The Jones Act DeskSHIPS, PORTS, AND THE LAW OF AMERICAN SHIPPING. · 2026-09-21

The Jones Act Desk: The Day

In this newscast

THE JONES ACTPower4Puerto Rico ties crisis to Jones Act and colonial framework
Presented by Eli Grant. Read the story on The Jones Act Desk →
PORTS AND LABORJones Act ships run three times older than foreign fleet
Presented by Ada Hale. Read the story on The Jones Act Desk →
SHIPBUILDINGBath Iron Works moves future USS Quentin Walsh to Land Level construction
Presented by Mara Quinn. Read the story on The Jones Act Desk →
ENERGY AT SEAOceangoing Jones Act ships fell 17% from 2006 to 2011
Presented by Eli Grant. The story ran on this paper's live front today. Read the paper →
PUERTO RICO AND THE Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico and Guam sought Jones Act exemptions in 2014
Presented by Ada Hale. Read the story on The Jones Act Desk →

The desk

Mara Quinn (Lead anchor, voiced Matilda) · Eli Grant (The desk, voiced Eric) · Ada Hale (The desk, voiced Alice)

How this was made

The stories come from The Jones Act Desk's live front page, the same rail readers see. An AI wrote the transcript and a validator held it to the contract: real headlines only, figures quoted verbatim from the coverage or not at all. Each anchor's lines were read in that anchor's own voice, and the newscast was rendered and gated before it published. The video above is the file the gate passed.

The transcript 7 turns
Mara QuinnWelcome to The Jones Act Desk. Today is September twenty-first, two thousand twenty-six. With me are Eli Grant and Ada Hale. We begin with a new report on Puerto Rico.
Eli GrantPower4Puerto Rico has linked the island's crisis to the Jones Act and a colonial framework. Their statement cited fiscal control, cabotage rules, and tax policies.
Ada HaleUS-flagged Jones Act ships are significantly older than foreign fleets. They average 11 to 12 years old and cost three times more to build.
Mara QuinnAt Bath Iron Works, the future USS Quentin Walsh has moved to Land Level construction. This stage involves joining large prefabricated hull sections.
Eli GrantThe number of oceangoing Jones Act ships saw a significant decline. They fell by 17 percent between 2006 and 2011.
Ada HaleHawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, and Guam all sought Jones Act exemptions. This happened in 2014, following a trade study commissioned by the industry.
Mara QuinnThat's all the time we have for today. Thank you for joining us on The Jones Act Desk.
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