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David Menconi on Rounder Records and the State of American Roots Music
Oh, Didn’t They Ramble: Rounder Records and the Transformation of American Roots Music by David Menconi | UNC Press, Oct. 2023. David Menconi has been writing about North Carolina music since 1991, when he joined the News & Observer staff. He retired from the newspaper in 2018, but that doesn’t mean he’s slowed down: His first UNC Press book, Step It Up and Go, a comprehensive reader on the state’s musical history, was published in 2020, and he launched a podcast, Carolina Calling, on the same subject in 2022.
Incoming! High school drama, Tokyo utility workers, and Jesus
As the 21st century rolls on, the venerable tradition of movie night continues to change. For decades, the phrase “movie night” meant going out to a theater with family or friends. Broadcast networks and then VCRs brought the tradition to the living room TV, and now digital tech means movie night can happen anywhere at all. You can even watch a movie on your phone—should you want to live that kind of diminished life.
Chapel Hill Leaders Look to Future Plans for Growth, Connectivity, and Affordable Housing
Last month, new mayors across the Triangle took their oaths of office and laid out their visions for the near future. In Chapel Hill, Jess Anderson took the top job with a promise to fight a trio of crises threatening the town. “Municipalities across the country are facing very real...
Coal Ash More Hazardous Than Previously Known, EPA Says, Could Alter Chapel Hill Cleanup Plan
This story originally published online at NC Newsline. You can read the full EPA draft risk assessment report that address more than just structural fill (82 pages) or excerpts that are specific to that use (10 pages). We’ve annotated the second document to help readers understand what it means.
Durham City Council Selects Four Finalists for Ward Three Vacancy
The Durham City Council today announced four finalists for the Ward Three council seat that was left vacant when Leonardo Williams moved to the mayor’s chair last month. The four finalists—Amanda Borer, a healthcare administrator; Chastan Swain, a law and policy advisor; Chelsea Cook, an attorney; and Shelia Huggins, an attorney who unsuccessfully ran for council last fall—will be interviewed in a special council session at City Hall on January 8. Supporters of each candidate will have the opportunity to weigh in during a public comment period on January 10 before the council makes a final decision at its meeting on January 16.
Linda’s Bar & Grill, Chapel Hill Watering Hole for Decades, Closes Its Doors
On January 5, Linda’s Bar & Grill will close its doors after 47 years of business in Chapel Hill. Best known for its generously loaded tater tots, wide-ranging beer, and weekly trivia nights, the restaurant has become a beloved watering hole for decades of students and Chapel Hill residents.
Durham One of Ten Counties Selected in NC Elections Board’s Ballot Signature-Matching Pilot Program
This story originally published online at NC Newsline. Durham is the most populous county that will take part in the ballot signature-matching pilot program for the upcoming primary elections. The State Board of Elections on Tuesday approved the 10 counties that will participate in the mailed ballot signature-matching pilot as...
At a Loss: NC Rape Crisis Centers Struggle as Federal Funds Dry Up
This story originally published online at UNC Media Hub. There are cubicles but no distinct offices, the room a hum of soft voices, and the scratching of pens on paper. The overhead fluorescent lights are off, and the natural light gives the wide space a calming, rather than corporate, feel.
Phoebe Judge Brings a Voice of Calm to ‘Criminal’
This story originally published online at the 9th Street Journal. You open your podcast app, put your earbuds in, and momentarily savor the silence. You press play. The hushed cadence of Phoebe Judge’s voice floods your head. Your surroundings have melted away. It’s just you and Judge, the host of Criminal and the owner of the most amazing vocal cords in podcasting. Get ready to be soothed as she tells you about true crime. The podcast is a blend of whodunits and horror with a dose of conspiracy.
Who Applied for Durham’s Open City Council Seat?
When Leonardo Williams became Durham’s mayor last month, he left his Ward Three seat vacant until 2025. Per the city’s charter, the council must make a good faith effort to fill the seat within 60 days of the vacancy. If the six sitting council members can’t reach a consensus, the seat will be up for a special election in 2024.
Scott Crawford’s First Cocktail Bar Comes With a Key
Yes, Scott Crawford’s forthcoming Raleigh cocktail bar will be located in a basement, and yes, it will require a physical key for entry, but no, it won’t be a speakeasy—if it were, Crawford tells me, I wouldn’t have gotten a press release about it. “We want...
New Test Results from NC State Building Show PCB Levels Up to 38 Times Higher Than EPA Standards
This story originally published online at NC Newsline. Five rooms in Poe Hall at NC State University are contaminated with PCBs at levels up to 38 times greater than EPA standards for building materials, according to sampling results obtained by Newsline this week under Public Records law. The results are...
How Morrisville Became a U.S. Cricket Capital
This story originally published online at The Assembly. Around 7 p.m. on a cool October evening, Babar Baig is standing at one end of Church Street Park staring into one of the three screens in front of him as he livestreams the final bout of a tournament between two top-ranked teams.
HELP WANTED: Durham City Council, Ward Three
Do you love the Bull City and want to work to make it better? Do you want to spend Monday nights and Tuesday afternoons listening to citizens and learning about zoning statutes? Do you live on Durham’s west side?. If the answer to all of those questions is an...
Residents Put Pressure on Durham Council to Adopt Ceasefire Resolution During Work Session
Grief and scorn hung heavy in the air of Durham’s city council chambers Tuesday as residents urged councilors to consider, or not consider, introducing a resolution to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. Most residents spoke in favor of a resolution. Some, accusing Israel of genocide, told council members...
Durham Council Opts Out of ShotSpotter, For Now
The Durham City Council voted 4-2 on Monday to not extend the city’s contract with the ShotSpotter gunshot detection service for an additional three months after the year-long pilot program ended on December 14. Activists gathered at city hall Monday evening to object to the continued use of ShotSpotter,...
Two UNC-Chapel Hill Trustees Are Running for Statewide Office from Their Board Seats
This story originally published online at NC Newsline. Dave Boliek was the first member of the UNC-Chapel Hill trustees to announce he was running for statewide office from his board seat, seeking to become State Auditor. But as candidate filing wrapped up last Friday, he wasn’t alone. Fellow board...
Families Gather in Durham to Fly Kites and Call for Ceasefire in Gaza
More than 200 people calling for a ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Hamas gathered in Durham Central Park on Saturday to sing, march, and fly kites in honor of Palestinian youth, who in 2011 broke the world record for the most number of kites flown simultaneously. The demonstration...
Custody Decision Delayed in Durham Father’s Case
This story originally published online by The Assembly and WBTV. Garnell Hill said he used to be angry about how the child welfare system had treated him and his 9-year-old son over the last three years. But ahead of a hearing to determine his son’s future on Thursday, he said he felt “empowered.”
North Carolina Museum of Art’s First Picasso Now On Display
The North Carolina Museum of Art’s first Pablo Picasso painting—”Seated Woman, Red and Yellow Background”—is now on display in the museum’s West Building. The 1952 portrait of Picasso’s muse and lover, French artist Françoise Gilot, employs the cubist techniques Picasso was known for. Alongside four other paintings donated to the museum that now hang in the museum’s 20th Century Art gallery, the Picasso piece is a “transformational” donation, the press release states, that will “significantly grow and strengthen the NCMA’s modern art holdings.”
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