News and Weather Briefing for Tuesday, August 25, 2026

NC State honors astronaut Christina Koch with campus homecoming, rename building | WTVD-TV (Durham, NC)

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ABC World News Tonight with David Muir – Aug. 24, 2026 | ABC News

NBC Nightly News Full Episode – August 24 | NBC News

Washington Today (8/24/26): Trump Announces New Iran Sanctions, Threatens Canada With 50% Tariffs | C-SPAN

• U.S. Navy Touts EMALS Reliability As It Starts White House Steam Study [Aviation Week]
• Supreme Court rules blue states sued too early over Trump’s mail voting order [The Hill]
• Trump’s trade war with Canada could rattle economies in states with key Senate races [AP News]
• Mark Carney says there are many things the US needs from Canada — and a very special kind of boat is one of them [Yahoo News]

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What the Ship (Ep 146) | Hormuz, Black Sea & Chokepoint Chaos | Containers | What’s Going on With Shipping?

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US announces economic D-day and harshest sanctions ever | DW News

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Russia warns of growing tension as UK hands Ukraine long-range missile blueprints | BBC News

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Iran War: Bessent Sanctions Plan Threatens US-China Tensions | Daybreak Europe 8/25/2026 | Bloomberg Television

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Why These New Quasar Discoveries Challenge Everything We Knew | Anton Petrov

• Earth’s oceans just hit their hottest temperature ever—it’s only going to get worse [Astronomy Magazine]
• TWiV 1350: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin [Microbe TV]
• TWiV 1351: Ebola Virus Brains and Contagious Catfish Cancers [Microbe TV]
• NASA Starshade Would Enable Astronomers To Directly Image Rocky Exoworlds [Universe Today]
• Bird flu is spreading. Your backyard feeder could make it worse [ScienceDaily]
• This Week’s Sky at a Glance, August 21 – 30 [Sky & Telescope Magazine]

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This Week in Linux #354 | Michael Tunnell

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Fall of Jerusalem – How Britain Broke the Ottoman Front | Kings and Generals

This Could Be A Solution for The Little Red Dots Mystery | Fraser Cain

LIVE at 7am: NASA and ESA astronauts conduct spacewalk outside International Space Station | Associated Press

How They Did It – Roman Corporations (DOCUMENTARY) | Invicta

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Ethereum: Dubious Speculation | Benjamin Cowen

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Flock Cameras Are Not Even the Worst Part of the System | TREX LABS

• Brickbat: Unlicensed Search [Reason Magazine]
• Police say Flock cameras help solve crimes, but critics call them an invasion of privacy [PBS News]

• Schmidt v. Norfolk [ACLU]

• Chatrie v. United States [SCOTUSblog]

• Under Surveillance: Constitutional Concerns Surrounding Flock Cameras [North Carolina Journal of Law & Technology]

• Research Report on Automatic License Plate Readers: Legal Status and Policy Recommendations for Law Enforcement Use [Brennan Cebnter for Justice]

This Flock Camera Leak is like Netflix For Stalkers | Benn Jordan and 404 Media

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Public Records Request for Macon County Flock Safety Cameras

As an independent citizen journalist covering local government in Macon County for over 16 years, I have submitted a public records request to the Macon County Sheriff’s Office for documents related to the Flock Safety automated license plate reader system. This request seeks contracts, board approvals, usage policies, camera locations, performance data, and related correspondence to promote full transparency and public accountability in how this surveillance technology is funded, deployed, and operated with taxpayer resources. By making these records available, we can separate facts from myths, address community concerns about privacy and effectiveness, and ensure informed civic dialogue about tools that impact public safety and individual rights in our rural mountain community.

Sheriff’s Office Public Records Custodian,

Pursuant to the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. Chapter 132), I request the following records related to Flock Safety (or any automated license plate reader/ALPR system):

1. All contracts, agreements, amendments, proposals, invoices, payment records, and correspondence between Macon County Sheriff’s Office (or County) and Flock Safety (or Flock Group, Inc.), including any subscription, installation, maintenance, or data access terms.
2. Board of Commissioners agendas, minutes, resolutions, motions, or approvals authorizing the purchase, funding, or use of Flock cameras (including budget line items from FY 2023–2024 onward).
3. Policies, procedures, manuals, training materials, or guidelines for use of the Flock system by Sheriff’s Office personnel (including access controls, data retention, audit logs, and privacy protections).
4. Any usage statistics, reports, or summaries on camera performance, alerts generated, cases assisted, or data shared (redacted as necessary for law enforcement sensitivity).
5. Location list or map of all deployed Flock cameras in Macon County.
6. Any privacy impact assessments, legal opinions, or correspondence regarding compliance with NC law or data sharing.

Preferred format: Electronic copies (PDF/email) where possible. I am willing to pay reasonable costs; please notify me in advance if fees will exceed $50.

Please provide these records as soon as practicable. If any portion is denied, please provide a written explanation with the specific legal basis and contact information for appeal.

Thank you for your assistance. I can be reached at [email protected].

Sincerely, Bobby Coggins, Publisher Macon Media [[email protected]]

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