and actually getting, I remember I got 25 one time for a movie review, and I was like, oh, that's the big bucks.

Harry Duran [00:10:22]: That's. What movie was it?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:10:23]: Oh. Oh, God. It was the Family Stone, which is a terrible movie. It was a terrible. I love Luke Wilson, though, who's also from Texas, and he was in it. So I was like, oh, I'll go see this because it's free, because I'm writing this. They gave me a ticket. Whatever. Yeah, it was terrible. But I got really, really involved. So I, like, you know, I have family in San Antonio, so I was doing stuff with, like, the San Antonio Express News, which was the big publication there, pretty much everywhere I could get my hands on who would ever take me to write. Whatever. And then in college, I worked at the campus newspaper, and I worked at the college radio station. And that's when I decided, like, I wanted to start doing podcasts. Was at the college radio station. I remember I went up to our advisor, who's still. I think, the advisor there. Super chill dude. He was a former dj, tatted up, like, totally cool.

Harry Duran [00:11:08]: Did he have a DJ voice?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:11:09]: Like, hey, he could put it on. Yeah, Dan is a cool. Dan was a cool little dude. But I remember I approached him and I was like, hey, first off, my college town, it's like, you know, there's a endangered species. It's an environmentally sensitive area. I said, no one's covering the environment.

Harry Duran [00:11:24]: Okay.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:11:25]: I was like, can I cover the environment as a reporter for one of, like, the radio shows? He was like, sure, as long as you don't cuss. Don't violate the fcc. And then I said, oh, I really want to, like. Because I wanted to go to south by for free. Like, my whole EVO planning was, how do I get to go to south by for free? And I was like, wait a minute. There's, like, press credentials that you could get.

Harry Duran [00:11:44]: Oh, yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:11:45]: So I was like, dan, can I do, like, my own podcast? That would just be, like, on the ktsw, the radio station's website, and it would be me interviewing, like, Texas filmmakers. And he was like, sure, again, as long as you don't cuss. Like, even though it's not.

Harry Duran [00:11:58]: I like how that was the most important thing. Just don't cuss.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:12:00]: And he was like, if you want to do it, do it. So I remember spending, like, multiple late nights trying to learn how to edit audio on Adobe Audition. Cause we didn't have a course on how to edit audio.

Harry Duran [00:12:09]: And what year was this?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:12:10]: I was. This was 2008. This was 2008.

Harry Duran [00:12:14]: Oh, wow. It's early. Wow.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:12:16]: Yeah. So I did a podcast called the Fourth Wall that ran for four years all throughout college. And I was able to go to south by every year I was in school. I went to all the other festivals and I got to interview all kinds of really cool people. And I'm actually, weirdly, one guy that I had interviewed, he's an Irish actor and we've stayed friends, like, off and on this entire time because he was like, you were the first person to ever interview me. He was on the show Vikings. Like he's been on.

Harry Duran [00:12:42]: That was a great show.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:12:44]: So I was like, dude, I was the first person who was like, you're the first person.

Harry Duran [00:12:48]: Have you ever seen that show?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:12:49]: I have. My mom really likes the show.

Harry Duran [00:12:51]: Yeah, it was pretty intense, but so.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:12:52]: She was all impressed. I was like, you know one of the guys and I was like, oh, do I know. I wish I was single when I first interviewed him. I was not, sadly.

Harry Duran [00:13:02]: So lots of threads to pull there. When did you were concerned for, like, the environment and. Because obviously there's a through line there to present day now. So I'm curious if I asked your folks, like, how far back that goes, you know, is it something to not be surprised about?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:13:18]: Yeah, yeah. I mean, that goes far, far back. Like, I remember even as, like, I mean, this was even before I decided, like, I wanted to even write. I was really into a movie called FernGully, about a little like, fairy people that live in the woods in Australia. And this guy and this logging company, they come in and start tearing down their forest. And I remember getting really emotional as a child and being like, why are they trying to hurt Fern Gully? So that was like the beginning. And my mom, like, got me a bunch of like, environmentally like, related books. Like children's books.

Harry Duran [00:13:50]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:13:51]: And I remember one that was like this terrifying pop up book that had this like. It was like anti whaling. And. And it had like this like, whale popping up with like, blood because someone had speared it. And like. And then you could like, club a seal. It was what I tell my mom. I was like, next time I'm in Texas. No, people don't believe me. I was like, I'm gonna find. Because she keeps all my stuff. I'm gonna find these books and bring it back to New York with me. Because it was terrifying.

Harry Duran [00:14:15]: It was anti whaling.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:14:16]: Yes, it was anti. Yet you could literally move the guy's arm to club a seal.

Harry Duran [00:14:20]: Oh, my gosh, that's traumatic.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:14:22]: I don't Know who published this, but I got really into it. I mean, so much that. Speaking of, like, deforestation. So, you know, small town Texas. I was in a beauty pageant my junior year, and the question was, what is the most pressing problem facing teens? And I was on stage all confident, being like, deforestation. And they're literally quiet. Like the audience, like, everyone else said, teen pregnancy. And I was like, deforestation. I want to list you all the reasons why this is a problem. I didn't win anything.

Harry Duran [00:14:54]: Yeah, it's probably not top of mind for folks back then.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:14:57]: No, not in 2000. Like, six, seven. Yeah.

Harry Duran [00:15:00]: So, I mean, crazy stuff going on now with. Especially around deforestation. Right. That's top of mind for everyone.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:15:06]: Did I let everyone know at 16 what to expect?

Harry Duran [00:15:10]: I warned you guys. I told you. See, you should have listened. You should find that. If you can find that clip and.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:15:15]: Just do, oh, there's a tape. There's recording. I know.

Harry Duran [00:15:18]: So you can do it then now, like, literally, like, then deforestation. 19, whatever, like 2,000. Whenever, like, I warned you, you know.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:15:27]: It would be hilarious.

Harry Duran [00:15:27]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:15:27]: Because, I mean, me thinking that I was confident it'd be funny to rewatch to see how awkward I probably was on that stage.

Harry Duran [00:15:33]: But, I mean, there's something in you that feels that connection. My partner's the same way. I mean, she'll. We have a tree that's being taken down. It's old tree in the back yard. But she went over to it. She, like, touched it. She's like, you know, you're gonna have to come down. Sorry. Like, you know, just whatever. Get your nutrients out into the. Share it with the other trees. And she wants to leave, like 12ft up, you know, so not the whole thing comes down. So the critters have somewhere to live and stuff like that.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:15:57]: What happened to the trees?

Harry Duran [00:15:58]: It's just old. It's just like a box. Boxwood. I'm trying to get my trees straight here. When you live in the Midwest, you got to know your trees, apparently. Cottonwood, boxwood, box. Box elder.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:16:09]: I don't know tree names. It's all just trees.

Harry Duran [00:16:11]: I didn't. I didn't know tree names. I didn't realize. I didn't know tree names. Okay, clearly you don't know tree. I just thought it was a tree. I mean, but it was maple. I could probably identify, like, a maple redwood. Those are the big ones. Yeah, I know those. So, yeah, it was just. I mean, it's because it's leaning over, like this office that I'm in. Right now. And it's like. Yeah. And you could see through the bottom of the trunk, like, to the other side. So, yeah, it's, like, on its last legs, but. Yeah. So she'll. She feeds. She goes outside, puts nuts in her hands, and waits for the birds to come, like, pick them out of her hand and feed the squirrels. We got turkeys on the property. They've got names. So. Yeah. But I imagine she's basically like Snow White, you know, like, out there waiting for the birds. So, like, she wanted to do that. Her mom said she would be out in the yard when she was little, just with her hands out, just waiting. She's, like, waiting for the birds to land on her. So I get the sense that you have a similar child.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:17:01]: Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, I really love that because, you know, I mean, my. And it's interesting because, like, my family, over time, I have to remind them, and especially my mom, too, about, like, the environmental list stuff where I'm like, you gave me these books. We had these conversations because, you know, Texas.

Harry Duran [00:17:17]: Sure.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:17:18]: How things go that, you know, I think my family, even though, like, my family has property in the hill country that's been in our family for a very long time, and. And I'm like, we are connected. We do care about the land. So why are you voting the way that you're voting? But, you know, I have to remind them. I'm like, this is where it all stems from, really, is that you cared so much about this land. And, like, you know, there'd always be animals and stuff, too, on the property. Like, you know, my grandmother had peacocks, and there were cats everywhere and chickens, and we'd go get the eggs, and it's like, you know, this is all part of environmentalism. Like, we want to save this land, and we want to have it as a space where animals can be and, you know.

Harry Duran [00:17:54]: Yeah, yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:17:55]: They're all sentimental about it. And I'm like, well, other people care about the land, too.

Harry Duran [00:17:59]: Well, I think the big thing for my partner is the fact that, like, all these roads and developments are happening and that they're running out of land. So, like, every time, like, a. We see a turtle, you know, that's been hit, or a turkey, it's been hit. It's like, you know, if they die by, like, she'd rather, like, a fox take down a turtle, like a wolf take down a turkey, and then, okay, cool. If someone eats Tom and it's another animal, that's nature. But, like, when they get hit by a car, you're like, ah. Like, you know, that just shows how they're just losing all their natural habitat. So.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:18:26]: Yes, yes. And it's very depressing. And my college town, too. I always thought it was so cute because there is the San Marcos River. The town's San Marcos, and the river flows through the campus. Like, so there's part of campus and the river goes through it. But they would have, like, turtle crossing signs for the cars. And the times when you just see people, like a line of people waiting for this turtle to cross the road.

Harry Duran [00:18:46]: I'm like, yeah, that is cute.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:18:47]: It's great.

Harry Duran [00:18:48]: So you got thrown into the fray early interviewing folks. Did you still have someone to model or did you just kind of wing it?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:18:55]: I feel like I winged it. Where? I don't know. I think that, like, being younger and having an overabundance of confidence as an only child.

Harry Duran [00:19:02]: Okay.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:19:02]: Helped because. Yeah. I mean, I didn't really have my. I didn't come from a family that, like, listened to NPR or really, like, the radio outside of, like, the oldies station or classic rock station. We didn't get a copy of the newspaper. No one was paying for the news. Like, we would watch, like, the local broadcast, you know.

Harry Duran [00:19:21]: But you're not reading the Sunday Times.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:19:23]: No one was. No. I don't know anyone in my family that has read the Sunday Times, even when my own story was in it anyway. They don't really read that.

Harry Duran [00:19:33]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:19:34]: So, yeah, I don't really know. And like, no one in my family has been a journalist or interviewed people. Like, the closest, I guess, is my aunt, who was a lawyer.

Harry Duran [00:19:42]: Okay.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:19:43]: But, yeah, I just think it's. My whole family likes to talk, too, and I just am very nosy.

Harry Duran [00:19:49]: Well, that's carried through the ability to talk and carry on conversations. So. So 2008, that's early. Cause I started my first show in 2000, this show in 2014, and I was like, oh, man, I'm late. You know? Cause I'd seen some of my, like, OG podcasting friends. Like my friend Dave Jackson. I think he's been podcasting since, like, 2006 and stuff like that. And like, the. You know. So, like, how did it get on your radar? Cause back then it was like, I remember the early days of, like, MP3s. It's like, if you got, like, four songs on a player, you're just like, whoa. And then. And. But you have to, like, connect it with the USB cable to the computer and sync it. And I remember being in the gym and I was like, Whoa, a digital file. So I'm running on the treadmill, nothing skipping. Like a cdj, like a CD player. It was so crazy, you know, I think it was called River MP3 or something like that. One of those early brands. And so like in the early days, you know, we hear like folks talk about podcasting, like Adam Curry and stuff. He's like, oh, you just had to wire the, you know, your ipod to the computer and stuff like that. So how did it get on your radar?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:20:46]: I remember how I first even heard about podcasting because again, like high school, nobody would have been talking about that. And in college it was not really a conversation. Like I was electronic media major, but there was no mention in any of my classes about podcasting or like that's something you could get into for a living. It was, you could go work at the radio station. So I'm trying to remember, I wonder if it was just simply like again, my desire to go to festivals for free was Google searching how to do something like this. And like instead of having a radio show. Yeah, I always was like, I don't want a radio show because like once it airs, that's it, like it's gone. So I would want something that would be able to be more permanent and if it could just be on the campus radio station website, it would always be there. And like this is a way then to showcase, to be like, hey, I'm actually more legit than your normal college student.

Harry Duran [00:21:40]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:21:40]: But yeah, at that point I'm like, what podcasts would have been out because this was even before like serial. I mean like the big name.

Harry Duran [00:21:46]: Oh, for sure.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:21:47]: Yeah, yeah, big name shows. And so, yeah. I kind of regret though, like trying not to, I guess I did. I under sold myself at 18 doing this because I thought it was just fun.

Harry Duran [00:21:59]: Yeah. I can just see your early in those early colleges with a T shirt that says ask me about deforestation and podcasts.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:22:08]: Do you want to save the plan?

Harry Duran [00:22:09]: No one's coming up to you?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:22:11]: No. And I don't think they still would even if I would be a college student today at my university.

Harry Duran [00:22:16]: So it was interesting. I was looking at, I was like, oh, let's see where else she's worked. And they go on LinkedIn and normally I go to LinkedIn and it's like there's like a little drop down arrow. I forget see next like four experiences you had like 114.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:22:31]: And I have to put things there because I have a terrible memory period. And so like I like having a list of Things that I've been a part of. And like, I love forming connections with people being like, okay, well, I worked here one time. This person used to work there. So I don't know what that tells you. Maybe this is why, like, I think most people who are investigative journalists in particular are of a very particular mental state. So I just have to have an ongoing list to remind myself of what I've done in the past or I will completely forget what.

Harry Duran [00:23:01]: It sounds. Much more efficient than, like, trying to find a word doc from, like 2007. With your resume, which I was, you know, back in the days, you'd have to, like, do, like, where did I save this file? And this, like, and you have to go back and, like, hunt for. You just put it all on LinkedIn. So it's like, hey, it's there. You can. I don't need a resume. So they get a certain flavor for, like, the type of stuff you have to do. So do you enjoy, like, kind of all these different experiences? You know, so many different contract jobs, you've worked at so many interesting companies. NPR, Gimlet, and, you know, in the podcasting space, iHeartRadio. Like, do you see that as just something that enriches your experiences? Cause you're just learning so much from so many different sources?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:23:42]: Yeah, no, I do. And also, like, I think that I like trying out new things and I want to be able to. I get one too. I get bored really easy. And maybe that says something about my personality as well. I like the idea of being able to work a short period of time with different companies and with different teams and really trying to figure it out, like, what it is I enjoy doing. And like, every year trying to, like, have it be something different. And like, it's always, you know, like, my top two things are going to be, like, still the environment I love. You know, I want to keep covering the environment and the climate crisis. And I do love audio as well. But I also like writing, so I like to be able to mix and match these different things. And working full time at places that, you know, I found myself, like, I don't like being in one track. Yeah, I like sort of being all over the place. And so freelancing, to me has been. Been a good thing. I mean, every so often I'll contemplate, like, do I want to go back full time? Because obviously, too, like, it's nice to have a salary and health insurance that, like, a company pays for and I have to have paid vacation days. But then do I really Want to deal with the X, Y and Z of like, what has happened in the past? I don't know. Do I really want, like, to not be able just to back out in a, you know, like, there is no like, contract statement, like the homer into the bushes six months. Yes. Because I felt a lot of times that, yeah, it's just like, I just want to fade into the background.

Harry Duran [00:25:08]: But you got to work on your water cooler banter if you do take a regular job. So.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:25:12]: See, and I don't know if I ever want to go back into an office for that.

Harry Duran [00:25:15]: Happy Monday.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:25:17]: I've seen Office space. I don't want to be a part of that life.

Harry Duran [00:25:20]: Hump day, everyone. You can go to.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:25:23]: You got a bad case of the.

Harry Duran [00:25:24]: Monday, go to TGI Fridays on a Friday.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:25:27]: All of that sounds terrible.

Harry Duran [00:25:29]: I was in corporate for a while. I mean, so I lived through a lot of that. So it's interesting to finally get out.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:25:34]: Of there and a dress code.

Harry Duran [00:25:36]: Oh my God, I wear a suit every day. Yeah, I mean, it was okay. I mean, I didn't mind at the time, so. But it was. It's interesting when you're out of it, it's a bunch of different things, a bunch of different emotions because like, the first time that direct deposit doesn't show up in your account anymore, you're just like, oh, okay, like, I need to like, make some money. This is scary. So, yeah, benefits. But yeah, there's something that comes with the freedom of being an entrepreneur. And it's not for the faint of heart, for sure.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:26:01]: It really isn't. Like, I've had a number of people, like different age groups either people just entering journalism from, you know, graduating college or people trying to transition into freelancing to, you know, asking for advice or like, hey, should I even do this? And, you know, I'm pretty realistic and I tell them like, what a day to day is. Whatever, whatever. And I'm like, I'm sorry if I scared you because by the end of it, most people are like, nah, I'm just going to go apply for that job or I'm just going to stick with the job I have.

Harry Duran [00:26:25]: It's weird because we're going into a new world with this AI stuff and there's a lot of jobs that are just getting completely eliminated, especially on, you know, writing stuff. There's some basic stuff that we were doing with our agency because we produce shows with my agency. And like, I'd have people write, you know, summaries, get some titles. AI is doing that so much better than that person did, you know, and it's like. And it's given me a whole bunch of other different things of, like, repurposing stuff for YouTube, repurposing it in first person so I can do the. The read. Just I got like 20 different versions of one audio file now that I'd probably have to pay a couple hundred bucks to, like, a writer for. And so I'm just. I don't know what you're seeing on your end or if people are worried about having to adjust to this new world we're living in, because, I mean, I do everything from, like, simple therapy stuff on chat, GPT just. And my partner created this thing called the Mastermind, you know, modeled after Napoleon Hill. And you just feed it a bunch of names. Like, you know, I've got like, Oprah Winfrey and Brene Brown and these. And, you know, Gabby. I was gonna say Gabby Reese, but that's the volleyball player. It's the other Gabby, you know, so, so basically she has this mastermind. She asks questions, you know, Eckhart Tolle and all these, like, bright minds. And so they. It takes their collected wisdom and, like, provides, like, answers as if they were like, your mastermind. So things like that that are happening, like, I have it help me, like, repurpose, like, ideas from my marketing emails for my business and stuff like that. So I'm just curious what your take has been, having been a writer for such a period of time. What this. If you saw the wave coming and as it was coming, like, what your thoughts are on its impact?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:27:59]: Yeah, so I kind of saw the wave coming, but I think that for me, I personally never wanted to be the one that had to write those summary headlines or those summaries or some of the work that is now getting outsourced to AI. And I have yet to meet. I'm sure there are people who love doing that, but I've yet to meet someone who's like, yeah, that was exact. I totally adore writing that.

Harry Duran [00:28:24]: Yeah, nailed that title.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:28:26]: Yeah. You know, and like, even with social language, like, I know there are people, I'm sure, who really love writing and repurposing and different things for the LinkedIn on the other profile pages, social accounts. But I don't like doing that. And it was always a burden and it usually, you know, would fall on the Internet or the fellow or whoever was getting paid the least. And so I, you know, already understanding, like, nobody really thinks of this as. As real work. Then, like, you, you know, you're not. So why not pass that on? And like, yes, I see that that could be an opportunity for people to make a couple extra hundred bucks and to support themselves. But I'm hoping that this is a way for whatever writing passion that they had or passion they had that now they could be able to pursue that, that maybe there will be some new openings. And you know, I've told people in the past too, especially like mentees that are in college that like one, you know, you don't have to go into investigative journalism. But I'm bringing that up as an example that I think that's one of the like genres of journalism, if you will, that will be really hard for an AI to replicate.

Harry Duran [00:29:30]: Sure, sure.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:29:32]: You know, so I think, I don't think that, you know, I'm not as fearful that maybe some other people are about AI or machine learning replacing my job. I'm just hoping that maybe this will free up time then for me to be able to do things that I actually enjoy doing instead of that grunt work.

Harry Duran [00:29:48]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:29:49]: So I'm staying positive about it.

Harry Duran [00:29:50]: Yeah. When was the first time you saw the impact of one of your pieces where you saw that it had an effect on either the people who were consuming it, the public, or the greater issue at large?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:30:02]: Yeah, I think like more recently I doing environmental reporting here in New York City that a couple of years ago I published an investigation in a neighborhood called Gowanus in Brooklyn that is infamous for the Gowanus Canal, one of the most polluted waterways in the country. And that neighborhood, they, it got rezoned in 2021. So it's being, you know, it's rezoned from industrial to residential. So there's a lot of changes. A lot of that land is contaminated from industrial pollution. And so one of the investigations I did was finding out that there was some contamination in the indoor air from a very popular venue that Ivan. I had been to a couple of times and I published this thing. It took a long time to get through data wise and everything. And you know, I didn't think that anyone would really be paying attention to it. And it was the community. I mean to the point of like there were sides. And I still talk to people today. This was 2023 in that community. And they're like, yeah, like so and so still like doesn't like you because you did that piece or like we love you. Oh. And like the different agencies for the first time I'm. Since I'm not from New York, it was just weird, like having A state environmental agency, too. Like, getting pissed off, not because of, like, factual errors, but being like, how dare you? Like, yes. And like, you're not a scientist. And I was like, don't know what to tell you.

Harry Duran [00:31:20]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:31:20]: So that was actually kind of freaky because again, like, to this day, going to Gowanus and talking to people. I'll say my name or something. Like, why does that sound familiar to me? I'm like, I don't know. We don't need to get into it. Because you probably, you know, hate me. I don't know.

Harry Duran [00:31:35]: But it was the people that hated you. Is that because you're just stirring the pot?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:31:39]: Well, I had repeatedly been told you are anti development. You don't want Gowanus to thrive. And I'm like, I want Gowanus to thrive by ensuring that people's health and safety are in check.

Harry Duran [00:31:53]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:31:54]: So it was just very weird of, like, random people. I remember getting yelled at too, by one person who's like, head of an organization there. And then she hung up on me. I'm just like, wow. I didn't realize this article would have such a visceral reaction, because this was pretty to me, like a straightforward.

Harry Duran [00:32:10]: Yeah. I think when you start to hit people, probably like, in their pocketbooks or is where they.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:32:14]: Oh, yes. It was like, I've owned this building for 20 years and now my property value might go down. I'm like, you've always known this area was contaminated, though. Like, the canal has been here since the 1800s.

Harry Duran [00:32:26]: Have you ever worked on a project where you felt unsafe?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:32:29]: Only really one time, I would say that I worked on a project with the Southern Poverty Law Center. It was a podcast called Sounds like Hate. And during the height of the COVID 19 pandemic. So besides, like, being afraid I was gonna get Covid. Cause we went to Michigan for this project. Besides that. The podcast was about a neo Nazi, like, white supremacist group. And me and my colleague, who is the co host and executive producer of the show, we went to this small town in Michigan, and she is not white. And, you know, and we were walking around and like, there were times, like, even just walking around the community, like, both of us felt unsafe. Remember going to, like, a gun store because we were trying to interview someone and everyone was quiet. Like, we opened the door and like, people were chat, like you could hear them, you know, and it was silent and everyone just stared at us. And I was like, I don't think they've seen a brown person before.

Harry Duran [00:33:13]: Clearly out of place there. So they're like, what's going on?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:33:16]: Yes. You know, and then besides, like, some of the people who were involved in this group, like, knew who I was, and I was afraid that there could be issues with that. And, like, one of the guys dads, too, threatened to, like, die by suicide after the podcast came out. And it was a whole weird. So I was also afraid that we were going to get sued. None of that happened. But that was one project that I was like, things could have gone wrong at this point, this point and this point.

Harry Duran [00:33:40]: Do you have any heroes in the investigative journalism space?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:33:44]: So here is such a strong word.

Harry Duran [00:33:46]: Or people you admire?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:33:48]: Yeah, I mean, when I. I shouldn't call him a buddy because I've only, like, talked to him once. But I really admire his work. He is now the president of ire, which is the Investigative Reporters and Editors.

Harry Duran [00:33:58]: Okay.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:33:59]: Organization, and his name is Brian. He won a Pulitzer, I think, at 30, which is, like, totally commendable.

Harry Duran [00:34:04]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:34:05]: And he did. His investigation was on the taxi medallions. And it was, like, great. Like, I admire about him is that he is not only extremely thorough and you can tell, like, he dots the I's and crosses the t's, but he also is a good storyteller. And I think when, like, you're getting into wonky issues, being able to tell that in an eloquent, engaging way is so hard that I don't see many people really crossing that mark of, like, I was engaged in a story about taxi medallions. What do I know? Why do I. Why should I care? But he makes you care about these people and, like, their plight. But, yeah, Brian Rosenthal is his name. So I think. I mean, he's one of the ones that have a mind that I admire, who's, like, also a contemporary, like, around the same age.

Harry Duran [00:34:50]: What's going on with taxis in New York? Are the guns still around? There's so much competition. Or did they block Uber and Lyft for a while?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:34:56]: Or the medallions are still around. There was, I thought, something weird about them. But, like, you can go. I mean, the airport. You can still get a Lyft or an Uber.

Harry Duran [00:35:06]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:35:06]: I mean, you know, so I don't know how much that accomplished. But, like, that's also another thing too, is like, you spend years of your life on an investigation, and you're like, why is nothing happening? And if no change really happens with it, it's like, did I waste four years of my life on this? I don't know.

Harry Duran [00:35:21]: Yeah, most people don't understand that. I don't know what they were. I think there were time. Wasn't it like $100,000 for a medallion or something like that?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:35:27]: Yes.

Harry Duran [00:35:27]: It's crazy.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:35:28]: And it's like people can like, hold on to.

Harry Duran [00:35:31]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:35:32]: The medallion and it's like they're not using it and just holding on. It's like. Cause like an investment piece.

Harry Duran [00:35:37]: Yeah. Oh, yeah. Or they rent it out or something like that too. Like you can have people with multiple medallions or just wild.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:35:43]: It's so strange. And that to me was like, that's totally New York where it's like, only here would something like this happen.

Harry Duran [00:35:49]: Yeah. So talk to me about the origins of the new show Hazard.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:35:53]: Oh, yeah. So Hazard. NJ for Hazard New Jersey. It's through NJ Spotlight News and njpbs, which is the PBS affiliate in New Jersey. It's the second season, so we did our first season a couple years ago that was looking at the impacts of climate change on hazardous Superfund sites, which, you know, Superfund sites are the EPA designation for some of the most hazardous places in the country. And the whole idea is you're designated a Superfund site that you would be able to get funding to help clean it up from the federal government. It's the polluter pays model. But usually the feds pay and then bill the polluters for it. But that all is like, becoming more relevant today because of the Trump administration and cuts to the EPA and like, they want to cut the super fun. But that was the first season. This second season is about PFAS pollution because believe it or not, this surprised me. The first PFAS chemical was created in the lab in New Jersey.

Harry Duran [00:36:47]: What's pfas?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:36:48]: Oh, PFAS or pfas. Okay, the forever chemicals.

Harry Duran [00:36:52]: Oh, yeah, yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:36:53]: Okay, the. Yeah, the forever chemicals that are even in like, polar bears. So like, they're all. They're everywhere. But it all started in New Jersey.

Harry Duran [00:37:01]: It was just a lab experiment.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:37:03]: It was dupont.

Harry Duran [00:37:04]: Yeah, of course, dupont.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:37:05]: There was a guy and it was accidental. He was working for dupont. He actually ended up moving to Texas to go work at dupont and died in Texas. So I thought that was interesting that Mr. Plunkett ended up in my home state working for Dupont. But, you know, so it's looking at the origins of these chemicals beginning in New Jersey and then sort of coming full circle that New Jersey is at the forefront. I mean, they're one of the few states that are really trying to. To clean these forever chemicals up and are actually you know, pushing the companies that created the mess to pay for the cleanup. But it's engaging, I feel like. I mean, I love horror, like I said. So I always, in almost every single episode mention some kind of horror reference.

Harry Duran [00:37:42]: Because it's a horrific situation.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:37:45]: It's horrific. And also like Friday the 13th fans, they filmed the first Friday the 13th movie in New Jersey. So actually like went out to the, the Boy Scouts camp where they filmed it, went on a tour and it was great. I had a great day. Four hours wandering around with this tour guide. It was great.

Harry Duran [00:38:00]: Did you do it at night?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:38:02]: Oh no, no, we didn't do it at night. That's more expensive. It was already okay, but yeah, but it was fun.

Harry Duran [00:38:08]: So how do you get rid of Forever chemicals?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:38:11]: Oh yeah, that's the million dollar question. Like literally whoever ever does discover a way to officially remove them is going to be super wealthy. So there's all these ideas. One idea in particular like that we feature in the show is a lab in Princeton is, has created like, or discovered, I should say bacteria heard that will eat. And so they have a patent on that. And then there's other folks at different universities in particular that are, you know, have patents on different other ways of doing it. But right now there is no way to destroy Forever Chemicals once and for all. So whoever finds that out, I mean, people will like, you know, people incinerate, sure. These chemicals, but they're not destroyed forever. It goes into the air.

Harry Duran [00:38:55]: Yeah. So someone else's problem.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:38:57]: Someone else's problem. You know, the next state when the air blows that way, Connecticut, I don't know. So you know, it's looking at that. But again, yeah, whoever. And the race is on. I mean, people are really seriously thinking like if we can do this first, we will make so much money off of this. And they want to help.

Harry Duran [00:39:13]: As long as it's profit driven too. That's what keeps them motivated.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:39:15]: Well, you know the society we live in. So like. Yeah.

Harry Duran [00:39:18]: Vaguely familiar with it. Well, it's the issue with microplastics too. Right? They're like in everything now.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:39:23]: Yes. What is it that we have like a spoon sized like plastic in our brain or something? I was reading.

Harry Duran [00:39:29]: Well, they have tests now too. I'm almost afraid to take it. I saw someone develop a test to test microplastics in our bloodstream. So babies are being born with it. It's crazy.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:39:38]: Oh yeah.

Harry Duran [00:39:38]: Because. Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:39:39]: It's in that umbilical cord. Yeah. In the blood. Yeah. I don't have children, so it's a harsh world.

Harry Duran [00:39:45]: They're being introduced to for sure. But it's interesting how nature always finds a way because then you see, like, these bacteria that automatically. Not automatically, but just, like, evolve and form and they're just like, okay, we'll figure it out. Like, we'll eat up, like, the microplastics with this new strain of bacteria that never existed before. It's crazy when you think about how nature's, like, trying to fix the mess that we keep.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:40:06]: Yeah. I mean, that's the beautiful thing of it. And even if it means getting rid of us.

Harry Duran [00:40:10]: Yeah, for sure. I mean, I always say, just need a strong enough earthquake or a tsunami. It just shakes us off like fleas. It's. The earth will be here long afterward.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:40:19]: Oh, it will. Yes, yes.

Harry Duran [00:40:22]: And if I follow those ancient civilization podcasts and shows, and those are rabbit holes for me, but you see, like, they ask serious questions like, okay, what would be around from a civilization like 3,000 or 10,000 years ago? Nothing. Like, you know, considering, like, you think, like, all this stuff is going to be around. Metal rusts, you know, all this stuff is just going to be gone and you just will be gone. And people will be studying, trying to find the remnants of our civilization, like, a thousand years ago.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:40:44]: It'll just be landfills of plastic bags.

Harry Duran [00:40:47]: Yeah. That's all. And roaches.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:40:51]: You know, that's okay.

Harry Duran [00:40:52]: So how do you decide what to work on is it's. You want to stay stick within this realm of, like, the environment and what's happening because that's your wheelhouse. Or is there something when you look at a project, is there something about it that says, hey, this is a new challenge for me, or something I haven't tried before?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:41:09]: Yeah. I mean, my whole, like, obsession for the past couple of years has been around hazardous sites.

Harry Duran [00:41:15]: Okay.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:41:16]: I've just become super obsessed with hazardous sites. And not just super fun sites, but just the idea for me of, like, how we got to this place. I mean, historical record of. At one point in time, we were definitely okay with just dumping every kind of chemical into a body of water. Just like, the psyche of it. That it just is interesting to me about why people. Because it really is a story of, like, why people do the things that they do and what the ramifications and the lasting impact is when people think, oh, well, I'm going to be dead in 50, 60 years, so why would it matter? That is really interesting to me. And also, like, how do people. Like those in gown, for instance, or a lot of Parts of Brooklyn in particular that are around hazardous sites. How does the community's identity get formed and play off of being in these spaces? How do you react to being in this space? And like, why would you want to live?

Harry Duran [00:42:11]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:42:11]: In Gowan is, for instance, when, you know, you knew about the canal and the problems there, you know.

Harry Duran [00:42:17]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:42:18]: So that's why I'm fascinated with it. And you get so many different colorful characters. I'm sure the people I've met, whether they love, hate, or whatever they think of me, have, have just been very interesting. And it's, you know, it's also a tale of, you know, money. I mean, mentioning the property value, but also, you know, what makes a neighborhood and how neighborhoods change. You know, like the gentrification, if you will, of that particular neighborhood. So that's sort of like. I think there are just so many places in the country and around the world to do stories on around hazardous sites. And like, I think that. And I'm hoping that people won't completely get bored with my pitches around it. But I mean, you know, and like keeping tabs on these sites too. I think that there aren't many folks that will report on. Oh, okay. So the cleanup process is over. Everything looks okay. We're not good with follow up on what actually happened five, 10 years later. So like Love Canal, I don't know if you're familiar. So Love Canal, we all thought everything was fine and dandy with that. They're wanting to rebuild on Love Canal and finding that it's actually not as clean as we once thought. It's not as bad as it was. Yeah, but so you know, these communities. And also like cancer doesn't necessarily appear overnight. What happens long term to people who were born and raised in these areas. So I would love more people to get involved in the hazardous sight beat, sort of call it.

Harry Duran [00:43:50]: Yeah. Is that a crew? You have a WhatsApp group or something for?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:43:54]: We do not. I would love to see more people. Usually I'll see like when I see reporting on it outside of my own reporting, it's like someone will do a one off because their beat is science. Are there? Beat is like health. But I would love to like have my own little like group that we. My little posse Hazardous sites meetup. Yeah. You know, we just go around to these different sites. You know.

Harry Duran [00:44:14]: How many Superfund sites are there?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:44:16]: There are four federal Superfund sites in New York City.

Harry Duran [00:44:19]: Just in New York City.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:44:20]: Just in New York City. And there's also state Superfund Sites in New York City, too, but the federal ones are the big issue.

Harry Duran [00:44:26]: But, yeah, it's crazy just thinking back in the days of, like, treating the rivers and the oceans like a toilet bowl. Just like, oh, it'll just. It'll disappear somewhere. Like, almost like people like, in New York City flushing alligators down toilets or something like that.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:44:38]: But again, it's like, it's New Jersey's problem. I love watching the trash barges go to Jersey.

Harry Duran [00:44:43]: Yeah, Poor Jersey. No love, no respect for Jersey.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:44:47]: You know, I will say this, like, I had all the same stereotypes that I'm sure a lot of people have about Jersey prior to doing the Hazard New Jersey show. But after spending, you know, three years going back and forth in different communities, like, I have a whole new respect and, like, profound admiration for people in New Jersey, especially some. I mean, there's some of the activists in Newark that I'm like, you've been doing this for 40 years.

Harry Duran [00:45:10]: Wow.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:45:10]: I mean, Newark, New Newark just routinely gets crapped on.

Harry Duran [00:45:14]: That's. Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:45:16]: And it's just completely not fair. And I wish more people would, like, be able to go and walk around and see Newark as. Yeah, Newark is not a bad place. Like, don't be afraid of Newark.

Harry Duran [00:45:24]: Shout out to Newark.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:45:26]: You know, I never thought I would say. I mean, never thought I'd do a.

Harry Duran [00:45:29]: Shot big enough new work. Awesome. Do you have aspirations for doing, like, an actual documentary?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:45:35]: I've thought about it. I've worked on documentaries behind the scenes. I don't operate cameras and I don't edit video. I've tried, and it just frustrates me. I'll stick with just audio editing, but no, I've thought about doing, like, at least a short doc, my Hometown, that I mentioned, Seguin. There's been environmental issues since I was a kid and doing something there. Or like, some of the other smaller towns.

Harry Duran [00:45:56]: Bringing it full circle. That'd be great.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:45:58]: Bring it full circle. Yes.

Harry Duran [00:46:00]: Small town girl makes good.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:46:04]: I'm sure everybody wants to talk about the environment with me and Sagim.

Harry Duran [00:46:07]: There's that beauty queen.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:46:09]: Yeah.

Harry Duran [00:46:09]: Talking about environment again.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:46:11]: I mean, the funny thing is, I think the person that actually won, if I'm remembering correctly, used to know her husband, works for oil and gas in Houston. I decided. So we all still kind of know each other, you know.

Harry Duran [00:46:21]: That's funny.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:46:21]: Yeah.

Harry Duran [00:46:23]: So a couple of questions as we wrap up. Thank you for this very fun conversation. What's something you've changed your mind about recently?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:46:31]: Something I've changed my mind about? Well, this is probably horror related because I do spend a lot of time watching horror movies. Okay. I will just give a shout out if people are not familiar. I was totally opposed to watching anything by a filmmaker named Mike Flanagan. He does horror movies, miniseries, specifically on Netflix because all the Netflix marketing looked terrible. And then I gave it a shot, and I watched a Netflix miniseries that's even more relevant today than it was when it was made. It's called Midnight Mass, which is one of the best things I have ever seen, really, in my life. And so I ended up watching everything Mike Flanagan has ever done.

Harry Duran [00:47:11]: Oh, wow.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:47:11]: I feel like if you are in a depressed mood because of the state of the world, you should watch a.

Harry Duran [00:47:16]: Horror series to get you out of your depression.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:47:18]: It has so much heart. It's not, you know, I'm just like. I'm crying every episode.

Harry Duran [00:47:23]: Movie.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:47:24]: I'm like, they're vampires and I'm crying. Mike Flanagan.

Harry Duran [00:47:28]: Okay. I might have to put that on the list. So I think the move towards the gory stuff just completely turned me off because, I mean, I grew up with some of the horror movies, the classics, like Halloween, Friday 13th, all that sort of stuff. Freddy Krueger. But then it just got to this weird, like, you know, blood and gore stuff that I was just like, nope.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:47:45]: The torture porn, like the early 2000s.

Harry Duran [00:47:48]: Yeah, it's nasty.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:47:49]: There's no gore. Like, I shouldn't say. No. There's very little gore in Mike Flanagan's work.

Harry Duran [00:47:54]: Okay.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:47:54]: And, like, if you're, you know, there's the intersection because he explores a lot about religion and, you know, substance use disorder and.

Harry Duran [00:48:02]: Okay, literally.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:48:03]: But be prepared to cry. Even my partner, I'm like, are you crying? And he was like, I'm a man. I can cry.

Harry Duran [00:48:09]: And I'm like, I. Oh, speaking of amazing series, have you seen Adolescence on Netflix?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:48:14]: I've never heard of it, no. What is. I'm gonna look.

Harry Duran [00:48:17]: Wow. Four part series. British. It is. There's four episodes. Each episode is a single camera shot. So the entire 45 minutes of the episode is one camera. Following the actors around it is mind blowing from a technical standpoint. The acting is crazy. I cried on that last episode. Speaking of crying, it's got a hundred. Last time we checked, it's got a hundred ratings on Rotten Tomatoes.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:48:44]: Wow. And it's British.

Harry Duran [00:48:45]: Yeah. I've never seen it. Yeah, never seen it. It's one of the best shows on TV I've ever seen. And, you know, for me, it's usually like, I'll say that about Breaking Bad, you know. And what was the one with the chef? The bear.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:48:58]: Oh, I haven't seen the bear.

Harry Duran [00:48:59]: The bear's really good. Yeah. Yeah, it's really good. Highly. But adolescence, it's just mind blowing. From every. The acting is so good, but then you're sucked in by the fact that it's a single camera. So, like, the technical aspects of how they pull it off. It's almost like you're watching a play because it's, like, so intimate. And they pull it off because the acting is really good, too.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:49:19]: So, yeah, I have it.

Harry Duran [00:49:20]: People are raped. Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:49:21]: On my list now. Yes, I will watch this. And especially, yes, if it has the crying. I don't know. It's therapeutic now.

Harry Duran [00:49:27]: Mixed dudes cry. Yeah. I mean, I'm down for a good cry. It's the therapy you didn't know you needed. It's like, whoa. My partner was like. She's like, okay, that clearly hit a nerve. Like, that scene. She's like, let's talk.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:49:39]: Yeah, let's talk about. Oh.

Harry Duran [00:49:41]: I mean, I'm like, okay. Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:49:42]: Even with, like, midnight mass, like, it hit such a nerve, too, that I called my mom after, like, one of the, like, I think it was, like, the second episode, and I go, what religion was I baptized in? And I always thought that I was, you know, raised, like, lightly Lutheran. My mom found my baptismal, like, certificate. She was like, it's not Lutheran. And I go, what is it? She was like, it's the United Church of Christ. And I was like, what am I? What am I Now? She's like, you're not even related to.

Harry Duran [00:50:05]: Your whole identity has just been, like, shattered.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:50:07]: Yes. So thanks, Mike Flanagan, for that.

Harry Duran [00:50:10]: That's another T shirt, too. Lightly Lutheran. You'll get a lot of questions.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:50:15]: Not anymore. I'm not Lutheran at all.

Harry Duran [00:50:20]: What is the most misunderstood thing about you?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:50:22]: Oh, my last name and how to pronounce. I do not choose my last name, am I?

Harry Duran [00:50:29]: Let's set the record straight here then.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:50:30]: My last name is pronounced Gas Pore, and it's my mom's maiden last name, which is Goss, and my dad's last name, which is Poiret. And they decided to give me both last names. And so my mom's family only calls me Jordan Goss, like in cards. And my dad's site only writes Jordan Poiret, but my legal name is Jordan Goss Poiret. And it's confusing.

Harry Duran [00:50:50]: Is there an accent at the end of the E?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:50:52]: There's supposed to be, like, some acute. I Don't. I'm not French. I don't know. I'm blazey.

Harry Duran [00:50:58]: Yeah.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:50:58]: So it's an apostrophe for life. Like, I don't know. I do have an English major. I am an English major, but, like, yeah, just fine.

Harry Duran [00:51:06]: So what's next for you? Like, what are you excited about? Is it you're gonna stay focused on, like, hazard and put your attention there or. Given the. The peek at your past LinkedIn experiences, it sounds like you might be itching for a change.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:51:20]: Well, I am looking for a home to do another hazard series, so I was considering doing a. Something in Texas. So, like a hazard, like ATX or a hazard San Antonio or something like that to go back to Texas, even though I said I don't want to live there, which I'm not going to move there again to do something like that because I think that it's needed. There's a lot of. Still a lot of hazardous sites in Texas, so. Yes. So that's my next thing.

Harry Duran [00:51:45]: Okay. Seems like you have no shortage of material. You know, we're going to run out of stuff to talk about.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:51:49]: No. As long as people, you know, will still take it and funding hasn't completely dried up, which is a whole other thing. But, so.

Harry Duran [00:51:58]: Well, thanks for reaching out and connecting. I know we had a couple of, like, reschedules.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:52:02]: Yes. Because my work schedule and stuff going.

Harry Duran [00:52:04]: On and mine, I think I had a reschedule one as well, so. But I'm glad we got to finally connect. And it's always nice to connect with some New York City energy as well. It's fun. So, you know, say hi to the rats for me.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:52:14]: I. I'm just like, you stay over there. I'm here. We're good.

Harry Duran [00:52:19]: We were somewhere at night one time, and we were coming back to get the car from a parking lot, and it's one of those buildings that had a ton of construction going on. And all of a sudden, across the sidewalk, a sea of rats just, like, was running across the sidewalk. Probably 50 or 60 rats. And we're like, we had to go through there because of, like, the scaffolding. And my friend grabbed the stick and he starts banging on the ground. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Screaming. And they just parted like the sea. And then. But the scary part is, like, as we were walking through, they just closed ranks behind us. And just like, we gotta keep moving forward. It was like an Indiana Jones thing. It was so gnarly. And so New York City. I'm just like, this fucking town, man. Is crazy. It just like you love hate relationship with it, you know?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:52:58]: Yes. That is insane. I wish there would have been video.

Harry Duran [00:53:00]: Of that because it was just made. Yeah, a lot of people sick, but. Well, thanks again for connecting. I'm so glad, you know, got to hear your story and all the amazing things you've been working on and your podcast, OG Story is really great and inspiring. And I think also how you've, like, decided from early on, like, how much of a passion you had for writing and just been following that thread through and just this idea of, like following your passion, I think this is like a really awesome example of that. And so the fact that you continue to do that is truly inspiring. So thank you.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:53:29]: Well, I appreciate it. Thanks, Harry. Talk soon.

Harry Duran [00:53:32]: Where's the best place for folks to kind of learn more about you and see what's going on in your life?

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:53:36]: Yeah, I mean, LinkedIn. You can message me on LinkedIn. I'm always LinkedIn. I'm on LinkedIn if you want to know all about me. Yes.

Harry Duran [00:53:43]: So we'll have links to your LinkedIn and the show in the show notes as well. Thanks, Jordan.

Jordan Gass-Pooré [00:53:47]: Thanks. Bye, Harry.