Grant McLaughlin

Grant McLaughlin is an economic development/ workforce reporter for the Commercial Dispatch in Columbus, Mississippi. As an undergraduate at The University of Mississippi’s School of Journalism and New Media l, McLaughlin worked for The Daily Mississippian, Rebel Radio, and started his own literary arts/ news website and magazine, The Underground Poet. He also participated in the Journalism School’s in-depth reporting class, writing about Fannie Lou Hamer and her Freedom Farm Cooperative. McLaughlin has also been a photography intern for Invitation magazine, where he worked local events in Oxford, Mississippi. He has a passion for writing poetry and creative nonfiction and has been published in Quasar Arts Magazine and the Landshark Review.

The Commercial Dispatch

The Commercial Dispatch, a daily paper and a news site, has been owned by the same family for 100 years. The primary coverage area is Lowndes and Oktibbeha counties. Lowndes is home to a diverse economy. Oktibbeha's economy is largely fueled by Mississippi State University. This news organization tackles stories with down-the-middle reporting, but also believes a paper's editorial stances play an important role in a community. Its tagline is "Open eyes, open minds," a nod to its history of pushing aggressive watchdog journalism and a vibrant local opinion page.