Gulf States Newsroom

09/04/2026

This week on the Gulf States Gumbo, maya l. miller sat down with NPR Personal Finance Reporter Stephan Bisaha to talk about his reporting from around the region, from bankruptcies to rental swimming pools to community reactions to AI and data centers.

🎙️ Click the link in bio for more and subscribe to get your weekly serving of stories from Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi in your feeds.

09/03/2026

The Gulf States Newsroom has welcomed three new hires this summer— second up, longtime New Orleans Public Radio colleague Aubri Juhasz joins us as the Youth and Families Reporter!

09/02/2026

The Gulf States Newsroom has welcomed three new team members this summer! First up, we welcomed back maya l. miller, our Government and Democracy Reporter 📰🗞️🗳️

08/12/2026

When you were a child, did summer reading feel like a chore, or was it fun?

Research shows that many children don’t read enough and are behind when they return to school. One way to encourage more reading, experts say, is to let them read what they want.

In her latest feature, Youth and Families reporter Aubri Juhasz visits a book club for middle schoolers in Algiers Point. ⬇

Research shows that many children don’t read enough and are behind when they return to school. One way to encourage more reading, experts say, is to let them read what they want.

08/11/2026

In at least two Louisiana Public Service Commission proceedings, motions supporting large industrial projects that commissioners adopted as their own were written by Entergy Louisiana executive Larry Hand, records obtained by the Gulf States Newsroom show.

The clearest example is the August 20, 2025 LPSC vote approving Entergy's settlement to build generation and transmission infrastructure for Meta's $50 billion data center in Richland Parish.

The Gulf States Newsroom obtained the native Word file of the motion, and its metadata — digital breadcrumbs that link a file to its original creator — lists Hand as the author.

DETAILS ⬇

Larry Hand, Entergy’s VP of regulatory and public affairs, wrote or suggested changes to PSC commissioners on two occasions, according to data obtained by the Gulf States Newsroom.

08/11/2026

In an apparent break from the previous administration in Louisiana, at least 121 of Gov. Jeff Landry’s employees — from the most senior aides to the most junior temps — have signed a strict confidentiality agreement with the governor’s office, binding them to secrecy about what they learn on the job, records obtained by the Gulf States Newsroom and Type Investigations show.⁠
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Click the link in bio to read more.

08/11/2026

U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow signed an NDA with Laidley LLC — a shell company of Meta Platforms — in June 2024, giving her access to confidential details about the tech giant's plans for a $50 billion data center in Richland Parish, Louisiana, according to the document obtained by the Gulf States Newsroom.

Within months, she began buying stock in Meta and Nvidia, the company whose chips power Meta's data centers. She didn't disclose those trades for more than a year, well past the 45-day deadline required under the STOCK Act.

MORE ⬇️

Within months of signing a NDA with Laidley LLC, Letlow began buying stock in Meta and Nvidia. She didn't disclose those trades for more than a year.

07/31/2026

Gulf States Newsroom was delighted to host Roy Howard Community Journalism Center at Fondren Public for Show Me What is True, an interactive night of media literacy. Thanks to Ame Posey, Jimmy Quinn and all our community news lovers for your knowledge, hospitality and participation!

07/27/2026

A great morning tabling at New Orleans Public Library hearing from New Orleanians about the coverage they’d like to see from Gulf States Newsroom - plus a little news quiz for swag! Thanks to Robin Goldblum and the team at the Main Library

07/24/2026

We had a great night Molly's At The Market cohosting a happy hour for NAHJ National with NPR. Drew Hawkins held it down as guest bartender and we loved having special guests Sergio Martínez-Beltrán and Jasmine Garsd! Thanks to our partners, guests and community 🍻☘️🗞️