A two-year legislative inquiry culminated last week in a bipartisan compromise over the state’s High School Sports Association. The very public fight mirrors a national debate over amateur athletics: Just how big should school sports be? And who gets to benefit?
September 2021
Posted inEnvironment
The Contested Swamps of Robeson County
A behemoth natural-gas facility, sitting atop a disrupted archeological site, represents the latest environmental challenge for one of the state’s most diverse yet burdened counties. But the debate over history, benefit, and protection is far more complicated than it first appears.
Posted inPolitics
Searching for Mike Easley
He was once one of the state’s most popular politicians, and remains perhaps the most idiosyncratic governor North Carolina has ever had. Since he left office and was convicted of a felony, he’s hardly been heard from. We went looking for him.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Police Informants, Unchecked
Last month, prosecutors indicted a Raleigh police informant for fabricating drug trafficking cases. His story raises questions about how the police department manages its confidential informants, and why its officers have escaped accountability.
Posted inK-12 Education
The Making of a Mask Mandate
A fight over school mask mandates in a GOP county lauded for its high vaccination rate shows just how tough it is to lead a public institution in the midst of a fast-changing pandemic.
Posted inPolitics
The Forgotten Lessons of the Hamlet Fire
Thirty years ago, a deadly fire at a chicken-processing plant in a poor North Carolina town prompted a push for employee safety. Now, workplace fatalities in the state are rising, and an Assembly investigation shows a federal agency involved in the tragedy failed to keep its promise.