Philanthropists Laurene Powell Jobs and Darren Walker said Wednesday night at Mississippi Today’s 10th Anniversary Celebration that they believe it’s important to invest in the people who are building sustainable community solutions, and that’s why they decided to put resources into journalism in Mississippi.
“It’s really easy for me to be bullish on Mississippi and its future,” said Walker, the president and CEO of Anonymous Content. “And so, I hope that people here understand that this country is watching you. This country is watching this state in this moment because it is a harbinger for the future of America.”
Laurene Powell Jobs, founder and president of Emerson Collective, speaks during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi TodayThe conversation between Walker and Jobs, who is the founder and president of Emerson Collective, was moderated by Bill Bynum, the founding CEO of HOPE Credit Union and a board member for Deep South Today, Mississippi Today’s parent company.
It was part of an evening that also included a performance by the Tougaloo College Choir, a speech by best-selling author John Grisham and remarks by Mississippi Today founders Donna Barksdale and Andrew Lack, Jackson Mayor John Horhn, Deep South Today Executive Editor and Chief Content Officer Adam Ganucheau, Mississippi Today Editor-in-Chief Emily Wagster Pettus and Deep South Today board member Tray Hairston.
Emerson Collective, an investment and philanthropic company, is a financial supporter of Mississippi Today and Deep South Today and an investor in Anonymous Content, a global media company whose films include “The Revenant” and “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.”
Darren Walker, president and CEO of Anonymous Content, speaks during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today“It’s really the exquisite entrepreneurs that I ended up meeting who are building community, solutions, durable, smart public private partnerships,” Jobs said. “And what I found the first time that I came, when I toured around with (Bill Bynum) over a decade ago, was all the work that’s happening at the community level already well underway.”
Walker is a former president of the Ford Foundation, another funder of Mississippi Today. He and Jobs said they choose to invest in local institutions instead of coming in assuming they can bring the solution.
“We come to learn and meet people who are actually problem solving at the community level,” said Jobs, whose late husband, Steve Jobs, was the co-founder of Apple.
Bill Bynum, Deep South Today board member and CEO of Hope, from left, moderates during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi TodayOne of those solutions is local journalism. The Emerson Collective has helped fund almost 100 newsrooms that have formed in the last decade, including Mississippi Today.
“Over the last 15 years, we’ve seen about 3,500 local newsrooms shut down,” Jobs said. “And the business model just no longer works, mainly because of local advertising dollars. And so the nonprofit newsroom for local journalism is actually a truly elegant solution.”
Andrew Lack, left, and Donna Barksdale speak during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.James Barksdale attends the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.The Tougaloo College Choir performs during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.The Tougaloo College Choir performs during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.The Tougaloo College Choir performs during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Jackson Mayor John Horhn speaks during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Adam Ganucheau, Deep South Today’s executive editor and chief content officer, speaks during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Tray Hairston, member of Deep South Today’s Board of Directors, speaks during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Emily Wagster Pettus, editor-in-chief of Mississippi Today, gives remarks during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Attendees mingle during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Katherine Lin, economic development reporter at Mississippi Today, left, and Mina Corpuz, justice reporter, right, speak with attendees during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Attendees mingle during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Attendees mingle during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Attendees mingle during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Attendees mingle during the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.Rick Cleveland, sports columnist at Mississippi Today, right, attends the Mississippi Today 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026.“Journalism is not all bad news,” Walker said. “Journalism should also inspire and help us see what is possible and what we can believe in.”
The sold-out event at the Two Mississippi Museums was part of a two-day event celebrating the nonprofit newsroom’s first decade of reporting. The celebration continues Thursday at the museums with Mississippi Today’s second annual “All In on Mississippi” summit, where leaders in the Deep South will discuss the challenges and opportunities the state faces.
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