Jackson Free Press
Encyclopedia
The Jackson Free Press, referred to often as simply "JFP", is an alternative weekly newspaper in Jackson, Mississippi
founded in 2002 by Mississippi native Donna Ladd
, author and technology expert Todd Stauffer
and a group of young Jacksonians wanting a progressive voice in the state. It is currently the only member of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies
(AAN) in the state of Mississippi
. JFP distributes approximately 17,000 free copies to 425+ locations throughout the Jackson metropolitan area
each week. It is known locally for its annual Best of Jackson awards as nominated by its readers and its online political blogs. It also sponsors numerous local events such as the Fondren ArtMix, JubileeJam, the Chick Ball, the "Race, Religion & Society Series" and the Crossroads Film Festival.
The newspaper is named after the Mississippi Free Press, a civil rights movement newspaper started by a multiracial coalition including Medgar Evers
, Rev. R.L.T. Smith, and printed by white newspaper publisher Hazel Brannon Smith
.
In its first four years of publication, JFP won 14 national writing awards from the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies.
In July 2005, a team of JFP journalists, led by editor Donna Ladd
, joined Thomas Moore and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
filmmaker David Ridgen in a trip to Moore's hometown of Meadville, Mississippi
to investigate and call for justice for the 1964 KKK murders of his brother Charles, and his friend Henry Dee. In the paper's story about the trip, published July 20, 2005, JFP revealed that the lead suspect, James Ford Seale
, was alive and living in the area, although other media outlets had reported that he was no longer alive. In January 2007, the Justice Department announced that Seale had been indicted for federal kidnapping and conspiracy charges in connection with the case.
The weekly has also attracted attention with its dogged coverage of Jackson mayor Frank Melton
. JFP's Adam Lynch broke the story on the newspaper's web site that the mayor had taken a group of young men to bust up an alleged "drughouse" with sledgehammers. That revelation led to the indictment of the mayor and his bodyguards on multiple criminal charges. They were eventually found not guilty of any criminal wrongdoing by a jury.
The Jackson Free Press launched its active Web site with multiple blogs in 2002. As the paper is a newsweekly, the Web site provides immediate breaking news and forums for discussions on news appearing in the print version and topics posted by readers.
In 2006, the JFP joined with eight other publishers in the Jackson area to form the Mississippi Independent Publishers Alliance (MIPA) to challenge the Gannett Corp.'s TDN distribution scheme to control local distribution. The JFP's efforts to fight the scheme, which was blasted by Editor & Publisher
magazine as a violation of independent publication's First Amendment rights, was written up in media across the country. JFP started a blog called the Goliath Blog to chronicle MIPA's successes in the battle and the national media coverage of the issue. MIPA efforts led to an investigation of the strategy by Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
founded in 2002 by Mississippi native Donna Ladd
Donna Ladd
Donna Ladd is an American investigative journalist who helped create The Jackson Free Press, an award-winning freely distributed newsweekly...
, author and technology expert Todd Stauffer
Todd Stauffer
Todd Stauffer is co-founder and publisher of the Jackson Free Press in Jackson, Mississippi, and author of 40 nonfiction books on a variety of computer-related topics. He lives with his partner, journalist and editor Donna Ladd....
and a group of young Jacksonians wanting a progressive voice in the state. It is currently the only member of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies
Association of Alternative Newsweeklies
The Association of Alternative Newsmedia is a diverse group of covering every major metropolitan area and other less-populated regions of North America. AAN members have a combined weekly circulation of over 6.5 million as well as a print readership of nearly 17 million active, educated and...
(AAN) in the state of Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. JFP distributes approximately 17,000 free copies to 425+ locations throughout the Jackson metropolitan area
Jackson metropolitan area
The Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area is a metropolitan area in the central region of the U.S. state of Mississippi that covers five counties: Copiah, Hinds, Madison, Rankin, and Simpson. As of the 2000 census, the MSA had a population of 497,197...
each week. It is known locally for its annual Best of Jackson awards as nominated by its readers and its online political blogs. It also sponsors numerous local events such as the Fondren ArtMix, JubileeJam, the Chick Ball, the "Race, Religion & Society Series" and the Crossroads Film Festival.
The newspaper is named after the Mississippi Free Press, a civil rights movement newspaper started by a multiracial coalition including Medgar Evers
Medgar Evers
Medgar Wiley Evers was an African American civil rights activist from Mississippi involved in efforts to overturn segregation at the University of Mississippi...
, Rev. R.L.T. Smith, and printed by white newspaper publisher Hazel Brannon Smith
Hazel Brannon Smith
Hazel Freeman Brannon Smith , the owner and editor of four weekly newspapers in rural Mississippi, was the first woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing....
.
In its first four years of publication, JFP won 14 national writing awards from the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies.
In July 2005, a team of JFP journalists, led by editor Donna Ladd
Donna Ladd
Donna Ladd is an American investigative journalist who helped create The Jackson Free Press, an award-winning freely distributed newsweekly...
, joined Thomas Moore and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
filmmaker David Ridgen in a trip to Moore's hometown of Meadville, Mississippi
Meadville, Mississippi
Meadville is a town in Franklin County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 519 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Franklin County...
to investigate and call for justice for the 1964 KKK murders of his brother Charles, and his friend Henry Dee. In the paper's story about the trip, published July 20, 2005, JFP revealed that the lead suspect, James Ford Seale
James Ford Seale
James Ford Seale was a Ku Klux Klan member charged by the U.S. Justice Department on January 24, 2007, and subsequently convicted on June 14, 2007, for the May 1964 kidnapping of Henry Hezekiah Dee and Charles Eddie Moore, two African-American young men in Meadville, Mississippi...
, was alive and living in the area, although other media outlets had reported that he was no longer alive. In January 2007, the Justice Department announced that Seale had been indicted for federal kidnapping and conspiracy charges in connection with the case.
The weekly has also attracted attention with its dogged coverage of Jackson mayor Frank Melton
Frank Melton
Frank Ervin Melton was the mayor of Jackson, Mississippi, United States, from 4 July 2005 until his death on 7 May 2009. Melton, an African American, defeated the city's first black mayor Harvey Johnson, Jr. Melton won 63 percent of the vote in the Democratic primary against Johnson, who had...
. JFP's Adam Lynch broke the story on the newspaper's web site that the mayor had taken a group of young men to bust up an alleged "drughouse" with sledgehammers. That revelation led to the indictment of the mayor and his bodyguards on multiple criminal charges. They were eventually found not guilty of any criminal wrongdoing by a jury.
The Jackson Free Press launched its active Web site with multiple blogs in 2002. As the paper is a newsweekly, the Web site provides immediate breaking news and forums for discussions on news appearing in the print version and topics posted by readers.
In 2006, the JFP joined with eight other publishers in the Jackson area to form the Mississippi Independent Publishers Alliance (MIPA) to challenge the Gannett Corp.'s TDN distribution scheme to control local distribution. The JFP's efforts to fight the scheme, which was blasted by Editor & Publisher
Editor & Publisher
Editor & Publisher is a monthly magazine covering the North American newspaper industry. It is based in New York City. E&P calls itself "America's Oldest Journal Covering the Newspaper Industry" and describes itself on its website as "the authoritative journal covering all aspects of the North...
magazine as a violation of independent publication's First Amendment rights, was written up in media across the country. JFP started a blog called the Goliath Blog to chronicle MIPA's successes in the battle and the national media coverage of the issue. MIPA efforts led to an investigation of the strategy by Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood
Jim Hood
James Matthew "Jim" Hood is the Attorney General of the U.S. state of Mississippi. A Democrat, he was elected in 2003, having defeated the Republican nominee Scott Newton. A former District Attorney, Hood succeeded Mike Moore....
External links
- Jackson Free Press official web site – owned by Jackson Free Press and contributed to by its staff, readers and bloggers.