Investigates
Series: A darker shade of red
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 […]
In Tennessee, far-right groups flex newfound muscle
Night had fallen at Independence Hall in Philadelphia. It was Sept. 1, 2022. President Joe Biden was about to deliver a televised national primetime address there regarding the condition of the U.S.’s democracy. Independence Hall’s bricks were awash in red light, giving the president a red-and-shadow backdrop. A U.S. flag hung over his left shoulder, […]
“Medical freedom” at the forefront of 2022 Tennessee elections
Tennessee Stands — its founder and executive director is Gary Humble — didn’t slow down. It pumped out social-media posts and email newsletter updates. The group tried to shape state legislation; some of its targeted priorities in 2022 included “medical freedom” and so-called “election integrity.” It used a far-right view of Christianity as a driving […]
Muzzled: COVID-19 and controversy in Tennessee
Around 8, maybe 8:30 a.m. on July 6, 2021, Dr. Michelle Fiscus got to her office at the Tennessee Department of Health. She was running late. Normally, Fiscus would get there around 7 a.m., but that morning, she had a doctor’s appointment. It was her first day back in the office after visiting family out […]
Evolution of the Christian right in Tennessee
Part of the far right in the U.S. is the Christian far right. According to Philip Gorski, chair of Yale University’s sociology department — political sociology and social movements as well as religion are areas of interest for him — the Christian far right in the U.S. has evolved over hundreds of years. Its basic […]
Part one: A darker shade of red
It was dark by the time Michael Miller left the Williamson County Administrative Building on West Main Street in Franklin on Aug. 10, 2021. “Will not comply!” shouted a throng of angry far-right protesters in the parking lot as Miller stepped into the warm, Middle Tennessee night. “Will not comply!” Miller, masked and wearing a […]
A rural county’s choice: use opioid funds to pay off debt, or pay them forward to curb crisis
Over the past two years, rural Greene County in northeastern Tennessee has collected more than $2.7 million from regional and national settlements with opioid manufacturers and distributors. But instead of helping people harmed by addiction, county officials are finding other ways to spend it. They have put $2.4 million toward paying off the county’s debt […]
After top departure, an interim director leads Tennessee’s domestic violence nonprofit
The Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence has a new, interim head, following the abrupt departure last month of its longtime leader. Jennifer Escue joined the nonprofit two years ago, as director of programs. Before that, she spent nearly two decades with Catholic Charities of Tennessee, overseeing programs for refugees resettling to the state. […]
Longtime Tennessee domestic violence leader is out following critical federal investigation
This story was jointly reported by WPLN News and the Tennessee Lookout. The longtime leader of the Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence has left the organization. The change comes less than a week after WPLN News and the Tennessee Lookout reported on federal findings of whistleblower retaliation at the nonprofit. Kathy Walsh […]
Investigation finds Tennessee domestic violence nonprofit retaliated against employee
This story was jointly reported by WPLN News and the Tennessee Lookout. A federal watchdog has found that the Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence unlawfully retaliated against and then forced out an employee who blew the whistle about potential misuse of federal funding. The investigation by the Department of Health and Human […]
TVA sued in worker electrocution death at Bull Run plant; report warned of safety concerns
The Tennessee Valley Authority is being blamed in the electrocution death of a contract laborer at its Bull Run Fossil Plant in Anderson County. A lawsuit on behalf of the estate of Seth Black, a 29-year-old Spring City, Tenn., man who died at the plant in September 2021, has been filed in U.S. District Court […]
Judge rules to unseal videos in 2018 Tennessee slaughterhouse raid
A federal magistrate judge says the public has a right to see a video that purportedly shows an agent of the U.S. government engaged in excessive force in a raid at a Grainger County slaughterhouse. U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher Steger has shot down a bid by attorneys for a slew of federal agents to keep […]