Uvalde paper calls for 'sensible' gun laws, publishes testimony of reporter who lost a daughter in the shooting

The day before senators announced a deal in principle to respond the shooting of students and teachers in Uvalde, Texas, the local newspaper declared, "In its timidity to act, Congress guarantees the suffering will continue."

Lexi Rubio with her parents, Kimberly and Felix

The twice-weekly Uvalde Leader-News also published the testimony of Kimberly Mata-Rubio, its former News assistant editor and current staff writer, to the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform. She was the mother of one of the murdered children. Mata-Rubio recalled what she went through the day of the shooting, including attending an awards ceremony for her daughter and other students shortly before the gunman arrived. The she made her case:

"Today, we stand for Lexi, and, as her voice, we demand action. We seek a ban on assault rifles and high-capacity magazines. We understand that for some reason, to some people, to people with money, to people who fund political campaigns, that guns are more important than children, so at this moment we ask for progress. We seek to raise the age to purchase these weapons from 18 to 21 years of age. We seek red flag laws, stronger background checks. We also want to repeal gun manufacturers liability immunity. . . . I’m a reporter, a student, a mom, a runner. I’ve read to my children since they were in the womb. My husband is a law enforcement officer, an Iraq War veteran. He loves fishing, and our babies. Somewhere out there, a mom is hearing our testimony and thinking to herself, 'I can’t even imagine their pain,' not knowing that our reality will one day be hers, unless we act now."

In its editorial, the newspaper urged mothers to "heed this prophetic warning" and said "Americans want responsible gun ownership. . . No single measure lawmakers adopt will put an end to the violence. we are a nation born to it. . . . But with sensible laws, we can reduce the body count." It also published endorsements of further gun control by local doctor Roy Guerrero and actor Matthew McConaughey, a native of Uvalde.

The newspaper's approach shows the importance of local newsrooms in such cases, CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy said on the channel's "Reliable Sources" program Sunday. Meanwhile, Nora Lopez, executive editor of the San Antonio Express-News, talked with Amaris Castillo of NPR for a Poynter Institute story about obstacles the daily paper is encountering to its coverage in Uvalde.