Sumter Item Publisher Vince Johnson: The Murdaugh murder retrial, media frenzy coming to Sumter
We didn't see this coming.
On late Tuesday afternoon, our staff at The Sumter Item heard the news that the murder retrial of Alex Murdaugh in the death of his wife and son is headed to Sumter. That it will be happening minutes from our office in the heart of our local downtown. That it will be happening with jurors that our staff inevitably may have seen at grocery stores, church and local sporting events.
As a follower of true crime and a news consumer, I've watched the shows, listened to the podcasts, read the articles and watched the videos. The whole Murdaugh story was close enough to understand some of the dynamics of South Carolina and observe with interest, but we were at least an afternoon drive and whole community away from where everything was taking place.
Now, Sumter is part of the story.
We're planning our coverage of one of the most anticipated retrials the country has seen this century at our doorstep.
On any typical day, The Item is likely the only local media outlet telling the story of the area. When a larger local story emerges, television stations from Columbia swing into town, or one of the statewide outlets may pick it up.
But for these days and weeks in April 2027, assuming the dates don't change, the media frenzy is coming to town. National outlets, statewide publications, bloggers, Youtubers, podcasters and anyone else with an eye to build true crime fandom will be spending their days in or around our Sumter courthouse and their evenings at the establishments Sumterites frequent.
The Item has been around for more than 130 years. We've had our share of celebrity visits and global storylines hit close to home. We've had a presidential visit to Shaw Air Force Base. But once in a generation, maybe more, something bigger than we can ever predict happens.
Our local reporters, visual journalists and entire team will be ready, though. We're one of South Carolina's strongest small-town, independent local media companies, a rare sight in a country that has watched more than 2,500 newspapers vanish in the past two decades. Our staff is full of talented, dedicated storytellers, and while we're not as large in numbers as The Item once was, our small team is used to punching above its weight.
We've always had Sumter in our corner, too, and that's what we'll continue to count on. So while we collectively anticipate a moment in time when Sumter will seem very different than it is today, The Item will be here before, during and after, telling the stories of our local community and relying on your support to keep us going.