Too many local news outlets have disappeared in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi. The Gulf States Newsroom was created to ensure that stories related to health care, criminal justice, the economy and other important issues continue to be told. WWNO and WRKF in Louisiana, WBHM in Alabama, Mississippi Public Broadcasting, and NPR are working together as a regional newsroom to plan coverage, share resources and add reporting power in a story-rich region that has for too long gone under-covered.
The Gulf States Newsroom thanks those who make our work possible through their support, including: the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, NPR, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, The Commonwealth Fund, Moises Itzkowich Foundation, Theresa McDonald, the Trust for Civic Life, Advancing Democracy, Haberman Foundation, WWNO, WRKF, WBHM, MPB, and individual donors from our region and across the country. To learn more about the Gulf States Newsroom, or to support our work, email connect@gulfstatesnewsroom.org.
The Regional Team:
Ryan Vasquez, acting managing editor based at WWNO in New Orleans
Orlando Flores Jr., deputy managing editor based at WWNO in New Orleans
Kat Stromquist, senior reporter covering justice, incarceration and gun violence based at WWNO in New Orleans
Drew Hawkins, senior reporter covering public health based at WWNO in New Orleans
Nellie Beckett, community engagement producer based at WBHM in Birmingham
Joseph King, sports and culture reporter based at WBHM in Birmingham
Elise Catrion Gregg, community engagement reporter based at MPB in Jackson
Marci Schramm, development director based at WWNO in New Orleans
Andrea Miller, business manager based at WBHM in Birmingham
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The Gulf States Newsroom traveled across Mississippi and collected 219 written responses from people with lived experience of addiction. -
This year, dozens of voting rights bills died in committee, nearly all of them in one day. -
The Gulf States Newsroom wants to find out what residents in Richland Parish want to know concerning Meta's Hyperion data center's impact on their lives by monitoring and testing the air, water and dust. -
The multibillion-dollar liquefied natural gas industry has reshaped the landscape, the economy and the daily lives of the people who have lived in Cameron Parish for generations. -
Mississippi will receive more than $400M to fight the opioid epidemic. So far, officials haven't directed it toward programs that support addiction recovery. -
After January's winter storm, the Oxford community has come together to take care of those needs — not just while waiting for other responders, but also fill persistent gaps. -
Traditional plastic beads can be toxic and bad for the environment. In response, some are moving away from plastic beads, using locally recycled glass instead. -
Nolan discusses the journey of writing her debut novel, how her journalism informs her fiction and more with the Gulf States Newsroom’s Drew Hawkins. -
Federal immigration enforcement and the deployment of the National Guard for security purposes have put New Orleans in the spotlight recently. What could this do to tourism at a crucial time of the year? -
Federal funding cuts and a 43-day government shutdown made 2025 a chaotic year for food banks in the South. For many, the challenges may provide a road map for 2026.
