Sutton removed from USM journalism hall of fame following recent editorial

Goodloe Sutton, longtime publisher of The Democrat-Reporter, has been removed from the University of Southern Mississippi’s journalism hall of fame following a recent editorial he penned, suggesting the Ku Klux Klan should make a return to “go up there and clean out D.C.”

Sutton, a 1964 graduate of USM, has been no stranger to controversy in recent years, publishing editorials viewed as inappropriate by readers in the local area.

Sutton and his late wife Jean were inducted into the hall of fame in 2007. Jean died in 2003.

The statement released by USM can be viewed in its entirety below.

Within the last few hours, the School of Communication at the University of Southern Mississippi learned of Mr. Goodloe Sutton’s call for violence and the return of the Ku Klux Klan.  Mr. Sutton’s subsequent rebuttals and attempts at clarification only reaffirm the misguided and dangerous nature of his comments.

The School of Communication strongly condemns Mr. Sutton’s remarks as they are antithetical to all that we value as scholars of journalism, the media, and human communication. Our University’s values of social responsibility and citizenship, inclusion and diversity, and integrity and civility are the foundation upon which we have built our School and its programs.

Mr. Sutton was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the School of Mass Communication & Journalism, the predecessor to the School of Communication, in 2007 based on his anti-corruption articles and editorials in the 1990s that earned him and his wife Jean numerous national and international journalism awards.

In light of Mr. Sutton’s recent and continued history of racist remarks, however, the School of Communication has removed his place in our Hall of Fame.

Sutton’s editorial is posted below: