Newspapers

Kansas City's longest-operating Black newspaper, The Call, is partnering with other Black-focused media organizations like the Kansas City Defender and Cascade Media Group to diversify voices and increase digital engagement.

The August 11 raid was ostensibly undertaken under the pretense that a reporter committed identity theft by accessing public records on a public website. A new lawsuit from veteran journalist Deb Gruver contends that the Marion Police Chief's real motivation was to punish the newspaper for its investigations.

The lawyer who represents the Marion County Record accused Marion County Police of copying data from the newspaper onto an external hard drive and failing to give it back. The sheriff's office agreed Thursday to destroy the data.

Marion Police Chief Gideon Cody initiated the Aug. 11 raid of the newspaper office, the publisher’s home, and the home of a city councilwoman under the pretense that a reporter committed identity theft by looking at public records. First Amendment attorneys say the reporter committed no crime and Magistrate Judge Laura Viar should have known the search warrants were unconstitutional when she signed them.

The family-owned Marion County Record stands out for holding local officials accountable. That role is becoming increasingly rare as local newspapers vanish across the country.

The paper’s attorney rejected law enforcement's claim that the paper committed identity theft, saying a reporter conducted a legal search on the Department of Revenue’s website to verify a tip. The Marion County Attorney withdrew the search warrants last week, citing insufficient grounds for the search.

Meyer, the 98-year-old co-owner of the local newspaper, died a day after law enforcement raided her home. Her son believes the stress of the raid on her home and the newsroom was a contributing factor in her death.

Following the police raid of the Marion County Record, the editors of two small-town Kansas newspapers, the Iola Register and the Marysville Advocate, joined Up To Date to discuss what it takes to keep local publications going in a culture increasingly hostile toward the media.

An investigation by the Kansas City Star found that Marion County Police Chief Gideon Cody, who was behind the highly-criticized raid on the local newspaper, left his previous job at the Kansas City Police Department under scrutiny. Cody faced a demotion and was being investigated for his sexist treatment of a fellow officer.

It was a confidential tip to the newspaper about the DUI history of a local restaurant owner that set the recent events in motion. But local newspapers report that the judge who signed the search warrant had her own history of drunk driving arrests.

Journalists at the Marion County Record worked late into the night to publish their first issue since the widely criticized raid of their office by local police. Plus: Senior Kansans who want to live out their golden years in the rural towns where they grew up face the growing issue of how to get around.

The county attorney in Marion County, Kansas, says that police should return seized material to the weekly newspaper after a much-criticized raid. The prosecutor said his review found “insufficient evidence" to suggest a crime.