News

New report urges legislation to address addictive social media algorithms harming children

The Child Fatality Task Force released its 2025 annual report this week, offering recommendations on how the governor and the General Assembly can create policies they say will save lives. The report offers 11 recommendations that address a range of issues that threaten child health and safety, including teens spending an average of 3.5 hours per day on social media.

Brianna Kraemer
News

Trimming the fat: As federal debt soars, North Carolina leaders focus on cutting waste at the state level too

While the North Carolina per capita debt is $416 per person, Boliek explained, the per capita debt at the federal level is $106,000 per person. Boliek explained that efficiency measures at the federal government are not going to be in any way similar to the scale of efficiency that his office will be working to find in North Carolina.

Brianna Kraemer
News

Musk proposes privatizing Amtrak amid DOGE endeavor

Billionaire tech mogul and presidential advisor Elon Musk has suggested privatizing Amtrak passenger train services, among other federally funded services, as part of the DOGE drive for efficiency. During a virtual appearance at a Morgan Stanley tech conference on March 5, Musk described Amtrak as a “sad situation” compared to high-speed rail in Europe and...

Jeff Moore

Opinion

Elections

News

Trump nominates Bishop to be deputy director for budget at OMB

"Dan has been a tireless fighter for our MAGA Movement in the House of Representatives on the Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees," Trump said in a press release issued Tuesday night. "Dan will implement my cost-cutting and deregulatory agenda across all Agencies, and root out the Weaponized Deep State."

Theresa Opeka
News

Democrats want federal court to address GOP challenge of 60,000 NC ballots

The North Carolina Democratic Party filed a lawsuit Friday to ensure challenges of 60,000 ballots in the state's latest election are addressed in federal court. Republicans filed the challenges with the State Board of Elections. The challenges could affect the outcome of the state Supreme Court race between Democrat Allison Riggs and Jefferson Griffin, along with a handful of state legislative contests.

CJ Staff
News

Griffin asks Appeals Court to order decision on election protests by Tuesday

Republican North Carolina Supreme Court candidate Jefferson Griffin is turning to North Carolina’s second-highest court for an order that would force state election officials to make a final decision about Griffin’s election protests Tuesday. The State Board of Elections had planned to hear oral arguments about the protests the following day, according to a document Griffin filed Friday with the state Court of Appeals.

CJ Staff

Videos

Video

The Debrief: Remaining Covid Lawsuits + Sam Hayes Interview

This week on The Debrief, Mitch Kokai and Donna King discuss the remaining covid lawsuits and other court cases in North Carolina. Plus, North Carolina State Board of Elections Executive Director Sam Hayes sat down with Carolina Journal’s Theresa Opeka to talk about his first year in office, including his accomplishments and what’s on the...

Culture

Civil Society

Opinion

For healthy civil society, politics needs to stay in its lane

Political and cultural causes are important. They motivate us to make the world around us better and hone our sense of justice. Also, the excitement of fighting the good fight can be, for lack of a better word, fun. But everything has its time and place. And even if we think a particular political issue...

David Larson
Opinion

Flashback: North Carolina’s Easter Monday tradition forged on the baseball diamond

On Good Friday state offices will be closed in North Carolina for Holy Week, along with 10 other states. However, that has not always been the case in North Carolina. The Monday after Easter — rather than Good Friday — was a legal holiday in North Carolina for 52 years, and for many years before...

Dallas Woodhouse