Podcasts about whittney evans

VPM News editor Whittney Evans digs in to answer this Curious Commonwealth: What does the data tell us about how much Virginia recycles? Submit your own question at vpm.org/curious.   VPM's Spring 2025 membership campaign ends on April 18. Right now, several challenges are ongoing that can double your support of our mission. Click or tap here to learn more. 

This fall 2023 special series of reports dives into how Richmond's neighborhoods promote — or hinder — residents' well-being. In Part 1, we explore Richmond's public transportation, repairing its divided communities, Southside's economic development and challenges for Black business owners. Healthy City was written by VPM News and VPM News Focal Point. It was edited by Whittney Evans and Connor Scribner. Shaban Athuman did the series and drone photography. Additional editing was done by Dave Cantor, Meghin Moore, Megan Pauly and Dawnthea M. Price Lisco. To explore more Healthy City, visit vpm.org/healthy.

This fall 2023 special series of reports dives into how Richmond's neighborhoods promote — or hinder — residents' well-being. In Part 2, we explore the city's community spaces and gardens, the effects of rising property values on Black homeownership and how COVID-19 impacted mortality rates for pregnant people of color. Healthy City was written by VPM News and VPM News Focal Point. It was edited by Whittney Evans and Connor Scribner. Shaban Athuman did the series and drone photography. Additional editing was done by Dave Cantor, Meghin Moore, Megan Pauly and Dawnthea M. Price Lisco. To explore more Healthy City, visit vpm.org/healthy.

Virginia lawmakers considered a package of bills this winter to crack down on antisemitism. There was a lot of debate and not all of the bills passed. PolitiFact Virginia editor Warren Fiske talked with VPM News editor Whittney Evans about his latest article, which breaks down the controversy. 

Was the historic 1954 Brown versus Board of Education case about parental rights? Not desegregating public schools? Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears says so. But an irrefutable source contradicts her. PolitiFact Virginia editor Warren Fiske talked with VPM News editor Whittney Evans about this latest fact check. 

Have Virginia tax revenues risen by 50 percent over the last four years, as Governor Glenn Youngkin says? PolitiFact Virginia Editor Warren Fiske spoke with VPM News reporter and editor Whittney Evans about his fact checks of the governor's claim.

VPM's Whittney Evans chronicled her search to get a COVID test earlier this week; Nine new community testing centers are opening across the state to increase availability; Crews began treating major roadways overnight, as another winter storm hits parts of the commonwealth; and other local news stories.

Nothing in this world is certain but death and taxes, and legislators are tackling both in Week 5 of the session. This week we talk with reporter Whittney Evans about some surprise backers of a new death penalty repeal effort. We also look at the state's big budget surplus and try to divine what lawmakers might do with all that extra scratch. The Utah Legislature's bluest member Sen. Jim Dabakis announces he's done after this session, joining several other incumbents on their way out the door, like Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck, our featured guest on 'Better Know a Lawmaker.'

Learn about the guest, Retha Wright:Email: reallywright@gmail.comBlog: Coming Soon!Retha Wright joins the Open Sesame Podcast to share her unique journey from English Literature, to tarot, to Sufism. Retha's knowledge of symbolism and folklore is deeply infused in her tarot practice. We absolutely loved learning from her in this episode. Follow Whittney Evans and Cora Kessler of the Open Sesame Podcast on:Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/opensesamedia/Cora Kessler: https://www.instagram.com/corakess/Whittney Evans: https://www.instagram.com/sweetteasus/Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/OpenSesameListen on BuzzSprout at https://opensesame.buzzsprout.com/ or wherever you listen to your podcasts (Spotify, Apple, Stitcher, and more!).Property of Open Sesame 2018 - 2021

Starting today, Virginians can legally possess up to an ounce of marijuana. But advocates fear confusion over the new law could result in Black people being disproportionately targeted by law enforcement; Another new law taking effect today requires Virginia schools to grant all middle and high school students one excused absence a year to participate in a civic event; and Whittney Evans explains the new marijuana and other laws taking effect today.

Learn about the guest, Reverend Lindsey Franklin:On Richmond Hill's website: https://www.richmondhillva.org/Twitter: https://twitter.com/lfrankli?lang=enInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/lindseyfranklin/Reverend Lindsey Franklin joins the Open Sesame Podcast to share her unexpected journey from the San Francisco social entrepreneurship and community organizing worlds to the southern religious space of Richmond Hill. While on paper these worlds couldn't seem further apart, Lindsey discusses similarities, important skills learned from each, and the value she feels from both community, religion, and the two together. Follow Whittney Evans and Cora Kessler of the Open Sesame Podcast on:Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/opensesamedia/Cora Kessler: https://www.instagram.com/corakess/Whittney Evans: https://www.instagram.com/sweetteasus/Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/OpenSesameListen on BuzzSprout at https://opensesame.buzzsprout.com/ or wherever you listen to your podcastsProperty of Open Sesame 2018 - 2021

Good morning, RVA! It's 73 °F, and, guess what? More of the same! Expect hot, sticky highs in the 90s, with even hotter Feels Likes, plus a possibility for rain this evening. Cooler temperatures move in tomorrow, though!Water coolerAs of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports the seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths as: 202, 35, and 8.4, respectively. VDH reports a seven-day average of 23.6 new cases in and around Richmond (Richmond: 7.7; Henrico: 6.4, and Chesterfield: 9.4). Since this pandemic began, 1,330 people have died in the Richmond region. 44.4%, 55.5%, and 51.9% of the population in Richmond, Henrico, and Chesterfield have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.Biden Goal update! As of this morning, 68.2% of adult Virginians have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. So close! But gains of just 0.1% per day will push the Commonwealth's target for hitting the 70% goal out to around June 26th. I've become irrationally interested in this number!The Virginia Public Access Project has the results of last night's Democratic Primary. Here's what November's statewide ticket will look like: For governor, Terry McAuliffe; for lieutenant governor, Hala Ayala; and for Attorney General, Mark Herring. Locally, both incumbents, Colette McEachin and Antoinette Irving won their Commonwealth's Attorney and Sheriff races respectively. You can check out the results of the General Assembly primaries here, which feature a lot of victorious incumbents as well. As per usual, I didn't vote for a lot of these folks, but I'm excited to support them heading into November. I like the moment after primaries where we can all take a moment, regroup, and get on the same page. Speaking of same page, look at this map of localities that went for McAuliffe—it's all of them, like, 100% of them. That's impressive. Now, what I want to see, is former Governor McAuliffe turn on his money printing machine and start out raising Republic candidate Youngkin ASAP. Virginia! We have elections every year! It's exhausting!The Richmond Land Bank has put out an RFP for the former Bank of America branch building and the attached parking lot at 1307 E. Brookland Park Boulevard—that's right off the roundabout at Six Points. The nearby Six Points Innovation Center has already done some community engagement work, and applicants should consider submitting proposals for a grocery store, restaurant, coffee shop, cafe, bakery, community center, or doctor's office. Or maybe some clever combination (or something else entirely!). You should tap through and read that community engagement report, though, regardless of your interest in this property. It's a great example of how to put together something like that. Anyway, I'm not sure how many developers read this email, but surely a few are within at least a half a Kevin Bacon of some of y'all—so please share this really interesting opportunity in Highland Park with the developers in your lives.Via this story in the Richmond Times-Dispatch about political donations and casinos, here's a long list of the local investors involved in the ONE casino project. It's a list I've not seen before, and you'll definitely recognize some of these names. Fascinating. I wonder if a similarly lengthy list existed for the 2nd District casino proposal? As for the political donations stuff, I know “and are you surprised?” is not a helpful response, but it's what I feel in my heart. Because I am a complex and inconsistent human, I will hold my general disgust with money in politics in tension with the above sentence I wrote about how I hope McAuliffe out money-in-politics his Republican challenger.VPM's Whittney Evans reports that, yesterday, the Virginia Supreme Court heard the Governor's case about removing the Lee Monument. Evans says it could be six to nine weeks before the Court issues an opinion. Bleh.RRHA will hold two public meetings today to review their Annual Agency Plans and hear public comment on them. The first meeting kicks off at 12:00 PM and the second at 5:30 PM. Zoom info on the aforelinked website. If you want to dig into those plans ahead of the meeting, you can do so here.Rich Griset at Style Weekly talked with a handful of local folks who run Instagram accounts dedicated to documenting very specific foods—like nachos, cheese fries, or, specifically, the Bloody Mary at Bamboo. I have yet to find a nacho that surpasses the old Bellytimber nachos, but I've got an open mind (and stomach).This morning's longreadA Love Letter to Black Queers in the Rural SouthThe Scalawag newsletter, which is a wonderful newsletter y'all should subscribe to, has put together a great set of articles and essays for Pride. Here's one that I thought was beautifully written.I wish my narrators spoke of Souths that were different from my own. But they tell me what I know too well about Southern queer and transgender people navigating a lack of resolution with acceptance—bound by religious mores—and their own God-given identities. For my narrators, being out offers little reprieve. There remains a binding expectation to not be too open—an expectation that is complicated by the lingering hold of HIV and the way it divulges too much about sex or who one might love. The result is disconnection.If you'd like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol' Patreon.Picture of the DayVolunteer cucumber plant or alien facehugger?

Good morning, RVA! It's 70 °F, and it looks rainy out there, y'all. You can continue to expect a chance of rain, on and off, for most of the day. Saturday and Sunday, though, look beautiful if rather hot. This weekend, enjoy some time outside, stay hydrated, and get some rest.Water coolerAs of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports the seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths as: 229, 31, and 9.1, respectively. VDH reports a seven-day average of 28.7 new cases in and around Richmond (Richmond: 7.3; Henrico: 5.9, and Chesterfield: 15.6). Since this pandemic began, 1,329 people have died in the Richmond region. 43.8%, 54.8%, and 51.1% of the population in Richmond, Henrico, and Chesterfield have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Here's this week's stacked chart of new cases, hospitalizations, and deaths, and you can, finally, really, totally, see a drop off in COVID-19-related deaths across the state. These are truly low numbers that we haven't seen since last July. Now, with the power of a ton of folks being vaccinated, I'm hoping we'll see those number fall even lower and stay there.Speaking of the power of vaccines! I know that's a lot of numbers up there to throw at you before you've had a sufficient amount of coffee, but I do want to point out that both Henrico and Chesterfield now have more than 50% of their population with at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Possibly related, or at least worth bringing up in that conversation, Sabrina Moreno at the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports on the low vaccine uptake among Black Richmonders who, at this point, make up the largest share of positive COVID-19 cases—75% of the city's cases from April to May. It's complicated stuff why a person may or may not choose to get vaccinated, and I encourage you to tap that link and read through some of the reasons.Whittney Evans at VPM scored an interview with Richmond Police's Chief Smith, which you should definitely read in its entirety. Actually, give the audio at the top of the page a listen so you can get a feel for the tone, which sounds a lot less defensive than the text reads. Evans asks if RPD has made any new policy changes since last summer's protests, to which Chief Smith responds: “A few…You're gonna have to give me a chance to go back and pull some of those. We changed the chemical munitions policy. The way chemical munitions are used and when they are used…You're asking very specific questions that you did not prepare me to go get—I would have to get the policy.” I have a lot of thoughts on that, both policywise and PRwise. Mostly about that latter though: The Chief is the face of the Police Department and one of the top four or five public figures in the entire City. Part of that job is being prepared, taking interviews, and building trust with the public. Again, please listen to the audio to get a feel for the Chief's tone—but that you need the audio to clarify these pretty bad quotes is not great. I'm thankful that VPM decided to include the audio (and RPD should be, too).The RTD's Michael Phillips reports that the Washington Football Team will bring its summer training camp back to Richmond, but with one big change: “the city will not be asked to make a $500,000 contribution to the team for its appearance. Instead, the team will rent out the Leigh Street facility for the week at a cost of $100,000.” Not having to pay the richest NFL team in the country, but having them pay us seems like the right order of things.Mike Platania reports in Richmond BizSense that Leek & Thistle will open down in the Bottom this weekend. This spot will sell mostly frozen to-go meals that you reheat at home, and it's another one of those pandemic-inspired changes that I'm interested to see if/how it sticks around. For whatever reason, maybe a year of not going to restaurants, but picking up a frozen meal seems way more appealing to me now than it did in 2019.This is an actual headline in the actual New York Times newspaper website: “U.S. Finds No Evidence of Alien Technology in Flying Objects, but Can't Rule It Out, Either.” OK.For anyone keeping track, Sunday is the five-year anniversary of me shutting down RVANews. It makes me sad to think about, but I love doing what I'm doing now. It is wild, though, to think that some readers of this newsletter have never even heard of RVANews!This morning's longreadOur Digital Pasts Weren't Supposed to Be Weaponized Like ThisI specifically remember having conversations a decade ago about how leaked nudes or embarrassing social media missteps wouldn't be a thing in the 2020s. How could they with whole generations of people growing up on the internet while documenting and sharing more and more of their lives publicly? Turns out, I was way, way wrong.Ms. Ball thought so too. She lost that long-ago Congressional race and is now a media commentator and the author of a book about the new political age. She said in a recent interview that she thought her so-called scandal would be a temporary blip before society adjusted and “that people would grow more accepting” of photos or problematic comments from the past. “It's the polar opposite,” she said. “It's more reactionary and judgmental than it's ever been.” Why haven't repeated calls to replace digital shaming with empathy and compassion resonated? Or at the very least, why hasn't a fear of mutually assured destruction set in?If you'd like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol' Patreon.Picture of the Day

Good morning, RVA! It’s 51 °F, and you can expect highs in the mid 80s today. Looks like a pretty great start to a warm—or maybe just plain hot—weekend.Water coolerAs of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports 591 new positive cases of the coronavirus in the Commonwealth and 20 new deaths as a result of the virus. VDH reports 73 new cases in and around Richmond (Chesterfield: 40, Henrico: 22, and Richmond: 11). Since this pandemic began, 1,316 people have died in the Richmond region. The seven-day average of new reported cases across the state sits at 456. Here’s this week’s stacked graph of new cases, hospitalizations, and deaths across the state. I’m not really sure what’s going on with the deaths graph, which has stalled out on a plateau, but hospitalizations show a definite decrease over the past two weeks. As we all know, and this is just one of the weird things we all just know now, but deaths due to COVID-19 generally lag behind hospitalizations by a couple weeks. We’re seeing the same drop in cases reflected locally, too. In fact, Richmond had a single-digit case count seven times over the last three weeks. I don’t know when it’ll happen, but there will be a time when, combined, our entire region reports daily single-digit case counts with zero deaths in a week (this week, Richmond, Henrico, and Chesterfield reported 12 deaths).I think we all expected this and it definitely sounds like a sign of things to come for college students across the commonwealth, but UVA announced that “all students who live, learn, or work in person at the University during the next academic year must be fully vaccinated before returning to [campus], starting July 1.” I haven’t seen similar statements from VCU or UR, but I certainly expect them soon.The Mayor’s office sent out a press release yesterday announcing that the Resort Casino Evaluation Panel recommended the ONE Casino + Resort, aka the 8th District site, as their preferred operator. Here’s the Mayor’s quote: “ONE Casino + Resort presents a tremendous opportunity to develop a resort casino project in Richmond…The project will create over 1,000 good paying jobs, generate a significant amount of new revenue for the city, and establish an additional economic engine in South Richmond.” Here’s 9th District Councilmember Jones’s statement, which reads in part: “[The ONE Casino project] represents a half a billion dollar investment on Richmond’s Southside. I believe that the selection committee and the Mayor made the right choice. This $565 million economic development project has the ability to change the trajectory of the Southside. With this type of private investment I am now calling on the Mayor and his administration to commit to seriously investing City resource to the infrastructure, communities, and lives of Southside residents.” Roberto Roldan at VPM, reports that 8th District Councilmember Trammell said the announcement made her “the happiest person in the world.” I’ve yet to read quotes—supportive or otherwise—from anyone who lives in the area, but would love some links if you have them. If you’ve enjoyed this whole up-and-down casino process and are feeling a little sad that it’s over, take heart! Mayor Stoney will introduce some sort of paper on Monday that Council will have to vote on, and then, on November 2nd, you’ll get to weigh in via the ballot box / vote-by-mail envelope. My prediction is that Council approves the operator and location nearly unanimously and that the vast, vast majority of people in Richmond will vote in favor of the casino in November. Now I’ve got the same questions as Councilmember Jones about how will the City use the benefits from this Casino to build actual infrastructure in the 6th, 8th, and 9th Districts.Thank you to Jonathan Spiers for reminding me about Planning Commission’s presentation on the rezoning of the Pulse Corridor around the Science Museum, Alison Street, and VCU & VUU Pulse stations! You’ll for sure want to download the presentation, flip to slides 10 and 11, and compare the existing zoning, proposed zoning, and check out the future land use map floating beneath both. Spiers says the big change between this proposal and the previous proposal is a switch from B-4 to TOD-1—the former allows for taller buildings, which peeved some of the nearby neighbors. TOD-1 is still plenty dense, though, and will let developers build 12-story buildings, by-right, fronting most of Broad Street. You can expect more on this, including public commenting opportunities, in the coming weeks.Now that we’re just 41 days from marijuana legalization, Whittney Evans at VPM has this handy explainer about what you can, cannot, and should not do with your weed this summer. I think some of the best advice here is to keep it in the trunk of your car if you’re driving around, and to “use your brain. Be smart about protecting yourself because even though we’re saying these things are legal, it doesn’t mean that [police] officers won’t still use that for people who don’t know their rights.”Via /r/rva, this physical distancing sign from Diversity Thrift is great.This morning’s longreadHow Cities Should Analyze Crashes that Kill PedsI…guess we should do this?But even without a dedicated engineer to measure the distance between curbs and the calculate average vehicle throughput, cities could be doing more to understand the real cause of their walking deaths. The team that analyzed the Portland crashes was made up primarily of lay volunteers, not engineers or demographers, and project manager Brandon Summers of the Forum law group says the bulk of the project time was devoted to analyzing trends in the data and assembling reports. Each individual crash took just eight to 12 hours to research and tabulate — a relatively small amount of time to devote to understanding a tragedy that claimed a human life.If you’d like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol’ Patreon.Picture of the Day

Good morning, RVA! It’s 52 °F, and you can expect another wonderful day ahead of us with temperatures in the mid 80s—another wonderful day to get out there and enjoy!Water coolerThe Richmond Police Department and VCU are both reporting that the person shot to death on the 400 block of Gilmer Street was 20-year-old student Cody Woodson. Woodson was murdered around 8:00 PM on Monday night. Ali Rockett and Reed Williams in the Richmond Times-Dispatch report that this is the second deadly shooting on the same block of Gilmer in as many days.As of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports 1,434 new positive cases of the coronavirus in the Commonwealthand 41 new deaths as a result of the virus. VDH reports 155 new cases in and around Richmond (Chesterfield: 81, Henrico: 43, and Richmond: 31). Since this pandemic began, 1,238 people have died in the Richmond region. Locally, we’ve seen reported case counts fluctuate over the past month or so, but, looking at Richmond City’s numbers specifically, I think you can spot a trend. One month ago, on March 7th, the seven-day average of new cases in Richmond sat at 27.4. Today, that number has increased to 42.1. Across the region we’ve seen about a 19% increase in new reported cases over the last month, almost entirely driven by the numbers in Richmond. I don’t know what the deal is, but it’s just another reminder to continue treating this disease seriously. It’s also another reminder to go pre-register for the vaccine at vaccinate.virginia.gov if you haven’t already. Everyone can pre-register, and it takes five minutes! Just go do it!Sabrina Moreno at the RTD reports that the Centers for Disease Control will award Virginia a $77.1 million grant “to help remove accessibility barriers limiting vaccine uptake and equitable distribution among the state’s most-affected populations.” Sounds like most of this money will flow back out to local health districts to support their work in Black and Brown communities and their vaccine hesitancy work (which can, but do not necessarily, overlap). That’s a lot of cash to dump into outreach programs! I’m really interested in what happens once the entire state is eligible for vaccination. Do we see a huge crush of folks queueing up at the Raceway? Has everyone who’s stoked to get vaccinated already done so? I just don’t think we know yet. With only a little over 30% of Virginians with at least one dose, we’ve got a lonnnnng way to go before we reach our herd immunity target of 75%. I imagine connecting with the huge and remaining chunk of folks not yet or not interested in getting vaccinated will be a lot of ongoing, hard work.Two boring updates! First, I’ve got the audio from Council’s third budget work session up on The Boring Show, which you are free to listen to while you enjoy today’s wonderful weather. I only recently got around to listening to last week’s second work session, and I really recommend that you try to find the time to do so. There’s a good back-and-forth between Councilmember Larson and CAO Lincoln Saunders about funding CIP projects in councilmembers' districts, and Councilmember Trammell delivers one of her classic monologues. I am sympathetic to some of the councilmembers' concerns, but, also, they have the full authority to amend the Mayor’s budget! I like to listen to these work sessions, hear the complaints from Council, and then compare/contrast to the budget amendments they ultimately submit. Second, that Planning Commission resolution to declare a citywide rezoning to allow ADUs passed. Onward and upward!VPM’s Whittney Evans recaps yesterday’s Commonwealth’s Attorney forum, if you missed it. And, over on the Virginia Mercury, Graham Moomaw reports from last night’s Democratic gubernatorial debate. I watched the latter, and for me the headlining moment came when Lt. Gov. Fairfax compared himself to George Floyd. Here’s Kenneth Gilliam, Jr., policy director for New Virginia Majority, on the comments: “There is so much to unpack about Fairfax’s comments this evening. but, without question, they were traumatizing for many and an insult to the lives lost due to white supremacist violence.” Here’s Jamil Smith, writer at Rolling Stone, “Justin Fairfax, who is credibly accused of sexual violence by two black women, joined the likes of Bill Cosby, R. Kelly, and Clarence Thomas by likening such allegations to a lynching. And he actually did it in Virginia, while talking about real lynchings.”The City installed these “stop for pedestrians” signs in the middle of Brookland Park Boulevard at its intersection with the Cannon Creek Greenway, and, seven days in, this one has seen better days. I guess it’s either “hilarious” to hit a sign protecting pedestrians with your car or that intersection is dangerous enough that it needs real improvements to slow traffic and make crossing there safer on foot or on bike.I don’t know if this is useful, but Venture Richmond posted some downtown-related numbers as part of their Annual Community Update. For example, did you know that downtown accounts for 53% of the city’s jobs? Or that downtown holds a quarter of the retail businesses and a third of the restaurants and bars? Here’s the full study from where these numbers come if you’d like to stash it away in your PDF library.Will Virginia legalize possession of marijuana on July 1st? Find out (maybe) today at 12:00 PM as both chambers of the General Assembly return for a reconvened session. You can stream both meetings using the previous link!This morning’s longreadMaking Sense of Greater Richmond’s Transit GovernanceOK, you’re going to tap on this link, see the flow chart, freak out, and then close the tab. However, before you do! I found this visual description of the region’s transit governance system(s) and the accompanying narrative really helpful. Maybe even enjoyable!First and foremost — what is transit governance? Think of it as Government+, like how Disney+ is Disney plus a few other networks. So for governance, in addition to elected officials, laws and ordinances, and other formal institutions of the state, governance also can include “elected and non-elected government officers, nongovernmental organizations, political, parties, interest groups, …and other relevant actors in the decision-making processes that produce government action”. For example, bus riders, political parties, RVA Rapid Transit, and city officials all fall into the umbrella of transit governance. In regards to Richmond’s transit governance, there are 4 main bodies that comprise most of the decision-making, funding, and operation of transit here in Richmond. They all have different roles. Different localities, agencies, and groups all have varying levels of influence for each body listed below.If you’d like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol’ Patreon.Picture of the DayRedbuds!

Good morning, RVA! It’s 60 °F, and it might get a little warmer and a little wetter today. Temperatures drop this evening as some possibly-severe weather rolls through. Boots weather tomorrow, I think!Water coolerAs of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports 1,432 new positive cases of the coronavirus in the Commonwealthand 23 new deaths as a result of the virus. VDH reports 183 new cases in and around Richmond (Chesterfield: 69, Henrico: 73, and Richmond: 41). Since this pandemic began, 1,208 people have died in the Richmond region. Not much new to report in COVID-19 world today—which, I think, itself is a sign of the phase of the pandemic we’re in. I do want to encourage folks, if they have not already, to head over to vaccinate.virginia.gov and either pre-register for a vaccine or update their information as necessary. With Phase 1c and Phase 2 right around the corner, you’ll want to make sure you’re in the system with the all the correct details. Near to my heart: Mediafolk fall under Phase 1c! If you’re a reporter or work in media, make sure you’ve checked that box!5th District Councilmember Lynch announced on her Facebook yesterday that she has COVID-19. I hope she’s hanging in there, and I appreciate that her announcement reminds folks to continue mitigation measures as the weather warms up and the pull of hangouts grows irresistible.Remember parklets? After a bunch of years, the city will finally see its first parklets installed—thanks to the work of Venture Richmond. I’ve already written about that rad, bee-looking parklet headed to Brookland Park Boulevard at some point in the future, but these are pre-fabbed parklets getting installed as we speak. From the City’s press release: “This week, construction will begin on five prefabricated parklets at locations adjacent to businesses who participated in the Picnic in a Parklet program. The first two pilot locations include N 29th Street in Church Hill, adjacent to the Nile Ethiopian Café, and N Shields Avenue in the Fan, adjacent to Joe’s Inn. Three additional locations are currently in the works with interested business owners.” Also, I’m pretty sure this is the first time I’ve ever read a local press release that had a link to NACTO in it.I’ve got two quick casino updates for you this morning. First, tonight at 6:00 PM, you can tune in to a virtual meeting about the 8th District casino site. Second, Amy Wentz got a similar push poll text to the one I got the other day, but this one focused on the 8th District site. Notably it didn’t mention increased crime like the 2nd District text that popped up on my phone. Intentional? I have no idea. The Mayor, in his weekly press briefing, condemned some of the garbage, racist language that’s been floating around about the casino lately, and I really like this quote: “The past few days have been so very disappointing. I’ve seen derogatory, disrespectful, and even blatantly racist rhetoric used by some, not all, in our affluent communities to distance themselves from our fellow Richmonders, who—because of their skin color or social economic status—they consider less important, less consequential, and less worthy of respect.”The Richmond Times-Dispatch’s Ali Rockett reports on the task force charged with creating the City’s Civilian Review Board. The group is already behind schedule due to City Council’s delays in approving their membership, and, as you all are intimately aware, we are in the midst of budget season. Should we want to fund a CRB for next year, we’ll have to get that figured out in the coming weeks. I did a quick command+F in the Mayor’s proposed budget and don’t see a line item for a CRB (which doesn’t mean it’s not in there), but I think this may be on Council to fund. Keep an eye on it when we get to the amendment portion of budget season!Whittney Evans at VPM reports that the Governor has amended several parts of the marijuana legalization bill, including pushing the date of legalizing possession to July 1st. Those amendments will go back to the General Assembly for consideration on April 7th. I will not predict the fate of these amendments, because bills die in frequent and interesting ways!The press release about the Governor’s big train announcement is, I think, the longest press release I’ve seen—23 paragraphs, each linked together like a train bringing good news for the Commonwealth’s rail enthusiasts. Scroll to the bulleted list in the middle of the press-release train to get the gist: doubling Amtrak service to provide nearly hourly service, increasing VRE service by 60%, “laying the foundation” for a Southeast High Speed Rail Corridor, and “create the potential to expand rail to all parts of the Commonwealth.” The Long Bridge is in there, too! Basically, everyone involved—the federal government, state government, Amtrak, and CSX—will spend a bunch of money on train stuff over the next couple of decades. The WaPo has some more details.Related: It’s infrastructure week! I guess! The New York Times has a preview of Biden’s infrastructure plan, dubbed the American Jobs Plan, which he’ll discuss at an event in Pittsburgh later today. I excitedly await federal transportation nerds to sift through the details and tell me what’s what. I do see lots of money for public transportation and lots of money for electric vehicle infrastructure—two things we’ll need as we work to keep from incinerating our planet.This morning’s longreadWhat Killed These Bald Eagles? After 25 Years, We Finally Know.We’re doing wild things to the world around us, and it’s hard/impossible to know how all of nature’s complex systems will react to our shenanigans.What’s more, this molecule had a formula never seen before, and, unusually, it contained five atoms of the element bromine. So the team tried adding bromine to its growing cyanobacteria. Lo and behold, the same strange molecule appeared, and this new batch of cyanobacteria caused the brain lesions in chickens. Another group of collaborators confirmed the team’s work further, by finding the cyanobacteria genes likely responsible for synthesizing the toxin. The team ultimately named this toxin aetokthonotoxin, “poison that kills the eagle.” Twenty-five years later, it finally had a name.If you’d like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol’ Patreon.Picture of the DaySelf portrait in an Easter egg.

Good morning, RVA! It’s 67 °F, and today we’ve got highs in the 80s. There’s a chance for rain this morning but not a very large one, so I’m still going to call it a great day to hang outside. Tomorrow looks even better, but we could see some thunderstorms on Sunday. Mixed-bag weekend!Water coolerAs of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports 1,559 new positive cases of the coronavirus in the Commonwealthand 4 new deaths as a result of the virus. VDH reports 143 new cases in and around Richmond (Chesterfield: 48, Henrico: 70, and Richmond: 25). Since this pandemic began, 1,195 people have died in the Richmond region. Here’s this week’s stacked chart of new reported cases, hospitalizations, and deaths to help you decide whether we’re on a bumpy plateau or if case counts have truly started to rise again. Please note that the deaths graph is, at this point, utterly meaningless. Not only did the push to enter a backlog of winter death certificates obliterate the y-axis, but VDH recently removed a bunch of deaths that did not qualify as COVID-19 associated deaths. That means that, as of right now, the seven-day average of new reported deaths across the Commonwealth is… -5. Also, here’s your graph of new reported cases in Richmond, Henrico, and Chesterfield. Again: Bumpy plateau or beginning of a rise?Sabrina Moreno at the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports on the rocky rollout of the State’s Community Vaccination Clinics, specifically one in Danville that saw thousands of people—not from Danville—driving out that way to get their first dose. I get that people are frustrated and scared and desperate, but driving hours to get a vaccine from somewhere you do not live does have actual logistical consequences for the folks trying to vaccinate the state. To quote from the piece: "So if there are 500 Blue Ridge Health District individuals who went to Danville and got their first shot and then come here and expect to get their second shot, that is going to be 500 fewer first doses that we will have available…Because their second dose wasn’t sent to us. It was sent back to Danville.” We’re less than five weeks away from Phase 2: Everybody Else, and, I know it’s tough, but the rest of us can be patient!This morning we’ve got more casino reactions. Roberto Roldan at VPM has this take from Del. Betsy Carr, which set the stage for the next couple of voices I want to share: “I am very concerned about the Bally’s proposed location behind the Target and Publix on Forest Hill Avenue. Residents who live and shop in the area with whom I have spoken have almost universally mentioned their fears about significant increased traffic through the day and into late at night in an area that already experiences congestion.” Then, later in the same release, “I hope City Council will give serious and substantive consideration to the Urban One proposal, located near Philip Morris. This is an opportunity for the City to act on behalf of economic justice, supporting a Black owned business, to make a difference. With the history of our country and our Commonwealth, I hope we will be able to use this opportunity to support this minority authored proposal.” To summarize: The Casino is bad for an affluent white neighborhood because of traffic, but probably fine crammed into a disinvested, Black and Brown neighborhood. This is a bad take, and, to be completely honest, it’s a take that I’m guilty of taking, too. I don’t want a casino anywhere in the City, but, if I look at what I’ve written over the last couple of weeks, I’ve definitely advocated for the location by the port if we are ultimately forced to have a casino within the city limits. That’s wrong, and I can do better. Here’s Amy Wentz correcting my specific narrative on Twitter: “Just want to ensure people understand that there IS a cute little neighborhood that backs up to the proposed site in the 8th. I see & hear the narrative rolling out that it’s away from homes. It’s actually closer to homes than the other two.” And here’s J. Elias O’Neal arguing for the City’s Southside elected leadership to protect and elevate Black and Latino resident voices: “It’s rich and poor; and Black and white. To think that our neighborhoods are undeserving of council protection from predatory, out-of-market casino cos shows that our council doesn’t value Black or Latino voices at all, because this should have been DOA from the jump.” Maybe they have already, but I think the very next thing that should happen is for the City’s Southside Councilmembers to weigh in on the proposed locations in/adjacent-to their districts.Tangentially related, Wayne Eps at the RTD reports on some progress VCU has made towards purchasing the old ABC building out by the Diamond. That property is a critical piece of the University’s planned “Athletic Village.” Back to the previous topic, I’m really interested to hear how VCU officials feel about a potential casino just a couple blocks from their college sports complex.VPM’s Ben Paviour and Whittney Evans report that the Governor will ask the legislature to change their marijuana bill to “legalize the adult possession of an ounce or less of marijuana beginning on July 1st.” As it stands, legalization won’t happen until 2024. Who knows if this change has enough juice to pass both houses in the General Assembly, but I’m glad to see the Governor has changed his mind / modified his position. Also, I will note that gubernatorial candidate Sen. Jennifer McClellan has continued to push for early legalization from the get go.I don’t know a ton about the Mayor’s Downtown Task Force, but it’s a “cross-departmental downtown action task force assigned with developing and executing solutions to improve our downtown corridor.” They’ve got a survey up that’ll inform their work, and you know I can’t resist sharing a civic survey. There are a lot of open-ended questions near the bottom of the survey to talk about things like parking, transit, sidewalks, public spaces, and place making. Get in there and get creative!The US Department of Transportation dropped this video on YouTube a couple of weeks back, and now I must share it with you: Lo-Fi Transportation Beats to Chill/Relax To. I’m sorry.This morning’s longreadYou are not the person you were before the pandemicI loved this, but it is depressing in a lot of ways.You follow the rules. You break the rules. You judge everybody else for breaking the rules. You forget to Purell or mask up one day and have a grocery store stress-dream that night. You feel trauma work its way through your system in real time and wonder how it will later annihilate you psychologically. You cough once and have a panic attack. You think, We are not going to be okay after this. You tweet it. You delete it. (Not enough likes.) Progress is always followed by a setback. Cases go down and restrictions get loose. Restrictions tighten up and cases go back down. You can’t believe there are people who don’t accept that the two are connected; that there are places in the world that have this all figured out, but you live in one that treats it like a baker refusing to make a cake for a gay wedding.If you’d like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol’ Patreon.Picture of the DayWelcome to the jungle.

It's been almost a decade since Washington and Colorado became the first states in America to legalize recreational marijuana. Now a new generation of states are wrestling with how to do it with a focus on racial equity that was missing from early legalization efforts. WBEZ reporter Mariah Woelfel reports from Chicago on why legalization plans in Illinois are still leaving Black businesses behind. VPM reporters Ben Paviour and Whittney Evans explain how lawmakers in Virginia are designing new marijuana legislation with equity in mind. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

It's been almost a decade since Washington and Colorado became the first states in America to legalize recreational marijuana. Now a new generation of states are wrestling with how to do it with a focus on racial equity that was missing from early legalization efforts. WBEZ reporter Mariah Woelfel reports from Chicago on why legalization plans in Illinois are still leaving Black businesses behind. VPM reporters Ben Paviour and Whittney Evans explain how lawmakers in Virginia are designing new marijuana legislation with equity in mind. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Transition Virginia turns 1 this week! To celebrate, we have our very first guest back on the show, Whittney Evans, from Virginia Public Media (VPM), and the team listens to messages from its friends and listeners.

Minority business owners were hit the hardest by last year's economic shutdown. We hear from one business owner recovering from the pandemic, and another who decided to permanently close his restaurant after 29 years. And, Virginia lawmakers advanced a bill to abolish the death penalty. If signed into law by the governor, this would make Virginia the 23rd state to end the death penalty. VPM's Whittney Evans joins us.

Good morning, RVA! It’s 70 °F, and today will be hot. Expect highs in the mid 90s and Feels Like temperatures even higher. If you’ve got to go outside for some reason, wear a hat and remember to hydrate! Expect similar hot—and mostly rain-free—weather over the holiday weekend.Water coolerAs of this morning, the Virginia Department of Health reports 532↗️ new positive cases of the coronavirus in the Commonwealth and 30↗️ new deaths as a result of the virus. VDH reports 51↘️ new cases in and around Richmond (Chesterfield: 25, Henrico: 12, and Richmond: 14). Since this pandemic began, 235 people have died in the Richmond region. So you can see everything in on place, I put together the graphs of new reported positive cases, new deaths, and new hospitalizations plus their seven-day averages here. New positive cases have stuck right around 500 for the past couple weeks, while deaths have increased, and hospitalizations have bounced around a bit. According to VDH the Commonwealth’s percent posititivity is on the rise since about a week ago, but they just reported a ton of tests (increasing the denominator) a couple days back so that could change. When taken together…I’m not sure what to make of all that. Virginia is certainly not in the same dire straights as our Southern neighbors: Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida all reported more than 1,500 new coronavirus cases yesterday. In fact, Florida became the first state to report over 10,000 new cases in a single day since New York back on April 15th. I don’t know what keeps Virginia from slipping off of its 500-cases-per-day plateau, but, like, keep doing whatever it is we’re doing! If you’re hanging out this weekend, please, please keep your distance and your masks on.The Mayor’s march down Monument Avenue continues, and yesterday saw the removal of the Maury statue (his globe still remains) and two Confederate memorial cannons from the median of Monument that I’d totally forgot existed. It requires, admittedly, an immense amount of privilege and a massive lack of curiosity to live in a place and just plain forget about its monuments to white supremacy. I had a chance to ride past the now-empty Jackson plinth, and the statue’s absence is striking (see above). The statue took up a building-sized spot in the intersection and now that it’s gone, the space feels open and airy. Getting rid of that plinth—even though it looks pretty rad and definitely serves as an arresting reminder for what we allowed to stand for 100 years—should be at the top of the City’s list. After we work our way through he State’s dumb and required monument process, the Department of Public Works should redesign that intersection to make it way safer for folks trying to walk, roll, or ride on through.As for protests, VPM’s Coleman Jenningsand the Commonwealth Time’s Eduardo Acevedo tagged along with a Marcus-David Peters march and vigil. About 100 people marched from the Jefferson Hotel, where Peters worked part time, to Chamberlayne’s I-95 on-ramp, where Peters was killed by a Richmond police officer. Bike marshals blocked vehicles from getting on the highway, the Virginia State Police showed up, the two groups talked, and then…both eventually dispersed. In fact, police blocked further traffic from heading towards protestors, and protestors packed up and left after a bit. I don’t know what the two groups talked about or agreed upon, but I hope that last night marks a permanent shift in the way the Virginia State Police choose to respond to our ongoing protests against police violence. It was a small moment, but it feels like progress.Related, or conversely, Whittney Evans, also at VPM, dives into some of the history of complaints, lawsuits, and possible legal chicanery at the Richmond Police Department. That’s a lot of not great stuff in the not-so-distant past of the department, and we’ll have to wait and see how the new chief takes the increased scrutiny and demands to, quite literally, strip his budget.The Virginia Employment Commission’s new unemployment insurance claims numbers are out, and, for the week ending June 27th, 398,669 people filed for unemployment insurance. This is down just 2,203 from the previous week, and, I think, this is the first time in a few months that the number of initial claims has gone up (31,955 compared to 25,293). I have no idea if this is a season trend, a blip in the data, or what. Also, check out this PDF of demographic data for unemployment insurance claims. Since April, Black folks have made up a increasingly larger and large percentage of claims.It’s been a while, but you should check out RPS Superintendent Kamras’s newsletter from yesterday, because he’s got pictures from inside the new River City Middle School that’s being built on the Southside. This is your meals tax dollars at work! Celebrate it!This seems significant: FedEx has asked Washington’s football team to change their name and Nike has apparently pulled their merchandise from its online store?This morning’s longreadSchools: What’s it Going to Take?As we plunge into Phase Three and inch toward this fall’s school year, I’m starting to read up on what smart people think about kids and coronavirus. Emily Oster, who just wrote this piece in the Atlantic that I haven’t read yet, has a good newsletter that’s definitely worth a subscription.With all this as background, I have been thinking a lot about the practical. I’ve been doing this with my parenting person hat on, but also as part of my real job. Universities need to reopen, too, and I sit on one of the committees thinking about this at Brown. So I’m steeped in it, at least enough to organize some of my thoughts. Let’s start by assuming we all have two main goals. Goal #1: protecting safety of kids and staff (teachers, sure, but also cafeteria workers, janitorial staff, coaches and everyone else) and the broader public. Goal #2: if at all possible having kids in classrooms in some way more or less full time. The question then, is: What’s it going to take to do that? I have some thoughts, starting with the big picture and moving to the details.If you’d like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol’ Patreon.

Good morning, RVA! It’s 55 °F, and highs today are back up near 70 °F. You should expect some clouds and a small chance of rain throughout the day. These warm-weather vibes should continue for the rest of the week.Water coolerThe Virginia Department of Health announced that the Commonwealth now has five positive cases of the coronavirus—including one in Spotsyvlania. VDH recommends, first and foremost, that you wash your hands with soap and water and avoid coughing directly into other people’s faces. If you’re sick, stay home, and “avoid non-essential travel.” This is an extremely rapidly changing situation—going viral is named after actual viruses for a reason. Keep your information up-to-date and solidly sourced (like, from the CDC or VDH).Quick short-term rental update: City Council continued ORD. 2019–343 to their March 23rd meeting. I tuned in to the meeting late, so I didn’t catch their reasons for continuing the paper, but this does mean that all Airbnbs in Richmond are still illegal. Council’s Culture of Continuation strikes again! City staff have worked on this legislation for years and there have been many opportunities for folks to get involved—both regularfolks and councilfolks. Do we really need another 14 days to ask people how they feel about this particular ordinance? One other, unrelated-but-interesting Council update: At 10:00 AM, the Land Use, Housing and Transportation committee will meet today to interview new candidates for the Richmond Redevelopment & Housing Authority board of commissioners. They’ll post up in the 2nd Floor Conference Room which, I think, means no live audio—but maybe you could pop in??VPM’s Whittney Evans has the updated details on the NAACP’s attempts to force Hanover County to change the names and mascots of two County schools. Y’all! Lee-Davis High School’s mascot is literally “The Confederates”! That seems so bananas here in 2020. I truly believe that there is absolutely no timeline in which Hanover can keep a high school named after two different White supremacists. It’s just a matter of time and a matter of how much money the County wants to spend dragging their feet.Jack Jacobs at Richmond BizSense says the former executive pastry chef at the Jefferson has opened a new bakery in Jackson Ward. I had to Google “petit fours.”The world is full of things lately—some very scary! To help with that, following the suggestion of a Good Morning, RVA patron, I want to link to two wildlife cams: The Richmond Osprey Cam and the Richmond Falcon Cam. Truth be told, I’m pretty scared of birds when we’re in the same space, but when we’re separated by many miles and a glass screen, I kind of find them soothing. With any luck, you will, too!For your listening pleasure, I present Episode 74 of the Sam and Ross Like Things podcast! Tune in and hear me talk excitedly about The Witcher, which has rapidly taken its place near the top of my List of Favorite Things.This morning’s longreadThe Diet Industrial Complex Got Me, and It Will Never Let Me GoDang, this is a dark piece.I, who can count the number of calories on a table laden with 10 dishes in less time that it takes most people to tie a pair of shoes, did not see the body positivity movement coming, not at all. Suddenly, about a decade ago, when I started to notice that fat women were a) calling themselves fat, with pride, and b) walking down the streets of our nation’s great cities nonchalantly wearing tight or revealing clothing with a general air of, “yeah I will wear this and I will wear whatever I want, and I am hot, too, I will be hot forever, long after you have all died,” I thought to myself, Oh my God WHAT? The solution is not … the diet?If you’d like your longread to show up here, go chip in a couple bucks on the ol’ Patreon.

Transition talks the GOP minority, the assault weapons ban and more with Jeff Ryer, Press Secretary for the Senate Republican Caucus. VPM's Whittney Evans is back on the show.

Whittney Evans of Virginia Public Media joins Transition VA to discuss the Equal Rights Amendment, Gun Lobby day, and Marijuana decriminalization.

It’s no secret that rent around Salt Lake City is really high. And if you drive around downtown, you’ll see tons of new apartment complexes under construction. But the thing is, most Utahns can’t afford to live in them. At least, not according to the common definition of affordable housing: about 30 percent of your yearly income. There’s a staggering need for cheaper apartments around the state, but hardly any incentives to build them. Because those pricey places — they’re not sitting empty. KUER listeners involved in our Hive Mind project wanted to learn more about affordable housing in Salt Lake City, and reporter Whittney Evans has been on the case. More about The Hive Mind: Link to original story:

On December 1st, 2016, 21-year-old Madison Jensen died of heroin withdrawal in the Duchesne County Jail. She’d been violently ill, but no one in the jail did anything about it. Her death is part of a pattern — because Utah has seen more inmate deaths per capita in the last few years than any other state in the nation. And the way Utah jails are run is mostly kept secret. There have been some changes since KUER’s Whittney Evans reported this story. The Utah legislature passed a bill during the last session that requires jails to report in-custody deaths annually. The bill also says jails must disclose their policies for treating inmates withdrawing from drugs. Meanwhile, the Department of Corrections is planning to write new rules for running jails — and make them public. For now, though, Utah jails continue to operate under the secret policies created by Gary Deland. Original Story: http://kuer.org/post/secrecy-nothing-new-gary-deland-utahs-former-prison-boss-who-wont-reveal-jail

Nothing in this world is certain but death and taxes, and legislators are tackling both in Week 5 of the session. This week we talk with reporter Whittney Evans about some surprise backers of a new death penalty repeal effort. We also look at the state's big budget surplus and try to divine what lawmakers might do with all that extra scratch. The Utah Legislature's bluest member Sen. Jim Dabakis announces he's done after this session, joining several other incumbents on their way out the door, like Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck , our featured guest on 'Better Know a Lawmaker.'

Doing away with the death penalty is usually thought of as a liberal cause, and the arguments are often about the morality of executing someone, or wrongful convictions. But now some conservatives are lining up against capital punishment too — for reasons of their own. KUER’s Whittney Evans joins Doug Fabrizio to talk about why. Original Story: http://kuer.org/post/death-penalty-repeal-groups-including-republicans-say-utah-moving-closer-ending-executions

  Native Opinion Episode 110 “A Rabbit Hole With No Bottom”   How to Reach our show:   E-Mail: hosts@nativeopinion.com Twitter: @nativeopinion Facebook: facebook.com/nativeopinionpodcast/ Webpage: nativeopinion.com Youtube: https://www.Youtube.com/c/NativeOpinion Leave us a voicemail!  Call us! (860) 381-0207     Positive News Segment   ARTICLE 1: TITLE: How 5 Indigenous women are rocking their businesses with beauty Author: By Emilee Gilpin  DATE: January 4th, 2018 SOURCE:  https://www.nationalobserver.com/2018/01/04/five-indigenous-women-rock-business-beauty   ARTICLE 2: TITLE: First Nations see economic future in Canada's growing clean energy industry Indigenous communities take pride and ownership in sustainable energy projects AUTHOR: By Nicole Ireland, CBC News  DATE: Posted: Nov 05, 2016 5:00 AM ET SOURCE: http://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/first-nations-pursue-canada-clean-energy-economy-1.3829405   Native News Segment   Article 1: TITLE: Age-Old Fight Over Ute Boundaries Complicates Policing In Tiny Utah Town AUTHOR:  WHITTNEY EVANS   SOURCE: http://kuer.org/post/age-old-fight-over-ute-boundaries-complicates-policing-tiny-utah-town#stream/0   Article 2:  TITLE: Stevie Salas on Native American Rockers AUTHOR/Producer:  Zoe Saunders SOURCE: https://www.pri.org/stories/2018-01-04/stevie-salas-native-american-rockers?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=The%20Scan%20%20Jan%204&utm_content=The%20Scan%20%20Jan%204+CID_15bd3d2c744c1d6a290129ff0df6868f&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=Stevie%20Salas%20on%20Native%20American%20Rockers   Music Break:    Artist: Robbie Robertson Track: Making A Noise Album: Contact From The Underworld of Redboy BUY: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/making-a-noise/724750139?i=724751178   MAIN CONTENT SEGMENTS:   ARTICLE 1:  TITLE: Trump’s Interior Secretary was just busted using forest firefighting funds for his own personal enjoyment AUTHOR:  BENJAMIN LOCKE PUBLISHED ON JANUARY 2, 2018 SOURCE: http://washingtonpress.com/2018/01/02/trumps-interior-secretary-just-busted-using- forest-firefighting-funds-personal-enjoyment-2/   Article 2: TITLE: Israel: African migrants told  to leave or face imprisonment SOURCE: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-42541515?SThisFB   Article 3: TITLE: Giant gumball-shaped concrete domes could protect eroded shorelines. They're called reef balls. SOURCE: https://www.yaleclimateconnections.org/2018/01/giant-concrete-domes-could-protect-shorelines/