Radio Interviews
Congressman Wiley Nickel on a new plan to end gerrymandering and his recent trip to Ukraine
Thanks to new and gerrymandered congressional maps enacted last fall by the Republican-dominated state legislature, the outcomes to almost all of North Carolina’s fall congressional elections have been pre-decided. One lawmaker directly impacted by this is Triangle-area Democratic Congressman Wiley Nickel, who saw his formerly competitive district transformed into one that only a Republican can […]
Newsline reporter Lisa Sorg on the first-ever federal regulations for PFAS in our drinking water
PFAS. Most North Carolinians had never heard that term until a few years ago, but sadly it’s now a permanent part of the lexicon. It refers, of course, to a class of dangerous substances – often referred to as “forever chemicals” because they don’t break down in the environment — that shortsighted manufacturers and polluters […]
Rochelle Sparko discusses the hidden costs of earned wage advances (EWA) and cash advance apps
For consumer protection advocates, the job of monitoring and going after predatory lending scams can sometimes resemble the old amusement park game of whack-a-mole. As soon as one predator is brought to justice, another one pops up. That description came to mind of late when Newsline learned about a new cellphone app that some schemers […]
U.S. Rep. Valerie Foushee on her recent trip to Israel, Ukraine aid, abortion rights and more
North Carolina Congresswoman Valerie Foushee (NC-04) joins NC Newsline’s Rob Schofield to discuss the latest developments in Congress, including a controversial trip to Israel, the possibility of more aid for Ukraine, abortion rights, and the IMPACT Act.
NCAE president Tamika Walker Kelly on what’s causing our state’s high teacher attrition rate
As several news stories have reported in recent weeks, North Carolina public schools have been enduring a sizable and troubling exodus. Education officials disclosed that the state experienced a teacher attrition rate of 11.5% between March 2022 and March 2023. That means that more than 10,000 of the state’s teachers left the profession in that […]
North Carolina’s impending crisis in the childcare system with Janet Singerman and Rhonda Rivers
As is the case in most of the U.S., North Carolina’s childcare system is not what it should be. Across the state, thousands of childcare providers operate in almost perpetual crisis – a crisis in which barely-making-it schools employ overworked and grievously underpaid teachers to serve stressed-out parents who have enormous difficulty finding quality care […]
Ann Webb of Common Cause NC on how the end of the three-day grace period is disenfranchising voters
In 2009, as voting by mail, became more and more a part of North Carolina elections, lawmakers of both parties unanimously agreed that mailed ballots postmarked by Election Day would still be counted if they arrived at county boards of elections within three days afterward. Under a new law passed by Republican majorities at the […]
Ardis Watkins of the State Employees Association of NC on staggering vacancy rates in key agencies
As a growing list of reports has documented in recent months, several North Carolina state government agencies are struggling mightily to recruit and retain employees. The Department of Health and Human services reports a 25% vacancy rate and in some prisons, the numbers are even higher than that. And not surprisingly, these kinds of worker […]
Reporter Casey Quinlan on why many Americans are worried about the economy during record strength
By just about any key measure, the U.S. economy is in remarkably good shape. Jobs are plentiful, wages are up, inflation has leveled off and by all indications, we’ve avoided the recession that some analysts had feared was looming. That said, things are far from perfect. High prices for essentials like housing and food continue […]
Rep. Julie von Haefen discusses abortion access, safe gun storage, and the ’24 legislative session
Last week, the United States Supreme Court heard is first major abortion case since it issued the 2022 Dobbs decision, overturning Roe v. Wade. At issue this time is mifepristone – a safe and effective medication that was approved by the Food and Drug Administration a quarter century ago and that today is used in […]
Dr. Scott Brennen of UNC-CH’s Center on Technology Policy discusses Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence or AI. It’s a topic that generates a lot of talk, a lot of hope, and a lot of concerns these days. On the positive side, AI has the potential to aid in solving an array of vexing societal problems and to help average people work better and faster in numerous ways. On […]
NC Child’s Erica Palmer Smith on the looming crisis facing North Carolina’s childcare industry
Finding affordable childcare: it’s a huge challenge in North Carolina. While our state has one of the nation’s highest rates of working parents with young children, 44% of the state’s families live in a “childcare desert” where there are more than three times as many children as licensed childcare slots. What’s more, things could get […]