The following questions were submitted to The Madison Report by another news organization seeking information about our reporting on Stephen Swanson’s arrest in Texas in 2020. Because questions regarding our reporting process have been brought up publicly recently, we appreciate the opportunity to respond.
How did The Madison Report obtain the Texas records and information referenced in the article?
A private citizen contacted The Madison Report after finding information regarding Stephen Swanson’s 2020 arrest and asked us to do a story. The records were provided to us by private citizens in December 2025. We independently verified and reviewed the documents before publishing. Any additional information was obtained through standard public records requests and other channels available to journalists and members of the public.
Were any of the records or information provided by Madison County officials, employees, contractors, or outside legal counsel retained by the county?
Mr. Swanson’s 2024 application and resume were obtained via a standard open records request to the county. The remaining records were obtained by our sources (private citizens) directly from Texas.
Did you have any communications with Madison County supervisors, county employees, or county-paid attorneys regarding the information published in the article?
I asked Supervisor Stancil if she had previously been aware of the arrest of Swanson in 2020. I recall her stating in no uncertain terms that she had no idea prior to our sources bringing it to her attention. She also indicated that had this been known by the Board at the time, the outcome of the 2024 County Attorney appointment would have been different.
To your knowledge, was any information used in the article obtained through work paid for by Madison County taxpayers?
Other than the open records request, no. Open records requests are often standard practice in researching a story.
If The Madison Report independently obtained the Texas records, did you or your publication incur any filing fees, records fees, or court-related costs in obtaining those records? If so, would you be willing to provide documentation reflecting those charges, including any clerk-of-court invoice, receipt, or payment record associated with obtaining the records?
The Madison Report did not incur fees since our sources (private citizens) covered any costs associated with the information.
Leslie Beck
The Madison Report
