| Wednesday, March 25, 2026 |
| MSU Dining Services' Jankowski named Aramark South Region District Manager of the Year | |
 | Mississippi State University's Dining Services is flourishing under the leadership of James Jankowski, recently recognized as the 2025 District Manager of the Year for Aramark's South Region. The resident district manager for Aramark Collegiate Hospitality at MSU has been instrumental in projects including the historic Perry Food Hall renovation and establishment of Azalea Dining in Azalea Hall, the university's newest residence hall. Honored at the Aramark regional College Hospitality Awards ceremony, Jankowski said while his name is on the award, it reflects the strong work ethic contributed by the entire MSU Dining team. "It has my name on it, but it is really the work of the more than 300 people we have employed over the past seven years," Jankowski said. "It reflects the long hours and hard work everyone's been doing. This is a confirmation from our organization of the effort that our team has put in." Jankowski said he is always looking for ways to grow and improve MSU Dining Services. |
| MSU's Office of Emergency Management holds annual Preparathon | |
 | MSU's Office of Emergency Management held its annual Preparathon today. The event provides students, faculty, and staff with information about what to do, where to go, and what they need in case of an emergency or a disaster. Members of area law enforcement and emergency response agencies were also on hand, so those on campus could meet face-to-face with the people who handle those emergency calls. Students got hands-on experience with life-saving procedures, like CPR, and with the Build-A-Kit event, they were able to put together their own emergency preparedness kit. "Those who are off campus consider a 72-hour kit. You know, a gallon-a-day per person for water; food that's non-perishable; a flashlight, different kinds of things like that. You want to build a kit to your specific needs based on your family. If you have medical conditions, you know, back-up prescriptions and those kinds of things to have in a kit as well," said Assistant Director Natasha Cundy. Experts advise having an emergency kit for your car as well as having a 24-hour kit and a 72-hour kit for your home. |
| MSU's Watermelon Field Day returns July 22 | |
| March seems early to think about watermelons, but now is the time to register for a summer field day that provides extensive information on growing these juicy treats. Mississippi State University's 2026 Watermelon Field Day is set for July 22 at the R.R. Foil Plant Science Research Center, commonly known as North Farm. "The field day will let visitors see a variety of watermelons in different shapes, colors and sizes," said Pawel Orlinski, event organizer and MSU Extension vegetable specialist. "Speakers will discuss different methods to control insects and diseases with conventional and organic strategies." Registration is free through Tuesday and will cost $50 per person starting April 1. The event begins at 8 a.m. and concludes at 2 p.m. The event is designed for industry professionals, including vegetable growers, agricultural professionals, Extension agents and plant science students. All audiences are welcome to attend. MSU's North Farm is located at 972 Highway 182 in Starkville. |
| Horticultural Research Institute funds 18 green industry research projects | |
 | The Horticultural Research Institute, the research affiliate of AmericanHort, has provided research funding for 18 projects in 2026 totaling $564,521. The selected projects address a wide range of industry priorities, including plant propagation and production efficiency, pest and disease management, landscape plant performance and consumer engagement with horticultural products. "The projects funded through HRI reflect the industry's commitment to investing in solutions that strengthen horticulture today and into the future," says Mark Yelanich, HRI board president and research director at Metrolina Greenhouses. "When businesses and researchers work together through HRI, the results benefit the entire green industry." The projects include: AI-enhanced High Fidelity, Multi-stage Nursery Inventory Management of Southern Magnolia Using Intelligent Drones, Patricia Knight, Mississippi State University. |
| Bee workshop set for April 18 in Kosciusko | |
| The Red Hills Honey Bee Association, in partnership with the Attala County Extension Office, will host a bee workshop Saturday, April 18, 2026, offering local beekeepers and beginners an opportunity to learn practical hive management techniques. Registration will take place from 7:30 to 8 a.m., with the program continuing until midday. The cost to attend is $10 per participant. Jeff Harris, an associate professor with Mississippi State University, will lead the workshop. Harris is scheduled to present on "Making Splits and Other Swarm Prevention Techniques," focusing on methods to manage colony growth and reduce swarming. The workshop will be held at the Attala County Extension Office, located at 715 Fairground Road in Kosciusko. |
| Boxed Beef Prices Surge Early on Tight Supplies | |
| Wholesale beef prices are moving higher earlier than normal this year, signaling tighter supplies and strong demand across cattle markets. The Choice boxed beef cutout moved above $400 per hundredweight, up roughly $50 since the start of the year, according to analysis from Mississippi State University's Josh Maples. The Select cutout also climbed sharply, reaching levels not seen since mid-2020. The spread between Choice and Select has remained narrow, indicating a limited premium for higher-grade cattle so far in 2026. Beef prices typically build gradually early in the year before peaking ahead of summer demand. This year's move higher is happening sooner, reflecting tighter cattle supplies and reduced beef production. Buyers may also be stepping in earlier to secure product ahead of expected supply constraints later this spring. |
| Studio 9 Interview: Join cultural celebration at MSU's International Fiesta in Starkville | |
 | The 34th International Fiesta warmly invites everyone to Mississippi State University for an exciting day of fun. |
| ADI 'ramp up' continues with more than 600 employees working | |
| Each "charge" loaded into a furnace at Aluminum Dynamics Inc. represents five truckloads of aluminum. One of those truckloads is virgin metal, said Devin Crawford, ADI's metal and cast manager. The other four are scrap. On Tuesday, that information prompted an enterprising question from a Rotary Club of Columbus member at Lion Hills Center. "Where do I bring my cans, and how much will you pay me for them?" the Rotarian asked jokingly. "Take your cans to Omnisource," Crawford replied with a smile, referring to the metal recycler that provides all of ADI's scrap. "We don't take retail." Crawford updated the club Tuesday on the continued "ramping up" of ADI's plant west of Golden Triangle Regional Airport. About $2.4 billion has been invested at the site since its groundbreaking in 2023, he said, with the plant shipping its first aluminum coil in June 2025. Now, the still-upscaling plant employs more than 600 of its target 750 workers. At full capacity, the plant's annual output can reach 650,000 metric tons, or more than 21,000 coils of rolled aluminum. |
| Tornadoes likely to be severe in Mississippi in spring 2026 | |
 | Spring is here and along with it comes the most active time for tornadoes in Mississippi. While it's possible that there may be fewer tornadoes than average this spring, there's also the chance that the tornadoes the state experiences will be particularly severe. So, here's what you need to know to help you stay safe and understand tornadoes. "If you look at the climatological record for our area, the severe weather dramatically picks up in March before it peaks in April," said Logan Poole, forecaster with the National Weather Service in Jackson. "We are over halfway through March. We've seen some severe weather events, but we haven't seen multiple days of major severe weather outbreaks this year." Poole said most of the remainder of March appears quiet, but then April comes around. And as Poole said, it's the month most prone to tornado outbreaks. In a previous interview, Michael Hill, warning coordination meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Jackson, said people in Mississippi should always be prepared for tornadoes because they can happen any time of year in the state. |
| Public Service Commission to host energy workforce summit on April 2 | |
| The Mississippi Public Service Commission is looking to address the evolving needs of the state's energy sector while exploring workforce recruitment strategies. To accomplish those goals, an energy workforce and education summit will take place at the Woolfolk Building in downtown Jackson on Thursday, April 2, bringing together leaders from education, industry, and workforce development. According to the state agency, the summit will highlight workforce development and collaboration. Accelerate MS Executive Director Dr. Courtney Taylor will headline conversations on aligning education with industry needs, while Mississippi Energy Institute President Patrick Sullivan will lead the discussion on bridging skills gaps, alongside a panel of leaders sharing innovative training models. The summit will conclude with an exclusive breakout session where students will have the opportunity to engage directly with the commissioners. |
| Prediction markets draw scrutiny in Mississippi as regulators weigh limits | |
 | Prediction markets, platforms that allow users to bet on the outcome of events, are now accessible nationwide, including in states like Mississippi where mobile sports betting remains illegal. In a recent meeting with lawmakers, Mississippi Gaming Commission Executive Director Jay McDaniel said state regulators consider those platforms to be gambling, but say they have limited authority to stop them. "Our position from the gaming commission is its wagering, it's gambling," McDaniel said. Unlike traditional sports betting, which is regulated by states, prediction markets operate under federal oversight typically applied to financial trading. That has created a growing legal conflict, with states arguing the platforms function like gambling while operators maintain they are offering regulated financial products. McDaniel told lawmakers Mississippi is tracking legal challenges in other states as courts weigh whether federal authority overrides state gambling laws. For now, he said, regulators are taking a wait-and-see approach as legal challenges move forward in other states. |
| MDOT Executive Director says I-55 widening likely to be included in end-of-year projects bill | |
| With just days to go before the end of the 2026 Legislative Session, state transportation leaders are still hopeful funding will be set aside for two major road-widening projects in the metro area. Those projects include adding additional lanes along I-55 in Madison County and Lakeland Drive in Rankin County. The Senate passed a funding bill to pay for both, but the measure died after being referred to two House committees. Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) Executive Director Brad White says funding for those projects and others will likely be added to a larger spending bill near the end of the session. "Traditionally, the way the legislature has funded these big capacity construction programs would be through some sort of projects bill at the end of the session," he said. "So, the fact that the Senate bill died in a committee... was really not a concern to me." Both projects are needed to improve capacity along two heavily traveled thoroughfares. In Rankin County, work would include widening U.S. Highway 25 from Castlewoods Boulevard to Highway 471. |
| Will Mississippi teachers get a pay raise? Bills being negotiated by lawmakers | |
| Teacher pay raise bills from the House and Senate are set to be negotiated over the final days of the legislative session. It's the latest in a session-long fight to pass a raise for Mississippi teachers, the lowest paid on average in the country. Mississippi teachers last got a meaningful pay raise in 2022. Since January, the House and Senate have fought over education policy issues, including a teacher raise. Earlier this session, each chamber killed the other's proposal, then revived their own. The Senate's plan would give teachers a $6,000 raise over three years, while the House plan would provide an immediate $5,000 raise. Despite Senate Education Chairman Dennis DeBar, a Republican from Leakesville, previously telling reporters that the House's teacher pay proposal would not be considered in his chamber, the legislation was brought up on the floor Tuesday morning and sent to further negotiations. The House declined to agree to the Senate's proposal that same morning, and did the same. Now, legislative leaders will appoint three representatives and three senators to negotiate terms of a final proposal. |
| Hosemann says Reeves veto message of disaster loan program is inaccurate | |
| Governor Tate Reeves (R) vetoed SB 2632 on Monday, sending a strongly worded veto message back to lawmakers, claiming material changes to the legislation were made after it had already been presented to his office. He said such action would violate the state Constitution and may rise to criminal conduct. However, at least part of the message related to when those actions took place appear to be in dispute. Lt. Governor Delbert Hosemann (R) told Magnolia Tribune early Tuesday morning the governor's veto message is inaccurate. "On March 13, Senator Tyler McCaughn asked for unanimous consent to remove the word 'monthly' as reflected in the Legislature's YouTube recording at the 33:45 mark. Senator Bryan's motion on March 17 pertained to a different bill, HB 895, not SB 2632 as the Governor's veto message falsely claims," Hosemann said. Regarding the change in the House, State Rep. Deweese told Magnolia Tribune Tuesday morning, "That's his take on it, that's fine, I'll respect that." "We're just going to move forward and see if we can find some relief for our cities and counties that's what we're ultimately here to do. We will respect his veto and that's his decision," Deweese said. "While we may disagree with it and disappointed by it, we will move forward looking for other ways to help our cities and counties." |
| Reeves' veto of disaster loan bill sparks dispute with Mississippi lawmakers | |
| The motive behind a veto from Gov. Tate Reeves on a disaster relief bill has sparked a public clash among some of Mississippi's top political leaders, with accusations ranging from misinformation to potentially criminal conduct. Reeves, a Republican in his sixth year as governor, vetoed Senate Bill 2632 late Monday. The legislation would have created a state-run loan program to help cities and counties recover from damage caused by Winter Storm Fern. The storm hit in late January, impacting over half the state, and is widely considered Mississippi's most severe winter weather event since 1994. Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann accused the governor of misrepresenting the process and unfairly targeting lawmakers and legislative staffers. Reeves originally blamed Democratic Sen. Hob Bryan, saying the amendment was made on March 17, but Hosemann said the amendment was made on March 13 by Republican Sen. Tyler McCaughn. Reeves' deputy chief of staff, Cory Custer, backed the governor's decision, writing in a text message to SuperTalk Mississippi News: "If the House and Senate send the Governor the exact same bill 174 members had the opportunity to vote on, he will gladly sign it. He told the Lieutenant Governor and Speaker that yesterday." It remains unclear if Reeves is personally advocating for a 12% loan for storm victims. |
| Gov. Tate Reeves vetoes winter storm aid bill and levels false claim of criminal act at Senate staff | |
| Republican Gov. Tate Reeves on Monday vetoed a bill that sought to provide low-interest loans to local governments impacted by this year's deadly winter storm and accused Senate staffers of committing unconstitutional and potentially criminal acts with the legislation. But the basis for Reeves's allegations of criminal action is inaccurate. "The plainly unconstitutional (and possibly criminal) act of the person or persons that attempted to surreptitiously change a material (and negotiated) term of Senate Bill 2632 is unconscionable and calls into question the validity of every bill that I have signed into law this session," Reeves wrote in his veto message. The legislation Reeves vetoed attempted to give cities and counties devastated by Winter Storm Fern a loan using state tax dollars. The legislation stated that the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency was to give local governments loans at 1% at an annual interest rate after federal emergency relief is provided to the state. But Reeves said he negotiated with legislators that it should have been a 1% monthly charge to local governments, instead of a 1% annual charge. Under what Reeves said he agreed to, governments would have been charged a 12% annual loan, instead of a 1% annual loan. Reeves' office on Tuesday appeared to continue to advocating for a higher loan rate to local governments. |
| Mississippi lawmakers send SHIELD Act, aimed at verifying voters' citizenship, on to Governor | |
| A bill aimed at verifying the citizenship of persons registering to vote in Mississippi has been sent to Governor Tate Reeves (R). State Senator Jeremy England (R), author of the original bill, made the motion to concur with the changes made in the House of Representatives on Monday, sending SB 2588, the "Safeguard Honesty Integrity in Elections for Lasting Democracy" (SHIELD) Act, to the governor's desk. According to England, the House's change will force the use of the national Systematic Alien and Verification Entitlements (SAVE) database to ensure U.S. citizenship when that person is not in the Department of Public Safety's system or if they have "checked themselves" as a non-resident. England said the SAVE system is not to be confused with the Trump administration's SAVE Act which is being considered by the U.S. Congress and would require voters to provide proof of citizenship at the time of registering to vote and mandate that a photo ID be presented when casting a ballot. Mississippi already requires voter ID. |
| Legislature sends rural health funding transparency bill to the governor | |
| Lawmakers sent a bill to Gov. Tate Reeves for consideration Monday that seeks to ensure federal funding for rural health care is directed toward rural communities and the spending is reported to the Legislature. The bill is a diluted version of oversight legislation passed by both chambers earlier in the session, which would have required a competitive bidding process for the distribution of hundreds of millions of dollars given to Mississippi by the federal government. In December, Mississippi was awarded nearly $206 million as a part of the Rural Health Transformation Program. States will receive payments over five years as a part of the $50 billion program, which was designed to support rural health care and offset the disproportionate impact already-struggling rural hospitals are expected to bear as a result of federal spending cuts Congress passed into law last summer. Lawmakers have publicly expressed frustration with the limited role they have played in the funding application and distribution process, which is being led by Reeves' office. |
| Mississippi lawmakers face deadline on pharmacy benefit manager reform | |
| Independent pharmacists packed the State Capitol Tuesday, urging lawmakers to take action on pharmacy benefit manager reform before Thursday's deadline. Pharmacists say the next step for House Bill 1665 could decide whether some local pharmacies can stay open. Pharmacy benefit managers are the middlemen between pharmacies and insurance companies. "You've been dealing with these folks since they were babies. I mean, it's about patient care. It's not just about the pharmacies. I mean, we just need to be paid well enough that we can stay in business to support these people," said Joe Mohamed, president of the Mississippi Independent Pharmacy Association. Business groups are pushing back against a dispensing fee added by the Senate. They claim the fee could raise costs for employers and employees. Pharmacists argue other states have done the same without increasing costs. "States all around us have done this exact same thing... they haven't raised costs," pharmacist Fair Jones said. Sen. Jeremy England said it's a complex issue, but he hopes lawmakers will figure it out. |
| Lawmakers look to put old ABC warehouse up for sale | |
| A bill to move forward on the sale of the state's old Alcohol Beverage Control warehouse in Gluckstadt is headed to a legislative conference committee this weekend. The state-owned 211,000 sq. ft. warehouse in Madison could be sold once the governor signs off on the bill. State Senator Bart Williams (R), a Senate conferee, does not foresee any issue during the weekend conference process. "I don't see any issues as long as the state has two appraisals and receives fair market value or better for the building," he told Magnolia Tribune. The warehouse, built in 1983, is being replaced by a $95 million, state-bond-funded, 400,000-square-foot facility located in Canton. Senate conferees are Williams, State Senator Juan Barnett (D), and State Senator Philman Lander (R). In the House of Representatives, conferees are State Rep. Richard Bennett (R), State Rep. Gregory Holloway (D), and State Rep. Gene Newman (R). One entity interested in the property is the Madison County Economic Development Authority. "We think it would be a great asset," said Larkin Simpson, CEO of MCEDA. |
| Unclaimed dogs terrorize Crawford cattle herds | |
| By the time farmer Bud Holtcamp hears the barking during his pre-dawn chores, it's already too late. He jumps in his truck and heads toward the sound, using a spotlight to cut through the dark, but once he arrives, the pack of dogs attacking his cattle has disappeared. "As soon as they hear my truck running ... they're gone," Holtcamp told The Dispatch. It's been an ongoing issue for about two months, with the pack of roughly seven dogs recently escalating from badly injuring the cows to killing them. "It started with just chewing their ears off and grabbing them, and then the game gets rougher," Holtcamp said. "Pretty soon, we've got not only damaged or hurt cows, but we've got dead cattle." While it's not the first time he's dealt with animals attacking his livestock in the 50 years he's farmed in Crawford, Holtcamp said it could certainly be the worst. "I'm out a lot of money," he said, estimating the attacks have cost him roughly $40,000. f a dog is chasing or killing any poultry or livestock in Mississippi, state law allows the owner of the livestock to kill the dog without facing any liability. Furthermore, the owner of the dog is required to pay the livestock owner damages for any loss suffered as a result of the dog's action as well as the value of any the killed livestock. The problem in Crawford is that the dogs don't appear to have a clear owner, George Brown, theft investigator for the Mississippi Agricultural and Livestock Theft Bureau, told The Dispatch. |
| National Ag Day in the Capital City celebrated with cow milking contest | |
| On Tuesday, Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson and the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce celebrated National Ag Day with a focus on dairy including cow milking competitions and Genuine Mississippi milk and ice cream from the Beason Family Farm of Neshoba County. Governor Tate Reeves proclaimed today "Agriculture Day" in the State of Mississippi. Commissioner Gipson was joined outside Galloway United Methodist Church, across from the Mississippi Capitol, by Mississippi farmers, legislators and local media representatives. State Representative Shanda Yates, State Representative Kent McCarty, State Senator Kamesha Mumford, State Senator Jeremy England, and various local media personalities all participated in the milking contests. "Agriculture's role in Mississippi has never been more important. It is the number one industry in the state, the backbone of our economy and the basis of our small towns and rural communities," said Commissioner Gipson. Agriculture is the largest industry in the state of Mississippi. |
| Mississippi becomes first state to ban lab-grown milk with new law | |
| As traditional farmers push back against the onset of lab-grown dairy products, Mississippi is set to become the first U.S. state to prohibit "cell-cultured milk." House Bill 1153 passed with bipartisan support in both chambers of the Mississippi Legislature and went into law without the signature of Gov. Tate Reeves. The measure prohibits the manufacture, sale, or offer of cell-cultured dairy products in the state. It also bars the sale of food products misbranded as meat and restricts the use of traditional meat terms on alternative protein products -- including those made from plants -- unless clearly labeled with a qualifying term. Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson, speaking during National Agriculture Day events at the state capitol in Jackson, touted the legislation as a win for the state's top industry and the roughly 50 remaining dairy farms operating in Mississippi. "We are living in a time where it seems everything is artificial, and you wonder what is real. We've seen everything from fake grass -- astroturf -- to fake meat, and now, they've come up with lab-grown, or fake, milk," Gipson said. |
| Ag groups urge U.S. to drop phosphate fertilizer tariffs on Morocco, Russia imports | |
| More than 60 ag groups are asking the U.S. Department of Commerce to revoke countervailing duty orders on imports of phosphate fertilizer from Morocco and Russia. The groups, including USA Rice, the National Corn Growers Association and American Soybean Association, say maintaining phosphate fertilizer CVDs allows a small number of powerful corporations to continue to limit supply options for U.S. farmers, preventing them from accessing tools for crop production. The ag groups say access to reliable alternative sources of phosphate supply is important to keeping the U.S. fertilizer market competitive and resilient, and during the next sunset review, the department should remove the taxes. Fertilizer is one of the biggest expenses on the farm, and there's a concern about the rising cost, supplies and competition, as well as dependence on global supplies. |
| USDA cancels $300 million program to help farmers buy land amid anti-DEI push | |
 | The Agriculture Department is cutting hundreds of millions of dollars in funding from a program aimed at helping farmers buy and retain land, three people familiar with the decision confirmed to POLITICO on Tuesday. The Increasing Land, Capital, and Market Access Program, funded by the American Rescue Plan Act, awarded roughly $300 million to around 50 projects across the country for five-year contracts beginning in 2023. Nonprofits, tribal governments and other organizations applied for the funding to address land access issues for underserved farmers -- including access to capital, market expansions, succession planning and efforts to prevent land loss. The projects were especially targeted to address land access issues facing Black farmers, immigrant farmers, Indigenous farmers, veterans and other underrepresented groups. According to one of the cancellation letters shared with POLITICO, USDA determined that the program "involved discriminatory preferences based on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion" as well as "wasteful spending." The letter also cited a March 2025 directive from Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins directing USDA to review existing grants to ensure they do not promote DEI and are "free from fraud, abuse and duplication." |
| Iran Plays Hardball as Mediators Push for Talks With U.S. | |
 | Mediators from Turkey, Egypt and Pakistan are pushing for a meeting between U.S. and Iranian officials, but Tehran has displayed defiance over the possibility of diplomacy and both sides remain far apart. The U.S. sent Iran a 15-point plan to end the war, which centers largely around previous Trump administration demands of Tehran. Iran's military spokesman suggested the U.S. was negotiating with itself to get out of a "strategic defeat." Iran's state-run Press TV cited an official who said that the country wants reparations and recognition of Iranian sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz. Gulf Arab states are growing alarmed by Trump's eagerness to do a deal. The leaders of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are lobbying Trump to stick with the war until Iran is sufficiently weakened that it won't pose a threat. Separately, authorities suspect Iran recruited individuals online for terror attacks in Europe, and set up a bogus terror group to claim responsibility for attacks on Jewish schools, synagogues and companies linked to Israel. |
| Democrat flips seat in special election for Florida district that includes Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort | |
 | Democrat Emily Gregory won a Florida special election on Tuesday, flipping a state legislative district that is home to Mar-a-Lago, the Palm Beach estate that President Donald Trump counts as his residence. The president had endorsed Gregory's rival, Jon Maples. In a social media post Monday, he urged voters to turn out, saying Maples was backed "by so many of my Palm Beach County friends." Democrats celebrated the victory as the latest sign voters are turning against Trump and Republicans ahead of the midterm elections in November. Tuesday was the latest in a series of lopsided or improbable victories in special elections across the country since Trump returned to the White House more than a year ago. "If Mar-a-Lago is vulnerable, imagine what's possible this November," said Heather Williams, president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. She said Tuesday's race was the 29th seat that Democrats have flipped from Republican control since Trump took office. "Gas prices are spiking, grocery costs are up, and families can't get by -- it's clear voters at the polls are fed up with Republicans," Williams said. |
| Energy executive Armstrong tapped to replace Mullin in Senate | |
 | Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt has picked Republican energy executive Alan S. Armstrong to fill the seat former Sen. Markwayne Mullin vacated to serve as President Donald Trump's new Homeland Security secretary. Stitt, also a Republican, announced his selection at a Tuesday morning news conference, calling Armstrong a "strong business leader" and a champion of the state's energy industry. "Alan is strongly aligned with President Trump on energy policy. Few people have done more to champion the America-First agenda to keep Oklahoma at the center of domestic energy production," Stitt said. The announcement came the morning after the Senate voted 54-45 to confirm Mullin for the DHS role. Mullin resigned from his Senate seat immediately after the vote. Just a few hours after Armstrong's appointment was announced, he was on the Senate floor, where Senate President Pro Tempore Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, administered the oath of office. Armstrong will serve the remainder of Mullin's unexpired term, which ends in January 2027. Under state law, Armstrong cannot run for a full term. Trump has already endorsed Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla., in advance of the June primary in the race for a full Senate term. Armstrong comes to Congress after four decades at Williams, one of the largest natural gas pipeline companies in the United States. The Tulsa businessman spent 14 years as CEO before being named chairman of the board in 2025. Armstrong joined the company in 1986 as an engineer. |
| 'The worst I've seen': Oil industry grapples with the fallout from US-Israel war with Iran | |
| Global energy leaders have been jolted by the enormity of what the U.S.-Israel war with Iran means for their business -- and they're not liking what they're seeing. It's the second time in four years that top White House officials have taken the stage at the CERAWeek by S&P Global conference to plead with producers to ramp up their drilling to cover supply disruptions from war-driven oil and natural gas price shocks. But unlike the coordinated international response to counter Russia's 2022 attack in Ukraine, the Middle East war has drawn little support from allies and has seemed disturbingly ad hoc, industry executives said, leaving the industry feeling unsure on how to react. "We've not seen anything like this -- there's been no disruption of this scale in the past," Gareth Ramsay, chief economist at oil and gas giant BP, told the conference. "It's every oil analyst's study piece or worst nightmare -- one that we never thought would happen." The energy market fallout is becoming political as well. Trump's approval rating fell to 36 percent amid the public's anger over the war and the steep jump in gasoline prices, according to a Reuters poll released Tuesday. The dissatisfaction threatens to doom Republicans' attempts to keep control of Congress in this year's midterm elections. Executives from the world's largest oil companies appeared more astonished about the scale of the supply disruption from the war than thrilled about the higher prices. |
| Congress loses a flying perk as DHS shutdown continues | |
 | Members of Congress are now facing a personal consequence from the ongoing shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security: losing one special flight perk. Delta Airlines is pausing special services that make flights more convenient and efficient for members of Congress, as first reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "Due to the impact on resources from the longstanding government shutdown, Delta will temporarily suspend specialty services to members of Congress flying Delta," the airline said in a statement to NPR. "Next to safety, Delta's no. 1 priority is taking care of our people and customers, which has become increasingly difficult in the current environment." This comes a week after Delta CEO Ed Bastian told CNBC he's "outraged" by the ongoing shutdown, which has led to TSA officers working without pay. "It's inexcusable that our security agents, our frontline agents, that are essential to what we do, are not being paid, and it's ridiculous to see them being used as political chips," he said. |
| The MAGA Rebellion Over an $825 Million Plan for an 'Arkansas Alcatraz' | |
| Most signs along the bucolic roads of this conservative rural community in Republican-led Arkansas carry exhortations to follow Jesus or offer stump-grinding services and hay for sale. These days, new signs sit in the prairie grass: "SAY NO TO THE PRISON! Keep the country, country." Plans for a 3,000-bed prison on 815 acres of rocky pasture south of the broad Arkansas River, led by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, face an unlikely rebellion from a group of MAGA conservatives. The feud has gone from nasty to nastier, and both sides say they are following what President Trump would want. Sanders, 43, was elected Arkansas's first female governor in 2022 after serving as Trump's White House press secretary. She is seen as a possible future presidential candidate and is seeking a second term this fall, which she is expected to win. The proposed facility would cost about $825 million, according to her administration. Critics have argued that factors like the rocky ground will drive costs higher, and that the remote location will hinder staffing. Marc Dietz, 55, a businessman and rancher who operates a family-owned radio station in Ozark, one of two county seats, broke the story that the prison was planned for Franklin County. He said many locals felt blindsided. "We're a small county, not enough votes, and she thought she'd run roughshod," he said. |
| For the first time, the Anglican Communion will be led by a woman | |
| On a bright morning in Hermosa Beach, Calif., sunlight enters St. Cross Episcopal Church at a slant, catching a bit of church history in the colored panes of a stained-glass window. For the Rev. Rachel Nyback, the church's rector, it is something closer to a record of quiet upheaval. "What I love about this piece of stained glass is that you see the first woman who was called in the Diocese of Los Angeles to serve as a priest," said Nyback, "and she was hired here at St. Cross." The figure in the glass is of Rev. Canon Victoria Hatch, who was ordained at a moment half a century ago when the presence of a woman at the altar or in a pulpit was an innovation -- and an argument. On Wednesday the Anglican Communion, of which the Episcopal Church is the U.S. branch, will witness another historic moment: the installation of Sarah Mullally as the first woman to lead the global association of churches that trace their roots to Henry VIII's 16th century break with the Catholic Church. Mullally's selection as archbishop of Canterbury comes as a joy and a surprise for many female priests in the Episcopal Church. Fifty years is, as Nyback observes, both a long time in the life of a person and hardly any time at all in the life of the church. |
| Professor Reflects on Thoreau in New Ken Burns Documentary | |
| A University of Mississippi faculty expert gets to shine in the upcoming "Henry David Thoreau" documentary produced by Ken Burns. Cristin Ellis, associate professor of English and co-director of the interdisciplinary major in environmental studies, serves as an expert on all things Thoreau throughout the documentary. The film premieres March 30 and 31 on PBS stations, including Mississippi Public Broadcasting. "Thoreau is someone who deserves a big audience right now," Ellis said. "This is someone who wrote powerfully about issues such as environmental destruction, racial injustice, how consumerism makes us depressed and how the media fractures our attention and distracts us from what really matters in life." Thoreau, best known for his works "Walden" and "Civil Disobedience," became Ellis' area of expertise sort of by accident. Though she grew up in New England and even swam in Walden Pond, it wasn't until graduate school at Johns Hopkins University that she truly discovered the writer. |
| Houndmouth to headline annual Eaglepalooza event | |
 | The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) and the City of Hattiesburg will bring Eaglepalooza back to downtown Hattiesburg. The event will kick off at 5:30 p.m. on April 24, 2026. The annual, student-led free live music event will once again transform downtown into a vibrant evening of music and community celebration, drawing students, alumni and Pine Belt residents together for one of the university's most anticipated traditions. Headlining the event is Houndmouth, an alternative blues-rock band from New Albany, Indiana, led by Matt Myers. The band's breakout single "Sedona" from the album Little Neon Limelight earned platinum certification. Additional performances will include high-energy sets from DJ Kujho and Joslyn and The Sweet Compression. The lineup also includes The Fogies, a Hattiesburg-based independent rock band. |
| Board of Regents approves accelerated program for growing industries at LSU-A; makes other changes at LSU | |
| he state Board of Regents has approved an "accelerated bachelor's degree" at LSU's Alexandria campus, approved an artificial intelligence program at LSU in Baton Rouge and also approved a name change for a school in LSU's performing arts center. The accelerated degree at LSU-A includes 90-hour programs combining general education classes and specialized curricula in high-demand career fields. "It's imperative that our higher education institutions remain aligned with workforce needs as demand continues to grow in key industries," board Chairwoman Misti S. Cordell said in a statement. The accelerated programs will be in bioinformatics, which involves biological datasets, and information technology. The bachelor of science in artificial Intelligence sequence at LSU will feature experiential and work-based learning opportunities. LSU's College of Music and Dramatic Arts will rename its School of Theatre to the School of Theatre & Film. A statement from the school said the name change reflects the school's "evolving role within the university, the community, and the booming film industry in Louisiana." |
| Mizzou joins other insurers in cutting GLP‑1 weight‑loss drug coverage | |
 | The University of Missouri is no longer covering GLP-1 medications for weight loss under its health insurance plan. Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, the university stopped covering GLP-1 medications prescribed for conditions other than Type 2 diabetes, including weight loss. The health plan continues to cover GLP-1 medications for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes when prescribed by plan members' doctors. Mizzou cited rising insurance premiums as the reason for dropping coverage of those prescriptions. "As a self-insured organization, the university pays for all health care and prescription costs for plan members. Continuing coverage for GLP-1 medications, outside of diabetes treatment, would have resulted in a 28% increase in insurance premiums for all employees," said Travis Zimpfer, a spokesperson for the university. Mizzou's decision mirrors a broader trend of insurers dropping coverage for GLP-1 medications, including HCA Healthcare, one of the nation's largest hospital systems. |
| He Had a Full Ride at Duke -- Until America Cut Him Off | |
| As a boy, Majok Bior escaped a country engulfed in war. As a gifted student, he won a full scholarship to Duke University and looked toward a dazzling future. Bior studied computer science at the North Carolina campus during his freshman year and was a winger on an intramural soccer team. After finishing the fall semester of his sophomore year, Bior returned to Uganda for winter break. He played chess with friends and recounted the brutal winters and demands of chemistry class. Then President Trump began to ban students from Africa, starting with South Sudan where Bior was born. He hasn't returned to campus since. "You must not attempt to use your visa as it has been invalidated," said the email Bior received last year in April from the State Department. He tried the U.S. Embassy, and the consular officer told him his visa application was on indefinite hold. The U.S. hosted more than a million international students during the 2023-2024 school year, according to a survey by Open Doors, funded by the federal government. Some 50,000 of the students were from sub-Saharan Africa. "These are the best and brightest students who are going to be great allies of the U.S. if they were to spend time there," said Rebecca Zeigler Mano, an American who promoted American universities for the U.S. Embassy in Harare, Zimbabwe. |
| Perfect homework, blank stares: Why colleges are turning to oral exams to combat AI | |
| The assignment involves no laptop, no chatbot and no technology of any kind. In fact, there's no pen or paper, either. Instead, students in Chris Schaffer's biomedical engineering class at Cornell University are required to speak directly to an instructor in what he calls an "oral defense." It's a testing method as old as Socrates and making a comeback in the AI age. A growing number of college professors say they are turning to oral exams, and combining a variety of old-fashioned and cutting-edge techniques, to help address a crisis in higher education. "You won't be able to AI your way through an oral exam," says Schaffer, who introduced the oral defense last semester. Educators are no longer naively wondering if students will use generative AI to do their homework for them. A big question now is how to determine what students are actually learning. College instructors across the U.S. are noticing troubling new trends as generative artificial intelligence becomes more sophisticated. Take-home essays and other written assignments are coming back perfect. But when students are asked to explain their work, they can't. The long-term impact of AI use on critical thinking remains to be seen, but educators worry students increasingly see the hard work of thinking as optional. |
| Halfway Through the Fiscal Year, NIH Has Only Obligated 15% of Research Funding | |
 | The halfway point of the federal fiscal year looms at month's end, yet the National Institutes of Health has only obligated around 15 percent of the estimated $38 billion it has to distribute in grants and contracts to universities and other research institutions, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges. The AAMC on Tuesday released an analysis of data from NIH's RePORTER site, showing it had only obligated $5.8 billion as of Friday, compared to nearly $9 billion by that date in the final full fiscal year of the Biden administration. When the NIH "obligates" funding, it has sent an institution a notice saying the dollars are available to its researchers to spend. After the historically long government shutdown last fall, the NIH didn't start doling out funds until December. That month it obligated $1.2 billion, followed by $2 billion in January and February. That's a marked decline in the amount of funding obligated in the first half of the previous five fiscal years, the AAMC report said. The report says that current funding rates "raise concerns" that the NIH could be in a similar situation to last year, when it was forced to accelerate its spending to obligate the full amount of its budget by Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year. |
| Judge Extends Admissions Data Deadline -- For Some | |
| Some colleges and universities now have until April 6 to collect and report admissions data that the Education Department says it plans to use to identify unlawful race-based admissions practices, a federal judge decided Tuesday. It's the latest development in a lawsuit 17 Democratic state attorneys general filed against the department earlier this month over the Trump administration's original demand that colleges and universities with selective admissions policies complete the new Admissions and Consumer Transparency Supplement survey by March 18. Boston-based U.S. District Judge Dennis Saylor IV had already issued a temporary restraining order through today. On Tuesday, he heard arguments from lawyers representing the plaintiffs and the defendants before extending the temporary restraining order to April 6, by which point he plans to have made a decision on whether to issue a preliminary injunction. "The likelihood of success on merits claims is at least sufficiently strong to merit maintaining the status quo for another week or 10 days or so," Saylor said at the hearing in Boston. Doing so, he added, will give him more time "to consider all of the arguments more carefully about what is the appropriate thing to do here." But Tuesday's extension only applies to the public institutions in the states represented in the lawsuit. |
| Average net tuition down when adjusted for inflation, Brookings data shows | |
| Students at four-year colleges are paying less for tuition now than they did six years ago when adjusted for inflation, according to new research from the think tank Brookings Institution. The average cost of tuition after scholarships and other discounts, known as net tuition, has decreased since 2019-20 -- "in stark contrast to the public's perception," wrote Phillip Levine, a nonresident senior fellow at Brookings and author of the report. That held true for students across income levels and institution types. Net tuition has typically fallen most for students with family income at $45,000, the lowest income level Levine tracked. For that cohort, the cheapest net tuition on average -- $4,600 in the current academic year -- is at the country's wealthiest private colleges, which Levine noted enroll relatively smaller shares of low-income students. The data showed broadly falling prices after accounting for inflation. At public flagships and R1 universities, for example, inflation-adjusted net tuition between 2019-20 and 2025-26 dropped 9.6% to $24,400 for students with a family income of $85,000, according to Levine's analysis. In contrast, students from the lowest earning households paid a net tuition of $15,400 at public flagships and R1 institutions, a roughly 15% drop from six years prior. |
| Supreme Court action on Mississippi cases impacts protest rights, balloting procedures | |
| Columnist Sid Salter writes: It's rare for Mississippi to draw significant national attention in a single week, but last week the Supreme Court kept the state in the spotlight with two major cases -- one a unanimous decision on a protestor's free speech rights at a public performance venue, and the other a voting rights case that could impact both state and federal elections. More specifically, the case of Gabriel Olivier v. City of Brandon concerned whether Olivier -- a self-proclaimed Christian "public evangelist" and owner/operator of a lawn care service – can legally challenge a Brandon city ordinance that establishes a designated "protest zone" for demonstrators at the Brandon Amphitheater, even if he has previously been convicted of violating the ordinance. ... n the other major Mississippi case to be heard by the Supreme Court, the justices will hear arguments in Watson v. Republican National Committee. The case seeks clarity on differences between Mississippi law and federal law regarding absentee ballots as the justices decide whether federal law requires voters to cast their ballots on Election Day and for election officials to receive those ballots by the same deadline. Mississippi allows ballots to be received and counted up to five days after Election Day. |
SPORTS
| Baseball: Sixth-Ranked State Run-Rules No. 11 USM | |
| No. 6 Mississippi State wasted no time asserting control Tuesday night, erupting for nine runs over the first three innings and cruising to a 12-0 run-rule victory over No. 11 Southern Miss in seven innings at Dudy Noble Field. The Diamond Dawgs (21-4) piled up 14 hits and overwhelmed the Golden Eagles early, handing Southern Miss (19-6) its most lopsided defeats of the season. State set the tone immediately in the first inning as Aidan Teel and Ace Reese opened with back-to-back singles before Noah Sullivan worked a walk to load the bases. Gehrig Frei delivered a two-run single up the middle and Ryder Woodson followed with an RBI knock to give the Bulldogs a 3-0 lead. MSU added another run in the second when Sullivan singled home Teel, who finished a perfect 4-for-4 night with four runs scored and two RBIs. The Bulldogs broke the game open in the third. After Frei singled and Woodson walked, Jacob Parker launched a three-run homer down the right-field line. Two batters later, Teel blasted a two-run shot to right, stretching the lead to 9-0 and sending the crowd of 12,887 into a frenzy. |
| No. 6 Bulldogs batter No. 11 USM in midweek rematch at The Dude | |
| The rematch between Mississippi State and Southern Miss was much different than the first meeting down south earlier this month. A bullpen game with a road-weary Bulldog squad fresh off a plane from Arlington, Texas, fell 7-6 against a Golden Eagle squad at the height of its confidence. It was a fight to the finish, with the hosts holding on in Hattiesburg. On Tuesday, it was a wire-to-wire beatdown. The No. 6 Bulldogs improved to 21-4 on the year with a 12-0 run-rule win over No. 11 Southern Miss, setting the tone from the first inning with Chris Billingsley Jr. on the mound and Gehrig Frei and Ryder Woodson hammering home three runs to get their team on the board in the bottom half. A crowd of nearly 13,000 fans, only a handful of whom donned black and gold, gave the game a sense of importance beyond what most midweek games provide, and the Bulldogs rewarded those in maroon and white with 12 runs in five innings and a shutout display from the bullpen. "My team believes in me, my coaches believe in me, I just have to believe in myself," Billingsley said after pitching two innings with two strikeouts. "That's what I did tonight. I just need to be that guy that my team can count on to set the tone, and I feel like that's what I did tonight." |
| No. 6 Mississippi State throttles No. 11 Southern Miss, 12-0 | |
 | No. 6 Mississippi State scored in each of the first five innings en route to a 12-0 seven-inning, run-rule victory over No. 11 Southern Miss in front of 12,887 at Dudy Noble Field Tuesday evening. The Golden Eagles (19-6) had a two-game winning streak snapped and were shut out for the first time since dropping a 6-0 decision at Marshall on April 5, 2025. Aidan Teel led the Bulldogs' 14-hit attack with three singles and a two-run homer, for his third homer of the season. Jacob Parker added a three-run blast as well for his fourth of the year. Golden Eagle starter Thomas Crabtree (0-2) allowed three runs on three hits with a walk and a strikeout over a third of an inning to suffer the loss. MSU reliever Jack Bauer, who retired all four batters he faced with a strikeout, garnered the win and improved to 1-0. The Bulldogs scored three runs in the first, a solo tally in the second, before exploding for a five-run third and then added a lone run in the fourth, before completing their scoring with a two-run fifth. Five different Bulldogs finished the contest by driving in at least two runs. |
| Why Mississippi State baseball's solidified lineup looks limitless after Southern Miss rout | |
| Brian O'Connor made at least one tweak to the Mississippi State baseball lineup in all of the first 21 games of the season. They were difficult decisions the first-year coach was making every single game. Every new player inserted into the lineup was productive. After all, there are only nine starting spots to fill. But for four straight games, the No. 4 Bulldogs have utilized the exact same lineup, batting order included, and haven't lost since. The last two wins have been run-rule affairs against Vanderbilt and No. 13 Southern Miss. There was a stretch where MSU (21-4) scored a run in 12 consecutive innings. "That's tough to do, but it shows the balance of the lineup," O'Connor said after the Bulldogs defeated the Golden Eagles, 12-0, in seven innings on March 24 at Dudy Noble Field in front of 12,887 fans, the largest attendance for a midweek game in program history. Mississippi State, off to its best 25-game start since 2019, leads the SEC in runs per game (10.2), batting average .347 and doubles (66). It was the second straight game an opposing starting pitcher hasn't made it out of the first inning. |
| Ole Miss drops midweek matchup at Memphis | |
 | Ole Miss went 0 for 14 with runners on-base and 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position against Memphis Tuesday night as the Rebels dropped their matchup with the Tigers 6-2 at FedExPark. Junior Owen Kelly got the start for Ole Miss (19-7) and surrendered two earned runs over 3 1/3 innings. He struck out three batters and allowed seven baserunners. The Rebels had just four hits in the game. Senior third baseman Judd Utermark led off the eighth with a walk but was wiped off the basepaths via a double play from senior first baseman Will Furniss. Senior catcher Collin Reuter reached on an infield single with two outs, though redshirt freshman pinch-hitter Brett Moseley struck out to end the inning. Memphis' Michael Gupton hit a solo home run off sophomore Owen Hancock in the bottom of the eighth, the first of two runs the Tigers scored in the inning. The Rebels put a pair of runners on base with one out in the top of the ninth, but sophomore outfielder Hayden Federico and Bissetta flew out and struck out, respectively. Ole Miss hosts No. 6 Mississippi State for a three-game series beginning Friday. |
| Softball: No. 12 State Hosts UT Martin For Final Midweek | |
| No. 12/14 Mississippi State will host UT Martin on Wednesday night for its final midweek game of the season. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. CT on SEC Network+. The Bulldogs (29-6, 2-4 SEC) are looking to secure their third straight 30-win season while also reaching that milestone faster than any MSU team before them. Speed may be a theme of the night as UT Martin brings one of the most aggressive baserunning games in the country into play. The Skyhawks lead the OVC in runs and stolen bases, having already swiped 62 bags, which is among the top 20 totals in the nation. Mississippi State, meanwhile, continues to get the job done with pitching and defense. The Bulldogs are one of just four teams nationally allowing fewer than 2.00 runs per game, and their fielding percentage ranks among the top five in the country. MSU will host No. 23 South Carolina for its annual Monday night series this weekend. The series begins on Saturday, March 28 at 2 p.m. CT. Sunday and Monday night's games will air nationally on SEC Network with both starting at 6 p.m. |
| Rising receiving leaders look to build on explosive offense | |
| Mississippi State's offense caused problems for plenty of teams last season with explosive playmaking and an ability to stretch teams out. Early in the year, a running back tandem of Davon Booth and Fluff Bothwell emerged to complement the skill and speed out wide with receivers Brenen Thompson and Anthony Evans. With Booth and Thompson graduating to the NFL Draft process, Bothwell and Evans are stepping into bigger roles. But there is plenty of talent around them to create future mismatch problems and talent on the offensive line that coaches and skill players believe can help open things up on the ground. "The first week, we look 1,000 times better up front," Bothwell said after the first day in pads. "We're a lot more dominant, and all around we're becoming a closer team. It's been awesome." From Bothwell's spot reading the gaps, he's noticed some nice cohesion despite a new-look unit playing together for the first time. He's happy for the extra room, as well as happy to see friend and teammate Kamario Taylor have some more time as well. "A lot of movement up front," he continued. "It's been great as a running back, and that's what you want. In protection, Kamario being comfortable back there, it'll help the team a lot." The more time Taylor has to process, the more time he has to find his target in a talented group of playmakers out wide. |
| Head coach Chase Nicholson, Starkville Academy part ways after 17 years | |
| After a 17-year career at Starkville Academy, head football coach Chase Nicholson and the school have agreed to "part ways," athletic director Brian Merkel confirmed to The Dispatch on Monday. "It's just kind of a career change for him and it was just one of those things that came about," Merkel said. "It's kind of where we are at now. I can't really say much more." Nicholson did not respond to The Dispatch for comment Monday. Originally coming to the program as an assistant coach, Nicholson spent the last 11 years as the head man and led the Vols to two state championship game appearances and captured the 2017 MAIS Class 3A state championship with a 21-14 win over Indianola Academy. Throughout Nicholson's tenure as head coach, SA only endured one losing season, a 4-7 mark in 2024. The Vols closed out the 2025 campaign with a bounce-back year and finished 7-5 overall that included a 10-7 upset of Copiah Academy in the first round of the Class 4A Division II playoffs. The team ended its season in the semifinals with a 26-0 loss to eventual champion Parklane Academy. Nicholson leaves the Vols as the program's winningest coach with an 89-45 record. |
| Concern on campus as legal sports gambling grows during March Madness | |
 | Robert started placing bets through a friend's illegal sportsbook in high school, and he kept using illegal books in college until he was old enough to bet legally. At school in North Carolina, which legalized sports gambling in 2024, he, his fraternity brothers and others placed multiple bets or parlays on professional and college basketball and football games. He knows people who have run away from sizable debts, ghosting bookies for big money. And he has a friend who sold an illegal book -- his roster of bettors -- for $25,000. "On a college campus, you're going to a lot of these college football games. You're going to college basketball games, and any game that you're watching, you're probably betting on it," said Robert, whose name has been changed. March Madness, the men's and women's year-end college basketball tournaments that are currently ongoing, is expected to garner a record $3.3 billion in sports bets, according to the American Gaming Association. But March is also Problem Gambling Awareness Month, and there is growing concern that the rapid proliferation of legal sports gambling is reaching an increasingly young audience. "I would say amongst my friends and others, it's an epidemic," Robert contends. |
| People who lose sports bets are harassing athletes. Should Louisiana suspend their accounts? | |
 | As sports betting grows in popularity, some athletes say they are getting threats and harassment from bettors who lose their wagers -- and some Louisiana lawmakers want the state to intervene. "Athletes across college and professional sports are increasingly facing harassment and threats from individuals with betting interests, especially as legal sports wagering expands nationwide," said state Sen. Mike Reese, R-Leesville, during a meeting at the State Capitol on Tuesday. Reese is sponsoring Senate Bill 325, which would allow the Louisiana Gaming Control Board to ban harassment and violence toward athletes connected to sports betting. It would empower the gambling regulator to kick violators off sports betting platforms. While all student athletes need greater protections related to sports betting, that's especially the case for female student athletes, Reese said in an interview. "The statistics that we're seeing nationally about how that predominantly impacts our female student athletes, I think increase even more our need to have some protection around that," he said. |
| Kentucky's bold strategy to generate revenue could be blueprint for other big spenders | |
 | In an industry where a lot of schools, even at the power conference level, are scrubbing their budgets and pleading for Congress to step in, Kentucky is embracing the "adapt or die" mentality. "We are running to what is next in collegiate athletics," said Eric Monday, a university administrator and Champions Blue board member. "We need to provide opportunities for our fans at a level beyond what we've traditionally done. We need to grow an athletics department beyond $200 million (a year) to $225 or $250 million so we can do more." As college athletics become more professionalized --- with increasing player compensation, a push for new revenue streams and private equity interest -- the University of Kentucky is making a bold move. One that could signal where the future of college sports is headed. "Everybody I know thinks Kentucky has the smartest model in college sports," said one industry source, granted anonymity to speak candidly. So Kentucky's athletic department is now a limited liability company. Which means what, exactly? "By shifting all aspects of a college athletic department into a business arm, you create the possibility to make it more efficient, maximize revenue," said Melinda Roth, a visiting professor of law at Washington and Lee University who worked for 20 years at the World Bank and has done extensive research on the subject. |
| Lawmakers ramp up fight against sports betting on prediction markets | |
 | The political battle over sports betting on prediction markets is heating up as professional leagues dive deeper into the national gambling frenzy. Lawmakers in both parties are attempting to stifle the growing popularity of sports betting on prediction markets as a top Trump administration regulator champions the new and controversial platforms. An unlikely coalition of policymakers -- ranging from staunch social conservatives to liberal critics of big business -- is pushing back through legislation and litigation meant to limit where prediction markets can operate and what bets they can offer. At the same time, major prediction market firms are deepening their roots in the sports world by signing lucrative partnerships with leagues while hemming closely to industry-friendly regulators. "This is sad," Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said of Major League Baseball's (MLB) recent sponsorship and data-sharing agreement with Polymarket, a popular prediction market platform. "Pervasive gambling is not good for society. It turns life into a casino, traps people in addiction and debt, surges domestic violence, and fosters manipulation," she continued. CFTC Chair Mike Selig, a prediction industry ally, has vowed to fight several state efforts to rein in prediction markets and hold them accountable to state gambling laws. |
| Why Netflix is turning Major League Baseball's opening night into a big event | |
 | For many fans, Major League Baseball's opening day is somewhat of an unofficial holiday. Though this year offers a different viewing experience. Instead of turning on ESPN or a regional sports channel to catch their favorite team, there will only be one game kicking off the season, and it will be streaming exclusively on Netflix. On Wednesday, the New York Yankees and the San Francisco Giants will face off at Oracle Park. Retired baseball stars Barry Bonds, Anthony Rizzo and Albert Pujols, led by former ESPN anchor Elle Duncan, will be in the broadcast booth. And for one of the many Netflix touches -- "Thing," the lovable detached hand from the streamer's Addams family spinoff "Wednesday," will be throwing the first pitch. It's the latest example of a streaming platform finding its way into live sports programming. All of the major services, including Amazon Prime, Max, Peacock, Paramount+ and others, carry some combination of professional sports packages for their subscribers. For Gabe Spitzer, Netflix's vice president of sports, it's a chance for the streamer to "work together with a league to grow that audience" beyond just the die-hard sports fans. "Maybe casual fans are tuning in, or someone who's watched a baseball documentary on Netflix thinks, 'Oh, I'll check out the Yankees Giants game because it's live.' That's our ultimate goal," he said. |
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