The Rural Blog

A digest of events, trends, issues, ideas and journalism from and about rural America, by the Institute for Rural Journalism, based at the University of Kentucky. Links may expire, require subscription or go behind pay walls. Please send news and knowledge you think would be useful to benjy.hamm@uky.edu.

The Rural Blog

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Tips and resources for reporting on crime data

Opinion: Rural policing writer disagrees with Wall Street Journal article about rural law enforcement violence

More than half of American teachers are worried about a school shooting on their campus; parents are worried, too

New rule closes the 'gun show loophole' and will require more sellers to register as licensed firearms dealers

Guns 'destroyed' in community buy-back programs often have parts that are removed and resold

Many rural counties are poorly equipped to deal with rising gun homicides; some of the worst rates are in the South

Reporting on a rural county's political transformation, driven in part by outside forces, leads to threats of violence

Okla. official who discussed killing weekly's journalists quits

The unending tragedy of Sutherland Springs: Life goes on, but for some shooting victims, wounds and losses remain

Once a shunned gun, the AR-15 is now America's most popular firearm; it was never intended for public use

As threats of political violence increase, leaders need to take it seriously and tone down their rhetoric, expert writes

Bipartisan gun deal includes funding for telehealth coverage for Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program

Extremist positions enter political mainstream; Calif. official in recall vote today says he barely recognizes his town

Killings were up a record 29.4% in 2020; first-time gun ownership rose from 32% to 39%, biggest rise in decades

Local reporter pushed and punched several times while covering anti-mask, anti-vaccine rally in Traverse City, Mich.

Wide range of researchers warn social media, other poorly understood new tech could endanger democracy, health

Violence Against Women Act revision has provisions with rural resonance; Senate gun ban for stalkers is an issue

Analysis: Capitol riot arrestees not disproportionately rural

Fact-checking President Biden's inauguration speech

Trump-supporting evangelicals may face a reckoning; it's a divide that should be explored by rural journalists