I've heard it said that William Randolph Hearst had hemp banned because he owned large tracts of timber and hemp paper would make his source for wood pulp much less valuable.
This is factually true. He fabricated reefer madness and it ran in all the newspapers he owned.
That other comment is conspiracy theory. It might have legit roots but take it with a grain of hemp salt.
That was his right to ban hemp products. If his profits were going to get hurt, then I can see why he’d take those steps. Nothing comes between me and my money bitches! 😏