During the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has been described as “an unlikely leader,” and has gotten mostly approval from national media for his handling of it. Likewise, DeWine’s counterpart in New York, Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has been receiving rave ...
National Sunshine Week, intended to showcase the importance of access to meetings involving our public officials and to all sorts of public records, wrapped up Saturday. Typically during this week, I write about why we all should care about this stuff because an open government is key to a ...
This isn’t science fiction, folks, although it sure seems like it. Yellow tents are popping up outside hospital entrances. Retailers are sold out of, well, everything. School is canceled; people are quarantined. And much of the general population that does venture out in public is ...
It’s been about five years since I walked inside the sprawling Lordstown auto assembly plant that was, at that time, where General Motors workers built passenger vehicles. I was the Tribune Chronicle business editor at that time, writing stories about production of the then-hot selling ...
CLICK HERE to view Ohio Auditor Keith Faber’s video about the dos and don’ts of using public money in campaigning. The number of public complaints to the Ohio Auditor’s office about tax money being improperly spent on campaign or election issues routinely increases around this time of ...
Most people can tell it is election season by the sudden uptick in campaign advertising and, of course, all the candidate signs popping up in yards and intersections. I, however, have a different signal. Each spring and fall, our downtown Warren office becomes home to a parade of political ...
It might really be true that no good deed goes unpunished. Tribune Chronicle political reporter David Skolnick reported Feb. 1 the answer to a burning question about who funded last fall’s political campaign of Warren mayoral challenger Randy Law. Law ran as an independent candidate against ...
Lively public debate and dialogue about community issues is a big part of our democratic process. Residents must be able to discuss issues and journalists must be able to report on them — each without fear of landing in court facing accusations of libel or defamation. Yet, sadly, there are ...
I have heard recently from some newspaper readers seeking information on the best way for organizations — particularly nonprofit groups — to get items published in this newspaper. To help answer this question, here are a few helpful hints: First, if you have an upcoming event that ...
Frequently I have used this space to protest what I perceive as a growing divide and increasing lack of balance in news reporting by the national media today. Sadly, consumers of news lost one of the great ones in journalism last week — one who always could be counted on to report with ...
It was one month ago today that I sat on the exam table in my family physician’s office for my annual checkup. Clacking away on the computer keyboard, the doc entered her notes, then paused and glanced up at me. “Do you want a flu shot, today?” she asked. “No,” I responded. ...
“Context is key.” I’ve shared those words with young college journalism students when I taught basic reporting classes several years ago. I also shared those words in a column almost exactly one year ago when I wrote about the viral video of young Covington, Ky., high school student ...
An upstate New York school district now is using new technology to keep students safe from intruders. On the surface, it sounds good, but the idea has triggered much outrage and controversy from parents and civil rights advocates who fear it will compromise student privacy. That’s ...
As I wrap up the final week of 2019, like most folks, I’m reflecting on the ups and downs of the past year here and looking forward to what 2020 will bring in the world of news. In keeping with tradition, our newsroom this year has picked what we view as the biggest local news stories of ...
I meet weekly with Rick Muccio, the freelance artist who creates local editorial page cartoons for this newspaper. He drops by about once a week to pitch cartoon ideas he has for possible use on these pages. While we don’t always agree on political topics of the day, I enjoy chatting with ...
Presidential candidates spent a combined $2,495,740,931 in the 2016 race to the White House, according to OpenSecrets.org, a nonpartisan, independent, nonprofit research group that tracks money spent in U.S. politics. It sounds like a ridiculous amount of money, but incredibly, that’s not ...
Well, here’s some bad news, fellow Ohioans. A new study has ranked Ohio as the 43rd smartest state in the nation. I think that’s supposed to be a nice way of saying we are the eighth dumbest state. (I know what you’re thinking, and no, I’m not really that dumb at math. The ...
“Central to the founding principle of self-governance is the ability of the public to participate; to create a partnership among the citizens of a community, some of whom have come forward in elective roles,” Ohio Auditor of State Keith Faber started out a bulletin he released in recent ...
Several times each year I pass by Cranberry Township, Pa., usually as I’m exiting the Pennsylvania Turnpike heading to Pittsburgh, clad in black and gold, “Terrible Towel” in tow. It’s a silly name for a township, I often have thought. So I chuckled last week at its mention on a media ...
A dozen or so college students gathered last week for a lovely luncheon in a room inside Kilcawley Center on the campus of Youngstown State University. Most were accompanied by their parents. Also attending were university officials, including President Jim Tressel, along with other special ...