A newly sworn-in North Carolina General Assembly and a fresh legislative session present an opportunity to significantly advance government transparency and the people’s right to … more

Sylva Herald and Ruralite , 539 W. Main Street Sylva 28779 more

Research suggests that journalists might have some responsibility in popularizing extremist views, even if it is accidental. The research says this can happen by journalists reporting on certain … more

SPRUCE PINE — The Mitchell News-Journal has a new publisher and editor. Former News-Journal reporter Cory Spiers, 27, has taken the position, Community Newspapers Regional Publisher Rachel … more

The U.S. Postal Service today announced it will not implement a postage increase in January 2022.  The next increase will be in July 2022. Then it will begin a new regime of twice-yearly … more

WAKE COUNTY — A Democrat-backed proposal in the General Assembly would allow Wake County municipalities to publish public notices soley online. This would mark a shift from also placing the … more

The cliché “gild the lily” is a misquotation of a line from Shakespeare: “To gild refined gold, to paint the lily … is wasteful and ridiculous excess.” Correctly quoted or not, this common phrase refers to the unnecessary practice of embellishing something which doesn’t need embellishing. more

Jared told me about a technique his sales team uses. “I learned it in a seminar years ago, and I’ve seen it used in different industries. It’s based on presenting both sides of the … more

On Wednesday, a federal judge ruled that President Trump can no longer block users on Twitter based on their political views because it violates the First Amendment due to Twitter being a "designated … more

Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden once said, “It’s the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen.”  That’s certainly true in … more

The General Data Protection Regulation act is in effect today, and Congress wants consumers in the U.S. to be treated the same way as European Union members will be treated with the new … more

The U.S. Postal Service in January announced that it planned to eliminate use of sacks for most Periodicals mailings, but complications from a wide array of mailer practices caused the policy to be … more

When reporters call the Legal Hotline, I often talk through what amounts to a public records flowchart in analyzing their questions. For a couple years, I’ve wanted to put that analysis into an actual flowchart, and if I were better at Word or Power Point, that would be my column for this month. Instead, I will outline – with words instead of boxes and circles -- the questions I ask to determine whether a particular document (or portion of a document) is a public record. more

This term the United States Supreme Court had its first “Facebook case” but issued a ruling that dodged both the technology/social media aspects of the case and the First Amendment. If you are like me, you may get quizzed at cocktail parties about how the First Amendment could possibly protect such monstrous speech, but given their ruling on evidentiary grounds, the Court found “it is not necessary to consider any First Amendment issues.” Therefore, this case is as important for what it does not say as what it does. more

Following Winter Institute, a review of contest categories and results showed several categories had not been awarded at the banquet. Our review showed that the judging assignments had not been … more

WRAL.com blocked European users from accessing its website on Friday, May 25 as the General Data Protection Regulation act came into effect.  It is not just WRAL that is doing this. Capitol … more

Your phone is a powerful reporting tool, much more than calls, emails and text messages. Your smartphone is a computer, camera, recorder and publishing tool that is always in your pocket. My Apps for Journalists list contains only apps that are practical and useful for journalists. more

Please see the attached overview on NC media law prepared for NCPA by Stevens Martin Vaughn & Tadych, PLLC more

A reporter and a photojournalist for WYFF News 4 were covering the weather damage from Subtropical Storm Alberto when, in a fatal accident, a tree crashed down on their sport utility vehicle.  … more