Special session ends; Dems make new demands

With a quorum-breaking number of House Democrats still out of state, House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, gaveled the first special session to an end Friday. Gov. Greg Abbott immediately called a second special session that has already convened.

Paxton sues to remove 13 absent Democrat House members

Attorney General Ken Paxton has asked the Texas Supreme Court to remove 13 of the more than 50 House Democrats who fled the state to break quorum and effectively halt the special session to prevent a mid-decade redistricting plan, the Austin American-Statesman reported.

Today’s hyper-partisan political climate has put all media – including the community press – in everyone’s crosshairs. The examination extends beyond opinion pages, which always have drawn extra scrutiny.

By JIM PUMARLO, Consultant

Readers increasingly question the five Ws and H of reporting: Who is the source for a story? What is reported, and what is omitted? Where does the story appear, front page or inside? When does the paper choose to pursue a story? Why is or isn’t something reported? How is the story told?

We are winding down a busy summer at the TCCJ and looking ahead to the upcoming school year at the university.

As we celebrate our successes, we are looking ahead and need your help to plan future workshops.

By Austin Lewter, TCCJ director 

Before that, it always behooves me to remind folks who are and what we do. 

The Texas Center for Community Journalism exists to provide training, support and resources to Texas community newspapers. 

It was a Saturday evening – March 12, 2016 – and I was with a group of people – co-workers, friends, family and members of the community. We were all there to witness a moment of history.

By Lisa Chappell, TPA president 2025-26

We stood in the pressroom watching the Sunday paper whiz through each unit. The floor below us vibrating, the deafening sounds of the press, the smell of ink. Things all too familiar and usually exciting to watch.

GOP legislators unveil redistricting map as Dems flee

 Texas Democrats left the state Sunday in hopes of derailing a mid-decade redistricting plan, The Dallas Morning News reported.

Kerr County death toll now at 108; two still missing

The number of people still missing in the July 4 Kerr County flood dropped to two after another body was recovered last week, the Austin American-Statesman reported.

The two still missing are a child and an adult who were at Camp Mystic, where at least 27 campers and counselors died.

Abbott: Flooding death toll now at 135

Gov. Greg Abbott said late last week that the statewide death toll from the catastrophic flooding in the Hill Country stands at 135, and the number of persons missing has dropped to three.

The July 4 flooding began when the storm stalled over what is known as “Flash Flood Alley,” The Dallas Morning News reported.

“Do you see a swamp or castle?” 

The other day, I was hanging out with my friend, Rob Curley, executive editor of The Spokesman-Review. I’m drinking black coffee, and Rob is wrestling with a Texas-shaped waffle.

By LEONARD WOOLSEY, President, America’s Newspapers

Rob is crazy smart, crazy funny, and simply a bit crazy – just like I like my friends. He is currently leading a historic effort to convert his newspaper into community ownership – a radical concept in our world.

I visited with many of you last month at the annual TPA Convention in Denton. AI was the hot topic of much discussion. Some of us are more versed in the use of generative AI than others, and that’s okay.  This rang true to me when a publisher asked, “Could you show me how this AI stuff actually works? All I know about AI is what Google and Facebook are showing me.” 

By AUSTIN LEWTER, Texas Center for Community Journalism