About Us

America’s Neighborhood Newsroom

ReadCultured.com is an independent American digital news publication dedicated to delivering timely, accurate, and community-driven journalism to readers across all 50 states. We cover the stories that matter most to everyday Americans — local crime reports, severe weather alerts, neighborhood developments, and the cultural pulse of communities that larger outlets routinely overlook.

Founded with one guiding conviction — that local news is the backbone of an informed democracy — ReadCultured has grown into a trusted destination for readers who want more than national headlines. We believe every ZIP code has a story worth telling, and every community deserves a newsroom that shows up.

50
States Covered
800+
Communities Served
2M+
Annual Readers
2
Editorial Awards

What We Cover

Local & Micro-Local News — City council decisions, school board meetings, small business openings, community milestones, and hyperlocal events that define neighborhood life.

Public Safety & Crime — Verified reports from law enforcement agencies, court proceedings, and investigative pieces that hold institutions accountable.

Weather & Natural Events — Real-time severe weather reporting, storm tracking, disaster preparedness guides, and post-event recovery coverage for affected communities.

Culture & Community — The arts, food, faith, sports, and traditions that give American communities their distinct character and identity.

Our Team

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Larry Dobbins
Editor-in-Chief

22+ years in American newsrooms. Former city hall reporter in Columbus, Ohio. Her reporting has been cited by the AP, NPR affiliates, and congressional testimony on local news deserts. Holds an MS in Journalism from Northwestern’s Medill School.

Local Governance National Politics Editorial
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DeShawn Mitchell
Crime & Safety Reporter

14 years covering law enforcement and courts across the American South and Midwest. Spent nearly a decade at a regional news cooperative in Atlanta. His investigative series on property crime won a Regional Press Association award in 2023.

Crime Courts Public Safety
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Sandra Kowalski
Weather Correspondent

16+ years covering extreme weather and climate events. AMS-certified meteorologist-journalist who has reported from inside Category 4 hurricanes and historic flood zones. Based in Oklahoma City, leads ReadCultured’s real-time weather alert desk.

Severe Weather Disasters Climate
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Rosa Pereira
Culture & Communities Reporter

First-generation American from Newark, NJ. Covers festivals, faith, food, and civic identity at the micro-local level. Has appeared on ONA and American Press Institute panels on inclusive journalism. Rutgers graduate, Journalism & Latin American Studies.

Culture Community Demographics

Our Editorial Standards

ReadCultured operates under a strict code of editorial independence. We do not allow advertisers, sponsors, or external parties to influence our reporting. Every story published on this platform has been reviewed by at least one editor and verified against primary sources before publication.

We correct our errors openly and promptly. If we get something wrong, we say so — clearly and without burying the correction. Our readers’ trust is not something we take for granted.

Our Mission

“To bring rigorous, honest, and accessible journalism to every corner of America — not just the corners that make the evening news. We exist for the reader in Muncie, Indiana as much as for the reader in Manhattan.”

— The ReadCultured Editorial Board

Where We’re Based

ReadCultured.com is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with contributing journalists embedded in communities from Portland, Oregon to Miami, Florida. Our distributed newsroom model allows us to maintain genuine local presence without the overhead of traditional regional bureaus.

Transparency & Funding

ReadCultured is a privately operated digital media company. Our revenue comes from display advertising, sponsored content (clearly labeled), and reader support subscriptions. We do not accept political donations, government grants, or funding that could compromise our editorial independence. A full list of our funding sources is available upon request at editorial@readcultured.com.

Contact Us

For general inquiries, news tips, editorial matters, corrections, and advertising, reach us at: contact@readcultured.com