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Mississippi Today
Type of site
Nonprofit online newsroom
Available inEnglish
HeadquartersRidgeland, Mississippi
OwnerDeep South Today
Founder(s)Andrew Lack
EditorAdam Ganucheau
CEOMary Margaret White
URLmississippitoday.org
LaunchedMay 2016; 8 years ago (2016-05)
ISSN0746-2247
OCLC number1080317596

Mississippi Today is a nonprofit online newsroom headquartered in Ridgeland, Mississippi. Launched in 2016, it was founded by former Netscape president Jim Barksdale and his wife Donna, alongside former NBC chairman Andrew Lack, to address the decline in local news coverage in Mississippi. Initially focused on state government and investigative journalism, the publication has since expanded its coverage to include topics such as criminal justice, health policy, higher education, the environment, and sports. Known for its commitment to watchdog journalism, Mississippi Today brands itself as a nonpartisan organization and adheres to the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics.

The organization gained national recognition in 2022 for its investigative reporting on the Mississippi welfare funds scandal, a series of stories that earned reporter Anna Wolfe the Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting in 2023. Mississippi Today has also been a finalist for the 2024 Pulitzer Prizes and received numerous other accolades for its work. Supported by grants from major foundations and individual donors, the newsroom collaborates with national and regional outlets such as ProPublica, the Associated Press, and the New York Times to contribute to its reporting. In 2023, Mississippi Today merged with the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting.

History

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In 2014, Mississippi Today's parent company Deep South Today, formerly Mississippi News and Information Corporation, incorporated.[1][2] It received 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status in 2015.[2] Jim Barksdale, his wife Donna, and former NBC chairman Andrew Lack formed Deep South Today to compensate for dwindling local news coverage.[1][3] Mississippi Today started publishing in May 2016 as a state watchdog.[4][5] Deep South Today formed a sister newsroom, New Orleans–based Verite, in 2022.[1][6]

In February 2023, Jerry Mitchell's Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting merged with Mississippi Today.[7]

Content

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Mississippi Today was initially founded as an online newsroom to cover state government and politics, focusing on watchdog and investigative journalism.[5][8][9] The organization now covers criminal justice, higher education, health policy, the environment, and sports.[10] The editor-at-large, Marshall Ramsey, produces cartoons.[10]

In 2022, Mississippi Today received national attention for breaking the Mississippi welfare funds scandal, receiving a Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting.[1] Former governor Phil Bryant sued Mississippi Today and its investigative reporter on the scandal, Anna Wolfe, for defamation.[11]

Mississippi Today has often collaborated with other news organizations like the Associated Press,[12] the New York Times,[13] ProPublica,[14] and The Marshall Project.[15] The organization partnered with Siena College Research Institute for polling in the 2023 Mississippi elections.[16]

Organization

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Mississippi Today is a nonprofit journalism organization[1] and a member of the Institute for Nonprofit News.[17] As of 2024, it is supported by grants from foundations, including the Knight Foundation, Ford Foundation, Public Welfare Foundation, and David and Lucile Packard Foundation, as well as via tax deductible contributions from donors such as Archie Manning, John Grisham, Shepard Smith, and Dick Molpus.[18] It previously received donations from former Mississippi governors Haley Barbour and William Winter.[18][5]

The newsroom is headquartered in Ridgeland, Mississippi.[19] It is an affiliate member of the Mississippi Press Association[20] and a partner with States Newsroom.[21]

Personnel

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The organization's staff includes editor-in-chief Adam Ganucheau, a former reporter at the Clarion-Ledger, and CEO Mary Margaret White.[10] Marshall Ramsey, an editorial cartoonist, is the publication's editor-at-large.[10] Journalists adhere to the Society of Professional Journalists' Code of Ethics.[22]

In 2023, the staffers unionized through the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians, and management agreed to recognize the union.[1]

Political bias

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Mississippi Today brands itself as a nonpartisan news organization.[2] The organization has been accused of being left-leaning or liberal by conservative journalists and Republican politicians, with individuals like Phil Bryant refusing to answer phone calls from Mississippi Today.[8][23][24][25] The organization, and journalists within it, have rebutted this characterization as conflating watchdog journalism with left-leaning stances.[26][24][27]

Awards

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Mississippi Today has won awards for its journalism from the Mississippi Press Association, the Online News Association, and the Hillman Foundation.[28][29][30] Mississippi Today investigative reporter Anna Wolfe won a 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting for her investigation of the Mississippi welfare funds scandal.[31] It was a 2024 Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting finalist for Jerry Mitchell's investigation into Mississippi sheriffs.[32] Other awards include two Goldsmith Prizes,[33] the National Press Club's John R. Aubuchon Award for Press Freedom,[34] the University of Mississippi's Silver Em Award,[35] multiple first-place Green Eyeshade Awards from the Society of Professional Journalists,[36] the Local Media Association's Digital Innovation Award, a Livingston Award finalist,[37] and a Toner Prize for Excellence in Political Reporting finalist.[38]

Affiliations or partnerships

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Sommer, Will (July 27, 2023). "A small news site won a Pulitzer for its Brett Favre scoop. Now it's unionizing". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c "About Us". Mississippi Today. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  3. ^ "Advertising". Mississippi Today. Retrieved January 11, 2025. The brainchild of Andrew R. Lack, former chairman of NBC News Universal, and Donna and Jim Barksdale, Netscape CEO and philanthropist, Mississippi Today...
  4. ^ Lichterman, Joseph (June 27, 2016). "Mississippi Today, backed by an NBC exec, aims to be the Texas Tribune of its undercovered state". Nieman Lab. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c Simpson, April (May 16, 2016). "Mississippi Today startup pursues role of government watchdog". Current. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  6. ^ "Verite to launch nonprofit newsroom focused on New Orleans". Philanthropy News Digest. Candid. July 28, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  7. ^ Mitchell, Jerry (February 1, 2023). "Jerry Mitchell and MCIR to join Mississippi Today newsroom". Mississippi Today. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  8. ^ a b Bauder, David (April 29, 2019). "NBC News chairman an unexpected figure in Mississippi news". AP News. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  9. ^ Moore, Fred Anklam Jr , Dennis (May 2, 2016). "Mississippi Today officially launches with public reception". Mississippi Today. Retrieved January 11, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ a b c d "Our Staff". Mississippi Today. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  11. ^ Pittman, Ashton (July 27, 2023). "Phil Bryant Sues Mississippi Today, Alleging Defamation Over Welfare Scandal Articles, Remarks". Mississippi Free Press. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  12. ^ "AP announces 3 new content collaborations with nonprofit newsrooms". Mississippi Today. August 23, 2024. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  13. ^ Howey, Brian; Rosenfield, Nate; Times, Rory Doyle for The New York (November 30, 2023). "How a 'Goon Squad' of Deputies Got Away With Years of Brutality". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  14. ^ "ProPublica selects Isabelle Taft, Mississippi Today as Local Reporting Network partner". Mississippi Today. December 22, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  15. ^ The Marshall Project (November 25, 2024). "Meet the 2 Candidates for Mississippi Supreme Court's Nov. 26 Runoff Election". Mississippi Today. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  16. ^ "Mississippi Today partners with Siena College Research Institute for series of polls". Mississippi Today. January 17, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  17. ^ "Mississippi Today". FindYourNews. Institute for Nonprofit News. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  18. ^ a b "Who Funds Us?". Mississippi Today. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  19. ^ "Terms of Use". Mississippi Today. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  20. ^ "Affiliate Members". Mississippi Press Association. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  21. ^ "Newsrooms". States Newsroom. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  22. ^ "About us". Deep South Today. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  23. ^ "Bias, thy name is Mississippi Today". Magnolia Tribune. January 12, 2018. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  24. ^ a b Zraick, Karen (July 10, 2019). "Mississippi Politician Denies Access to Female Reporter So as Not to 'Insinuate' an Affair". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  25. ^ Corder, Frank (February 24, 2024). "State economist refutes Mississippi Today's "analysis" as representing his conclusions". Magnolia Tribune. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  26. ^ Ganucheau, Adam (March 22, 2021). "Five years in, and this is just the beginning". Mississippi Today. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  27. ^ Ganucheau, Adam (March 27, 2021). "Gov. Tate Reeves revisits an old strategy: Question data, challenge experts, blame press". Mississippi Today. Retrieved January 11, 2025. Readers on the right have sometimes criticized us for being too left-leaning. Readers on the left have sometimes criticized us for not doing more to directly bring about political change...But there's common ground I know we can all stand on: Unchecked power is harmful to every Mississippian. That's why we launched this newsroom five years ago. We tell stories and share perspectives we believe to be true, and we work to hold elected officials — Republicans and Democrats — accountable.
  28. ^ "News organizations, journalists honored for editorial excellence". Mississippi Press Association. June 22, 2022. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  29. ^ "Mississippi Today Award-Winning Work". Online Journalism Awards. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  30. ^ "Wolfe & Liu win February Sidney for Exposing Mississippi's Modern Day Debtors Prisons". Sidney Hillman Foundation. February 2020. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  31. ^ "Anna Wolfe of Mississippi Today, Ridgeland, Miss". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  32. ^ "Finalist: Jerry Mitchell, Ilyssa Daly, Brian Howey and Nate Rosenfield of Mississippi Today and The New York Times". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  33. ^ "Mississippi Today named a 2024 Goldsmith Prize finalist". Mississippi Today. March 5, 2024. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  34. ^ "John R. Aubuchon Award honors Press Freedom". National Press Club. November 22, 2024. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  35. ^ Rucker, LaReeca (April 11, 2023). "Mississippi Today Named Silver Em Winner". University of Mississippi News. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  36. ^ "Mississippi Today journalists win several Green Eyeshade Awards". Mississippi Today. July 24, 2022. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  37. ^ "Presenting the 2024 Livingston Award Finalists". Wallace House Center for Journalists. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  38. ^ Geyer, Madelyn (March 5, 2024). "Newhouse School Announces Finalists in 2024 Toner Prizes Competition". S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
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