A. Kam Napier
Born and raised on Oʻahu, I’ve been very fortunate to have built a career as a writer and editor right here at home.
Most recently, I was Editor-in-Chief of Pacific Business News for 10 years, from April 2014 to August 2024. Before that, I worked at Honolulu Magazine for 19 years, the last eight of which I served as editor, leading the publication to General Excellence Awards from the City and Regional Magazine Association. Along the way, I’ve accumulated a box full of award plaques from the Hawaiʻi Publishers Association, the Society of Professional Journalists Hawaiʻi Chapter and more for my articles on everything from architecture to zoology, as well as for my column writing — my first love in journalism going back to the Cane Tassel, the school paper of Waipahu High School. As a freelance writer, I’ve appeared in the Honolulu Weekly, Hawaiʻi Business Magazine, Hana Hou! and Honolulu Civil Beat.
Throughout my career, I’ve been blessed to be a part of local publications with long and distinguished histories. Honolulu Magazine, for example, dates back to 1888, when it was founded under a royal charter by King David Kalakaua. With Aloha State Daily, I’m thrilled at this opportunity to be the first editor of something Hawaiʻi hasn’t seen in years — a new news publication! One that is independently owned and locally operated.
Our goal is to inform, delight and surprise you. In our journalism, we will strive for true neutrality, telling you what happened, not what to think or how to feel about what happened, believing that the best journalism comes from curiosity and intelligence. There is a place for strong, opinionated voices at ASD, and you’ll find them among our regular columnists and community voices pieces.
Hawaiʻi has some big challenges, which we’ll cover from the perspective of how they impact you. Hawaiʻi is also full of amazing people doing incredible things and we’re looking forward to telling you their stories, as well. The Islands are full of inspiration and, of course, Aloha!
SPJ Hawai‘i 2025 Excellence in Journalism Awards: First Place, Best Overall News Site, for “Aloha State Daily,” by the ASD Newsroom in the Internet Division; First Place, Column Writing or Blog/News, “Pipikaula Corner,” in the News Media division, open to all print and digital; First Place, Breaking News Reporting, “Tsunami warning canceled,” ASD Staff; Third Place, Data Journalism Story or Series, “Hawai'i education then and now: A 50-year view on soaring costs and declining enrollment"; Third Place, Editorial Opinion, “Pipikaula Corner: Making elections elections again.”
A. Kam Napier can be reached at kam@alohastatedaily.com.
Latest from A. Kam Napier
Aloha State Daily named 'Best Overall News Site'
The Hawai‘i Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists held its annual awards Wednesday night. For our work throughout 2025 — our first year —Aloha State Daily won 14 awards, including best online news site.
A. Kam NapierJuly 30, 2026
Pipikaula Corner: Fauci revealed as fear-mongering, fame-loving fraud
It's not getting much media attention, but the private diaries of Dr. Anthony Fauci have been published online by Sen. Rand Paul in advance of his hearings this week into Fauci and Covid-19. What they reveal across thousands of pages is man in love with the adulation he received, who privately knew that many of things he said publicly about the pandemic were wild exaggerations.
A. Kam NapierJuly 29, 2026
Pipikaula Corner: The company they keep
Hawai‘i Democrats invited a special Mainland guest to their annual convention in late May, as keynote speaker. If this is their role model, ASD Editor in Chief A. Kam Napier opines, Hawai‘i is in trouble.
A. Kam NapierJuly 22, 2026
Pipikaula Corner: Hawai‘i's election amnesia
A Civil Beat op-ed this weekend freaked out over Pres. Trump's election security speech and the SAVE Act. Memories have gotten pretty short in the Islands; however, because voting in person and showing ID to vote were uncontroversial good-government reforms that Hawai‘i Democrats themselves put in place in 1970. These reforms governed our elections reliably until Democrats changed the laws again in 2019.
A. Kam NapierJuly 21, 2026
Pipikaula Corner: Hawai‘i's fraudulent vape ban
On Tuesday, Hawai‘i Gov. Josh Green signed into law a ban on "99.9% of disposable vapes." It's a move totally at odds with the harm reduction strategies the state uses for all other vices, argues ASD Editor in Chief A. Kam Napier. And it's in response to a non-existent crisis, in that teen smoking and vaping is the lowest it's ever been in a quarter century.
A. Kam NapierJuly 08, 2026
Remembering Hawai‘i's bicentennial license plates
For the first time in 1976, Hawai‘i license plates transformed into something beyond just letters and numbers on a colored background. They became the state's first graphic plates, designed to be attractive and convey their times. Across the country, these bicentennial plates paved the way for license plates with artistic flair.
A. Kam NapierJune 30, 2026
