Journalist Spotlight

Matt Degrood

@DegroodMatt291 followers

Dog dad to Molly Ivins. Native Texan. Lonestar enthusiast. Roma superfan.

Front-Page Stories2Last 30 Days

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Last Front PageMAY 31, 2026Latest appearance

Featured Story

Featured Lead Story

Audit finds problems with police OT

Report on some of top earners raises questions on HPD financial oversight

View Front PageHouston Chronicle • MAY 24, 2026

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Houstonians falling victim to welfare theft

Houston Chronicle•MAY 31, 2026

Focuses on the financial impact of SNAP benefit skimming on low-income residents and the lack of chip technology on state-issued cards.

Audit finds problems with police OT

Report on some of top earners raises questions on HPD financial oversight

Houston Chronicle•MAY 24, 2026•Lead Story

The report focuses on fiscal accountability and administrative oversight within the Houston Police Department, highlighting discrepancies in overtime recording and budgeting.

How Houston’s ICE policy fell apart

Whitmire blames council members; they say mayor gave them no choice but to force a vote

With:Abby Church

Houston Chronicle•MAY 3, 2026•Lead Story

The paper focuses on the internal administrative friction and political finger-pointing within city governance regarding a controversial immigration enforcement policy. It presents the breakdown as a procedural and political failure rather than a broader ideological crisis.

HPD officers back to waiting on ICE

Revised policy on civil immigration warrants calls for 'reasonable amount of time' for pickups

With:Abby Church

Houston Chronicle•APR 25, 2026•Lead Story

The paper frames the story as an administrative and policy shift, detailing the mechanics of local police cooperation with federal immigration agencies following state-level political pressure.

Council amends ICE warrant policy

Hotly debated move comes after Abbott threatened funding, Paxton sued the city

With:Abby Church

Houston Chronicle•APR 23, 2026•Lead Story

The paper frames the municipal policy amendment as a direct response to coercive legal and financial pressure from state-level leadership, focusing on the mechanical cause-and-effect of the governance clash.

Mayor proposes ICE policy changes

Legal expert says adjustments would make city's new ordinance 'almost meaningless'

With:Abby Church,Ryan Nickerson

Houston Chronicle•APR 22, 2026•Lead Story

The paper frames the NRA convention as a strategic political effort targeting a specific Democratic candidate, emphasising the group's campaign messaging rather than just reporting the event's occurrence.

Some want mayor to challenge state

Council members, legal experts say fight over ICE policy winnable after Whitmire backs off

Houston Chronicle•APR 20, 2026•Lead Story

The paper frames the story as a pragmatic assessment of local legal and political options, focusing on expert opinion and internal city council dynamics rather than ideological outrage.

Mayor reverses course on ICE policy

Governor threatened to pull $110 million in grants after council limited cooperation

With:Abby Church,Peter Warren

Houston Chronicle•APR 15, 2026•Lead Story

The paper frames the local policy shift strictly as a response to financial leverage, detailing the state governor's threat to withhold $110 million rather than exploring the ideological merits of the immigration policy itself.

Mayoral power called into question

After ICE vote, council members say rules for Prop A may give Whitmire too much control

With:Abby Church

Houston Chronicle•APR 13, 2026•Lead Story

The paper frames a corporate healthcare resolution through a highly personal lens, leading with the emotional and practical relief for a vulnerable local family while noting lingering systemic frustrations.

City OKs plan to limit HPD’s cooperation with ICE

Proposal erases Whitmire’s recent changes to policy

With:Abby Church

Houston Chronicle•APR 9, 2026

Reports on a local policy shift regarding law enforcement and immigration, emphasizing the reversal of a previous mayoral directive.

About this page

Paperboy tracks bylines on the front pages of major US and UK broadsheets. This page shows every front-page story attributed to Matt Degrood in our archive, based on bylines extracted from front-page images by AI. It covers only front-page stories — not the full output of this journalist. Data begins April 2026.