Kate Maxwell is the cofounder and publisher of The Mendocino Voice, an online local news outlet in Northern California, which is transitioning to community ownership as a cooperative. Prior to starting The Mendocino Voice in 2016, she worked as a reporter in in print, online and radio, with her work being published in regional and national outlets. Throughout her work, Maxwell has focused on increasing democratic engagement with and access to local and public media, ranging from libraries to local news. She has also been the co-owner of a co-op bookstore, an archivist, and an oral historian, community organizer, and ice cream truck driver, .