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FORISTELL, Mo. - Despite the heat, attendees flocked to the St. Charles County Fair at Rotary Park on Wednesday, eager to enjoy the summer fun. To ensure everyone stays safe and has a good time, staff at the County Fair have set up cooling tents around the grounds, lined with fans to help people stay [...]

GRAFTON – Raging Rivers WaterPark is excited to offer a Junior Lifeguard Camp this season taking place July 28th through August 1st. Registration is still open, but spots are filling quickly—don't miss your chance to enroll your future lifeguard in this engaging and educational experience by July 27th. The Junior Lifeguard Camp has 2 age groups 7 - 10 years old and 11 - 14 years old. The program provides kids with invaluable water safety knowledge and hands-on skills vital for life both in and out of the pool. Participants will gain practical experience in lifeguarding, teamwork, and personal responsibility, all while having fun at Raging Rivers WaterPark. To sign up, parents must complete the online registration form at https://www.ragingrivers.com/lifeguard-camps . “This is a fantastic opportunity for kids to learn essential lifesaving skills while boosting their confidence and building friendships,” said Jeremy Hayes, General Manager at Raging Rivers WaterPark

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Neha Madhira grew up in North Texas with the TV constantly buzzing with world news. Madhira, now 24, recognized that journalism was key to keeping her family informed on the happenings back home in India. But with state-sanctioned violence limiting journalists on the ground from reporting, and few legacy media outlets with reporters that are representative of her left to report on it, Madhira also knew there were gaps to be filled.

Nearly a decade later, Madhira is bridging the gaps in Western media’s health and education coverage of the Middle East-North Africa region, South Asia, and their diasporas. The contacts she’s built have allowed her to expand her reporting focus — she recently collaborated with Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) on an article for The Intercept featuring testimonials from journalists targeted by the Israeli military.

“In a time where press freedom is definitely in question in the U.S. right now, and censorship on social media and in newsroom settings is even becoming more and more common, it’s really important for me that I stay true to my values of why I started reporting,” Madhira said. “I use freelancing to try my best to cover that gap in reporting when it comes to Western media, and try to cover the communities that I know deserve a platform.”

Madhira first spent years covering breaking news, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the social movements of 2020 for local newsrooms in Austin, Texas, while studying journalism and women’s and gender issues. But with activism movements roaring overseas, coupled with the lack of coverage on the impacts of the pandemic in India, she saw freelancing as an opportunity to cover issues happening in countries that face extreme press censorship for audiences overseas and in the U.S.

“A big part of my job during the pandemic, and even now, is reaching out to health care officials, regardless of what’s happening, to actually see who it’s affecting, why it’s affecting them, and what resources people need,” Madhira said. “If there’s a possibility that that information is being withheld from the public, that becomes a problem. How are we supposed to continue to inform and educate the public on how to stay safe during a pandemic or epidemic if we don’t even have that information to begin with?”

She has built close relationships with journalists on the ground in Iran, Afghanistan, India, Gaza, and the West Bank, relying on their reporting to reach audiences in the U.S. and abroad. Recognizing the privilege she holds, Madhira does her best to ensure their perspectives are reflected in her writing.

“I covered the Woman, Life, Freedom movement in Iran very extensively,” she said. “Two journalists who I really looked up to were arrested around this time last year. I wrote a story on that, and I noticed that a lot of Iranian and Iranian American activists were reaching out to me, appreciating the fact that the story was written, because even writing about their release and the details of how they are doing and how journalism and activism is continuing within the country is a privilege.”

Over the past year and a half, Madhira has covered the medical and humanitarian infrastructure collapses in Gaza and the West Bank, as well as the campus encampments in protest of Israel’s actions, and the shadowy organizations collaborating with the government to identify and persecute students and others who are critical of Israel.

“As we see less and less news coming out of Gaza, I urge people to not look away.”

Neha Madhira

With more than 180 journalists killed by Israel to date, media blackouts, and censorship on social media, Madhira writes to amplify the voices of her colleagues remaining on the ground, including those whose stories she wrote about in The Intercept.

“I have advocated for Palestine since I was a child, and at the beginning of October 2023, I was horrified at the language being used to dehumanize Palestinians,” she said. “As a journalist, I was seeing the gaps in Western media coverage and its support of Israel, and I wanted to help change this narrative in any way I could. As we see less and less news coming out of Gaza, I urge people to not look away and to pay closer attention to passive voice being used to describe the atrocities Palestinians continue to face every day.”

While the stories that Madhira tells are urgent and deserving of immediate attention, communicating with people on the ground in Gaza is a slow, challenging process. “Most of the people I’ve interviewed, whether that be journalists, or medical workers, or humanitarian workers, there is a small gap every single day that they have access to the internet, and we have used that to communicate with each other every single day,” she said. “I continue to do that because their voices are the most important and the most pertinent.”

Reporting from the U.S. on Palestine has not come without its own battles against censorship. Having experienced “shadow banning” that has limited visibility of her social media posts, she said the public must pay attention to the ways social media platforms moderate content to censor certain news, and she calls for users to consume content carefully. By amplifying journalists’ content on social media, independent reporting can reach wider audiences and fight against algorithmic suppression, Madhira added.

“There are a lot more people who are in the dark about what is happening than you would think,” she said. “There are so many nonprofit, independent newsrooms, not only in the U.S., but around the world who do incredible reporting for very little money, and it’s important to pay attention, because these journalists are some of the most skilled and experienced within their field.”

Automattic has made a new release of the WordPress-ActivityPub integration, with some key updates for remote follow functionality.

ALTON – An Alton business owner says the city’s recent decision to revoke the late night liquor licenses of two downtown bars is unfairly forcing her business to close during its most profitable hours. The City of Alton announced on Monday, July 21, 2025 that the late night liquor licenses for Hiram’s Bar and Pour Decisions were being revoked following a hearing led by Mayor and Liquor Control Commissioner David Goins. Late night liquor licenses allow businesses to sell liquor from 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Christina Hurley, owner of Stina Snacks (located inside Hiram’s Bar), said at Wednesday’s City Council meeting that the forced early closure will have devastating effects on her business. “It’s not fair to us to have the most profitable hours cut down,” Hurley said. “It’s the most profitable hours for the kitchen and for the bar, so the city not only hurt Hiram’s Bar but my restaurant business

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The Health and Human Services Department illegally withheld payments from Head Start for the first months of President Donald Trump’s term, a government watchdog reported Wednesday. HHS payments for Head Start this year were significantly behind schedule compared with 2024. That violated the Impoundment Control Act, a law governing the president’s duty to spend congressionally […]

BRANSON, Mo. — A woman is suing the owners of a McDonald's in Branson after hot tea she ordered from the fast food restaurant spilled and caused severe burns. Nicole Lind, born 1982, is suing 3 Ruprecht Sons LLC, both of Branson, for injuries in Taney County Circuit Court. Court documents say the incident occurred [...]

All Elite Wrestling will host WrestleDream at the Chaifetz Arena this fall.

COLLINSVILLE - The Collinsville Police Department responded to a stabbing incident at the Walmart Supercenter located at 1040 Collinsville Crossing Boulevard on Wednesday. According to authorities, two employees became involved in a disturbance that escalated when one worker stabbed the other. The victim was transported to a medical facility for treatment, while the suspect was apprehended nearby. Police officials said more information will be released after formal charges are filed.

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Local leaders are working to keep residents cool and safe.

ST. LOUIS - St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery has appointed the former mayor's HR director, who was fired from that post, as his new chief human resources officer. According to Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe, Jenkins-Gray’s new role creates a potential conflict of interest, sparking controversy from state officials to local leaders. Kehoe released a statement [...]