Mississippi Today is welcoming two new reporters to its team. Madeline Nguyen will join as an investigative reporter, and Aaron Lampley is the newest reporter on Mississippi Today’s Jackson desk.

Nguyen, who just graduated with a master’s degree in investigative journalism from Arizona State University, has joined Mississippi Today for a year-long fellowship from the Roy Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at ASU.

“It’s an honor to join Mississippi Today’s investigative team, whose track record of accountability exemplifies the core mission of local investigative journalism: reporting that makes the community we live in a better place,” Nguyen said. “I’m eager to build on the team’s legacy of highlighting inequities in a criminal justice system where justice is too often absent.”

Lampley, a recent broadcast and digital journalism graduate of Mississippi State University, previously interned with Mississippi Today as a video producer during the summer of 2025. He will contribute to the Jackson team as a reporter with an eye towards bringing stories to life through video.

“Growing up in Mississippi, I saw so many different voices and stories go unheard. I’m so grateful to be a part of Mississippi Today, a team whose mission helps to serve those very individuals,” Lampley said. “Shedding light on the untold stories of Mississippi and its many amazing communities, while also providing them with information they might not otherwise have access to, plays a vital role in helping this state grow and succeed. I’m excited to help carry that mission forward.”

Nguyen, who also has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communications and political science, will work with the nonprofit news organization’s investigative team headed by veteran journalist Jerry Mitchell as well as assist the newsroom as a whole. 

While at Arizona State, Nguyen led a local, long-form investigation for Arizona PBS uncovering key footage that Phoenix police edits out of body-camera videos released to the public. She engineered a custom Excel database tracking the department’s video editing in nearly 100 use-of-force cases by collecting data on hours of footage and filing public records requests for police reports.

Nguyen previously pioneered a new data-focused beat while working as a cost-of-living intern reporter at the Times of San Diego and was a data and research contributor for The Guardian, Consumer Reports and the Food & Environment Network. She also served as a health disparities congressional correspondent for Arizona PBS-Cronkite News’ Washington bureau.  

“We are thrilled to have Madeline Nguyen join our investigative team,” said Debbie Skipper, justice editor at Mississippi Today. “Her skills and innovative approaches will enhance our abilities to further our mission of informing the public and holding decision makers accountable.”

A Noxapater native, Lampley doesn’t hesitate to tackle sensitive subjects, such as a short documentary he directed, filmed and edited while in school that told the stories of two trans Starkville-area residents navigating the fears and fallout of Trump-era policies. He will cover news and human-interest stories in the capital city. 

“I’m delighted to have Aaron back after working with him last summer on a video about one of the city’s biggest news stories of the year, the human impacts of water shutoffs at apartment complexes,” said Jackson Editor Anna Wolfe. “I appreciated his sensitivity when visiting with residents, and I’m eager to see the audience he reaches with this medium.”