Here’s a look at how AP’s general news coverage is shaping up for select stories. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s complete coverage of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Delaware, and the rest of the world, visit Coverage Plan at newsroom.ap.org
Questions about coverage plans are welcome and should be directed to 919-510-8937, 202-641-9660, 410-837-8315, 804-643-6646 or metro@ap.org. Mid-South Assistant News Director Jonathan Drew can be reached at 919-510-8937 or jdrew@ap.org.
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This information is not for publication or broadcast, and these coverage plans are subject to change. Expected stories may not develop, or late-breaking and more newsworthy events may take precedence. Coverage Plan will keep you up to date. All times are Eastern unless specified otherwise.
NORTH CAROLINA
UNIVERSITY FATAL SHOOTING
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Authorities have charged a University of North Carolina graduate student with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of his faculty advisor, in an attack that caused a campus lockdown while police searched for the gunman. Thirty-four-year-old Tailei Qi is due in court later Tuesday for an initial hearing in the Monday killing of Zijie Yan inside a science building on the Chapel Hill campus. In addition to the murder count, he is charged with having a gun on educational property. Yan is listed on the school’s website as an associate professor in the Department of Applied Physical Sciences, while Qi is listed as a graduate student in Yan’s research group. By Hannah Schoenbaum, Gary D. Roberson and Sarah Rankin. SENT: 810 words, photos, video, audio.
SUPREME COURT-EARLS
RALEIGH N.C. — A Democratic justice on North Carolina’s Republican-controlled Supreme Court sued on Tuesday an ethics panel to block it from investigating her public comments about state courts and colleagues, saying the probe and recent previous scrutiny are violating her free speech rights. Associate Justice Anita Earls filed the federal lawsuit against the Judicial Standards Commission, which is charged by law with investigating potential violations of the state’s judicial conduct code. By Gary D. Robertson. UPCOMING: 600 words by 3 p.m.
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SOUTH CAROLINA
UTILITY POLE DEATH
COLUMBIA, S.C. — The family of a 31-year-old South Carolina teacher killed last week after a downed utility pole violently struck her is taking aim at poor rural infrastructure they say contributed to an avoidable death. By James Pollard.
TROPICAL WEATHER
CEDAR KEY, Fla. — Idalia has strengthened into a hurricane as it barrels toward Florida’s Gulf Coast. Authorities are warning residents of vulnerable areas to pack up and leave to escape the twin threats of high winds and devastating flooding. Idalia was churning in the Gulf of Mexico as a Category 1 storm, but it was projected to come ashore early Wednesday as a Category 3 system with sustained winds of up to 120 mph (193 kph). The most likely location for landfall is in the lightly populated Big Bend region, where the Florida Panhandle bends into the peninsula. By Daniel Kozin. SENT: 970 words, photos, video, audio.
EDUCATION-MATH SCORES
Across the country, schools are scrambling to catch up students in math as post-pandemic test scores reveal the depth of missing skills. On average, education analysts say students’ math knowledge is about half a school year behind where it should be. The plunge in scores exacerbated racial and socioeconomic inequities in math performance. And students aren’t bouncing back as quickly as hoped, supercharging worries about how they will fare in high school. Using federal relief money, some schools have added tutors and other recovery programs. But the September 2024 deadline for allocating that money will arrive before many children have caught up. SENT: 1,120 words, photos.
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MARYLAND/DELAWARE
ADNAN SYED-FILINGS
BALTIMORE — Briefs filed this month before Maryland’s highest court presented dueling notions of the Adnan Syed case, a protracted legal saga that received widespread attention from the “Serial” podcast and has since pitted crime victims’ rights advocates against supporters of criminal justice reform. By Lea Skene.
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LOCALIZATION
ALTERNATIVE POLICING-MENTAL HEALTH-LOCALIZE IT: The Associated Press has found that 14 of the 20 most populous U.S. cities are experimenting with removing police from certain, non-violent 911 calls and sending behavioral health clinicians. Most programs were launched or expanded in the last few years, riding a groundswell of anger over police killings and nationwide call for reforms. Initiatives in major cities including New York, Los Angeles, Columbus, Ohio, and Houston had combined annual budgets topping $123 million as of June. There’s no aggregate, comprehensive data yet on the programs’ effects, and their scope and public reception vary considerably. We list out the 14 cities with links to some of the programs along with resources and ideas for localizing the story. Find the latest Localize It guides.
BROADBAND-AFFORDABILITY-LOCALIZE IT: One of the programs set up to ensure affordable internet for all is set to run out by the middle of 2024. The Affordable Connectivity Program’s primary allocation of $14.2 billion is projected to run out unless Congress takes steps to renew it. That could end access to affordable broadband for the more than 20 million households that use it. It also could hinder the Biden administration’s effort to bring connectivity to the people who need it most. With the clock ticking, the White House and advocacy groups are working to push Congress to extend the program this year. We provide data on how many eligible households are participating at the state- and congressional district-level along with suggested reporting threads and other tips for localizing the story. Find the latest Localize It guides.
ELECTIONS 2024-EDUCATION-LOCALIZE IT: School board races have become hotly divided, with intense influence from outside groups and polarizing rhetoric, as education has vaulted to center stage in national politics. And in this upcoming November general election, school board races across several key states will be on the ballot. We provide tips for backgrounding candidates and an overview of conservative and progressive groups influencing races, plus ideas for questions to ask candidates that go beyond political talking points. Find the latest Localize It guides.
UKRAINIANS-TEMPORARY-LEGAL-STATUS-LOCALIZE IT: The Biden administration announced a major expansion of temporary legal status for Ukrainians already living in the United States, granting a reprieve for those who fled Russia’s invasion. The Homeland Security Department said the move is expected to make 166,700 Ukrainians eligible for Temporary Protected Status, up from about 26,000 currently. To qualify, Ukrainians must have been in the United States by last Wednesday, two days before the announcement. The temporary status was originally scheduled to expire on Oct. 19, 2023 but is being extended 18 months to April 19, 2025. The expansion comes as the administration extends Temporary Protected Status to people from a growing number of countries as part of a carrot-and-stick approach to immigration. We offer data resources and tips for localizing the story. Find the latest Localize It guides.
PANDEMIC AID-GOVERNMENTS-LOCALIZE-IT: Thousands of local governments across the U.S. have reported spending nothing from their share of $350 billion of federal pandemic relief funds approved two years ago. But AP interviews with local and federal officials suggest that the publicly available data is misleading — pockmarked by differing interpretations over exactly what must be reported, lagging in timeliness and failing to account for some preliminary planning. We offer tips for localizing stories about how state and local governments are using their share of the pandemic aid. Find the latest Localize It guides.
EDUCATION-CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM-LOCALIZE IT: Across the country, students have been absent at record rates since schools reopened after COVID-forced closures. More than a quarter of students missed at least 10% of the 2021-22 school year, making them chronically absent, according to data compiled by Stanford University and The Associated Press. The absences added to the time that students missed during the school closures and pandemic disruptions, and cost them crucial time in classrooms as schools worked to help them recover from massive learning setbacks. We offer data on absenteeism for 40 states and tips for localizing the story. Find the latest Localize It guides.
MEDICAID-STATES-LOCALIZE IT: Federal Medicaid officials are expressing concerns about the way some states are handling a massive eligibility review for millions of people on the government health-care program for lower-income residents. In some cases, people dialing into state call centers with questions about Medicaid have had to wait on hold for long periods, prompting some to simply hang up. Federal officials also have raised concerns about the high rates of people dropped from Medicaid for procedural reasons, such as not returning forms needed to renew their coverage. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently sent letters to all states and the District of Columbia reminding them of various federal regulations regarding Medicaid. We link to the letters and break out lists of states contacted about call center concerns and termination concerns, along with other resources and tips for localizing the story. Find the latest Localize It guides.
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AUDIO
Idalia strengthens to a hurricane, dangerous storm surges are forecast for Florida’s Gulf Coast
Biden administration to target drugs for price negotiations to lower Medicare costs
2 adults and 2 young children found fatally stabbed inside New York City apartment
Suspect’s motive unclear in campus shooting that killed 1 at UNC Chapel Hill, police say
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