"Nick Gillespie s to libertarianism what Lou Reed is to rock ‘n’ roll, the quintessence of its outlaw spirit," writes The New York Times Magazine." He is an editor at large at Reason, where he hosts The Reason Interview with Nick Gillespie podcast and writes frequently about drug policy, use, and culture, including a March 2021 cover story titled "The Mushroom Moment Manifesto" that called for the legalization of all drugs. He is a former columnist for Time and The Daily Beast, co-author of The Declaration of Independents (2012), a Ph.D. in American literature, and a two-time finalist for National Magazine Awards. A music, movie, and teen magazine editor back in the day, Gillespie is likely the only living journalist to have interviewed Ozzy Osbourne, Johnny Rotten, Guns N' Roses Slash, and Nobel laureates in economics Milton Friedman, Gary Becker, and Vernon Smith. He is the father of two sons and lives in New York City.