Between the Headlines: Columbus

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Some people are hesitant to cast their ballot because they think their vote doesn't count. Mississippi's US Senate race between Cindy Hyde-Smith and Scott Colom is proof that isn't true. We walk through the latest tallies and why a race that looks “too close to call” can start drifting in one direction as affidavit ballots are cured and mail-in absentee totals land. 

From there, we zoom out to the bigger implications: the history tied to a potential Colom win, the case for governing as a pragmatic moderate, and what real leverage in Washington could mean for places like Columbus and Lowndes County. 

Then we pivot hard into local government. We break down the proposed $136,000 entertainment director role for the Columbus amphitheater, why job definitions and transparency matter, and how the “tourism generator” argument works when you look at tourism tax and sales tax instead of ticket revenue alone. We also unpack State Auditor Shad White’s move to force overdue city audits, including the mechanics of diverting sales tax and the unavoidable question of optics. If you care about Mississippi politics, municipal accountability, and how decisions get explained to the public, hit play, then subscribe, share the show, and leave us a review.

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A single hiring vote at Columbus City Council turns into a bigger question about power, process, and basic competence: are we trying to fix the audit backlog with a senior accountant, or quietly setting up a CFO succession plan? 

Next we take on Columbus' legislative priorities and the real-world politics of asking for money. We talk bridges, including the aging Tuscaloosa Road Waterworks Road span plus big-ticket ideas like a new bridge connection that could reroute truck traffic and change development patterns. We also get into the less flashy request that may unlock the most help: a master drainage plan that positions the city for larger federal infrastructure funding.

Then Trip Hairston joins us for a wide-ranging interview that connects local decisions to Jackson. He explains why he’s running for Mississippi State Senate, lays out his view on the future of Mississippi University for Women and the risks of consolidation, and breaks down what he thinks communities should demand from data centers.

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The biggest political visit of the year doesn’t just raise campaign questions, it exposes how a town handles pressure. We walk through a planned Kamala Harris rally in Columbus and the scramble to find a venue for it.

Then we pivot to the other headline we keep hearing in the Golden Triangle: data centers. If you’re worried about noise, water consumption, power generation or higher electric bills, you’re not alone. We sort the repeated claims from the verifiable stuff and focus on what local leaders can negotiate, including decibel limits, setbacks, tree buffers, closed loop cooling, infrastructure investment, and long-term plans if technology changes and a facility ever gets vacated. It’s a nuanced economic development conversation, especially when big capital investment and taxes could change a community’s trajectory. 

Finally, we bring in guests Berkley Hudson and filmmaker Dan Christian to talk Possum Town, the Possum Town Film Festival, and O. N. Pruitt’s astonishing photo archive from the 1920s to the 1960s. These images capture everyday life in Columbus during Jim Crow, along with moments that still haunt the present, and the documentary invites us to slow down, look closely, and sit with unsettled history without forcing easy answers. 

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A former vice president coming to Columbus is the kind of headline that makes you stop scrolling, even if you swear you’re tired of politics. We talk through why a Kamala Harris stop isn’t just spectacle, what it might telegraph about the Mississippi U.S. Senate race, and how campaigns try to shake loose the voters who usually stay home because they assume the outcome is already written. 

Then we turn to something that hits families directly: Mississippi school accountability scores. We then step into the hottest local fight you can start with one phrase: data centers. What rules should our community insist on before saying yes?

Finally, MUW ceramics professor Ian Childers joins us to talk about finding clay after a wilder youth, why craft still matters, and how modern tools like 3D printing can support handmade work without replacing it. 

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A neglected historic house isn’t just a private problem, especially in a place like Columbus where the town’s identity is tied to its older homes, downtown buildings, and landmark properties. We talk through the newly passed historic preservation ordinance changes and what it means when the city adds a fine structure that can get expensive fast. The big question isn’t only “Should we protect historic assets?” It’s “How do we protect them fairly, without creating a system that feels arbitrary or punishes the wrong people?” 

From there, we shift gears to public safety and city operations. Columbus Police Department hits a full roster for the first time in a long time, and we talk about what it might say about leadership, retention, and whether that progress can hold. We also dig into the College Street truck traffic issue, where drivers ignore suggested routes because the city lacks an ordinance to make the route enforceable. Signs can’t compete with convenience, but citations can. 

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We break down the latest domino chain in Columbus and Lowndes County politics, starting with shifting ambitions up the ballot and landing on a big local question: What does a city council member owe the voters before running for a different office? Jason Spears’ interest in the District 2 county supervisor race sparks a candid debate about timing, constituent trust, and whether moving from city council to the board of supervisors really increases impact or just spreads it thinner. 

From there, we wade back into the ongoing Trotter and Regal Hall fight, because it keeps revealing the same problem: unclear rules and too many “exceptions.” If public facilities are meant to generate revenue, what should complimentary use look like, how do you define a real “city event,” and how do you stop governance from turning into case-by-case bargaining? 

Then we’re joined by retired Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics captain and author Merle Temple, whose book A Ghostly Shade of Pale draws on real undercover experience. Merle shares how he learned to write scenes that feel lived-in, why music matters in storytelling, and what it’s like to revisit Columbus with decades of memories. His account of a 1976 drug deal ambush is as intense as anything in true crime, right down to the bulletproof vest that may have saved a life, plus a surprising connection to Criminal Minds and Hollywood.

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A single announcement can redraw the whole local map, and that’s exactly where we start. Senator Chuck Younger is eyeing the Northern District Transportation Commissioner seat, and we unpack what it means for area politics when an elected seat is made empty. We talk through leadership “pipelines,” why filling local seats matters as people move up, and what steady competence looks like when a room is hot and the crowd is hostile. 

We also get into a tense Columbus City Council moment around the Trotter Convention Center, where a policy meant to control free use got ignored for years and suddenly became personal. 

Then we bring in Dispatch sports writer Jake McMahon for Mississippi State football. We talk road wins, the shift in program confidence under Jeff Lebby, Kamario Taylor’s upside, and how NIL and revenue sharing changes the pressure on homegrown stars. We look ahead to the October SEC gauntlet, the fan base energy at Davis Wade Stadium, and what it will take to turn early momentum into a real season.

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We’re joined in Catfish Alley Studio by James Fallows, longtime Atlantic journalist, former White House speechwriter, and co-author of “Our Towns,” to talk about why he and Deb kept returning to the Golden Triangle and what they saw that most outsiders miss: serious education, real industrial growth, civic memory, and the kind of local problem-solving that doesn’t fit cable-news templates.

We dig into what Fallows calls the “ten and a half signs of civic success,” from redevelopment that brings dead space back to life to the institutions that quietly hold towns together. 

Then we pivot to Mississippi politics and the state of campaigning now, including a cringe-worthy website tactic aimed at defining a Senate opponent, the double standards that keep “cheap politics” alive, and a surfaced audio clip that raises questions about threats and candidate security. 

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Free use of a public building sounds like a feel-good headline until you ask the hard questions: Who decides, what’s the policy, and who quietly pays the bill when “free” becomes routine? We dig into the discussion over waiving fees at the Trotter Convention Center for events labeled “city events with a municipal purpose.” We break down what happened at the work session, why some council members pushed back, and why clarity matters when taxpayer-funded facilities, maintenance costs, and public trust are on the line.

Then we shift to East Mississippi Community College and the ongoing fallout from Buddy Stephens being relieved as head football coach. We talk through what public records reveal, what at-will employment really means at a government institution, and why the First Amendment question changes the stakes when speech and discipline collide. Along the way, we step back and ask a bigger budget question Mississippi keeps running into: if community colleges are under financial pressure, what role should junior college football play?

The heart of the conversation brings us 25 years after 9/11 with NYPD Emergency Service Unit first responder Mario Zorovic and Mark Smith of Salute to Lowndes County’s Finest. Mario walks us through the morning the towers fell, the chaos at Ground Zero, the desperate search for survivors, and the long recovery that followed, including the health and mental health toll many first responders carry for years. Mark explains how a visit from Mario helped spark a lasting local mission, raising funds to support first responders in Lowndes County when life hits hard and pride makes it difficult to ask for help.

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One blunt quote can end a long run, even when the résumé looks untouchable. We talk through the stunning shift at East Mississippi Community College as Buddy Stevens, the larger-than-life junior college football coach made famous by Netflix’s “Last Chance U,” is suddenly out.

We break down what Stevens said about the new MACCC playoff format, why calling community college leaders “idiots” hit differently than his past bombast, and how winning can buy you grace until it doesn’t. 

We close with takeaways from our community listening session, including a clear call for more explainer journalism on taxes, budgets, and how local government works, plus the harder challenge of rebuilding trust when people filter facts through who they like.