Newsletters

Plus: This NC candidate’s in hot water Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Below we have eight fun and free things to do this Labor Day, and some breaking news in an eastern NC congressional race, but first:  The world’s financial leaders are in Chapel Hill today, as the G20 meetings decamp from western…

Plus: A crucial fact-check. Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Below, we have an essential fact-check on a widely-spread political ad in North Carolina, and a guide to helping out during NC’s drought, but first:  Every week in 3 things happening in NC, we pick out three of the most important storylines of the…

Plus: Name this NC football field. Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Below, we have good news for anyone annoyed by social media 🙋‍♂️ and this week’s top story at Cardinal & Pine, but first: Some breaking news from western North Carolina, where the Trump administration is hosting many of the world’s most powerful…

Plus: How to spot hummingbirds in NC Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Below, we’ve got a troubling report on NC’s fisheries, and details about NC’s migrating hummingbirds, but first:  It’s a good night to be a stargazer.  This evening, folks in North Carolina could get a peek at a partial lunar eclipse, depending…

Plus: Beating news exhaustion w/ Beth Helfrich. Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Politics can be brutal and dismaying. But it can also be a place for connection and peaceful change. Every now and then, it should be fun too.  This week, in a new Billy Ball Explains NC segment called “3 dumb questions…

Plus: A perfect rainbow over Wilmington. Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Below, we have a tribute to the late, great Southern icon, Dolly Parton, and a rainbow over Wilmington, but first: Everyone loves secret food destinations. Today, we published a look at an under-the-radar taco destination in Asheville called Xico Chico. The name…

Plus: A historic hero comes home Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Below, we have a rundown on NC’s controversial early voting plans and a guide to early fall daytripping in NC, but first: The shoes are new. The backpack still smells like the factory where it was made. My daughter’s trying out a…

Plus: Name this NC city Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Below, we’re rolling out Cardinal & Pine’s 2026 voter hub, a one-stop shop for all your midterm election needs, and we also have a story about President Trump’s plan to clear logging in national forests, but first: Good News Friday needs no explanation,…

Plus: A golden sunset in Beaufort. Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Below, we have some must-read bear safety tips following a rare bear attack in western NC, plus an important new story about Senate candidate Michael Whatley’s relationship with a powerful NC utility, but first:  Wherever you find people in need, there will…

Plus: What it takes to be ‘middle class’ in NC Share with a friend Hey, it’s Billy. Below, we have new data on what it takes to be “middle class” in NC, and pro tennis returns to NC, but first: Is Roy Cooper—the Democrat running for one of NC’s two US Senate seats—a socialist? Recently,…