The Trump administration is considering major changes to the way that disaster response works in America, including ceding more responsibility to states. But is that really a good idea? North Carolina's spotty record of responding to hurricanes might provide some answers and offer a glimpse into the uncertain future of disaster relief.

Featuring:

• Rebecca Hersher, reporter on NPR's Climate Desk
• Ren Larson, reporter at The Assembly and a ProPublica Local Reporting Network fellow

Links:

• "As Helene Survivors Wait for State Help, Some Victims of Earlier Hurricanes Are Still Out of Their Homes"
• "3 big changes are proposed for FEMA. This is what experts really think of them"

Cover image: From NOAA, this colored infrared composite image of Hurricane Helene was captured on September 27, 2024 utilizing the Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) aboard NOAA's GOES-16 satellite.

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In 1937, a man claimed to have discovered a rock in eastern North Carolina with a 400-year-old message carved into it from survivors of the Lost Colony of Roanoke. The announcement created an international media circus. And it led to one of the biggest archeological scandals in American history, one that would forever tarnish the artifact’s reputation. But was the Dare Stone authentic?

Featuring:

• David La Vere, history professor at UNC-Wilmington and author of “The Lost Rocks: The Dare Stones and the Unsolved Mystery of Sir Walter Raleigh’s Lost Colony”
• Bill Miller, geologist and professor emeritus at UNC-Asheville

Links:

• The 1937 Chowan River “Dare Stone”: A Re-Evaluation by David La Vere
• Double Deception: The 1937 Hoaxes of the Chowan River Stone and the Drake Plate of Brass, by Melissa Darby

Cover image: The front of the first Dare Stone, aka the Chowan River stone, courtesy of Brenau University in Gainesville, Georgia

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From public syllabi to surveillance, universities across the country are embracing unprecedented policies that professors say are undermining their academic freedom. And North Carolina is front and center.

Featuring:

• Brianna Atkinson, higher education reporter for WUNC News
• Keith Whittington, director of Center for Academic Freedom and Free Speech at Yale Law School and author of “You Can’t Teach That!: The Battle Over University Classrooms”

Links:

• You can find more of Brianna Atkinson’s reporting here

Cover Image: Liz Schlemmer

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When disaster strikes in the water, we turn to the US Coast Guard. Today, it’s renowned for its fast-moving cutters, skilled helicopter pilots and daring rescue divers. But a hundred and fifty years ago, the Coast Guard's predecessor, the US Life-Saving Service, was in total disarray and in desperate need of reform. In the treacherous waters of North Carolina's Outer Banks, an extraordinary group of Black men answered the call and saved hundreds of lives against all odds.

Featuring:

• Brad Campbell, writer for Our State Magazine
• Joan Collins, Director of Outreach and Education for the Pea Island Preservation Society

Links:

• Check out Brad's article about the Pea Island surfmen here.

Cover image provided by Joan Collins: The US Coast Guard's Herbert M. Collins served at the Pea Island Life-Saving Station in North Carolina's Outer Banks during World War II.

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As the story goes, hip-hop music was born a little over 50 years ago at a house party in the Bronx. But that version of history doesn't account for an entertainer from Durham, North Carolina with the incredible name Pigmeat Markham. In 1968, Markham released a hit song called “Here Comes the Judge.” The tune fused comedy, funk, and what can only be described as an early form of rapping—years before hip-hop officially burst onto the scene. So was this largely forgotten figure actually the first rapper?

Featuring:

• Mark Anthony Neal, James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of African & African American Studies at Duke University 

Links:

• Check out a playlist of the songs mentioned in this episode and some others inspired by Pigmeat Markham here.

Cover image: The album cover art for Pigmeat Markham's 1968 single "Here Comes the Judge”

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Other places might have bigger mountains and better powder, but the icy slopes of western North Carolina are currently home to one of the most vibrant snowboarding scenes in the country. And it's produced perhaps the single most creative rider in the world. But is it all just a fluke?

Featuring:

• Josh Sullivan, social media producer for WUNC News
• Michelle Bruton, action sports and Olympics writer for forbes.com

Cover image: Luke Berger

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From Huntsville to Houston, the space industry in the US is rooted in the South. And as NASA works towards returning to the moon with the Artemis program, our space history is inspiring new generations of Americans. But in North Carolina, two important sites from the Space Race of the 1960s remain relatively unknown.

Featuring:

• Cliff Bumgardner, director and producer at PBS North Carolina
• Brett Tingley, managing editor at Space.com

Links:

• Check out the short documentary film about Morehead Planetarium that Cliff produced for PBS NC and Our State Magazine here.
• Read Brett's article about the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute in Rosman, North Carolina here.

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From bourbon to chow chow, fermentation is everywhere in Southern food and drink. But how did this "controlled form of rotting" become so prevalent in our regional cuisine and why does it make everything taste so dang delicious?

Featuring:

• Dr. Brett Taubman, author of Southern Culture on the Fizz and director of the Fermentation Sciences program at Appalachian State University

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On a cold night in January 1958, hundreds of Native American men and women from the Lumbee Tribe showed up to a field in southeast North Carolina with one mission: to boot the KKK out of their community. The skirmish that followed would become an integral part of modern Lumbee identity and lore.

Featuring: 

• Jack Lowery, criminal defense lawyer and member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina
• Malinda Maynor Lowery, history professor at Emory University and member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina

Links:

• “The Lumbee Tribe: An American Struggle” by Malinda Maynor Lowery

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Buc-ee’s, the mega-sized gas station known for its pristine bathrooms, numerous snack options and cartoon beaver mascot, is expanding across the South. And it’s bringing with it a legion of cultish fans. But what’s with all the hype? And does the world really need a gas station the size of a Walmart with 20 different flavors of beef jerky?

Featuring: 

• Emily Cataneo, freelance journalist and contributor for The Assembly
• Dale Edwards, managing editor for The News of Orange County 

Links:

• Check out Emily's reporting on Buc-ee's for The Assembly here.

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