» Carolyn Dillon, longtime owner and publisher of The Tylertown Times, died Monday, Jan. 27, following an extended illness. Dillon operated the weekly newspaper and radio station WTYL-FM since 1983. “Perhaps the most important value I learned from Carolyn was the importance of community-driven journalism — how local news operations are the fabric of an engaged citizenry, binding a better-informed people together,” wrote Tony Plohetski on Facebook, who is now a reporter for the Austin American-Statesman in Texas. Services are pending. Hartman Hughes Funeral Home in Tylertown is in charge of arrangements.
» Emily Wagster Pettus recently announced her departure from a 24-year career with the Associated Press as a Jackson-based Mississippi correspondent. Pettus said she was one of several journalists who took a buyout from the news coop as it restructures. Pettus formerly was a reporter for The Vicksburg Post and the Clarion Ledger and is an Ole Miss journalism graduate.
SAVE THE DATE! Newspaper media professionals will return to the Memphis in 2025 for the Tri-State Press Convention, bringing together members of the Arkansas, Mississippi, and Tennessee press associations.
Sessions are planned on editorial, revenue, and digital best practices, among others. The event will be held at the Hilton Memphis at the intersection of I-240 and U.S. 72/Poplar Avenue in East Memphis.
Registration will open in the spring. Check back soon for more details on the program and sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities.
Vendors & Sponsors: Download information about partnership opportunities for this event.
Visit the Tri-State Convention website for details on registration and hotel accommodations.