Southern Baptist Convention continues membership slide but grows in attendance, baptisms

Southern Baptist membership sank last year to its lowest level since 1973, even as the U.S.’ largest Protestant denomination saw increases in baptisms and attendance at services. Those results for 2025 were released Tuesday by Lifeway Research, the denomination’s research affiliate. Membership fell by 3% to 12.3 million, continuing a nearly two-decade decline. At the … Read more

Blockbuster Supreme Court voting rights ruling ignites redistricting war across Southern states

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! A congressional redistricting frenzy is sweeping across the South this week, after the Supreme Court’s conservative majority last week slashed a key Voting Rights Act protection, triggering new efforts by Republicans to quickly rewrite U.S. House district maps ahead of this year’s midterm elections. Louisiana, Alabama and … Read more

Britney Spears charged with DUI after arrest last month in Southern California

Pop star Britney Spears has been charged in Southern California with driving under the influence, the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office said Thursday. Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content. Spears, 44, was arrested in March on suspicion of driving under the influence. In April, she voluntarily … Read more

Southern Poverty Law Center says its informant program was not kept secret from law enforcement

WASHINGTON — The Southern Poverty Law Center told a federal court on Tuesday that law enforcement agencies have long known that the nonprofit paid informants to report on the movements of hate groups, rejecting assertions by the Trump administration that the nonprofit steered money to the Ku Klux Klan and other extremist groups without the … Read more

Southern Poverty Law Center seeks disclosure of grand jury transcripts in criminal case

Washington — The Southern Poverty Law Center moved to force the disclosure of grand jury materials in the criminal case against the organization, citing what it said were “misleading” statements from Trump administration officials in the aftermath of the indictment last week and “obvious legal infirmities” in court filings.  The filings come after a federal … Read more

Radical activist groups circle wagons around Southern Poverty Law Center amid federal charges

DOJ charges SPLC with fraud, alleges millions funneled to extremists The Department of Justice charges the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) with fraud, accusing the organization of funneling over $3 million to various extremist groups. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel detailed the accusations, highlighting payments to KKK members and Aryan … Read more

How mutiny at Southern Poverty Law Center triggered leadership collapse

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is facing federal fraud allegations less than a year after a staff mutiny triggered a leadership shakeup that has plagued the organization ever since. The Justice Department has accused the self-styled civil rights nonprofit of using paid informants to infiltrate extremist … Read more

Former federal prosecutors see legal flaws in DOJ’s indictment of Southern Poverty Law Center

The Justice Department’s indictment against the Southern Poverty Law Center may contain serious legal defects that could lead to a full or partial dismissal because it struggles to articulate the elements of the alleged crimes, former federal prosecutors told CBS News. The 11-count indictment alleges that the civil rights nonprofit organization, best known for its … Read more

Southern US wildfires force residents to flee, leaving them unsure if their homes are standing

NAHUNTA, Ga. — NAHUNTA, Ga. (AP) — Wildfires tearing through the South have forced hundreds of Georgia residents to flee in minutes, leaving them distraught about the homes and animals they left behind. The fires that spread this week during an extreme drought in Georgia and Florida have blanketed cities hundreds of miles (kilometers) away … Read more