We want to keep reporting on Mississippi’s diverse communities. How you can help.
The Sun Herald is launching a fall fund-raising campaign for a specific purpose – to help us strengthen our commitment to report on the diverse communities that make up South Mississippi.
That’s where Sun Herald reporter Isabelle Taft comes in.
Taft, Atlanta born and Yale educated, came to the Sun Herald in June through the Report for America program, which places reporters in newsrooms across the country. We asked for a reporter who could connect with Black, Vietnamese, Latinx and other communities on the Coast.
Report for America, a national nonprofit organization, pays half of the reporter’s salary and the employer is expected to fund raise with the community for the rest. In this case, we’ve still got about $7,500 to go for this year, and any money raised above that total will go to keeping Taft here for a second year.
Let me tell you more about Ms. Taft.
Since arriving in June, her talent has blown us away. She came to us after reporting and editing stints at the Sacramento Bee, The Texas Tribune and in Vietnam. Just before she got to the Gulf Coast, she worked as a researcher at The Washington Post.
She’s just the type of smart and ambitious person we need on the Coast.
In her first six months at the Sun Herald, she has helped our readers better understand the many communities that call the Mississippi Coast home. She’s also been invaluable to our coverage of the coronavirus, hurricanes, education and the 2020 election. Let me brag about some specific stories:
In September, she wrote about the efforts of a group of teens to organize a Black Lives Matter protest. Her story dug deep into what exactly the teens were trying to achieve.
Just before the November election, she wrote a story about how Black voters say supporters of the medical marijuana initiative in Mississippi did not prioritize outreach to them, raising questions about whether Black Mississippians will be able to find opportunities in the new industry. She also had a pre-election piece about how young Vietnamese residents are seeing the county’s sharp political divide cut through their own families, with children and parents rarely seeing politics the same way.
These are the types of stories that we haven’t been able to tell over the last few years.
Philanthropy is a critical part of sustaining local news. In fact, we’d like to thank Mississippi Power for its donation to improving our reporting on local diverse communities. Having Isabelle as a part of the Sun Herald, and getting the community to support her, affirms our commitment to telling these stories.
Now, we need a little help to get our fund-raising over the finish line.
If you can help, click here and make a tax-deductible donation. It’s very easy. Or mail in a check made payable to the Local Media Foundation, P.O. Box 85015, Chicago, IL 60689-5015. Please write in the notes field “Biloxi Sun Herald.”
You can help make our reporting stronger, now and in the future.
As always, we appreciate your support.
This story was originally published November 10, 2020 at 12:05 PM.