Issues
In pictures: snow blankets Birmingham
Snow fell across the Birmingham area early Friday morning, making roadways dangerous, with officials urging residents to avoid travel if possible. Many schools closed in advance of the winter weather giving children the chance to revel in the snow.
The Gulf South needs more sexual assault nurse examiners. Is teleSANE the answer?
While some see telemedicine as a useful tool to help provide care to sexual assault survivors, others believe it's not enough to solve the nursing shortage.
Birmingham braces for winter storm: here’s what to do
Gov. Kay Ivey issued a state of emergency for 37 Alabaman counties Thursday, including the Birmingham metro area, ahead of a weekend winter storm. Forecasters expect icy weather to sweep through the region from Thursday night through Friday night.
In New Orleans, focus shifts toward community recovery, healing after terror attack
Officials and health experts are working to make sure those affected by the Bourbon Street attack have access to the medical and financial resources they need.
U.S. stock markets close to honor former President Jimmy Carter
The New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq will both observe Thursday's national day of mourning in a Wall Street tradition dating back to 1865.
Special ed students benefit from being integrated at school. It doesn’t always happen
Research shows including students with and without disabilities in the same classroom can benefit everyone. Two students with Down syndrome show what can be gained when that happens.
A major winter storm will bring snow to the South. Here are tips from winter experts
Southern states don't often deal with winter conditions, but New England does. New Hampshire especially has tips for how to prepare for a winter storm.
The NHL postpones a game and the Lakers coach evacuates his family amid LA fires
The fires burning across Los Angeles have affected tens of thousands of people, including athletes and staff for the city's sports teams. Pasadena's iconic Rose Bowl was under evacuation warning.
A looming ‘demographic cliff’: Fewer college students and ultimately fewer graduates
The long-predicted downturn in the number of 18-year-olds is almost here. And it isn't just a problem for higher education. It's a looming crisis for the economy.
Woodfin to run for a third term as mayor
Woodfin was widely expected to make another run following electoral victories in 2017 and 2021. This year’s contest will take place August 26.
Homicide commission report offers strategies to reduce gun violence
Following a record breaking year of homicides in Birmingham, a city commission submitted a report on potential solutions for the crisis to the mayor’s office on Monday. The report lays out strategies for how the city can reduce its homicide rate, particularly those stemming from gun violence.
What America’s top economists are saying about AI and inequality
Planet Money attended the annual meeting of American economists — and the most popular topic this year was artificial intelligence.
Biden makes an 11th-hour move to block coastal oil drilling
President Biden has issued an executive order blocking drilling for oil in more than 625 million acres of U.S. ocean. It's the largest such move in history, but is almost guaranteed to be challenged under the incoming Trump administration.
Biden bans new offshore oil and gas drilling in most federal waters
President Joe Biden is moving to ban new offshore oil and gas drilling in most U.S. coastal waters, an effort to block possible action by the incoming Trump administration to expand offshore drilling.
A 55-year-old who ran a marathon every day in 2024 says the toughest part was mental
World-record chaser Hilde Dosogne is used to running extreme distances. Still, she says she underestimated the challenge. She's now hoping to make it official with a Guinness World Record.
Birmingham begins new curbside waste collection schedule
Birmingham’s new trash, recycling and bulk waste collection schedule kicks off on Monday, January 6. Residents can expect regular trash pickup on one specific day each week and recycling collection on the same day every other week.
What are your hopes for 2025?
With 2024 coming to a close, we have a whole new year to look forward to. What are your hopes for 2025? We put that question to attendees of our recent News and Brews community pop-up.
Living HealthSmart in Alabama is getting easier thanks to a growing UAB initiative
The Live HealthSmart Alabama initiative, which the University of Alabama at Birmingham launched in 2019, has a goal of pulling Alabama out of the bottom 10 states in terms of negative health indicators by removing systemic barriers. Pilot projects in four Birmingham neighborhoods wrapped up this year, and organizers hope their success can be replicated throughout the state.
The 2024 moments that will stick with us: Reflections from the Gulf States Newsroom
Our regional reporters reflect on delightful, discarded moments they had in the field as they covered stories across Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.
‘Driven by something greater’: Meet Birmingham’s trainer to the stars of today and the future
Otis Leverette, better known as ‘Coach O,’ is a strength and conditioning coach in the South that’s impacting athletes' lives beyond sports.
Alabama profits off prisoners safe enough to work at McDonald’s, deems them too dangerous for parole
No state has a longer, more profit-driven history of contracting prisoners out to private companies than Alabama. Best Western, Bama Budweiser and Burger King are among the more than 500 businesses to lease incarcerated workers from one of the most violent, overcrowded and unruly prison systems in the U.S.
Share your thoughts on gun violence in Birmingham
Anyone in Birmingham who wants to weigh in on how to address the city’s gun violence can do so through a survey offered by an independent gun violence commission. The commission has been working since October to find ways to reduce Birmingham’s homicide rates.
Federal regulators say an Alabama coal mine’s plans may violate law, leaving citizens at risk
A “ten-day notice” issued to Alabama officials aims to mitigate risks to citizens living above Oak Grove Mine. It comes after months of state inaction and community outrage.
Q&A: The little-known history of how enslaved people were jailed in antebellum New Orleans
Author John Bardes discusses how Louisiana’s complicated history with mass incarceration began with imprisonment being used as a tool against enslaved people.
Alabama wants to lower recidivism rates by 2030. What are the obstacles?
Last year, Alabama set an ambitious goal for itself: lower recidivism by 25% and increase post-incarceration employment rates by 50% by 2030. But a recent study on the state's criminal justice re-entry programming shows that many formerly incarcerated people are falling through the cracks.
An Alabama woman is doing well after the latest experimental pig kidney transplant
Towana Looney is the fifth American given a gene-edited pig organ — and notably, she isn’t as sick as prior recipients who died within two months of receiving a pig kidney or heart.
Remembering Gip’s Place and the Bessemer bluesman who started it all
The unassuming juke joint operated in the backyard of longtime Bessemer resident Henry “Gip” Gipson. Gipson died five years ago this fall.
Girls Rock Birmingham gives future artists the spotlight
Picture a rock band and chances are it’s a bunch of men. But Girls Rock Birmingham, a local youth organization, is fixing that spotlight on girls by giving them the chance to take the stage to rock out.
Alabama lawmakers eye change to school funding formula
Lawmakers have no plans to increase taxes but are looking to revamp the formula that divvies out state funds.
What is your favorite holiday scent and memory?
The holidays are rife with tradition and memories, with more than a few seasonal cookies, coffees and festivities sprinkled in between. So we asked visitors to our recent News and Brews community pop-up in Trussville: what is your favorite holiday scent and memory?
Alabama leads US in ‘pregnancy criminalization’ cases following Dobbs decision: report
The report’s findings help shed light on the use of criminal laws informed by the idea of fetal personhood, a legal premise gaining traction in the South.
One-day strikes are in: Why unions are keeping it short on the picket line
Strikes can be a double-edged sword. Keeping them short can help workers gain leverage while minimizing the pain for those who don’t have it.
