News-Leader fires reporter over Pride ban email

Roberts was terminated last Wednesday

The News-Leader has terminated veteran journalist Julia Roberts following her disclosure of an internal decision by Publisher Todd Frantz to prohibit coverage of the city’s annual Pride parade and festival.

Roberts, who had covered the Fernandina Beach City Commission and the Ocean Highway and Port Authority for the twice-weekly newspaper, was dismissed last Wednesday — one day after she attended a city commission meeting. In an unusual move, coverage of that meeting appeared in the News-Leader's Friday edition under the byline of a reporter from a sister paper in Lake City.

The firing followed an email Roberts sent to Jordan Morris, president of Fernandina Beach Pride, in which she informed him that the newspaper would not be publishing photos or a press release about the June 7 Pride event, which drew over 3,000 attendees.

“I hate even typing these words, but our publisher has made the decision not to allow us to write about Pride,” Roberts wrote in the email. “We pleaded our case, but he was not to be convinced... I loved attending and participating. I will continue to support you in any way I can.”

The email, sent the Monday following the event, came after internal discussions within the News-Leader newsroom about covering the popular parade and festival, which had been featured in the newspaper in previous years. Publisher Frantz, who took over in March, reportedly told staff that such coverage would no longer be permitted.

Roberts at last Tuesday's city commission meeting

After Roberts’ email became public — following coverage in The Observer — community backlash prompted the News-Leader to reverse course. A photo spread from the Pride event appeared on the back page of the June 11 edition, as well as online.

Roberts continued reporting through the following weekend, with her final bylines appearing in the June 18 edition: one story covering a “No Kings” protest against President Donald Trump, and another on the Nassau County School Board’s book review process.

According to multiple sources familiar with the situation, Roberts signed a non-disclosure agreement as part of a termination settlement and is unable to speak publicly about the incident. Frantz has not responded to repeated requests for comment.

Roberts’ dismissal is the latest in a series of departures from the News-Leader newsroom. Former editor Tracy Dishman, who led the newsroom from July 2022, resigned on May 30, citing ethical concerns over the paper’s new editorial direction.

“The way the new publishers treated the newsroom staff while I was away, the opinion pieces that have been written without my involvement and yet another correction on the front page were beyond my ethical boundaries,” Dishman wrote in a farewell message to colleagues. ““As you may be aware, the News-Leader is undergoing changes with new publishers who are taking the publication in a direction that conflicts with the journalistic values, integrity and community focus I’ve championed during my tenure. Given these irreconcilable differences, I have moved forward in my career and am excited about new opportunities that align with both my personal and professional convictions.”

Roberts had been serving as acting editor in the wake of Dishman’s resignation.

Publisher Frantz has held managerial roles at several newspapers across the country, including the Sentinel-Record in Arkansas, the Daily Herald in Utah, the News-Tribune in Missouri, and the San Angelo Standard-Times in Texas.

The change in editorial coverage is a dramatic shift for the News-Leader from prior publisher Foy Maloy, who had held that position for 30 years. The News-Leader is owned by Community Newspapers Inc.

The News-Leader is Florida's oldest continually published weekly newspaper, founded by Senator David L. Yulee and first published Aug. 9, 1854.

"The News-Leader is a staunch defender of free speech and the public's right to know. We are the community's guide dog and watchdog over the governments that serve us. We are the catalyst to initiate positive change for the betterment of the community," Maloy wrote about the newspaper.