Episodes
April 10, 2023
A Democrat defects: NC GOP’s newest supermajority
North Carolina Republicans scored big last week when Democratic Rep. Tricia Cotham decided to change parties. Her bombshell decision gives Republicans a veto-proof majority in the chamber, making it easier for them to write t...
April 7, 2023
Federal task force takes on Paycheck Protection Program fraud in North Carolina
The Paycheck Protection Program funneled billions of dollars to companies in need during the pandemic to allow them to pay their rent, keep their lights on and keep workers on the payroll even when their doors were shut. But ...
April 6, 2023
Raleigh’s first airport still has a hidden footprint in the city
Many of us use Raleigh-Durham International Airport to travel to see friends and family, but did you know there was an airport in our area before RDU? The Raleigh Municipal Airport operated from 1929 to 1973. Famous pilots, i...
April 5, 2023
Can builder bills lower NC housing costs?
Demand for real estate in fast-growing North Carolina is pushing up prices of homes and apartments. So state lawmakers are proposing a series of bills that would loosen building regulations in an effort to speed supply, and p...
April 4, 2023
Gambling addiction in the spotlight as NC mulls legalization
North Carolina's General Assembly is on the cusp of legalizing mobile sports gambling, letting people bet on just about any sport, from their phones, 24 hours a day. Other states have done the same, boosting gambling across t...
April 3, 2023
WRAL photojournalist tells his own story of loss due to the fentanyl crisis
The fentanyl crisis affects families across North Carolina, taking a record number of lives in the state. It's a crisis that impacts everyone, even the man behind the lens of WRAL's latest documentary, Crisis Next Door. I nve...
April 3, 2023
New rules and $30 billion: NC's new state budget
North Carolina lawmakers are working up a new state budget. And mixed in with the raises for teachers and state employees: A major partisan policy fight over climate change, abortion and public schools. WRAL's state governmen...
March 31, 2023
Active shooter deterrent for North Carolina schools
It’s never been more of a concern. This week’s deadly school shooting in Nashville has people across the country heartbroken and wondering how we can make schools safe from these tragic events. In this episode, WRAL’s investi...
March 30, 2023
North Carolina ends longtime pistol permit requirement
North Carolina Republicans have scrapped the state's long-lived pistol permit requirement, aided by the absence of several Democrats, which gave Republicans the numbers they needed to overturn Governor Roy Cooper's veto for t...
March 29, 2023
Drivers are paying more for car insurance, tips to reduce rates
Did you know that if your car is a make and model that is more likely to be stolen that you might not be able to get car insurance? You can blame it on a TikTok challenge that shows people how to hotwire certain types of cars...
March 28, 2023
Police kill man who fired shots at them near Raleigh middle school
A man is dead after investigators say he fired multiple shots in a six-block area of Southeast Raleigh, some of them at cars near Ligon Middle School. Police say he fired five shots at officers. Two officers returned fire. He...
March 27, 2023
NC advanced practice registered nurses seek more authority against political headwinds
Advanced practice registered nurses have long sought to undo a North Carolina law that requires a doctor to sign off on their work. They say it often amounts to supervision on paper alone, which doctors charge tens of thousan...
March 24, 2023
False 911 call leads to police storming innocent family’s home
It’s called “swatting.” Criminals make prank phone calls to 911 centers using masking technology, with the intention of sending an emergency response team to another person’s address. WRAL’s investigative reporter Cullen Brow...
March 23, 2023
Murder, attempted suicide investigation in Cary
Police made a gruesome discovery after neighbors reported seeing a fire in the yard of a Cary home on Sunday. In the fire pit they found the remains of 34-year-old Cecily Anne Walker-Scott. They also located 35-year-old Ian D...
March 22, 2023
Redistricting and gerrymandering in North Carolina explained
It’s been the topic of heated debate across the country and here in North Carolina. How does the map that defines where people vote impact the outcome of elections locally and nationally? WRAL’s state government reporter Will...
March 21, 2023
“It is their full-time job to take your money.” How to protect yourself from hackers and thieves
Thieves busted a Raleigh woman’s car window and stole her purse, but that was just the beginning. Months later scammers had cleaned out her account, and she was caught in an unhelpful loop with the bank’s customer service. Un...
March 20, 2023
NC’s teacher colleges work to fix reading education
A recent report finds that North Carolina’s universities need to do more to prepare educators to teach reading to the state’s K-12 students. The situation has raised the ire of University of North Carolina Board of Governors,...
March 17, 2023
History hidden beneath North Carolina’s lakes
Have you ever wondered what lies beneath the surface of the lake where you are swimming? Well, lakes in North Carolina have other worlds lurking beneath their surfaces including a train, an airplane, cemeteries, and remnants ...
March 16, 2023
Urban trails lead hikers to historic NC spots
Have you ever wondered why there is a crumbling chimney or a rusted car along the trail where you’re hiking in the Triangle? You may have even walked by an old cemetery in the woods and not even seen it. In this episode, WRAL...
March 15, 2023
“Crisis Next Door”: fentanyl is killing North Carolinians
More than 4000 people in North Carolina died from drug overdoses in 2021. This is the highest number of drug-abuse deaths ever recorded in our state in a single year. 77% of those deaths involved fentanyl according to the Nor...
March 14, 2023
UNC basketball, like life, doesn’t always go well
Weighed down with high expectations, UNC’s men’s basketball team never really got it going this season. Now they’ve missed the NCAA Tournament, despite starting the season ranked No. 1. What went wrong? Where do the Tarheels ...
March 13, 2023
In do-over cases, NC court flexes GOP power
The new Republican majority on the North Carolina Supreme Court recently made the extraordinary decision to rehear two big voting rights cases that Democrats won in 2022. The justices’ choice, which questions decisions by the...
March 10, 2023
In 1961, nuclear bombs fell from crashing plane but didn’t detonate
In 1961, a B-52 Bomber bound for the Seymour Johnson Air Force Base crashed in Wayne County. It was carrying two nuclear bombs which fell into the wetlands there. Amazingly, they did not detonate. Most of the evidence of the ...
March 9, 2023
Super-Agers—they’ve found the fountain of youth
What is the secret to not just aging gracefully, but to thriving as we get older? Currently, there are 56 million people over 65 in our country according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This amounts to almost 17% of the population...