Kian ‘K2’ Simone and Syd Fizzard, Rebel News journalists embedded in Coutts, Alberta’s blockade, detail harsh living conditions—sleeping in cars or Airbnbs—while documenting truckers and farmers resisting vaccine passports and lockdowns. Local trust in their reporting led to a Tabor billboard directing viewers to Rebel News, contrasting mainstream media they claim misrepresents the protest. Both fled Toronto due to government overreach, citing Simone’s taped-off Walmart and Fizzard’s family ties to Alberta’s rural freedom. Their youth-focused outreach aims to counter perceived bias through documentaries and digestible conservative narratives, despite challenges in simplifying complex events. Legal support for arrested figures like Pastor Archer Puloski underscores their mission: exposing systemic media distortions as a core journalistic duty. [Automatically generated summary]
Oh hey rebels, it's me Sheila Gunread and you're listening to a free audio-only recording of my weekly Wednesday night show The Gun Show.
However, this is the internet, so guess what?
That comes with convenience.
So you can listen or watch whenever you feel like.
Now tonight my guests, plural, are my colleagues, Sid Fizard and Kian K2 Simone.
They are the two journalists currently embedded in the Couttes blockade.
And I think they are an interesting story in and of themselves because they are these two young guys who moved from Toronto all the way to Alberta.
Now they find themselves in the heart of one of the most interesting and compelling stories in the entire world.
So I thought maybe you would like to learn a little bit more about them.
Now, if you like listening to the show, then I promise you're going to love watching it.
But in order to watch, you need to be a subscriber to Rebel News Plus.
As you know, that's what we call our long-form TV style shows here on Rebel News.
Subscribers get access to my show, as well as Ezra's Nightly Ezra Levant show, David Menzie's fun Friday night show Rebel Roundup, Andrew Chapidos' show Andrew Says.
And we've got a great new show from Kat and Nat called Misunderstood.
And for all of that, incredible deal.
It's only $8 a month to subscribe.
And just for my podcast listeners, you can save an extra 10% on a new Rebel News Plus subscription by using the coupon code podcast.
When you subscribe, just go to rebelnewsplus.com to become a member today.
Now please, enjoy this free audio-only version of my show.
Today marks almost two weeks since the standoff between truckers and farmers and authorities began at the Kootz-Alberta border crossing.
Today you'll meet the two journalists on the ground leading the story.
I'm Sheila Gunn-Reed, and you're watching The Gunn Show.
The two journalists we have as boots on the ground in coots are really proving their worth.
Now, the border at Coots is being blocked intermittently as truckers protest lockdown restrictions in Alberta, but also those all across the country.
They just want everyone, including themselves, to be free and they want life to go back to normal.
And the truckers, well, they've got the support of the community.
In fact, support has grown so much that the RCMP are also blocking people from coming into the protest site at Coots, instead corralling supporters 20 kilometers up the road in Milk River.
The world is watching our two young journalists work night and day in extreme conditions, sometimes even sleeping in their car, just so that they can show you what's really happening and why it's happening.
Sid Fizard and Kian K2 Simone are the only journalists that the truckers trust.
They're the only ones there when the truckers are negotiating with the police.
They're the only ones that they'll talk to.
But it makes you wonder why two young journalists would pack up their lives and move across the country to work for Rebel News.
Why Two Journalists Moved?00:05:47
I'd like to know, wouldn't you?
So the two guys are on my show today in an interview we recorded from their office, Kian's Honda Civic, so that we can all get to know them just a little bit better.
a listen joining me now from the battle of coots alberta are our two rebel reporters on the scene They're doing just fantastic work, Sid Fizard and K2, Kian Simone.
I wanted to have you guys on the show because I mean, you guys are really in the midst of, I think, one of the most important stories unfolding in the world right now.
But I think you guys are a little bit of the story too.
But before we get to you guys, it's Tuesday morning as we are recording this.
You guys are in your car.
I can see all of your worldly possessions in the car behind you.
What are the living conditions like for you guys right there?
Because you're right in the thick of things.
If you leave, you kind of are in jeopardy of not even being able to get back at this point.
Well, I think I could take a head start on that and say most of the stuff in the back seat is just garbage because there's nowhere to put it.
But living conditions, I think, to be frank, just completely terrible.
Yeah.
You know, it's finding new places to sleep every night and sometimes in the car.
And it's cold here, right?
So you're a funny story, quick actually.
Last two nights ago, Sid and I slept in the car and I woke up really cold and I turned the car on and I fell asleep with the car on.
So woke up with zero gas.
The truckers filled me up though.
And well, and something to note as well is as we've been hunting for a place to stay for the night each night, sometimes it's been an Airbnb that we've been welcomed to.
There's a little motel here that we've been welcomed to.
And then there's this lady here.
I'm not going to spoil her name in case she doesn't want the publicity, but she's been great.
She's let us crash at her place a few times in the basement.
And this is all this out of the generosity of the people who either run these facilities or would be renting a room in these facilities.
They've been very gracious and have been kind of giving us these places to stay.
It's this generosity across the board.
It's the people of Coots as well.
The lady here is a local.
All the people here in Coots that we've come across, I think, have been very supportive of what's going on here.
And by proxy, I guess, because we're the only people who really properly are trying to cover the other side of the story, they've been very welcoming to us as well.
If I could add one more thing to that, the lady who actually facilitated most of our stays here, last night she said she was getting out of here and she wanted to tell us that she actually really, she said hated.
She didn't like Rebel News at all.
And she said that we changed that for her and she loves us.
Well, I think you guys have been really great brand ambassadors for us here at Rebel News to the entire world because the world has really been watching your work.
I guess my next question is: what's it like?
You just told me about the one lady who said you changed her heart and her mind about Rebel News.
How do the truckers and the blockaders feel about your work there?
I think they're really appreciative of it.
I think they see that mainstream media is just kind of taking them through the ropes, so to speak, and trying to shoot them down as much as they can.
And then they see our reporting and they actually really appreciate it.
And for a lot of people, like not everybody knows who Rebel News is, right?
But for a lot of these people who are learning about Rebel News, they're actually very grateful for what they're seeing.
And what I think is really funny is last night, it's not the first time it happened, but I was just drinking a pot in the corner, just surveilling the room.
And I heard our sting.
And I walked over and the guys there are just watching the report.
It's like, guys, we were here.
And they're just and they're just watching the report.
They're like, hey, man, this is you.
And I was like, yeah, but you're here.
And they, and you see the signs on the tractors that are rolling all through southern Alberta.
We have billboards up that we at Rebel, we didn't do.
It's the people here who are saying, if you want the truth at Coots, follow these guys.
So it's like they're, they, I think they love us here.
I saw that billboard that you tweeted that's in Tabor, Alberta.
And somebody out of the out of just the generosity of their heart, but also in a quest to inform the rest of their community about what real news is, they have a billboard up that says, you know, like if you want real news about the convoy or something to that effect, follow Rebel News.
And then, you know, there's True North underneath.
But we're featured very prominently on that.
And we don't, we don't even know who did that.
Somebody just did that out of the goodness of their heart.
Guys, I wanted to ask you, because as I said off the top, I think you guys are a very interesting part of this story.
You guys are two young guys from Toronto who packed up your entire lives.
K2, you packed up your girlfriend too, and just decided we're moving to Alberta.
I guess we'll go before we get to that decision, let's go back a little.
What made you want to work for Rebel News?
We'll start with Key and then we'll go to Sid.
It was actually what everybody calls him now is K1.
My dad, he showed me a video and he said, hey, I know you want to be like an investigative journalist, but this guy's got the same name as you.
Kids on the Roof00:14:57
And this was like two years ago.
And I was like, whoa, that is weird.
And I guess ever since then, I've just been watching.
And at the time, I worked in the music industry.
And I didn't like what I was doing, but I would just keep watching K1's reports.
And then I would get into you.
And then I would get into Ezra.
And I was like, this is awesome.
This is just absolutely nuts.
I guess for myself there, it's kind of long-winded, the answer, but when the whole pandemic thing started, right before it happened, I was actually a roofer and then I switched to doing kitchen work so that I could do school.
But then the pandemic shut down my opportunities at school for electromagnetic engineering.
You can't do a welding class online, right?
So that kind of took me out of the education system.
And then I kind of was free-floating, didn't know what I was doing, but I was heavily observing the politics around everything that was going on.
Of course, that's when most of the chaos was happening in the States.
And I didn't know what I was going to do.
I was kind of, yeah, in this abyss where I didn't know what was going to happen.
And I was quite literally going to hop on a freight train in the middle of the night and go anywhere because I was sick and tired of the city being stuck in this quarantine world.
And that year, I put out one resume and it was for Rebel News.
And the reason I put out that resume to Rebel News was because I knew there was nowhere else in Toronto I could work without a mask.
And so I thought I'd go for it.
And I actually, I got the job, of course.
And that started off as me being the mailboy.
And then slowly, you know, I was like, hey, we need a couple of socials edited.
Can you do a little bit of editing?
And then it was, hey, you know, can you hold the camera and shoot for David Menzies?
And then it was, hey, here's the microphone.
So it's, I'm very grateful for that opportunity.
And it's, it was a shoot in the shot in the dark for sure.
And I'm very grateful that it happened.
Well, if we're, if we're getting into how we got into Rebel News, then yeah, it's, I last February, I applied for a video editor.
I didn't hear back for a month.
Didn't hear back for another month.
Didn't hear back for the next month after that.
And I was like, well, I guess that didn't work out.
And And then I just looked at my phone and I saw that Lincoln, Jay, and Mocha work at Rebel.
I didn't even know that when I was watching.
I guess I was just an average viewer just watching one report and the next report.
I was busy, right?
I was like, I went to school with those guys.
Like they were in my class.
And I don't want to expose them too hard, but I was teaching Lincoln how to do things.
I was like, so I messaged him in school.
I messaged him.
I was like, Lincoln, man, I was like, get me a job.
And he, I guess he spoke with a few guys there.
And then I got the call.
And then I found out later that they had my resume pulled up to the top the whole time.
And it was just too busy, which is, it sucks, but I'm glad I was able to join while I was in Calgary.
I think that that was God's work right there.
That was just timing, perfect timing.
Well, speaking of which, immediately after you ended up sleeping in Archer's Church, right?
um what uh what do your families think about the work that you do K2, I know your dad is a true believer, but what do they think about you guys working at Rebel News?
Because I know some people, you know, they don't like their kids being out there.
I know I don't.
But what are your families?
Where are they at on this?
So two years ago, I was dead broke.
I worked at a warehouse, but my whole family knew that I wanted to work in the camera stuff, do camera stuff.
And I was working for free in the music industry for a huge artist, but I wasn't getting any recognition.
And the whole time, my family was like, you got to do something, kid.
So at that time, my grandpa, he just, he bought me a $2,000 camera and he said, said, pay me back when you make some money.
And I said, wow.
So that kept happening and happening.
And then I got the job at Rebel and they're like, okay, you finally got something, but what the hell are you doing?
And I was like, well, this is what I believe in, right?
And, but like you said, my dad at the time, he's like, this is awesome because he showed me Rebel News.
But the other side of my family was like, you're peddling conspiracy theories.
The Charter of Rights is a conspiracy theory.
And then now I think I can jump to this week.
They're all reaching out again.
Grandma, grandpas, everybody, they're saying, you know, good job, kid.
You finally did it.
Yeah.
So they love it now.
And I guess both sides of my family have been really proud and really supportive.
My dad, of course, since the beginning, he's been a big fan of Rebel for a very long time.
I think probably Lakers as well there.
And I think my other side of the family, my mom, of course, is always very proud of me and she's happy that I find satisfaction in the work that I'm doing.
And as this has gone along, she's just been kind of more and more proud that I was willing to stand up when I did because a lot of people were quiet at first, but now a lot of most of the people in my family are being like, yeah, there is something wrong here.
And I think they're very grateful that I kind of took that leap, stuck to what I believed in and just kept going.
Yeah, I think that's one of the things that we have to, and I'm terrible at this, having a little bit of grace for people who are now coming around to my way of thinking.
I'm full of I told you so's all the time.
And I really should, if we're out there proselytizing the good word of conservatism and taking care of yourself and minding your own business and making your own decisions, when people come around to our way of thinking, we have to be a little more graceful than I tend to be.
I want to ask you two, you two are both from Toronto, decided to pack up your lives and move to Alberta.
First, I'll ask you guys why you made that decision.
And then I'm going to ask you what is the, what are your impressions of us Albertans?
But first, why?
Why did you guys make that decision?
We'll start with K2 and then we'll go to Sid.
So I've always wanted to move out west, I think for about three years now since I became aware of just government overreach.
And I would always just look at things out here and just be so free.
I want to live on a farm.
I don't want anybody to talk to me.
I want to see the mountains when I wake up and have my smoke and coffee.
And it was just a pipe dream for so long.
And then I saw in my hometown of Bradford, Ontario, my Walmart got taped off of non-essential items.
And I, right then and there, I said, screw this.
I am done here.
There is no way that I'm letting this get any further because I'm no vaccine passports in Alberta.
I packed up my car that night before I really even told my fiancé, girlfriend at the time that, and I was like, are you coming with me?
Because I'm not doing this.
Like, this is, this is just insane.
And I, and pretty much on our way, we got a place in Calgary.
And we're just, we're going there.
And my family was super happy about it.
My impression of Albertans, I live on in Forest Lawn, which is, I guess, the Jane and Finch of Calgary, which is the ghetto.
So my first impression was, oh, yeah, okay.
All right.
This is okay.
And then I experienced Calgary for like for real.
And I don't think I'm ever going to leave ever.
And today, or sorry, this week was my first time really experiencing rural Albertans getting together.
And I am definitely not leaving.
Albertans are absolutely awesome.
They all share the same sentiment I do.
Just leave me alone.
Those are my politics.
Leave me alone.
That's it.
Sid, what about you?
Well, I guess for myself, like I mentioned, I was ready to kind of hop on the midnight train going anywhere.
But then I got trouble and I wanted to stick to it as close as I could.
And when the opportunity came to travel to Alberta with Rebel News, like to go with work, so to speak, I didn't want to pass that opportunity out because Alberta is, it is a special part of Canada.
Every part of Canada is special.
But this is the Texas of Canada, right?
So to speak.
And I have family here.
My grandfather came here from Europe and he traveled around after.
But I knew at some point I'd want to kind of come here.
And during my work with Rebel News, I have been able to do a lot of traveling.
And I think that really puts things into perspective.
Like these people who have been locked down and they haven't been mobile in this time, they don't see the contrast of situations that different people in different provinces are dealing with.
And, you know, it's time I put my big boy pants on, get out of the, get out of my hometown.
And I wanted to make that leap because I knew it was kind of, it was time.
It was time to just get out there and go on my own accord.
And Alberta is the place to do it.
And my girlfriend was very happy to come with me.
A little, a little shy to it, but very, very happy to come with me.
Excellent.
I guess I don't want to keep you guys too long because you are literally in the heart of one of the biggest stories of the world right now.
If you weren't covering the blockade at Coots or Pastor Archer Puloski's many, arrests, including, I think, another one as we are recording this right now.
What would you be focusing on here at Rebel News?
K2, you go first.
Well, when I had my half interview and half just talking to Ezra, because as I said before, Lincoln basically got me the end.
I told him that I told my friends, I got a job at Rebel News, and they didn't know what I was talking about.
And I saw a huge issue with the fact that the youth aren't aware of the only news organization that's really telling the truth.
So I told him my number one goal here is to bring the kids to Rebel, the kids as in, you know, 15 to 25.
The people who can really, who are the future leaders of our country, need to be full of information.
They need to know what's going on.
And I showed Ezra some stuff that I've made before.
And I said, listen, I can do this.
And I think I've proven that now that I would really just be working on creative pieces and documentaries that I've been wanting to do, but I've been so busy that just really show the world to the youth in a way that they can digest it.
I think that's really even what I'm still focusing on, even with this Coots situation.
That's what's been in my mind is like the kids need to see this.
You know, that's one thing that I think the entire conservative movement falls down on is young people.
If I know anything about young people, and I've got a bunch of them, especially in that age range, I think all like I have one that's a little bit younger is they don't like being told what to do.
And that's why I'm a conservative.
Like as a conservative adult, I'm like, yeah, I don't like being told what to do either.
And when my kids don't like to hear it from me, I certainly don't like to hear it from Justin Trudeau.
And we're not great at communicating to younger people.
You know that feeling where you don't want to be told what to do and you don't like being told what to say and how to say it.
That's conservative.
Get over here, guys.
And so, yeah, to see some more youth outreach and to break down conservative ideas into a way that young people understand, I think that's really great.
We should not be deciding that young people are just going to be socialists until they pay taxes and come back around.
We should be reaching out to them far sooner.
Sid, what would you be working on at Rebel News if you weren't in the heart of the largest story in the world?
Well, kind of to Kian's point, actually, the truth is easy to say, but it's harder to convey.
Sorry, I'm not trying to rhyme there.
But yeah, getting that message out there is a difficult thing to have for a wider audience because only certain people want to hear certain things.
But one of the things why I absolutely love working with Rebel News and what we do here in comparison, like I mentioned, you know, I'm new to this industry.
Certainly, I used to be a roofer.
I used to be a stock manager.
I used to be a cook.
But the thing about journalism and the thing about this industry is, especially in our position, where we'll be in front of the camera, we're behind the camera, we're doing all the editing, we're doing all of the steps required to make the story is there are so many layers that you have to contend with that it is a very interesting challenge.
And to put all those pieces together in a way that is proper is a challenge in and of itself, but it's something I love doing.
I thought that you were going to say, the one thing you love about working at Rebel NEWS is your boss, but you didn't.
So that's fine, there's.
There's no swear words out here, so it's not like poofing, where they're just yelling at you from above right, that's.
One thing i've noticed is that everybody has this uh conception about um bosses.
It's like yeah, that's the guy you hate, that's the guy that you just, you just go home and you just make fists and look at, look at the mirror or something.
And i've never had that feeling, even to the slightest, of any management and Rebel NEWS.
It's, it's just amazing.
Well, and let me, let me just add quickly there, um, the only reason why I was able to go from the mailboy to a small editor, to editing larger things, to being in front of the camera and everything like that, the only reason i've been able to progress, is because of the graces that have been given to me by Rebel NEWS and the management team, including you guys.
Well, I was just teasing you guys, but thanks for those kind words.
I didn't want to turn this into like uh, you know you guys arguing for your next pay raise, but uh I, I should.
I should tell you that i'm just so proud of the work that you do and when the journalists are doing great work and the world is noticing, I feel like i'm doing my job properly because we've helped you develop your skills and I shouldn't keep you any longer because, as I said, you guys are in the heart of the biggest story in the world and you are the only ones trusted to tell that story.
And uh, let me reiterate, i'm just so proud of not only the quality of your journalism but just how hard you're working.
Thank You For Tuning In00:01:00
You guys are working literally night and day, sometimes sleeping in your car, to make sure that the Canadian public gets the truth.
So guys, get out there, take on the world and uh, tell the truth.
Thank you, Shira.
Thank you.
Thanks guys.
I'm so proud of the work that these two are doing.
You can tell they are passionate about freedom, but also about fulfilling their journalistic obligation of filling the void the mainstream media has left for them and for for us as a network.
To support their independent journalism from the border, you can visit convoyreports.com and to support the lawyer hired to help the truckers negotiate with the police, you can visit truckerlawyer.ca to offset the legal fees of their incredible lawyer, Chad Williamson.
Well, everybody, that's the show for tonight.
Thank you so much for tuning in.
I'll see everybody back here in the same time in the same place next week.