Gov Mike Pence will reject 'Just IN' if it's state-run news

Governor Mike Pence (R-IN) said he would reject any version of his new "Just IN" website that looks like state-run media, continuing to distance himself from a written news service plan developed by his staff. Meanwhile, Gov Pence's communications staff, who authored the plan for "Just IN," scrambled to tamp down concerns over the news service in a strange, sometimes emotional exchange with Indiana Statehouse reporters.

Gov Pence appeared on a radio talk show to explain his administration's new communications plans, at one point saying he was unsure who wrote the plan for "Just IN". The radio host continuously pressed Gov Pence to abandon any plan for a state-run news service, until Gov Pence finally said he would reject any state-run news outlet. As Gov Pence went on the radio, Pence Communications Director Christy Denault sought to allay concerns from Indiana media in a news briefing. Denault insisted that the plan for "Just IN" started as an idea to update the state's online press release calendar system and said she was always planning to ask Indiana media for their input on what would be useful. Denault said that the use of journalism language in the documents unearthed by The Star was "shorthand" and never meant to give the idea they would be running a competing news outlet.