Southword is a multimedia partnership between The Oxford American and NPR to present thoughtful and textured reporting about the people, places, and trends that are shaping the modern American South. The OA's award-winning filmmaker, Dave Anderson, teams up with NPR's celebrated journalists to go wherever an important or interesting story is unfolding. Together they produce video and radio pieces that provide timely and artful perspectives on a region that continues to evolve in unexpected ways.
The tabloid — with names such as "Cellmates," "Jailbirds," "Just Busted" — shows mug shots of those arrested every week in different cities around the country. In Arkansas, The Slammer sells 7,000 copies a week. But law enforcement says it doesn't help solve cases — it's just voyeuristic.
Click here to listen to the accompanying radio piece on NPR's All Things Considered.
South Carolina's "first in the South" primary has a track record of picking the Republican presidential nominee. So you can bet the GOP contenders visit early and often. No matter who the candidate, it wouldn't be a campaign without a visit to The Beacon Drive-In in Spartanburg. Candidates including Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush have lined up to order a chili-cheeseburger from blind counterman J.C. Stroble, a Beacon fixture for more than half a century.
Click here to listen to the accompanying radio piece on NPR's Morning Edition.
In Southword's first video episode, NPR's Debbie Elliott and The OA's Dave Anderson explore issues of appetite and health in Holmes County, the most obese county in Mississippi.
Click here to listen to Debbie's accompanying radio piece on All Things Considered.
You can also read a fascinating Q&A with Debbie and Dave on NPR's blog The Picture Show.
