In 1988, professional basketball came to North Carolina with the arrival of the Charlotte Hornets of the NBA. Desperate to make a splash, the new team made an unconventional early hire; they selected a famous fashion designer to create their uniforms. The Hornets lost 60 games during that bumpy first season, but they looked incredible while doing it. And their iconic look — purple, teal and pinstripes — would launch a global fashion trend that endures today.

Featuring:

• Alexander Julian, fashion designer and creator of the original Charlotte Hornets uniform
• Crystal McCrary McGuire, writer and documentary filmmaker

Links:

• Watch video from the 1988 Charlotte Hornets uniform reveal press conference.

Cover photo: A Charlotte Hornets-branded Starter jacket that was wildly popular during the 1990s.

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Data centers projects are expanding throughout the US at hyperspeed and hyperscale. These developments are reshaping small towns, consuming vast amounts of power and striking deals that aren't always clear. And in many places, like rural North Carolina, people are starting to voice concerns in the voting booth.

Featuring:

• Zachary Turner, reporter at WFAE in Charlotte, NC
• Adam Wagner, editor/reporter with the NC Newsroom

Links:

• Check out the 6-part collaborative reporting series Hyperspeed, Hyperscale: Inside the Data Center Boom Reshaping NC Communities

Cover photo: An anti-data center campaign sign on a car in Stokes County, North Carolina. Credit: Zachary Turner / WFAE News

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Flush with billions of dollars from federal funding, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is expanding its permanent presence on the ground by opening field offices and creating new detention centers. A majority of these divisive ICE projects are happening in the South, including several proposed facilities in North Carolina. But communities, from large metropolitan areas to rural small towns, are pushing back.

Featuring:

• Aaron Sánchez-Guerra, race, class & communities Reporter at WUNC News
• Cal Bryant, editor at the Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald
• Eric Westervelt, senior editor-correspondent at NPR

Links:

• WUNC News: From rural towns to urban centers, proposed ICE detention facilities face local opposition
• NPR: Mapping ICE's expanding footprint, and the communities fighting back

Cover photo: Lifelong Ahoskie, North Carolina resident Kim Hoggard participates in a protest on Saturday, March 14, 2026 against a proposed immigration detention facility in Hertford County. Credit: Aaron Sánchez-Guerra

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