By Ayesha K. Mustafaa
Contributing Writer
Jackson is a “news city” and very seldom is there a slow news week. More often than not, there is so much news swirling that reporters, writers and photographers are scampering to keep up.
In this news city, The Mississippi Link is one of the anchor news outlets for gathering and disseminating what is impacting particularly the African-American communities on a weekly basis. And on the heels of its 22nd anniversary, the newspaper is turning another page toward sustaining its newsroom as an A-1 operation.
As of the issue dated Nov. 5-11, 2015, The Mississippi Link welcomes its new editor, Shanderia K. Posey, who brings with her a reservoir of talent – from being editorial assistant for the bicentennial history research at the Secretary of State’s office to her stints with the Hattiesburg American, Madison County Herald and Clarion-Ledger as copy editor, page designer, health editor, reporter, and more.
Currently, she is working on her master’s degree in mass communications at Mississippi College. According to Posey, page design is as important as the news itself when trying to capture the readers’ attention and to give emphasis on the impact a story may carry.
“I want The Mississippi Link to continue to be a top news source of matters concerning the African-American community. My vision for this paper is to provide excellent coverage both online and in print. I have all sorts of ideas to implement involving design and content for the paper.
“While the newspaper industry has had major setbacks in recent years, I believe The Mississippi Link will continue to thrive because we offer unique stories often ignored by other media outlets. We aren’t competing to give readers what they can get anywhere else and that makes a huge difference.”
Posey said these concerns will be central to her work here and explain why she accepted this job. “I was most impressed with the stories and issues The Mississippi Link covers. Our stories may not always be in the mainstream media, but the stories are just as important and relevant to our readers.”
The Mississippi Link publisher Jackie Hampton is excited with the new hire and the talent Posey brings to the newspaper. Hampton participates on a national level with newspaper publishers across the country and she looks forward to sharing news stories of national interest from The Mississippi Link with other publications across the nation as she has done under the leadership of previous Mississippi Link editors.
Hampton says, “I was very impressed with the first staff meeting with Posey as editor. She wasted no time identifying the process which she wants to put in place in order to move our publication to an even higher level and I was equally impressed with the immediate respect she received from our full-time staff as well as part-time and freelance reporters as each agreed to adhere to new deadlines and other changes that will enhance the overall look of the publication.”
As Posey takes the reigns at The Mississippi Link just after its 22nd anniversary, we also reflect on the unique character of this newspaper. Its former editors, who have moved on to do other jobs, maintain a cordial working relationship with the newspaper and its publisher, often times serving as contributing writers.
Not only has the newspaper provided jobs to support local families, it has been a training ground that has propelled many journalists into major media outlets and new careers. Were it not for The Mississippi Link, the world would not know many of these talents.
To that end, as the ‘most recent’ former editor of The Mississippi Link, I would like to express my gratitude to Hampton and the entire staff for bringing me into the fold. The work here has allowed me to plant my feet on solid ground, as I’ve returned to Mississippi after living in Chicago for 36 years.
The fast pace of this news city has brought me full speed up-to-date to what is newsworthy for our readers in the city, county and state. Now I have entered the classrooms at Tougaloo College as a professor of newsprint journalism and get up every morning excited to share with budding journalists the venue of this city in which to hone their skills.
Also continue to look for my byline in The Mississippi Link as a contributing writer. There is so much news to cover.
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