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The dozens of independent, nonprofit and nonpartisan news organizations that make up the Rural News Network are developing the broadest news alliance reporting on rural America. These newsrooms are pursuing coverage that provides a more complete picture of what it means to live and work in these communities.
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LATEST NEWS FROM THE NETWORK
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Mississippi Education Leaders Reeling After Trump Administration Rescinds $137 Million in COVID-19 Relief Funds for Schools
April 18, 2025
The federal government awarded the funds amid the pandemic to help states and school districts address issues arising from the crisis, but until this month had said it would allow states an extension to finish using the money.
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As Mississippi Prepares for Avian Flu, Federal Chaos Looms Large
April 08, 2025
No matter how prepared Mississippi might be internally, a federal government at odds with itself and too crippled to rapidly respond to a new viral threat could render the best laid plans of state governments to waste—precisely the crisis engulfing the federal state right now.
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Trump Tariffs Could Cause Shortages, Price Hikes and ‘Chaos,’ Experts Say
March 04, 2025
During the first Trump administration, Mississippi soybean farmers were among the hardest hit by the fallout from the president’s trade war with China. Now, all Americans could soon pay more for gas, groceries and everyday items under President Donald Trump’s significantly expanded international tariffs.
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Mississippi Researchers Investigate Growing Tick-Borne Allergy to Red Meat
February 18, 2025
The allergy affects hundreds of thousands of Americans and is particularly prevalent in the southeastern United States, where ticks thrive due to the warm, humid climate.
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What Trump’s Plan to Abolish the Department of Education Would Mean for Mississippi
February 05, 2025
The president has said he supports state control of schools and “parental rights.” While the federal DOE has no role in local curriculum standards, the administration could use the powers of DOE to restrict funding to schools on an ideological basis.
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Mississippi Counties Change 54 Voting Precincts, But Incorrect Information May Send Some Voters to the Wrong Place on Election Day
October 30, 2024
While the State of Mississippi’s My Election Day tool will direct most voters to the correct precinct, the tool could send thousands of voters in 20 precincts across the state to the wrong place on Nov. 5.
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Simpson County Sheriff’s Deputy Kicked Handcuffed Man in the Head, Federal Indictment Alleges
October 11, 2024
Neighboring Rankin County was the site of an unrelated brutality case by law enforcement officers in 2023: Five former deputies and a former Richland police officer pleaded guilty to federal and state charges in torture of two Black men.
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A Displaced Family Finds Their Way Home After Rolling Fork Tornado
April 08, 2024
The town of Rolling Fork (Pop. 1,700) has struggled to rebuild after a deadly tornado struck last year as it charted a merciless path across one of the country’s poorest regions. One family is finding their way home.
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Mississippi Moves 10 Voting Precincts, Provides Incorrect or Missing Information For 90
March 11, 2024
The Mississippi Free Press’ latest investigation and an examination of data in the Statewide Election Management System found missing, incomplete, incorrect or old addresses for 90 precincts across 19 counties – a slight decrease from the 92 errors across 21 counties the MFP found ahead of the November 2023 statewide elections.
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A Medical Marijuana Graduate Degree Coming to University of Mississippi in Fall 2024
November 09, 2023
The program would provide advanced training for people who are seeking jobs or looking to advance their current careers in dietary supplements.
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Heart of Darkness: 1991 Lafayette County Cold Case Spurs Black Family’s Struggle for Justice
October 11, 2023
The historically dismissive treatment of Black families who have lost loved ones to violence has long been rampant in Mississippi and beyond, seeding fear, distrust of law enforcement, and even rumors about coverups.
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Childhood Illnesses Could Spike In Mississippi After Vaccine Ruling, State Health Officer Warns
September 29, 2023
Before the ruling, the state was one of five that did not have religious exemptions for childhood vaccines.
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‘Heartstopper’ Books Removed From Marion County Library Amid Anti-LGBTQ+ Complaints
August 18, 2023
The “Heartstopper” graphic novel series is a young adult series that tells the story of two teen boys who fall in love.
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Mississippi Officials Made 161 Voting Precinct Changes Since November 2022
August 07, 2023
A Mississippi Free Press investigation found that statewide, local election officials moved 92 preexisting precincts to new polling locations; closed 41 old precincts; and opened 28 new precincts. One small county accounted for about 85% of the net decrease in voting precincts statewide.
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Boy, 16, Dies At Hattiesburg Poultry Plant In Third Worker Death Since 2020
July 19, 2023
Federal law prohibits anyone under 18 from working in poultry plants because they are considered too hazardous for multiple reasons, including their use of power-driven equipment.
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