Check out the latest news, features, opinions, and more from Appalachia, the Midwest, and other Postindustrial Communities.
ASHEVILLE
Women’s flag football is having a breakthrough year in North Carolina
Blue Ridge Public Radio: Women’s flag football is having a banner year in North Carolina, with high school and college programs launching all over the state, including at UNC Asheville and Mars Hill University.
ATLANTA
Sen. Ossoff calls opponent Mike Collins ‘a scandal piñata’ at Atlanta rally
Georgia Public Broadcasting: Ossoff spoke about high grocery and gas prices, healthcare and his opposition to the war in Iran during his speech to more than 1,000 supporters.
BALTIMORE
Gov. Moore and candidate Cox differ on data centers at Maryland conference
Maryland Matters: As two-time Republican nominee for Maryland governor Dan Cox puts it, hyperscale data centers are a “big difference between [Gov.[ Wes Moore and me.”
Chicago Sun-Times: The Chicago Teachers Union is taking aim at the Illinois Policy Institute and its legal arm, claiming in a defamation lawsuit filed Monday that social media posts and articles bashing the union’s finances and its president Stacy Davis Gates — and branding the union “toxic” — are part of a “deliberate campaign” to harm the union’s reputation.
CINCINNATI
Local 12 Cincinnati: Cincinnati Public Schools held its final board meeting before the start of the new school year, where community members raised concerns about changes to English Language Learning social worker positions.
CLEVELAND
“Impossible Choices”: A Cleveland doctor offers guidance on high-risk pregnancies after Dobbs
Ideastream Public Media: Dr. David Hackney practices maternal-fetal medicine and teaches at Case Western Reserve University. His new book is “Impossible Choices: A Physician’s Guidance on High-Risk Pregnancy in a World Without Roe.”
COLUMBUS
OpenAI joins data center venture at former nuclear enrichment site in Ohio’s Pike County
Ohio State Public Media: OpenAI joins Japanese-owned SoftBank Group’s SB Energy, Nvidia and the U.S. Department of Energy in what is planned to be a six-year construction project. The company said it will use about 8 gigawatts of power at the plant, which was formerly a uranium enrichment facility called the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant.
DETROIT
15-year-old suspect charged with deadly stabbing in Detroit
FOX 2 Detroit: Police responded to the scene and found the victim, 22-year-old Ejon Banks, who had suffered multiple stab and cut wounds. Banks was rushed to a nearby hospital where he died from his injuries.
INDIANAPOLIS
Indiana governor announces emergency aid, temporary housing grants amid lethal storms and flooding
Indiana Capital Chronicle: At least 1,000 residents have been displaced statewide, Indiana Department of Homeland Security Executive Director Jonathan Whitham estimated, with at least seven dead.
LOUISVILLE
Kentuckian Scott Jennings may face defamation action from Hasan Piker over edited clips
Kentucky Lantern: Hasan Piker, a progressive Twitch streamer who often discusses politics, told Status, a media news site, that he and his legal team were preparing a defamation lawsuit against Jennings and Salem Media, the company that syndicates Jennings’ radio show. Last week, Jennings shared an edited video on Aug. 11 of Piker online claiming Piker had said “the USA should resume lynchings against Black people.”
MILWAUKEE
Wisconsin Democrats sue to boot Republican from key state Senate race
Wisconsin Public Radio: Wisconsin Democrats are suing to kick a Republican off the ballot in a state Senate race that could be key in determining which party controls the chamber. It claims GOP candidate Michele Magadance Skinner, who is running for the 31st state Senate district, is a Georgia resident and ineligible to hold public office in Wisconsin.
MORGANTOWN
Woman dies in Fayette floodwaters; Morrisey “closely monitoring” storms
West Virginia Watch: According to the National Weather Service, more than 4 inches of rain fell at Yeager Airport in Charleston on Sunday, leading to reports of high water throughout Kanawha County, including Cross Lanes and Cabin Creek.
NASHVILLE
Report: 12 Tennessee rural hospitals at “immediate risk” for closure
Tennessee Lookout: A dozen small, rural Tennessee hospitals are at “immediate risk” for closure, potentially exacerbating a longstanding problem in a state with one of the highest hospital closure rates in the nation.
PHILADELPHIA
Philadelphia teachers union says district’s poor oversight led to Kensington High asbestos closure
Philadelphia Public Radio: Philadelphia’s teachers union is accusing the school district of poor oversight of an HVAC renovation project at Kensington High School that will force over 400 students to relocate for the first half of the school year.
PITTSBURGH
Former priest accused of embezzling $740K from Western Pennsylvania parishes, mother
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: A Ukrainian Catholic priest is charged with stealing more than $740,000 in church funds and from multiple victims — including his mother — which police say he used to buy a car, take expensive vacations and gamble.
WHEELING
Flood Warnings issued across the upper Ohio Valley
WTRF.com: After heavy rain over the weekend, more rain and thunderstorms have prompted Flood Warnings to be issued across southern portions of the upper Ohio Valley.
YOUNGSTOWN
Gov. DeWine, Lt. Gov. Tressel visit Youngstown to discuss Ohio’s #1 business ranking
WFMJ 21 Youngstown: Governor Mike DeWine and Lieutenant Governor Jim Tressel visited downtown Youngstown to discuss Ohio’s economic success with local business leaders at America Makes.
