Isaac-Davy Aronson

Gov. Pat McCrory is the first Republican Governor in North Carolina for 20 years. So, many looked with anticipation to his first State of the State address this past Monday to see what kind of governor he would be.

The gradual consolidation of media companies into the hands of just six corporations is bad for democracy. At least, that’s what former FCC commissioner and chairman Michael Copps thinks.

Alan Lomax dedicated seven decades of his life to recording and distributing the sound of as much of the globe as he could reach. Beginning as a 17-year-old from Austin, Texas, Alan traveled with his father, John Lomax, to plantations, farms and prisons in the deep South.

  Author Ron Rash has been chronicling the Appalachian way of life for nearly two decades. His poetry and fiction have earned him wide acclaim and a position alongside other esteemed writers from western North Carolina. He joins host Isaac-Davy Aronson to discuss his latest book of short stories: “Nothing Gold Can Stay” (HarperCollins/2013).

Officials in Chatham County are welcoming public input on a proposed site for a 9/11 memorial. The centerpiece will be a small part of the World Trade Center donated by the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey. Citizens can weigh in at the Board of Commissioners meeting tonight in Pittsboro. Debra Henzey is the director of communications for Chatham County. She says one possible site is in the center of town.

The Fayetteville VA Medical Center and Womack Army Medical Center are joining forces on a new physical rehabilitation facility. The Community Rehabilitation Clinic will be built with $6.7 million in federal funds for initiatives to share resources between the Department of Defense and Veterans Affairs. Fayetteville VA Medical Center Director Elizabeth Goolsby says collaborating with Womack will combine their resources and expertise to provide better care and save money.

Duke Medicine is leading a collaboration with the Durham public schools and local agencies to develop better-integrated mental health care for children. Helen Egger is a child psychiatrist at Duke and leads the initiative. She says too often kids with psychiatric disorders are shuffled between schools, hospitals, and law enforcement- each addressing the problems on their own terms. Egger wants to develop school-based models that can fill in the gaps between services.

A guitar belonging to legendary North Carolina musician Doc Watson will be auctioned off at Christie's

in New York today. Nicknamed Ol' Hoss, it's the guitar Watson used in the sessions for the seminal 1972 recording "Will the Circle Be Unbroken." On the album, Watson can be heard meeting Merle Travis, who compliments Ol' Hoss.