Matt Keeley Writing Portfolio

Hello, my name is Matt Keeley, and outside of being the founder and editor of Kittysneezes, I’ve written for a number of other outlets. I’ve pulled out a few of my favorites to spotlight here, and if you’re looking to hire me for something, please get in contact at matt@kittysneezes.com.

I’ve always enjoyed editing and writing, and as an editor, I enjoy working as the go-between between higher-ups and my team. I enjoy working with writers, particularly younger or green writers, and providing feedback and a mentorship role.

As a writer, I’ve always prided myself on my speed, but more importantly, being able to explain clearly what the story is. I also always try to anticipate questions the reader may ask. I’m also a lifelong grammar nerd, and even at Newsweek, I sometimes found myself as the person asked for quick style questions.

Here are a few of my favorite pieces separated out by publication.

Newsweek

I wrote for Newsweek as a freelancer at first, before being hired on full-time as an editor on the night desk for both news and trending topics. My complete archives can be found here. I worked at Newsweek between 2019-2022.

What Is Satanic Panic? Debunked ’80s Conspiracy Theory Is Making a Return

The “satanic panic” conspiracy theory was referenced in the latest season of Stranger Things. Though in real life, the satanic panic fears were thoroughly debunked, the claims are unfortunately gaining steam on social media once again.

Anna Biller, the writer and director of films like The Love Witch and Viva, recently took to Twitter to promote the conspiracy theory, as did Robert J. Mariani, editor of online magazine Return.Life. Biller and Mariani focused primarily on the McMartin Preschool case, one of the highest profile examples of the conspiracy theory in the mainstream.

Full text here.

Disability Activist Says Air Canada Ruined Wheelchair: ‘Wet and Mangled’

Gurza explained the situation to Newsweek, saying that the airline said his chair was wet due to rain.

“Why wouldn’t they put the chair in a container is what I’d like to understand. They didn’t even bother to use a tarp,” Gurza said.

The joystick damage, he said, was due to mishandling while fitting the wheelchair into the cargo hold. In addition, the custom seating was damaged as well, making Gurza unable to sit upright and leaving him in pain while using the chair.

Full text here.

Four Times As Many Service Members and Vets Died By Suicide Since 9/11 Than in Combat

Approximately four times as many active duty personnel and veterans have died by suicide than in combat since September 11, 2001, according to a new study published Monday by the Costs of War Project.

The paper, written by Thomas Howard Suitt III, Ph.D, estimates that 30,177 service members and veterans of post-9/11 wars have died by suicide, compared to the 7,057 service members killed in action, about 4.28 times as many.

“The health, safety, and well-being of our military community is paramount to the readiness of the Total Force. Every death by suicide is a tragedy. Over time, suicide deaths have increased in the broader U.S. general population. Our Service members are not immune to trends that occur in society,” a Pentagon spokesperson told Newsweek.

Full text here.

Hornet Stories

I wrote for Hornet Stories and was the website’s managing editor from 2015-2018. My complete archives can be found here.

The First Ever AIDS Charity Music Single Was Incredibly Dark and Boldly Gay

When we think of charity singles, we usually think of the schmaltzy feel-good numbers released seemingly en masse in the mid-1980s. Some meant to guilt you into supporting the charity (like 1984’s regrettable “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” which, among a multitude of other sins, included the line “Well, tonight, thank God it’s them instead of you”). Others — like 1985’s “We Are The World” — combined a plea for support with vague warm-fuzzies to make listeners feel good.

But then there’s Coil’s cover of “Tainted Love” — the very first AIDS charity single, and it’s the very opposite of a warm-fuzzy. In fact, it’s dark, but it’s also bold and daring in how it depicts AIDS’ effect on men who have sex with men.

Full text here.

No, It’s Actually Not ‘Intolerance’ When Liberals Reject Intolerant Conservative Ideals

One of the most common rallying cries of right-wing conservatives is that liberals, who love to preach about “tolerance,” are actually being intolerant when pushing back against arguments of the right. Well, according to philosopher Karl Popper, this is precisely the right thing to do. Outlined in 1945, his “paradox of tolerance” predicted that the “intolerant” would appeal to the ideals of tolerance, using it to gain power and attempt to end tolerance once and for all.

Full text here.

How Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s Gay, Controversial Music Videos Shaped the ’80s

These days, Frankie Goes to Hollywood are considered a one-hit wonder — or a punchline. A “FRANKIE SAY RELAX” shirt is an easy shorthand for cheap comedies to say “Hey, the 1980s existed!”

But, during their time, Frankie Goes to Hollywood were a big deal — and were unabashedly gay. Their unflinching and, pardon the pun, frank lyrics were married to brilliant music. The debut LP Welcome to the Pleasuredome is a masterpiece. But as good as their album was, it was their music videos that really solidified their place in the canon.

Full text here.

The New Civil Rights Movement

I’ve freelanced for the New Civil Rights Movement since June 2023, continuing through today. My complete archives can be found here.

Donald Trump Says He’ll ‘Vigorously Pursue the Death Penalty’ Following Biden’s Commutations

Though Grover Cleveland is best known as the first president to serve two non-consecutive terms as president, he has another thing in common with Trump. Trump’s 13 federal executions is the highest number in the modern era, while Cleveland is the president who executed the most federal prisoners. In Cleveland’s first term, 23 prisoners were executed, and another 24 were killed in his second, for a total of 47.  Only Ulysses S. Grant and James Monroe have more executions than Trump, at 23 and 20 respectively.

Full text here.

No, Haitian Immigrants Aren’t Eating Cats in Ohio

Though it’s been a common urban legend that Haitian people eat cats, it does not appear to be based in any fact. A Google Books search of books with the subject “haiti” prints up nothing about eating cats being a part of Haitian culture. In fact, the only references are similar to ones like in the book Tropics of Haiti: Race and the Literary History of the Haitian Revolution in the Atlantic World, 1789-1865 by Marlene Daut. In this book, Daut refers to a claim of cat-eating by Edward Long, a historian who died in 1813—a claim Daut calls “bizarre.”

The idea of Haitians eating people’s pet cats is just another ugly urban legend with no basis in reality—much like similar claims against other immigrants to America. While it’s generally safest to keep your cats inside, it’s not to protect them from hungry people, but from being hit by cars.

Full text here.

Wokeness Did Not Doom the Titan Sub, No Matter What Conservatives Say

In the interests of brevity, I’ll stop here in laying out the various technical problems with the sub. But at this point it’s clear that “wokeness” had nothing to do with the tragedy. If one wants to blame a cultural phenomenon, a more reasonable target would be the “move fast, break things” ethos first laid out by Mark Zuckerberg. Had OceanGate followed the standards of the private submersible industry, instead of attempting to reinvent the wheel, they’d likely have been fine. How do I know? Rush himself revealed the reason in a 2018 interview with Smithsonian Magazine.

“There hasn’t been an injury in the commercial sub industry in over 35 years. It’s obscenely safe, because they have all these regulations. But it also hasn’t innovated or grown—because they have all these regulations,” Rush said.

Perhaps those regulations are a good thing.

Full text here.

LGBTQ Nation

I’ve been freelancing for LGBTQ Nation since October 2023. My complete archives can be found here.

GOP law forces library to require ID from patrons under 30 to access “adult” books

The Donnelly Library is a one-room library with 1,204 square feet. Though the law requires librarians to put challenged books in an adult-only space, the Donnelly library is so small that it was forced to go adults-only.

This is not to say that children are barred from the library. Children either need to have a parent with them or a signed waiver from their guardian granting access to the library. The waiver has three options for parents: one, to never allow the child inside without an adult; two, to allow the child into the library for its programming, but barring them from checking anything out, including e-tablets; and, three, allowing access to the library and the ability to check out items, with the parent waiving their right under the new law to go after the library for civil penalties.

Scheline told LGBTQ Nation that her local patrons were largely more than happy to allow their children access.

“We’ve had over 100 families sign [the waiver]. Only two have chosen options one and two,” Scheline said. “It’s gone well so far. I’ve not had any hiccups. I suppose at some point there will be one because, well, you know, all good things come to an end.”

The Donnelly Library is continuing its programs for children. When LGBTQ Nation reached out to Scheline, her library had about 20 children inside for an educational summer day camp. The kids were learning about maps, making crafts, and preparing for a walking field trip to the local farmer’s market.

Full text here.

The Supreme Court’s possibly first gay judge was a fearless advocate of racial equality

As Associate Justice, Murphy continued in his fight for equality and protecting workers. While conservative Justice Felix Frankfurter gave him the disparaging nickname “The Saint,” legal scholar Alfred L. Scanlan instead called him “The conscience of a Court.”

One of his most famous writings was a dissent in Korematsu v. United States, the 1944 ruling that declared that the internment camps for Japanese Americans during World War II were constitutional. Murphy wrote that the ruling was the “legalization of racism” and was the first time the word “racism” appeared in a Supreme Court opinion.

Full text here.

This rightwing activist gets major brands to turn their backs on diversity. How is he doing it?

Robby Starbuck’s tweets reveal his modus operandi. Nearly all of his posts on his DEI campaign run along the same lines as his recent post about Caterpillar. He opens by saying that he’s told company executives he “was planning to expose their woke policies,” leading them to drop DEI initiatives, including “no more woke trainings” and “no donations to divisive events.”

In Caterpillar’s case, he’s also boasted that due to his work, “All sponsorships, speakers, donations and events must be approved at the executive level to ensure that nothing is divisive or politically charged.” All this is framed as Starbuck fighting for “corporate neutrality.”

Full text here.