Local News Roundup: New voter maps; CMS to drop mask mandate; CATS bus shooting brings to light fear among drivers

Featured at WFAE

On the next Charlotte Talks Local News Roundup:

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board voted this week to end its indoor mask mandate effective March 7. We’ll talk about what school board members and superintendent Earnest Winston had to say.

Redistricting is once again in the news as a three-judge panel decided the fate of the newly proposed political maps this week. We’ll discuss what the changes will mean for Charlotte and beyond.

Charlotte City council okays a pair of rezoning petitions that were the subject of debate earlier in the year.

Authorities have identified a suspect in the shooting death of Charlotte Area Transit System bus driver Ethan Rivera on Feb. 11. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police said the incident involved road rage and has sparked conversation about safety for bus drivers. We’ll give an update.

And three Charlotte area-athletes make a splash at the NBA All-Star Game and in the Daytona 500.

Mike Collins and our roundtable of reporters delve into those stories and all the week’s top local and regional news on the Charlotte Talks local news roundup.

Guests:

  • Ann Doss Helms, WFAE Education Reporter
  • Erik Spanberg, managing editor for the Charlotte Business Journal
  • Nick Ochsner, WBTV’s Executive Producer for Investigations & Chief Investigative Reporter
  • Mary C. Curtis, columnist for Rollcall.com, host of the Rollcall podcast “Equal Time”
Read the rest atWFAE
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Local News Roundup: Vaccine Eligibility Increases But Finding Appointments A Challenge; Atlanta Killings Reaction; Arrests In Capitol Riot

Featured at WFAE

This week, more people are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and more appointments are being made available throughout the county to help people get their first dose of the vaccine. We’ll talk about who is eligible.

Once you’re eligible for the vaccine, some finesse and persistence may still be required to find a place to get vaccinated. We’ll talk about some mass vaccination events and where to look for appointments.

This week’s killing of six Asian American women in Atlanta brings the rise in violence against Asian Americans to the forefront in the Southeast. We’ll hear local reaction.

GOP lawmakers in the North Carolina General Assembly are working to put a limit on the governor’s emergency power during long-term emergency events. We’ll talk about what they’re trying to do and how that will affect Gov. Roy Cooper’s ability to manage the pandemic in the state.

And two York County, South Carolina, men are arrested for their alleged role in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. We discuss how they were identified and their role in the violence.

Mike Collins and our roundtable of reporters delve into the week’s top news on the Charlotte Talks Local News Roundup.

GUESTS:

Nick Ochsner, WBTV’s Executive Producer for Investigations & Chief Investigative Reporter

Mary C. Curtis, columnist for Rollcall.com, host of the Rollcall podcast “Equal Time” and contributor at WCCB-TV

Katie Peralta Soloff, reporter for Axios Charlotte

David Boraks, reporter for WFAE

Read the rest atWFAE
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When a hate crimes hearing goes very wrong, something’s not right in America

Featured at Roll Call

OPINION — When people are being threatened, intimidated and murdered, you would think that partisan bickering would take a back seat. But this is the U.S. Congress we’re talking about. Instead, what was supposed to be an examination of white nationalism and the rise of hate crimes on Tuesday devolved into what Americans have wearily begun to expect from their elected representatives. The House Judiciary Committee members inhabited different parties and different planets.

When what’s at stake is this serious, that’s pretty frightening.

Read the rest atRoll Call
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