Meet our staff

Jesse Lamar, General Manager
Jesse is the 25-year-old General Manager for the Journal Record. Jesse is a Haleyville-native, where he lives with his wife, Alexandria, and their two children, Daxton and Aiden. Jesse administrates the daily operations of the newspaper and provides editorial and design support to weekly news and publications.

Scott Johnson, Managing Editor
Scott is the 27-year-old Manager Editor for the Journal Record. Scott is a Georgia-native who moved to Marion County in 2012. Scott assists in collecting news content and preparing it for the newpaper's weekly edition. Scott resides in Hamilton with his beautiful wife, Madison, and children, Emersyn and Griffin.

Louis Mellini, Staff Writer
Louis Mellini is the 25-year-old Staff Writer for the Journal Record. Louis hails from Long Island, New York, moved to Marion County in the summer of 2017. He attends town council and commission meetings and works to give an accurate account of what is going on in Marion County.

Michael E. Palmer, Staff Writer
Hamilton-native Michael E. Palmer is an award-winning journalist and photographer. He attended Itawamba Community College in Fulton, Miss., and went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Palmer was employed as a staff photographer at the Tuscaloosa News for nine years where he won many Associated Press Managing Editors Association awards, Alabama Associated Press awards and New York Times awards. Palmer has been published in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune and many other newspapers around the world. Palmer was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his photographic coverage of the 2001 Tuscaloosa Tornado. His column, Palmer’s Almanac, now in its 11th year, allows Palmer to combine his love of local history and journalism.

Kristi White, Advertising Manager
Kristi has served as the advertising manager of the Journal Record for 18 years, maintaining relationships with local business owners and elected officials. Kristi resides in Hamilton with her husband, Jeff, son, Blake, and daughter, Becca.

Tori Kessinger, Office Manager and Ad Composition
Tori is the Office Manager as well as the Legal and Obituary Coordinator; she also works side by side with Kristi designing ads. As one of the newest recruits, she stays on top of her game, not missing a beat.

Casey Mills, Classifides and Obituary Composition