Alabama Political Reporter

News / National / State

It’s time for criminal justice reform

Evangelist Scott Dawson recently expressed a profound thought in an opinion column in Alabama Political Reporter. “Protecting life is a universal moral imperative. At every stage of human development, we, as good Christians and good people, should value life and who God has put on this earth,” wrote Dawson. The role of the church in … Continued

Bill Britt

July 17, 2019

APR reporters take on additional assignments

Three members of the Alabama Political Reporter‘s staff have recently earned advances in their careers. Chip Brownlee, while continuing his work for APR, has been signed as a freelance reporter for the Washington Post. Brownlee worked with Post staff in covering the 2019 Legislative Session reporting on the state’s abortion debate. Brownlee has also been … Continued

June 3, 2019

Opinion

The Ayers factor: A disturbing lack of compassion

When former Anniston Star publisher H. Brandt Ayers admitted last year to assaulting women who worked for him — including my wife Veronica when she was a young reporter — Ayers resigned as chairman of Consolidated Publishing, the company that owns the Star and other newspapers. Ayers was supposed to have nothing more to do … Continued

Joey Kennedy

May 9, 2019

Optometrists push back against survey

A recent statewide survey of 500 likely voters published by Alabama Political Reporter found that an overwhelming majority of those polled oppose a proposed change in state law that would allow individuals who are not medical doctors to perform eye surgery. Nearly 80 percent of Alabamians oppose such a move, according to the survey. Alabamians … Continued

Bill Britt

April 23, 2019

Editor who wrote KKK editorial says he sold his paper. One of the new owners has Klan ties

The Alabama newspaper publisher who called for a return of the Ku Klux Klan has apparently sold his newspaper to a man with possible ties to the KKK. C.T. Harless — one of the paper’s two new co-owners, according to a front-page story in the March 28 issue of The Democrat-Reporter — has apparent ties to … Continued

Chip Brownlee

April 2, 2019

Opinion

The fallen Star

At the beginning of last year, when former Consolidated Publishing chairman and Anniston Star publisher H. Brandt Ayers basically admitted to abusing at least two of his former female employees by spanking them decades ago, those of us who followed the story knew this was just the cliché’d tip of the iceberg. When my wife, … Continued

Joey Kennedy

March 7, 2019

Opinion

Brandy Ayers stole “normal” from the women he abused

Shortly after the Anniston Star posted a story that Washington Post Executive Editor Martin “Marty” Baron was coming to Anniston to deliver the annual Ayers Lecture, the rumblings started. On the surface, it appeared to be an insult to the many women, including my wife, Veronica, who were abused by H. Brandt Ayers, former publisher … Continued

Joey Kennedy

February 28, 2019

Alabama missed out on full funding of Medicaid expansion. This bill would fix that.

Alabama Sen. Doug Jones is partnering with Virginia Sen. Mark Warner to introduce a bill that would make up for federal funding lost to states that chose not to expand Medicaid in the first years of the Affordable Care Act. The bill would allow states to take advantage of a similar match rate to those … Continued

Chip Brownlee

February 27, 2019

KKK editorial writer steps down: “I’m going to drink beer and sex young women”

The editor and publisher of a small town newspaper who called for the resurgence of the KKK and for the lynching of Democratic politicians in an editorial published last week is stepping down after several days of backlash. In an phone interview with the Alabama Political Reporter, the editor and publisher of The Democrat-Reporter, Goodloe Sutton, doubled down … Continued

Chip Brownlee

February 22, 2019

Opinion

A legacy for the ages

In a column on Wednesday, Alabama Political Reporter Editor-in-Chief Bill Britt noted that Gov. Kay Ivey’s time is now to do big things for Alabama. That may well come to pass. Ivey, Britt noted, wants to do great things, and among those great things are overhauling “significant portions of the state’s education system,” opening three … Continued

Joey Kennedy

January 31, 2019