Masthead & Staff

This page lists the bylines that appear on South Today's launch edition. Before anything else, a plain statement: these are placeholder bylines. They are illustrative names attached to illustrative stories, and they do not describe real individuals. We have not given them biographies, credentials, awards or histories, because there are no real people behind them to describe.

Why we publish this page

A masthead is a promise of accountability: it tells readers who is responsible for what they are reading. Because the launch edition is a demonstration of South Today's approach rather than a newsroom of reported journalism, the honest version of a masthead is a short list of roles and a clear label. We would rather publish that than invent a staff.

Illustrative bylines

The following names appear on launch-edition stories, with the role each is meant to represent.

• Maya Jenkins - Senior Editor, Austin desk
• Clay Rutledge - Features
• Julian Hayes - Music & Culture
• Celeste Moreau - Field Guides
• Amara Alston - Craft & Design
• Marcus Deberry - Culinary Heritage Editor
• Caleb Rivers - Appalachia & Outdoors
• Marcus Vance - Radio host

Marcus Vance is listed as the host of South Today Radio. That programme has not been released, and no audio exists yet. The role is shown only so the planned shape of the publication is clear.

What this means for readers

If you see one of these names on a story, read it as a label for a desk or a beat, not as a claim that a named person reported, travelled or interviewed. Stories carry an illustrative-content label for this reason. Characters inside the stories are fictional or described only by role.

Real people, real contact

When South Today begins publishing reported work, this page will be rewritten to name the people responsible, and it will say what each of them does. Until then, readers who want to reach the editorial team can write to [email protected]. Corrections go to [email protected], and general questions to [email protected]. Our editorial standards page describes how we handle sourcing and corrections once reported work begins.