Amazon’s Expansion of Its AI Endeavors Symbolizes Changing Economic Landscape
Amazon’s Expansion of Its AI Endeavors Symbolizes Changing Economic Landscape

As artificial intelligence makes its way into more and more aspects of everyday life, it is important to remain aware of its magnitude and potential harm as it relates to our social interactions and the preservation of our originality. Recently, the decisions of companies like Amazon to expand their artificial intelligence branches have shifted the technology’s target toward the job market. AI is a massive venture, and it is growing at a pace with which the general population cannot keep up. Consequently, it is unclear just how severe these job losses and competition for employment will become.

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NationalHalle TourianAmazon, AI, AI RegulationsComment
Black History Month: The Legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and the American Dream
Black History Month: The Legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and the American Dream

In the United States of America, Black History Month is celebrated between 1st of February - 1st of March. It is a national moment to reflect on the historical inequalities of the past and think about the present challenges of political, social and economic polarization and look forward to the  future where there is equality of life and opportunities, regardless of one’s background based on the American Dream based on life, liberty and happiness. What lessons can we draw from the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr’s life whose day we celebrated on January 17?

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Opinion, Fellows, ColumnsShahid S. KhanDr. Martin Luther King Jr., MLK Day, ICEComment
Children of Wartime Veterans Scholarship
Children of Wartime Veterans Scholarship

 Established in 1934, the North Carolina Children of Wartime Veterans Scholarship has long helped veterans’ children afford in-state higher education. Recent funding cuts and prorated awards have created financial uncertainty for recipients, threatening their ability to stay enrolled. Through the story of UNC student William Dishmon, the article shows how these reductions undermine the program’s original mission, despite lawmakers citing fiscal mismanagement and reforms, leaving students to bear the consequences of an unstable commitment.

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Editor's Picks, LocalNick SwisherNC General Assembly, NC GA, NC politics, Children of Wartime Veterans Scholarship, Children of VeteransComment
Delays in the October Unemployment Rate Figure Present Major Risks to American Workers
Delays in the October Unemployment Rate Figure Present Major Risks to American Workers

On November 19th, the U.S. Department of Labor announced that it would delay its usual October estimate of the national unemployment rate until December. The recent government shutdown has impeded their ability to release the figures this month. This is not the first time the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has faced issues with calculating the unemployment rate, as the Trump Administration has raised issues over the integrity of its data collection methods. Recent doubts and delays over the number of unemployed workers in the United States have the potential to prolong the current rise in unemployment for American workers in the coming months.

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Fellows, NationalDaniel ReyesEconomy, US Economy, Unemployment, Inflation, Fed, Federal Reserve, DLSComment
Texas’s Blocked Map and the Growing National Fight Over Redistricting
Texas’s Blocked Map and the Growing National Fight Over Redistricting

Texas’s blocked map is more than a state dispute; it’s a preview of a brewing national crisis. As courts reconsider long-standing Voting Rights Act protections and both parties escalate their redistricting tactics, American democracy risks slipping into an arms race where voters, not politicians, pay the price.

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National, Editor's PicksKrisha PatelRedistricting, California, Newsom, Election mapsComment
Why Kamala Harris’ Bitter Book Tour Marks the Death of the Center-Left
Why Kamala Harris’ Bitter Book Tour Marks the Death of the Center-Left

Into that vacuum—where meaningful opposition should exist but doesn’t—steps Kamala Harris, not with leadership or strategy on how to defeat Trumpism and the increasingly right-wing establishment, but to hawk her new memoir, 107 Days. The memoir epitomizes exactly what has gone wrong for Democrats; it is a complete failure without address, the product of a party that can no longer articulate a single material solution for the people it claims to represent.

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Opinion, ColumnsSamee GhaffarKamala Harris, Kamala 2028, 2028 election, Trump 2028, politics Comment
The Year North Carolina Showed Up
The Year North Carolina Showed Up

In a year when off-year elections finally captured statewide attention, North Carolina voters delivered one of the highest municipal turnouts in recent history. With housing pressures mounting and political tensions rising, communities across the state reshaped their local leadership. The ripple effects of this year’s “blue mist” could redefine the state’s political landscape for years to come.

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LocalKrisha PatelCarrboro, Chapel Hill Town Council, Carrboro elections, Chapel HillComment
Federal SNAP Lapse Brings State-Level Responsibilities Into Focus
Federal SNAP Lapse Brings State-Level Responsibilities Into Focus

North Carolina has the responsibility to protect its residents when politicians in Washington fail to do so, especially when it is regarding something as basic as food. SNAP isn’t optional; families can't wait it out. With the instability in Washington right now, and the uncertain future of SNAP, the state has to start treating food access like a core emergency service, not something entirely dependent on federal stability.

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LocalPiper WintonSNAP, SNAP NC, Durham SNAPComment
Playing Politics With Hunger: SNAP Benefits Caught in the Aftermath of Intense Government Shutdown
Playing Politics With Hunger: SNAP Benefits Caught in the Aftermath of Intense Government Shutdown

Earlier this month, intense political gridlock between the Trump administration and Democratic senators led to delayed action in getting food into the hands of vulnerable Americans who depend on SNAP assistance. Political leaders and average citizens alike were angered by the fact that the lives of seniors, low-income parents, the disabled, retired veterans, and more have been turned into a partisan issue. Although the government shutdown has now allowed for SNAP funding to resume, new eligibility restrictions will cause millions to lose access to the program.

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NationalJaya NadellaSNAP, Welfare, Trump SNAP, Trump Shutdown, SNAP NCComment
Protecting Maduro: How the Concentration of Power has led to the Downfall of Venezuela
Protecting Maduro: How the Concentration of Power has led to the Downfall of Venezuela

Maduro inherited an unstable, corrupt government that was solely based on the sheer charisma of his predecessor—despite his dictatorial tendencies. However, instead of enacting policies to counter the impending downfall of his government, Maduro doubled down on Chávez’s decisions. He knew that his support stemmed from the blessing of the late president and the unfaltering chavistas, and he has continued to establish an authoritarian state in Venezuela

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Columns, OpinionCharlotte StukesVenezuela, Maduro, South America, South American politicsComment
North Carolina Becomes Latest Victim in Nationwide Redistricting Push
North Carolina Becomes Latest Victim in Nationwide Redistricting Push

What is happening in North Carolina is part of a larger, and deeply concerning, proliferation of mid-decade redistricting for political gain. The recent push for redrawing district boundaries in between census cycles is clearly a political move designed to tip the balance of power in Congress towards one party. Politicians on both sides of the aisle must strive for the pursuit of fair districts together

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Columns, OpinionSimon LewisRedistricting, Gerrymandering, NC Congressional mpas, congressional maps, NC gerrymandering, North Carolina mapsComment