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Lookout Staff

Lookout Staff

(Illustration: John Partipilo)

Series: A darker shade of red

By: and - August 7, 2023

In 2022, Tennessee became fertile ground for far-right activity and the launch of groups on the right wing of the political spectrum, an outgrowth of former President Donald Trump’s rhetoric and anti-COVID-19 measures that sparked conspiracy theories. In the five-part series, “A darker shade of red,” writer Devon Heinen unpacks how such groups have proliferated […]

Nashville Pride Parade 2023 on the city's Broadway. (Photo: John Partipilo)

Nashville Pride 2023

By: and - June 26, 2023

Thousands celebrated the rights of LGBTQ Tennesseans on Saturday and Sunday in Nashville, including First Lady Jill Biden, who spoke to crowds on Bicentennial Mall in the shadow of Tennessee’s Capitol. “We know there are those who wish to undo the hard-won progress that this community has made and tomorrow we will brave those battles […]

Signs at the 2023 Memphis Juneteenth Festival Celebration in Health Science Park in Memphis, Tennessee June 17, 2023. (Photo by Karen Pulfer Focht)

Juneteenth in Tennessee

By: , and - June 18, 2023

Tennesseans didn’t wait until Monday to celebrate Juneteenth, the holiday commemorating the date in 1865 when enslaved Texans learned they had been freed by the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. In May, Gov. Bill Lee signed a law recognizing Juneteenth as a state holiday, two years after President Joe Biden declared it a federal holiday. Cities […]

A day after a mass shooting at The Covenant School, a woman is overcome with emotion in front of an impromptu memorial. (Photo: John Partipilo)

Updates on Nashville school shooting: police investigation continues as city mourns

By: - March 28, 2023

A candlelight vigil to honor victims and support the families and survivors of The Covenant School shooting is scheduled for Wednesday evening outside Nashville’s City Hall. First Lady Jill Biden is expected to attend, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at Wednesday’s press briefing, as the president continues to call on Congress to pass an assault […]

From left, Emma Bushong, Sarah Kate Esquivel and Katherine Dix grieve for the victims of the Covenant School shooting during a community vigil at Belmont United Methodist Church Monday. (Photo: John Partipilo)

3 kids, 3 adults killed in shooting at Nashville private elementary school

By: - March 27, 2023

Three children and three adult staff members are dead after a mass shooting event Monday at The Covenant School, a private Christian school in Nashville’s Green Hills neighborhood. Among the victims are three 9-year-old children: Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney. The adult victims are Cynthia Peak, 61,  Mike Hill, 61, and Katherine Koonce, […]

Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, photographed in February 2023. (Photo: John Partipilo)

Lieutenant governor posted regularly on Knoxville man’s racy Instagram

By: - March 9, 2023

The lieutenant governor’s office is defending frequent posting by Randy McNally on the racy Instagram pictures of a young gay man over the last three years even though he voted for anti-LGBTQ legislation recently. The story was initially reported by the Tennessee Holler and followed up by several TV stations. McNally, 79, often posted on […]

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), photographed in Washington, DC, on June 8, will speak at the January 16 Spencer Fane Bone McAllester MLK Fellowship Breakfast in Nashville. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Spencer Fane Bone McAllester to host 22nd MLK Fellowship Breakfast in Nashville

By: - December 29, 2022

Spencer Fane Bone McAllester will hold its 22nd Annual MLK Fellowship Breakfast on January 16 with featured speaker, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, Democrat of New Jersey, at the Tennessee State Museum.  The event is held each year on the federal holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King. The law firm’s website says that the event “celebrates […]

Women march in Nashville on June 24, the day the U.S, Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson. (Photo: John Partipilo)

Stories of 2022: Redistricting, legislators’ legal issues and a Black town fights government

By: - December 28, 2022

Mason, Tennessee Last March, Tennessee Comptroller Jason Mumpower issued an unusual appeal to residents of Mason, Tenn., a small majority-Black town in West Tennessee whose finances were in complete disarray. Jason Mumpower’s suggestion that the town cede its charter, ending more than 150 years of self-governance, drew national attention after local Black leaders fought to […]

Nissan Stadium in Nashville, home of the Tennessee Titans. (Photo: John Partipilo)

Metro Councilmember O’Connell proposes taxpayer protections as Council votes on Titans funding terms

By: - December 20, 2022

Metro Nashville Council Member Freddie O’Connell is proposing an amendment to legislation approving a $4 billion financial framework for a new Tennessee Titans stadium that will include a slate of taxpayer protection measures.  O’Connell, who is running for Nashville Mayor, announced his plan on Tuesday prior to Metro Council’s vote at the night meeting.  “Without these […]

Tennessee State Capitol. (Photo: John Partipilo)

Yager earns Tennessee Chamber of Commerce award

By: - December 15, 2022

The Tennessee Chamber of Commerce and Industry has named its 2022 Champion of Commerce award winners, including Sen. Ken Yager, R-Kingston.  The annual awards recognize legislators who demonstrate extraordinary support for business and manufacturing in the Volunteer State and is based in part on lawmakers’ voting record on key business issues.  “It is an honor […]

From left: Rob Watkins, COO of the Tennessee Justice Center, Executive Director Michelle Johnson, Chanda Freeman, health advocacy program manager. Keith Caldwell, pastor of Seay-Hubbard United Methodist Church, and Janet King, social services coordinator for the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency.(Photo: Submitted)

Tennessee Justice Center, Metro Nashville housing agency hold community partnership event

By: - December 13, 2022

The Tennessee Justice Center (TJC) and  the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency (MDHA) in Nashville capped a year of partnership with a lunch and awards ceremony Thursday to recognize leaders in the Napier-Sudekum community and organizations active in the community. A TJC building is under construction in the neighborhood, just south of Downtown Nashville, and staff […]