Update:

Goodloe Sutton has been removed from the University of Southern Mississippi’s School of Mass Communication and Journalism’s Hall of Fame, the school confirmed in a statement. The move comes after Sutton, publisher of the Democrat-Reporter in Linden, Alabama, called for the return of the KKK to handle matters in Washington, D.C.

The following is a statement from USM:

"Within the last few hours, the School of Communication at the University of Southern Mississippi learned of Mr. Goodloe Sutton’s call for violence and the return of the Ku Klux Klan. Mr. Sutton’s subsequent rebuttals and attempts at clarification only reaffirm the misguided and dangerous nature of his comments.

The School of Communication strongly condemns Mr. Sutton’s remarks as they are antithetical to all that we value as scholars of journalism, the media, and human communication. Our University’s values of social responsibility and citizenship, inclusion and diversity, and integrity and civility are the foundation upon which we have built our School and its programs.

Mr. Sutton was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the School of Mass Communication & Journalism, the predecessor to the School of Communication, in 2007 based on his anti-corruption articles and editorials in the 1990s that earned him and his wife Jean numerous national and international journalism awards.

In light of Mr. Sutton’s recent and continued history of racist remarks, however, the School of Communication has removed his place in our Hall of Fame."

Auburn University’s Journalism Advisory Council voted to revoke Sutton’s community journalism award on Tuesday, according to The Plainsman.

Earlier:

Howard “Goodloe” Sutton, the editor and publisher of the Democrat-Reporter newspaper in Linden, Alabama, is under fire for an editorial titled “Klan needs to ride again.”

The weekly newspaper’s editorial calls for the KKK to return because “Democrats in the Republican Party and Democrats are plotting to raise taxes in Alabama.” Sutton later told the Montgomery Advertiser if the Klan could “clean up D.C., we’d all been better off.”

The editorial led to calls for Sutton’s resignation, including ones from U.S. Sen. Doug Jones, D-Ala. and Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Ala.

OMG! What rock did this guy crawl out from under? This editorial is absolutely disgusting & he should resign -NOW!



I have seen what happens when we stand by while people-especially those with influence- publish racist, hateful views.



Words matter. Actions matter. Resign now! https://t.co/V1V1vxDBKH — Doug Jones (@DougJones) February 19, 2019

For the millions of people of color who have been terrorized by white supremacy, this kind of “editorializing” about lynching is not a joke – it is a threat. These comments are deeply offensive and inappropriate, especially in 2019. Mr. Sutton should apologize and resign. https://t.co/AOYYGINEdh — Rep. Terri A. Sewell (@RepTerriSewell) February 19, 2019

Sutton has been at the Linden newspaper since 1964, joined at the time by his wife, Jean. The Sutton family had operated the newspaper since purchasing it in 1917.

In the late 1990s, the Suttons were recognized with several journalism awards, including the Society of Professional Journalists Sunshine Award and the Hugh M. Hefner First Amendment Award, for their stories on corruption at the Marengo County Sheriff’s Department. Their stories led to an FBI investigation that resulted in the conviction of Sheriff Roger Davis, who later pleaded guilty to extorting money from a bail bondsmen.

The details of that investigation were profiled across the country, including in pieces by The New York Times and People magazine. Sutton earned praise on the Congressional record from then-Rep. Earl Hilliard, who described the newspaper editor as a “fearless man of letters.”

Jean Sutton died in 2003. At the time of her death, Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Alabama, praised her as a “good friend, leader in the Linden community and a role model for investigative journalists.”

In 2007, Goodloe and Jean Sutton were inducted into the University of Southern Mississippi Mass Communications and Journalism Hall of Fame. In 2009, the Suttons received the Distinguished Alabama Community Journalist award from Auburn University.

In 2015, Sutton described the struggles of operating a weekly newspaper to USA Today. Included in the story was an example of headlines found in the Democrat Reporter: “Selma black thugs murder Demopolite Saturday night.”

At the time, the newspaper’s circulation was 3,000.