Breaking News

Brenda J. Linert

Why local newspapers make us all better

Columbia Journalism Review, a respected trade magazine in my industry, has been attempting to track the increasing number of “news deserts” in our nation — that is, communities that have no local newspaper to report daily news. We are lucky in Ohio because the report indicates our state has no county with less than one daily newspaper to report on local events and activities, to tell the stories of its residents, challenge its local government leaders, commemorate the successes (and, unfortunately, failures) of its local athletes and more. A report titled “The Expanding News ...

Increased security here can’t bog us down

Five-star Taj Mahal Palace & Tower Hotel on the waterfront in Mumbai, India, is as breathtaking today as it was 10 years ago — before Pakistani gunmen armed with assault rifles stormed in, opening fire on hotel guests and staff. The Nov. 26, 2008, hotel assault was just part of several coordinated terrorist attacks on the heart of India’s financial capital, a city of nearly 20 million people. More than 160 people died in the three-day, city-wide carnage a decade ago this week, and hundreds more were wounded. The terrorists targeted a crowded train station, tourist restaurant, ...

A good day to visit Trumbull Veterans’ Memorial

It was 10 years ago today that the vision of an area veteran, coupled with an incredible community effort to honor our American heroes, was christened in downtown Warren. The Trumbull County Veterans’ Memorial, erected on the east bank of the Mahoning River, commemorates the sacrifice made by military men and women in service to their country. It was built largely by volunteers from local building trades organizations with donations from local businesses, organizations and residents, funded in large part by the sale of commemorative pavers and bricks in a “Wall of Honor” intended ...

November chock full of Tribune events

There is lots going on with the Tribune Chronicle this month, so get ready! CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE: I am thrilled to be involved in the Tribune Chronicle’s sponsorship of this week’s 13th District Congressional debate. U.S. Rep. Timothy J. Ryan, Democratic incumbent, and Christopher DePizzo, Republican challenger, will face off in their only official debate — right here in Trumbull County. The event is being held before a capacity crowd in the LaBrae High School Auditorium. (Here’s a special shout-out to LaBrae School District for providing wonderful accommodations!) The ...

Love of people helped drive local columnist

Most readers know Bruce Thomas largely through his stories about people that he relayed in countless columns he’s written for the Tribune Chronicle over the years. But it was his love of people that propelled Bruce to find and share those stories. Tribune Chronicle readers lost the popular columnist, and his family (and the area) lost a caring, compassionate man when Bruce Thomas passed away Oct. 9 at his Howland home. The columnist and retired social worker was 88 years old. It was mankind as a whole that had inspired Bruce in his life’s work. He delighted in learning about and ...

Local steel case important to Kavanaugh

My memory of that surreal time in recent American history is a little fuzzy now, but for certain, it was ions before Brett Kavanaugh’s U.S. Supreme Court confirmation hearings turned into — as Kavanaugh described it — the Twilight Zone. It may have been amid the spectacle of protests and interruptions by vocal opponents to Kavanaugh’s impending confirmation. It definitely was long before Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony came into play, before Kavanaugh had delivered his impassioned, emotional response and well before the FBI’s seven-day probe into the 32-year-old ...