A new year means new features and new coverage plans from The News & Observer
Happy New Year, everyone.
That I’m sending this greeting halfway through the month confirms a decades-upon-decades truism: January is not my jam.
Fortunately, we have a lot of overachievers on The News & Observer staff who aren’t calendar curmudgeons.
I like the new features we’ve rolled out this month because they focus on audience interests and issues in the ever-evolving Triangle.
For starters, check out Triangle Asked and Answered, an ongoing series powered by, well, you.
We’ve written before about editor Brooke Cain and reporters Korie Dean and Kimberly Cataudella, who are on The N&O’s Service Journalism Team. The team generates many popular stories that explain topics and answer questions important to the communities where we live. Their aim is to write practical and useful stories and present information in a way that’s easy to read and understand.
Triangle Asked and Answered
Triangle Asked and Answered launched online last week by tackling a question about why some Triangle streetlights have a purple-blue hue. (Hint: They’re not those fancy LED lights.)
Did I mention that Triangle Asked and Answered is all about you? “The N&O’s service team will select from reader submitted questions, hunt down the details and present the answers,” Brooke writes.
There are two ways to submit a question for Triangle Asked & Answered. You can fill out a short Google form (click the link on the digital version of this column) or email ask@newsobserver.com.
One important note: Asked and Answered won’t help with any subscription issues. If you have subscription or delivery questions, email customerservice@newsobserver.com or call 1-800-522-4205 for help. (Brooke thanks you, and I thank you.)
Price Point
Another feature worth checking out is Chantal Allam’s Price Point real estate column. Every week, Chantal plans to write about three houses on the market that are about the same price but located in different parts of the Triangle.
Chantal’s first column took a look at houses around $310,000 that are on the market in Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill. Despite changes in the national housing scene, real estate remains a high-interest topic here. Chantal joined us last fall, and her experiences and enthusiasm already have made a difference in our coverage.
The Price Point columns are planned for Wednesdays on newsobserver.com. We also intend to launch a weekly real estate newsletter in the coming weeks. (To sign up for N&O newsletters, look for the menu bar on the left side of the newsobserver.com homepage. Look for the “Stay Connected” headline and you should find Newsletters in the menu offerings.)
Health plan coverage
So, we’re finding answers to your community-curious questions and keeping tabs on your home’s soon-to-be-rising value (because who doesn’t want to do a financial happy dance when selling). We also plan to watch your health — especially if you’re a state employee.
We are committed to reporting on North Carolina’s decision to move from Blue Cross NC to Aetna as the administrator for state workers’ health plans. It’s a monumental move that will fuel ongoing questions for state workers that will play out in the coming years.
We’re going to be there with you because the impact of the state’s actions will shape households throughout the Triangle and the state.
That’s our resolution. Now, let’s get this year started.
Bill Church is executive editor of The News & Observer. On his list of Top 10 Months Of The Year, January ranks 13th.
This story was originally published January 14, 2023 at 9:30 AM with the headline "A new year means new features and new coverage plans from The News & Observer."
