News - Friday, September 4, 2026

Before Taylor MacDonald set out to do his part to save the Earth, he was in the business of moving people and their belongings from one point to another on it.

At Chattanooga-based Bellhops, his focus was figuring out how to do that faster and more efficiently.

Taylor MacDonald has spent several years thinking about how to make Death Farm produce food. Eventually, another question presented itself: What would he do with all of it?

Over two years, MacDonald and volunteers planted 1,800 trees across the 20-acre Chickamauga farm. As its food forests mature, he expects their output to grow dramatically, projecting that Death Farm could eventually produce as much as 400,000 pounds of food a year.

A pinch of compost from Alter Eco Farms contains a world invisible to the naked eye.

Cofounder Krisi Olivero reveals it by mixing a small amount of the dark, crumbly material with water, placing a single drop on a glass slide and slipping it beneath a microscope. Magnified hundreds of times, what looked like little more than dirt begins to teem with life.

“How can I help my child buy a home?”

I hear that question more than you might think. It comes from parents, grandparents and family members who simply want to give someone they love a stronger start.

It’s a thoughtful question, but it’s not always simple to answer.

Josh Driver will perform at Miller Park in downtown Chattanooga. Born and raised on the Tennessee-Georgia state line, Driver performs folk, blues and country inspired by life in the region, accompanying his songs with acoustic guitar, harmonica and lap steel. Food trucks will open Friday at 11:30 a.m. The free Noontunes concert series continues Sept. 17 with soul, R&B and jazz vocalist Synamon Townsend and Sept. 24 with an artist to be announced. Presented by River City Company in partnership with the city of Chattanooga Office of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Noontunes features Chattanooga-area musicians each Thursday in September.

The Chattanooga Police Department has launched a pilot program that uses drones to respond to 911 and police-generated calls, giving officers live video of incidents before they arrive on scene.

The Drone First Responder program uses two drones stationed at Chattanooga Fire Department stations at 2181 Curtis St. and 3250 Eighth Ave. Police said the locations were selected based on data showing where violent crime most frequently occurs.

We live in a world without Dolly Parton now; a world that’s a little less joyous, a little less beautiful, a little less kind. Perhaps a lot less, on all counts.

The tributes have come in from everywhere. Fellow entertainers, political figures, even an edifice: The Empire State Building was lit up in pink on the evening of her passing at 9:25, a nod to her hit song and movie “9 to 5.”

Your credit score can play a surprisingly big role in your financial life. From renting an apartment to getting a cellphone plan, your credit score can open doors or close them. 

Your credit score predicts how likely you are to pay bills on time. Lenders, landlords and even some employers use this number to evaluate how responsible you appear to be. A higher score signals that you’re reliable with money, which can lead to lower interest rates on loans, better insurance premiums and easier access to credit. Some service providers may even waive security deposits if you have a strong score.

Faizon Brandon could have returned home to North Carolina to visit family and friends during breaks from practice in the offseason. But the University of Tennessee true freshman quarterback wanted to give himself the best chance to play, so he chose to remain in Knoxville.

Coach Robert Saleh has pushed his chips to the center of the table, each metaphorically emblazoned with the face of second-year quarterback Cam Ward.

“This kid’s not going to fail,” Saleh said after his team’s 24-15 loss to the Chicago Bears in the preseason finale. “Obviously, I put my job on that one, but he’s not going to fail. He’s special.”

The Titans waived Will Levis during Sunday roster cuts, deciding to roll with just Cam Ward and Mitch Trubisky as their quarterbacks on the 53-man roster.

In the three years-plus that Levis was with the Titans, he went from zero to hero and back with the fan base, some of whom were skeptical from the start about him as an NFL quarterback.

Fun-to-drive coupés have been on the wane in the past few decades, which makes it worth paying attention when a new one shows up. 

The Honda Prelude returns after a 26-year hiatus for 2026, and it’s got some interesting elements to it. It comes standard with a frugal hybrid power train – which you wouldn’t necessarily associate with a performance coupé – combined with a specialized suspension and braking system to enhance the car’s handling and stopping.

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The Southeastern Conference filed a lawsuit against LSU and its leadership in Alabama federal court on Thursday, alleging the school had "waged a deliberate and coordinated campaign to recruit professional athletes" against league rules.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors have charged a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer with lying to investigators about the events leading up to the shooting of a Venezuelan man during the Minneapolis immigration crackdown earlier this year, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.

The Southeastern Conference's next — and maybe last — chance to keep players who spent time with NFL teams this summer from being added to LSU's football roster comes in a federal court in Alabama.

With a Friday deadline looming for SEC schools to set their rosters for the season, the league went to federal court in Birmingham to sue LSU — along with coach Lane Kiffin and the school's athletic director and president — hoping for a different result than it got Thursday night from a state court in Louisiana.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida announced a multiyear sponsorship deal with Ripple on Friday that will generate $5 million annually by placing field logos in the Swamp, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither side disclosed financial terms.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A former Justice Department pardon attorney who says she was fired after she refused to recommend the restoration of actor Mel Gibson's gun rights sued Thursday over her termination, calling it illegal punishment for her unwillingness to grant a "political favor" to a friend of President Donald Trump.

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Volkswagen's sweeping restructuring underlines the force of the China shock hitting Germany's economy as the world's biggest car market, short years ago a major profit center, rapidly becomes a major competitive challenge.

NEW YORK (AP) — Elon Musk sent dozens of self-driving Cybercabs without steering wheels or brake pedals onto the streets of Austin, Texas, on Thursday, betting that Americans will overcome their fears of rides with "no control" and hop inside.

The rollout of the gold-colored Teslas, which give passengers no way to take control in an emergency, comes as the company prepares to launch the service in other cities. Tesla shares have suffered amid a slump in vehicle sales, but they rose more than 5% Thursday on hopes that the futuristic-looking taxis will catch on quickly.

CHICAGO (AP) — Diesel hit a record price in the U.S. on Friday, soaring to an average of $5.85 a gallon for the first time as the six-month war with Iran disrupts the world's flow of fuel.

Because diesel is used for many freight and delivery networks, higher diesel prices mean higher transportation costs for a long list of everyday goods.

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South African civil rights groups are calling for a halt to the construction of additional data centers in the country until the use of scarce water, land and electricity resources has been investigated.

With South Africa positioning itself as Africa's main data hub and U.S. technology companies like Amazon, Microsoft and Equinix increasingly setting up digital infrastructure in the country, civil society organizations have raised the alarm about the lack of transparency around the projects.

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Wisconsin's candidates for governor want to limit them, while Pennsylvania's say they support a ban. A Michigan congressional candidate called them "un-American." A Florida Senate candidate is selling merch opposing them.

Across the country and up and down ballots, candidates from both parties are increasingly on the attack over Flock cameras, the AI-powered nationwide network of automated cameras that record license plates and other characteristics of all passing vehicles, allowing law enforcement agencies to search and share that data. Although police say the cameras are an invaluable crime-fighting tool, some critics say their pervasiveness amounts to unconstitutional warrantless mass surveillance.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday named Adam Telle, a civilian leader in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as the acting Army secretary following the departure of Dan Driscoll amid widespread reports of tensions with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President JD Vance on Thursday rejected the use of the word "war" to describe the U.S. fighting with Iran as he steered clear of predicting that the 6-month-old conflict would be over by November's midterm elections, in which Republicans are trying to hang on to their narrow majorities in Congress.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer charged with lying to investigators about the events leading up to the shooting of a Venezuelan man during the Minneapolis immigration crackdown turned himself in Thursday to federal authorities, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.

A supervisor overseeing background checks warned last year that Immigration and Customs Enforcement was hiring many new officers who had not undergone basic vetting, violating federal rules and putting the agency at risk of misconduct, a newly released whistleblower complaint shows.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. job market rebounded in August as employers added a surprising 162,000 jobs. The unemployment rate stayed at a low 4.1%.

Hiring far exceeded the 65,000 forecasters had expected, according to a poll by FactSet. Labor Department revisions also looked good, adding 55,000 to June and July payrolls. Employers created 21,000 jobs in July; the Labor Department had originally reported that they'd cut 23,000.

SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil's government and the country's exporters of meat, poultry, eggs, honey and other animal products scrambled Thursday after a European Union deadline expired, triggering a suspension of imports over concerns about the use of antibiotics and antimicrobial drugs in livestock.

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil's Senate Wednesday night approved a landmark bill to regulate the exploration of critical and strategic minerals in the South American country, a step toward increased exploitation of its vast reserves of rare earths that are second only to China.

NEW YORK (AP) — Former Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer oversaw a "toxic, intimidating and humiliating" work environment and engaged in numerous violations of department policy, according to a new report from the department's Office of Inspector General.

Asked about the trade war with Canada on Wednesday, President Donald Trump falsely claimed that U.S. banks are not allowed to do business with its neighbor to the north.

The allegation came during a meeting with U.S. travel executives in the Oval Office, after a reporter asked Trump whether there are plans for renewed trade talks between the two countries.

HAVANA (AP) — The U.S. government on Thursday slapped new sanctions on Cuba in a fresh push to strangle the island's economy and deepen its multiple crises.

Among those hit with sanctions are Fidel Ernesto Castro, grandson of former President Raúl Castro, and Cuba's Oil Industry Supply Import Company, known as Abapet. The company is responsible for importing special equipment and spare parts needed to sustain Cuba's crumbling power grid.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House website on Thursday unveiled Arcade, a collection of five low-resolution video games that promote different aspects of President Donald Trump's agenda.

"Build the Wall" is a "Tetris" knockoff that transforms the classic game into an effort to "Protect the border from the coming horde." In "Rio Run," which resembles the mobile favorite "Snake," an icon resembling Trump runs around gathering potential border crossers.

WASHINGTON (AP) — An unexplained Trump administration hold on construction of a state-federal project aimed at preventing invasive carp from reaching the Great Lakes was abruptly lifted this week, hours after a call to President Donald Trump by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.