The Broadside

On a cold night in January 1958, hundreds of Native American men and women from the Lumbee Tribe showed up to a field in southeast North Carolina with one mission: to boot the KKK out of their community. The skirmish that followed would become an integral part of modern Lumbee identity and lore. Featuring:  Jack Lowery, criminal defense lawyer and member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina...

Buc-ee’s, the mega-sized gas station known for its pristine bathrooms, numerous snack options and cartoon beaver mascot, is expanding across the South. And it’s bringing with it a legion of cultish fans. But what’s with all the hype? And does the world really need a gas station the size of a Walmart with 20 different flavors of beef jerky? Featuring:  Emily Cataneo, freelance journalist and c...

This New Year's Day we're revisiting one of our all-time favorite episodes of The Broadside. We'll be back with a new original show next week. On a rainy day in 1979, a photograph was taken of a young girl skateboarding down a street in Fayetteville, North Carolina. 45 years later, that photo went viral with a little help from the most famous skater who ever lived: Tony Hawk. This week, we find ou...

During this holiday break, we're sharing an episode from the podcast series Our Common Nature, produced by our friends at WYNC.  When the world stopped in 2020, cellist Yo-Yo Ma started thinking about how music can reconnect people to the natural world, and how story and song can help us grapple with America's complicated history. Our Common Nature is a 7-episode series where Yo-Yo Ma travels...

On our 100th episode there are no small stories… just short ones. In the past two years, we've crisscrossed the state of North Carolina. From Manteo to Murphy and many points in between. And we’ve done our best to connect you – wherever you live – to the people and places that make our region so fascinating. Along the way, we’ve collected a few stories that, for whatever reason, didn’t fit into a...

It’s easy to overlook the importance of mini golf. But this tiny game has played a pivotal role in breaking down class barriers to golf. And the story of how a bite sized version of golf made it from one man’s lawn in North Carolina to the rest of the world is utterly fascinating. Featuring: Audrey Moriarty, Executive Director at Given Memorial Library and Tufts Archives Carolyn Cole, owner of Thi...

The Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina are one of the most biodiverse places on the planet. The region is home to a whopping 4,000 species of plants and thousands of species of fungi. And many of them are edible. In the wake of Hurricane Helene, some folks (including children) are embracing this supermarket in the woods by learning how to forage for wild food… and how not to get poison...

This Thanksgiving we're sharing an interview from our friends and colleagues at Due South , WUNC’s daily talk show. Hosted by Leoneda Inge and Jeff Tiberii, the program is a source for news, information and perspectives from across North Carolina and the South. In this conversation, Leoneda chats with Dr. Brittany Hunt. Hunt is a professor at the Virginia Tech School of Education, where she teache...

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Appalachian Trail form the backbone of the eastern portion of the US National Park system. Together, they welcome 15 million visitors every year. But they likely wouldn't exist as we know them today, if it weren't for the work of a pioneering photographer in North Carolina named George Masa. This week, we find out how an immigrant from Japa...

A little over a hundred years ago, there was an abundance of Black farmers in the U.S., and the vast majority of them farmed in the South. But today, less than 2% of farmers are Black, and what was once a flourishing vocation in Black America has now become something of a novelty. Yet despite decades of decline and documented discrimination, Black farmers are finding ways to thrive as they inspire...

The North Carolina State Fair is the biggest event of its kind in the South. Every October, nearly a million visitors flock to Raleigh in search of fried food and carnival fun. And while everyone loves a good funnel cake… each year, one section of the fair is by far the most popular: the giant pumpkin exhibit. This week, we dig into the mushy guts and glory of competitive giant pumpkin growing and...

Driven by unprecedented energy demand from data centers, the US is in the midst of one of the biggest energy infrastructure expansions of all-time. For many energy companies, the solution to this crisis runs through natural gas pipelines in places like Rockingham County, North Carolina. But does it come with a price? Featuring:  Celeste Gracia, environment reporter for WUNC Ben Lefebvre, depu...

North Carolina is home to one of the oldest electronic music traditions in the world. From synthesizer builders in Asheville to Grammy-nominated musicians in Durham, the state’s small but influential scene remains healthy. But how did it come to be? This week, we go on a strange trip through the early days of electronic music in America and find out how the synthesizer became an unlikely Southern...

In the 1990s, professional ice hockey was primed for growth. But the NHL had one major problem: geography. In order to expand its footprint, the sport had to move into unlikely warm weather locations with few existing fans. The league eventually expanded to the Sun Belt with mixed early results. But in North Carolina and other Southern states, the NHL has found success with a radical long-term str...

Although Latinos make up some of the most diverse communities in the South, they're often portrayed as one people and newcomers with a fairly uncomplicated backstory in the region. But from the Civil Rights Movement to South of the Border, that couldn’t be further from the truth. This episode was originally published on September 19, 2024. Featuring: Cecilia Márquez, author of Making the Latino So...

This week, we’re sharing an episode by our friends at Common Land . It’s a podcast that explores the history, science and politics behind the creation of protected lands in America. Season two focuses entirely on the Appalachian Trail. It follows documentarian Matt Podolsky as he attempts to thru-hike the 2200-mile journey with his 65-year-old mom. Along the way, Matt shares stories of remarkable...

When the sprawling federal tax and spending law known as the Big Beautiful Bill was signed into law in July, a countdown began. That’s because the bill included major changes and cuts to Medicaid funding that are set to go into effect in just a little over a year. Now, dozens of state legislatures across the country are trying to navigate the early political and health policy fallout. And in North...

The tiny mountain town of Spruce Pine, North Carolina is the site of the single biggest source of ultra high purity quartz in the world. It’s a vital component in the manufacturing process of semiconductors for computers and solar panels. In fact, the mine in Spruce Pine is quite possibly the most important mineral extraction site on the planet. Because we don’t have a backup. Featuring:  Ala...

Last week, we dropped an episode that was a collaboration with Nashville Public Radio (WPLN) and music journalist Jewly Hight. You should really check it out . It’s all about a Black fiddle and banjo music revival, with deep roots in North Carolina, that’s sweeping the US. While that movement is largely occurring in folk music spaces, it also includes a handful of Black country music artists. In t...

This past spring, Durham, North Carolina hosted a sprawling roots music festival called Biscuits and Banjos. For the thousands of attendees, it had some similarities to a lot of folk music events around the country. But one major thing set it apart. Nearly every featured performer was Black. The event is just one part of a Black folk music revival sweeping the country that's rescuing lost traditio...

College football has become a money-sucking machine, with schools spending every dollar possible to keep up in an athletics arms race. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill entered the fray this year in spectacular fashion, betting big on legendary NFL coach Bill Belichick in the hopes that he’ll elevate the school’s football program. But why are universities, especially those with acade...

This year, Jane Austen fans around the world are celebrating the English author's 250th birthday. Surprisingly, one prominent event took place in North Carolina. The annual weeklong symposium, called the Jane Austen Summer Program, is a cross between an academic conference and summer camp, with lectures and embroidery workshops. It even has a Regency ball with a suggested dress code, so we put on...

For nearly 20 years, the North Carolina Innocence Inquiry Commission has helped incarcerated people who have evidence of their innocence walk free. But despite over a dozen headline-grabbing success stories, this independent state agency remains incredibly rare in the American legal system. In fact, there's no other neutral government-run agency like it in the entire country. And this bold experim...

Indigenous languages are declining around the world at an alarming rate. Some studies estimate that one language dies out every two weeks. And the United States is no different. Of the 197 living indigenous languages spoken in this country, 193 are endangered. But one, in particular, has experienced a shocking downturn. Cherokee, once the most well-documented and commonly spoken Native A...

Greenville, NC is an unlikely hotspot for an extreme sport like BMX freestyle. Tucked away in eastern North Carolina, it's surrounded by farmland and doesn’t even crack a list of the top ten biggest cities in the state. But at one point, it was home to more professional freestyle bike riders than anywhere else on the planet. Led by Dave Mirra, one of the greatest BMX athletes of all-time, this gro...