Write Hard, Die Free: Dispatches from the Battlefields & Barrooms of the Great Alaska Newspaper War

Howard Weaver advanced from foot soldier to field marshal in the Alaska Newspaper War, but never left the fight. He spent time with small-town hoodlums and big-time politicians, crossed swords with Big Oil and Big Labor, edited the Anchorage Daily News to the most unlikely David and Goliath upset in American journalism and helped win two Pulitzer Prizes. Weaver cared passionately and fought fiercely in every political struggle of his era, from oil development to Native sovereignty, from park land designations to environmental activism. Weaver has pulled no punches in this account of a fierce, take-no-prisoners battle.

“Aa wonderful storyteller with amazing tales to tell of fighting for the heart and soul of Alaska and of journalism. This is the last great newspaper book.” ~Jeff Jarvis, professor, author and journalism futurist

“There was a time when the newspaper business was actually fun, as Weaver reminds us in this in this riveting book of tales from the wild frontier of American journalism.” ~Dave Barry, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist, best-selling author

“Come behind the barricades of the battle for the soul of America’s last frontier. Throw away your McGinniss, Bodett, and especially Palin. This is the book about Alaska you need.” ~Tom Bodett, author, humorist and Alaska ex-pat

“This reads like an X-ray of someone with an oversized heart. It’s about the battle between good and evil, but the most stunning portrait is really about the author.” ~John Larson, NBC and PBS correspondent, longtime Alaska newsman