Independent local news for Etowah County, Alabama.
Etowah Wire covers county and city government, schools, public safety and courts, business, healthcare, and community life across Etowah County. We publish clear, plain-language reporting built on public records, with our sources linked so you can check our work.
OUR MISSION
Residents should be able to find out what their local governments, schools, and institutions are doing, what it costs, and what it means for them, without digging through agendas and PDFs. We read the documents, check the facts, and explain the results in plain language.
WHAT WE COVER
Government: the Etowah County Commission, the Gadsden City Council, and other city and county bodies. We report decisions, votes, budgets, contracts, and appointments.
Schools and education: school board actions, budgets, policies, calendars, and results for the county’s school systems.
Public safety and courts: law enforcement news, emergency alerts, and court activity. Arrests and charges are reported as allegations, and we follow cases to their outcomes.
Business and economy: openings, closings, jobs, development, permits, and incentives.
Healthcare: hospitals, access, and funding, and what state and federal decisions mean for patients here.
Community: the people, events, and local issues that shape life in the county.
Opinion: clearly labeled and kept separate from news.
HOW WE REPORT
Facts first. We check names, numbers, dates, and quotes against primary sources before publication.
Sources you can see. Our stories include links to the documents behind them wherever possible.
Local context. Every story explains what the news means for people in Etowah County.
Fairness. We seek comment from the people and organizations we report on, and we separate fact from allegation and from opinion.
Public records. We use open-records and open-meetings laws as core reporting tools.
Care with people. We take particular care with minors, victims of crime, and people in crisis.
Read our full Editorial Standards at etowahwire.com/standards.
CORRECTIONS
When we get something wrong, we fix it quickly and say so. Every correction carries a date and a plain description of what changed. To report an error, email corrections@etowahwire.com or read our Corrections and Accountability policy at etowahwire.com/corrections.
HOW WE USE AI
We use modern tools, including artificial intelligence, to work efficiently: summarizing long public documents, drafting, and proofreading. Every story is reviewed and approved by a person before it is published. We do not use AI to invent facts, quotes, sources, people, or images presented as real. Details are on our Standards page.
INDEPENDENCE AND FUNDING
Etowah Wire is independent. Our coverage is guided by newsworthiness and public interest, not by officials, advertisers, or anyone with a stake in a story. Etowah Wire is currently self-funded.
If we ever run sponsored or promotional content, it will be clearly labeled and kept separate from our reporting. We do not take payment to publish, change, or remove news coverage.
CONTACT
News tips, documents, and questions: tips@etowahwire.com
Corrections: corrections@etowahwire.com
Advertising and sponsorships: ads@etowahwire.com
Press and general inquiries: hello@etowahwire.com
Legal notices: legal@etowahwire.com
When you send a tip, tell us what you know, where and when it happened, and include documents or links if you have them. We read every message, but we can’t reply to all of them or promise a story.
FOLLOW ETOWAH WIRE
Social: @etowahwire
RSS feed: etowahwire.com/rss.xml
Newsletter: coming up soon.
Etowah Wire provides news and information for general purposes. It is not legal, medical, financial, or professional advice.
Etowah Wire — The Stories That Shape Our Communities.