Jennifer Hunt Murty (The Power of Journalism, Exposing Abuse and the First Responder Leadership Crisis) - Episode 1147

Behind The Shield

James Geering

Health & Fitness, Mental Health, Fitness

4.9 • 667 Ratings

🗓️ 9 October 2025

⏱️ 109 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Jennifer Hunt Murty is the founder and publisher of the Ocala Gazette, an independently owned newspaper recognized as the area’s leading source of investigative reporting. We discuss her career in the legal field, what drove her into journalism, exposing failures in local first responder agencies, recidivism, the mental health crisis and so much more.

Jennifer launched the Gazette in 2020 to provide trustworthy, in-depth local journalism at a time when misinformation was on the rise and credible community news was in short supply. Murty came to journalism as a second career, guided by the belief—echoing Justice Hugo Black—that “the press was to serve the governed, not the governors.” That principle shapes her work daily.

Like many small newspaper owners, she juggles multiple roles—but reporting remains her greatest passion. In just five years, she has built a reputation for dogged persistence in overcoming public records exemptions and reporting roadblocks to uncover stories that hold the powerful to account.

The Gazette's Reports on the Deaths in Marion County's Jail:

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=802963525588067&rdid=V5YEfyFQ3hNr7zdH

https://www.facebook.com/ocalagazette/videos/1417700989526937/?rdid=XN01wNdSvqiK4hBv#

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Behind and Shield podcast. It's always my name's James Gearing and this week I have an
0:04.2	incredibly powerful episode for you. Jennifer Hunt-Murte spent over 20 years as a paralegal before founding
0:11.9	the Ocala Gazette, one of our local newspapers. And she has become an incredibly important voice
0:18.9	when it comes to pulling the curtain back on deficiencies in our
0:22.9	community, especially in the first responder professions and prisons. So in this conversation,
0:28.9	we discuss a host of topics. From her journey into the world of law, what drove her into the
0:35.5	world of journalism, the pervasive decline of first responder
0:39.7	professions when leaders are not held accountable, our 911 dispatch center, uncovering
0:46.6	the deaths in our jails, and so much more.
0:49.8	Now, before we get to this incredible conversation, as I say every week, please just take a moment.
0:55.4	Go to whichever app you listen to this on.
0:57.9	Subscribe to the show, leave feedback and leave a rating.
1:02.5	Every single five-star rating truly does elevate this podcast, therefore making it easier for others to find.
1:09.7	And this is a free library of well over 1,100 episodes now.
1:15.5	So all I ask in return is that you help share these incredible men and women's stories
1:21.0	so I can get them to every single person on planet Earth who needs to hear them.
1:27.1	So with that being said, I introduce to you
1:30.4	Jennifer Hunt Murty. Enjoy. Well, Jennifer, I want to start by saying thank you so much for taking the time and coming to my home and doing this interview in person today.
2:00.9	It's an honor.
2:02.5	So for people listening, if they were to find you in your normal, you know, habitat, where
2:06.6	would they find you?
2:07.7	Where on the planet?
	...

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