Allison Kilkenny

Infobox Person
name = Allison Margaret Kilkenny


caption = Allison Kilkenny, Huffington Post columnist
birth_date = birth date and age|1983|03|05
birth_place = Secaucus, New Jersey
death_date =
death_place =
other_names =
occupation = Author, media pundit, journalist, newspaper contributor, radio host, and columnistAllison Margaret Kilkenny (born March 5, 1983) is a social critic and columnist for the Huffington Post. Kilkenny is best known for her contributions to left-wing political and humor websites like the Huffington Post, Talking Points Memo, 23/6, the Beast, Counterpunch.org, the Nation, and Alternet.org [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-kilkenny] . Her style is profane, humorous, and frequently hostile to political opponents. Kilkenny has often been the subject of controversy as her criticisms are often aimed at both Democrats and Republicans, though she also writes about a host of issues including atheism, media reform, and vegetarianism. [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-kilkenny/god-hates-women_b_56984.html] [http://www.alternet.org/authors/9574] Kilkenny is a regular guest on SIRIUS radio and also hosts the internet talk radio show [http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Drunken-Politics Drunken Politics] along with comedian and partner Jamie Kilstein [http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Drunken-Politics] .

Early life and College

Allison Kilkenny was born to Raymond and Margaret Kilkenny in Secaucus, New Jersey. She is of Irish ancestry. An only child, Kilkenny was raised as a Roman Catholic and attended public schools in Middletown, New Jersey until her family moved to Naperville, Illinois in 1998. In Naperville, Kilkenny attended CCD classes and masses at St. Peter & Paul Catholic Church. During this time, Kilkenny began to question the idea of an omnipotent God. She is an outspoken atheist and frequently criticizes organized religion in her articles. [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-kilkenny/pray-yourself-better-its_b_110251.html] [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-kilkenny/jesus-arm-wrestled-dinosa_b_102921.html]

Kilkenny attended Illinois State University, where she studied English and Mass Media, and eventually graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2004. In 2003, Kilkenny studied abroad at Canterbury Christ Church University in England for a semester.

Writing Contributions

Huffington Post

In 2007, Kilkenny wrote "Why Don't Young Women Care About the End of The World?" [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-kilkenny/why-dont-young-women-car_b_52160.html] , a piece criticizing the apathy of an entire generation of women. A friend e-mailed the piece to founder of the Huffington Post, Arianna Huffington. Huffington liked the article and asked Kilkenny to post her work regularly to the website. Kilkenny continues to be a political contributor for Huffington Post, and frequently garners strong reactions from readers, since she is one of the most outspoken writers on the site.

The Beast

Kilkenny is also a regular contributor to The Beast (newspaper), the biweekly newspaper founded by Matt Taibbi and Kevin McElwee in 2002. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beast_(newspaper)] Her most popular "Beast" work includes: [http://www.buffalobeast.com/129/kilkenny-carlin.html 7 Words You’d Never Hear Today] , which Kilkenny wrote shortly after comedian George Carlin's death, and in which Kilkenny praises Carlin's bravery in dealing with censorship [http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2008-06-23-carlin-obit_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip] , but also predicts the future will be corporately-controlled and independent artistic expression will be impossible.

Other News and Humor Contributions

Kilkenny's work has appeared on the Nation (' [http://www.thenation.com/doc/20080407/subprime Youth Surviving Subprime] ') [http://www.thenation.com/doc/20080407/subprime] and Alternet.org (' [http://www.alternet.org/environment/89015/?page=2 Contaminated Veggies Are the Meat Industry's Fault] ') [http://www.alternet.org/story/89015/contaminated_veggies_are_the_meat_industry%E2%80%99s_fault/] , along with many other political and comedy websites.

Kilkenny regularly contributes cartoons to Huffington Post's satiric news and opinion website 23/6. [http://www.236.com/bio.php?author_name=Allison%20Kilkenny] .

She has also contributed pieces to Dave Eggers' McSweeney's, the daily-updated literature and humor site.

IRIUS and Drunken Politics

Kilkenny is a frequent guest on the SIRIUS Satellite radio show "Blog Bunker, " a roundtable featuring a selection of the over 100 million bloggers around the globe. [http://www.sirius.com/indietalk] She is also the co-creator, director, and co-host of Drunken Politics, an internet political radio show, which Kilkenny and co-host comedian Jamie Kilstein describe as "being like CNN, but with more swearing." [http://myspace.com/drunkenpoliticsradio] Drunken Politics is available on iTunes for free download.

Opinions and Points of View

Though many describe Kilkenny as a liberal, she also criticizes the Democratic party. cquote|A lot of people say I'm liberal, which I don't agree with. Democrats piss me off as much as, if not more, than Conservatives, though Republicans can be assholes, too. But you can find kind, compassionate, intelligent people on both sides of the political spectrum, just like you can find douchebags in all D.C. corners. I can't call myself Libertarian either because I believe there is a place for large government programs, and I believe regulation is essential in the global marketplace. I'd have to categorize myself as 'Other.' [http://www.feministing.com/archives/008952.html]

References

External links

* [http://www.allisonkilkenny.com Allison Kilkenny's official website]
* [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-kilkenny/#blogger_bio Huffington Post archives]
* [http://ax.phobos.apple.com.edgesuite.net/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/browserRedirect?url=itms%253A%252F%252Fax.phobos.apple.com.edgesuite.net%252FWebObjects%252FMZStore.woa%252Fwa%252FviewPodcast%253Fid%253D289941927 Drunken Politic's free podcast]
* [http://www.236.com/contributors/allison_kilkenny/ 23/6 Contributions]
* [http://www.buffalobeast.com/searchresult.htm?domains=www.buffalobeast.com%3Bwww.buffalobeast.blogspot.com&q=Allison+Kilkenny&sitesearch=www.buffalobeast.com&sa=Search&client=pub-7153667940347909&forid=1&ie=ISO-8859-1&oe=ISO-8859-1&cof=GALT%3A%23008000%3BGL%3A1%3BDIV%3A%23336699%3BVLC%3A663399%3BAH%3Acenter%3BBGC%3AFFFFFF%3BLBGC%3A336699%3BALC%3A0000FF%3BLC%3A0000FF%3BT%3A000000%3BGFNT%3A0000FF%3BGIMP%3A0000FF%3BFORID%3A11&hl=en' the Beast Contributions]