Episodes
May 12, 2023
Raleigh’s oldest movie theater is re-opening, the iconic Rialto Theater
In August of 2022, Raleigh’s iconic theater, its oldest theater, shut its doors. Almost everyone who is a Raleigh native has been to the Rialto on Glenwood Avenue in the Five Points neighborhood to catch a movie, a concert or...
May 11, 2023
A rare century plant is in bloom in the WRAL Azalea Garden
A rare century plant in the WRAL Azalea Garden has just begun blooming. According to legend, century plants bloom every hundred years. However, in reality, it’s lifespan is only 10-30 years. It blooms once, then dies. The sta...
May 10, 2023
NC lawmakers tackle major health care bills
Major changes in North Carolina’s health care landscape are moving through the General Assembly this legislative session. In addition to new abortion rules and Medicaid expansion, the state's largest insurer may get new freed...
May 9, 2023
A very personal conversation about sobriety with Hurricanes' commentator Tripp Tracy
Hurricanes’ commentator Tripp Tracy shares his struggles with alcoholism and his yearlong journey through his newfound sobriety. There was a dramatic moment of realization for him after he fell into deep despair in a hotel ro...
May 8, 2023
A battle over NC disabled care
Lawsuits from watchdog Disability Rights NC could force the state to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to help people with disabilities live at home. The push threatens existing group homes and workshops that employ peopl...
May 5, 2023
NC Lawmakers pass bill to restrict abortions
North Carolina lawmakers have approved a bill that would restrict abortion after twelve weeks. Some people say it doesn't go far enough. Others say it goes too far and could lead to a total ban on abortion in North Carolina. ...
May 5, 2023
Deadly food allergies on the rise, NC family loses child
A Fuquay-Varina family lost their 15-year-old daughter to an allergic peanut reaction. Doctors say food allergies in children have increased dramatically, more than fifty percent in the past two decades. 700,000 people are cu...
May 4, 2023
GOP pushes public cash for private education
Annual spending on private school vouchers would become one of North Carolina's biggest education expenditures under legislation making its way through both chambers of the North Carolina General Assembly. WRAL Education Insi...
May 3, 2023
Suicides at North Carolina State University, family shares their grief
North Carolina State University has experienced seven deaths by suicide of students since the beginning of the school year. Police say two students took their own lives within 24 hours of one another last week. The community—...
May 2, 2023
Man accused of killing Wake deputy escapes from Virginia jail
Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo is accused along with his brother of shooting and killing Wake County Deputy Ned Byrd in August. Early Sunday morning, Marin-Sotelo escaped from a jail in Virginia. Another inmate from North Carolin...
May 1, 2023
NC’s high court hands voting rights wins to GOP
In a major win for Republicans, the North Carolina Supreme Court issued opinions Friday on a series of cases involving voter rights. They could have major ramifications on future elections in the state, and they could even af...
April 28, 2023
Power grid security in North Carolina
A December attack in a Moore County exposed a weakness in our power grid. Someone shot up two substations and plunged 45,000 people into the dark. Five months later some security upgrades are in place, but the reality is sett...
April 27, 2023
Hidden in plain sight, miniature redwood forests in the Triangle
Downtown Cary is the last place you’d expect to find a miniature redwood forest – but tucked away behind town hall is a secret world of dawn redwoods with fluted trunks, and rippling roots, a striking red sight against a hill...
April 25, 2023
Is it too soon to go "carless" in North Carolina?
Faster bus service is coming to Raleigh. Regional rail is in the planning phases. Public transit is making a post-pandemic rebound, but can you get around in North Carolina without a car like many people do in urban area thro...
April 24, 2023
Will GOP voters promote Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson?
North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson entry into the 2024 gubernatorial race launches what is expected to be a closely watched GOP primary battle. The big question Robinson’s opponents — and some of his supporters — will ask:...
April 21, 2023
Former WRAL anchor David Crabtree inducted into NC Media & Journalism Hall of Fame
When former WRAL anchor David Crabtree retired in 2022, he could have actually retired. But his commitment to service won out, and he became the interim CEO of PBS North Carolina — that position is now permanent. Today, Crabt...
April 20, 2023
30th annual run in Durham benefits brain tumor research at Duke
Since 1993, runners and walkers have been taking to the streets in Durham as part of the Angels Among Us 5K & Walk of HOPE to benefit brain tumor research at Duke’s Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center. According to the Na...
April 19, 2023
The Tar Heel 10 Miler and that runner's high
With a major race this weekend in Chapel Hill, the Daily Download tackles running culture. What makes someone wake up at 3:30 a.m. to run 17 miles? We find out with WRAL runner in residence (and investigative data reporter) A...
April 18, 2023
Women pay more for car insurance in North Carolina
Did you know if you're a woman in North Carolina you are likely to pay more for car insurance than a man? A recent study shows that women pay more than men, even women with clean driving records and no other logical factors t...
April 17, 2023
Do Wake’s schools start too early?
Wake County parents,students and staff see pros and cons in later school start times for middle and high schools and earlier start start times for elementary schools. Later start times could be better for academic performance...
April 14, 2023
ACLU files federal lawsuit regarding NC anti-rioting law
North Carolina lawmakers passed a law that increases penalties for protesters and broadens arrest powers for police during protests. The American Civil Liberties Union claims the legislation is unconstitutional and could lead...
April 13, 2023
North Carolina animal shelters have 2nd highest kill rate in country
North Carolina’s shelters have the second highest kill rate in the country. In 2022, 14,000 animals were euthanized. The main reason is that the number of animals being taken in, more than 120,000 last year, far outpaces the ...
April 12, 2023
Man stabbed in downtown Raleigh store dies, family wants answers
A 27-year-old customer has died at WakeMed after being stabbed, according to witnesses, by the owner of a downtown Raleigh convenience store last week. As of this recording, Raleigh Police have not charged anyone. Witnesses t...
April 11, 2023
Transgender bills come to the NC legislature
Republican lawmakers filed half a dozen bills last week dealing with transgender youth. Two would ban transgender girls from playing on girl sports teams, basing eligibility on what a student’s birth certificate says. Others ...