News - Friday, September 25, 2026

The secret to carving Dolly Parton into a cornfield, Dianne Fetzer says, is knowing a little algebra.

Once her likeness is replicated, the trick is keeping track of the people who wander into her hair.

“We check every Thursday to make sure nobody’s left behind,” Fetzer says.

A Chattanooga-area house had been home to the same family for 45 years.

By the time Realtor Bekah Cochran became involved, however, the family was facing a difficult transition.

The owners were aging and needed assisted living. Their daughter and son-in-law were helping them make the transition, and Cochran began working with the family to figure out what to do with the home.

A foundational principle of our democratic republic is that the will of the people is the basis of the government’s authority. This principle is one of the “self-evident” truths in the Declaration of Independence: “Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

Is the market slowing down, or is it simply giving buyers and sellers a little more breathing room?

August’s numbers suggest there’s still plenty of activity in the Chattanooga region. Pending sales increased, inventory grew and prices continued to rise, even as homes spent a little more time on the market.

The Trust Company of Tennessee has hired Deena Turner as a relationship manager.

Turner brings 30 years of experience in financial services, insurance and relationship management. In her new role, she will work with clients to identify and pursue their financial and retirement goals.

National Park Partners will kick off the 21st season of the Rita Vital Memorial Moccasin Bend Lecture Series at 7 p.m. at the Tennessee Aquarium River Journey Auditorium. Dr. Brett Riggs, a noted research archaeologist at Western Carolina University and leading scholar of Cherokee archaeology and history, will present “Fort Armistead and the Cherokee Removal,” exploring the Tennessee site’s role in the forced removal of Cherokee people in 1838 and its later use during the Civil War. Admission is free thanks to the support of Tennessee Rep. Greg Vital, but seating is limited and advance registration is required to guarantee a spot.

Tennessee residents whose driver’s licenses have not been recognized or accepted by Transportation Security Administration scanners can receive replacement licenses at no charge.

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security says a small number of state-issued driver’s licenses are not being recognized by TSA. The department is reviewing the affected licenses to determine the cause and correct the issue.

A fire engine approached a downtown Chattanooga intersection the morning of Sept. 16, but instead of relying solely on motorists to notice its flashing lights, hear its siren and get out of the way, the truck communicated directly with the traffic system.

EPB has launched an IonQ quantum computer at its Chattanooga quantum center, adding commercial quantum computing to the quantum networking capabilities already operating at the facility.

The IonQ Forte Enterprise computer went online Friday, Sept. 18, at the EPB Quantum Center. According to EPB, the addition makes the center the first U.S. facility to provide commercial access to both a trapped-ion quantum computer and a photonics-based local quantum network.

Feeling financially fulfilled means so much more than just the number in your bank account. It’s about being able to take your family out to dinner without calculating whether you can afford it. It means sleeping soundly on a Sunday night, knowing that if the water heater gives out tomorrow, you can handle it. And it’s saying yes to a vacation because you planned ahead and the money is there.

What are we to make of the Tennessee Titans’ improved play?

Is it a real, sustainable stride forward that could eventually lead to wins down the road? Or was Sunday’s late loss to the Philadelphia Eagles just more of the fool’s gold the Titans have shown us in early season games the past couple of years?

Sunday is going to be a reunion for many when the Tennessee Titans visit the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium.

Several Titans players and coaches made the trek south when former Giants coach Brian Daboll came to Tennessee to be the Titans’ new offensive coordinator.

The Titans hit the road in search of their first win of Robert Saleh’s tenure as head coach and will try to secure that win in the same stadium where Saleh was head coach of the New York Jets.

Granted, it will be the Giants as the opponent, and the two sides are quite familiar with each other. Here is a look at what the Titans need to do on Sunday to secure that win.

Crossovers have become a popular choice for buyers who want the practicality of an SUV without the size and expense of a larger vehicle. For many shoppers, that means finding a vehicle that’s easy to live with, offers enough room for everyday duties, keeps fuel costs in check and provides the versatility to be useful for a range of needs.

Man, your dogs are tired. They started howling about halfway through your day and you can’t wait to kick off your shoes, shed the socks or stockings and relax.

Then, you’ll put a couple blocks of foamy plastic on your feet and read in the new book “Croc,” by George “Boe” Boedecker, Jr., about those “ugly” shoes.

NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Titans have one of the NFL's most respected special teams coordinators and a kicker with a strong leg.

Yet they're struggling mightily when it comes to kickoffs.

"We need to get better at it," Titans coach Robert Saleh said. "We need to make teams return the kick, we need to cover kicks, we need to find ways to create advantageous situations coming off a kickoff."

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A Republican California sheriff must return more than a half-million ballots he seized for an investigation into unfounded voting improprieties in a special election last year, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco in February seized approximately 650,000 ballots from a November 2025 special election on statewide congressional redistricting favorable to Democrats and pushed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. The measure easily passed statewide, and won in Bianco's county by roughly 80,000 votes.

NEW YORK (AP) — Three news organizations banned from the White House for days were back Thursday, after a judge handed CNN, MS NOW and Politico a reprieve in an extraordinary showdown between President Donald Trump and outlets whose coverage he dislikes.

ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) — The Energy Department said Thursday that it will spend almost $2 billion to try to squeeze more electricity out of the nation's aging and stressed power grid, as President Donald Trump's administration steps up efforts to avoid blackouts amid skyrocketing energy demand spurred by artificial intelligence.

NEW YORK (AP) — More than 83 tons of meat are being recalled across the U.S. because the products were not properly inspected by federal authorities and were shipped out with falsified inspection stickers, the Department of Agriculture said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Food and Drug Administration voiced support for the safety of long-established vaccines at a hearing Thursday, even as senators questioned her about the White House's efforts to upend childhood immunizations.

NEW YORK (AP) — The nation's cybersecurity agency on Thursday released an election infrastructure security plan 40 days before November's midterms, laying out potential threats to election systems and listing services it would offer to election officials to protect the vote.

NEW YORK (AP) — Nearly everyone will feel the impact of what's going on in the bond market, no matter how far away and abstract it may seem.

Bond yields have jumped to their highest levels in roughly two decades, and that affects anyone who borrows money. That includes discouraged people trying to keep up with high inflation, as well as businesses wanting to build data centers for artificial-intelligence technology.

NEW YORK (AP) — After whipping through a couple sudden reversals, stocks ended a shaky day of trading on Wall Street Thursday roughly where they began.

The S&P 500 finished nearly flat and edged down by less than 0.1% following several turns between losses and gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 161 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite added less than 0.1%.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday hailed the "truly great friendship" he has forged with Xi Jinping as the Chinese leader began his highly anticipated state visit by pressing for the world's two biggest economies to work more closely together to avoid friction as they compete.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Despite rising political anxiety over the Iran war, senators on Thursday narrowly rejected a war powers resolution seeking to halt President Donald Trump 's military action, which has been largely blamed for the spike in gas prices and become a flashpoint in the midterm election.