Brian Jones has joined The Dispatch newsroom as its new local government reporter for Columbus and Lowndes County.
His first day was Monday.
In this role, Jones will cover city council and county board of supervisors meetings, as well as provide enterprise and in-depth stories on the beat.
Jones comes to The Dispatch after working 20 years at The Columbus Packet, where he had served as managing editor since 2015.
The East Columbus native now lives in New Hope. He earned a bachelor’s in journalism from Mississippi State University in 1998 and worked two years at The Dispatch as education reporter from 1999-2001.
In addition to his newspaper career, Jones has worked stints in public relations, independent films and copyedited romance novels.
“I came to The Dispatch because I was looking for a new challenge, and also wanted to do work that was more focused and less scattershot,” Jones said. “I feel like Columbus has a lot of challenges but also a lot of opportunity, and I would like to shine a light on as many of those issues as I can.”
Managing editor Zack Plair said Jones has made an immediate impact in the newsroom.
“Brian knows as much about what goes on in Columbus and Lowndes County as anybody,” Plair said. “He’s an experienced, talented reporter who has seamlessly jumped right into the beat.”
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