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Reporting What Matters

RHCJC

Reporting What Matters

RHCJC

Reporting What Matters

RHCJC

The Southeast Mississippi Planner is a weekly update connecting residents with local news, events and civic information.
New planner aims to boost civic info, community connections
July 15, 2025
A new weekly resource is launching to help southeast Mississippi residents stay informed and connected. The Southeast Mississippi Planner will feature civic updates, community news, event listings and more.
Woman in yellow top speaks while seated beside signs for the Ward 5 Community Action Team.
Ward 5 residents lead the way in Hattiesburg change
Morgan Gill, JC Roberts and Alexa Hatten July 14, 2025
Streetlights are getting fixed, debris is being cleared faster and neighbors who once felt ignored are now sitting at the table with city leaders. 
Group of older adults sit around tables in a community room decorated with photos and wreaths.
Aging on the Coast: How Hancock County is preparing for a retirement-ready future
Morgan Gill, JC Roberts and Sameen Chand July 7, 2025
Mississippi’s Gulf Coast is aging faster than the rest of the state, and Hancock County sits at the center of that demographic shift. 
Farmer stands in a cotton field with hands on hips, surveying the crop.
Cotton prices down, costs up: Mississippi farmers face harsh decisions 
Justin Glowacki, Sami Jordan and Nischit Sharma July 14, 2025
Mississippi cotton farmers are losing money — and some are preparing to abandon the crop altogether due to falling prices, extreme weather events, rising input costs and trade tensions. 
Laptop on classroom desk shows the ChatGPT website open on screen at USM’s Hattiesburg campus.
Training the future: Mississippi expands AI in schools, colleges
Justin Glowacki, Alexa Hatten, Sami Jordan and Nischit Sharma July 7, 2025
Mississippi is pouring tens of millions of dollars into artificial intelligence education, promising to modernize classrooms and prepare students for tech-centered careers.
Stacked boxes of Yeztugo (Lenacapavir) HIV prevention injection on a metal shelf in a medical facility.
HIV prevention advances, but stigma persists
Justin Glowacki, Sami Jordan and Nischit Sharma June 30, 2025
For John, a 19-year-old from rural Mississippi, getting medication to prevent HIV came with more than just a prescription — it came with fear.
A raccoon stands alert in this undated file photo. Mississippi law allows raccoon trapping only during designated furbearer season and under specific conditions.
Trapping raccoons in Mississippi comes with clear rules
Walker Scott and Joshua Wilson July 14, 2025
Think you can trap raccoons whenever they show up? Not in Mississippi. State law sets strict limits on when, where and how raccoons can be trapped.
A customer uses a contactless debit card at a point-of-sale terminal in this undated file photo. A “What Is True?” investigation by the Roy Howard Community Journalism Center found that criminals do use skimmers to steal card data at gas pumps and ATMs — often placing the devices inside the machines. However, the team rated as false the claim that RFID scanners can steal credit card information from 15 to 20 feet away. Experts say contactless cards are encrypted and not vulnerable to long-distance scanning.
Criminals use skimmers, not long-range RFID
Walker Scott and Joshua Wilson July 7, 2025
Skimming at the pump is real — but are criminals really stealing your card info from 20 feet away with an RFID scanner? The “What Is True?” team investigated two viral claims about payment fraud. One holds up. The other doesn’t.
A vehicle navigates the roundabout on Hardy Street near downtown Hattiesburg on June 27, 2025. Despite claims that roundabouts offer no safety benefits, federal reports show they significantly reduce crash severity and frequency compared to traditional intersections.
Despite public skepticism, roundabouts cut crashes
Matthew Martin and Joshua Wilson June 30, 2025
Despite what some say, roundabouts do make roads safer. Our “What Is True?” team dug into the data — and the claim that they offer no safety benefit? False. Here's why.