Roger Amos: Telling His Community’s Stories

When Roger Amos joined the Mississippi Free Press (MFP) just a few weeks ago, he entered a newsroom redefining what local journalism can achieve. As a member of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, Roger brings a unique and critical perspective to the MFP team, reflecting the outlet’s commitment to ensuring diverse representation in its reporting.

Roger’s hiring was made possible through a grant from The Pivot Fund. Mississippi Free Press was one of more than eight hyperlocal community newsrooms that received $1.2 million in financial support from The Pivot Fund, a nonprofit dedicated to strengthening community media. This support ensures that outlets like MFP can continue amplifying underrepresented voices and providing critical coverage for their communities.

Roger is the only Indigenous reporter in the state and is already tackling stories that resonate deeply within his community. Recent ICE raids, which have sparked fear among Indigenous people who are often mistaken for immigrants, are at the forefront of his reporting. “This isn’t just impacting Indian Country; it’s affecting the entire U.S.,” Roger shared. “People are being told to carry their tribal citizenship cards to prove they belong here. It’s ironic when you think about it—Indigenous people, the original inhabitants of this land, being profiled and questioned.”

Roger’s work highlights the complexities of his community’s experience. His upbringing—spending his early childhood on the reservation before moving off it—gives him a unique ability to connect Indigenous experiences to the broader American narrative. “People here on the reservation, they’ve lived here all their lives, so this is all they know,” he said. “I’ve seen both sides, and it helps me relate our community to the outside world.”

His voice is part of a broader mission at MFP, a newsroom dedicated to reflecting the diversity and complexity of Mississippi. Kimberly Griffin, MFP’s Founding Publisher and Chief Revenue Officer, emphasized the importance of representation in their hiring decisions: “Our newsroom shows what Mississippi looks like. We have Black reporters, White reporters, Jewish reporters, queer reporters, a Mexican-American, Spanish-speaking reporter, and now the state’s only Indigenous reporter.”

Griffin explained that hiring Roger was an intentional decision to better serve Mississippi’s Choctaw community, which has long been underserved in local media. “With a large Choctaw community in Mississippi, it was unacceptable for them to be so underserved and underrepresented in media,” she said.

Roger is already proving why this representation matters. In addition to covering the impact of ICE raids on Indigenous people, he’s exploring the Chickasaw Tribe’s plans to build a cultural center in Tupelo, Mississippi. The project reflects efforts to reestablish the tribe’s presence in their ancestral homeland and resonates with Indigenous communities across the state.

For Roger, this role is more than a job—it’s a chance to rewrite the narrative for his people. “When someone from outside our community comes to cover our cultural events, we always wonder what the paper will say. It’s usually from an outsider’s point of view,” he said. “Now, I get to tell the stories of our people in a way that’s inclusive and meaningful to us.”

This commitment to community-centered journalism is a cornerstone of MFP’s mission. Griffin emphasized how the newsroom’s approach—rooted in listening and intentional hiring—is breaking stereotypes and amplifying voices that are often ignored. “By reflecting the complexity of our state, we’re breaking stereotypes and ensuring everyone has a voice in the media,” she said.

For MFP, the work doesn’t stop here. The newsroom plans to continue expanding its team to reflect the state’s full diversity, looking to hire a Vietnamese reporter soon to better serve Mississippi’s third most spoken language group. “We need to ensure this community has a voice in the media, just as we’ve done with our Choctaw and Spanish-speaking communities,” Griffin said.

Roger’s journey at MFP is just beginning, but his work is already having an impact. For Mississippi’s Choctaw community and beyond, his reporting is a testament to the power of representation and the importance of telling stories from within the community. At 41, with no formal journalism training but a lifetime of lived experience, Roger is showing what’s possible when mission-driven journalism meets purpose-driven reporting.

As Griffin aptly put it, “We’re not just telling stories; we’re showing the truth of Mississippi.” Roger Amos is proof of that truth in action.