The Alabama newspaper publisher and editor who previously stated that the KKK should “night ride again” is turning over control of his newspaper to a black woman.
On Friday, the Linden, Alabama Democrat-Reporter announced that Elecia R. Dexter will take over as both editor and publisher from Goodloe Sutton. Sutton had been running the paper since the 1960s.
The move comes a week after Sutton’s editorial and subsequent interview where he called for the KKK to conduct lynchings of “Democrats and Democrats in the Republican Party” whom he believed were “plotting to raise taxes.” He also doubted whether the KKK was a violent organization (in spite of his own reference to lynchings) saying that the white supremacist group “didn’t kill but a few people.”
Following Sutton’s statements, the Alabama Press Association censured Sutton and suspended the newspaper’s membership.
Dexter hopes that her appointment will show the local community that the Democrat-Reporter “is everybody’s paper,” and clear up a history of publishing racist editorials.
Sutton will retain ownership of the paper, but according to Dexter, she will handle “everything else.”
Jenn Bentley is a writer and editor originally from Cadiz, Kentucky. Her writing has been featured in publications such as The Examiner, The High Tech Society, FansShare, Yahoo News, and others. When she’s not writing or editing, Jenn spends her time raising money for Extra Life and advocating for autism awareness.
