BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Barnett Wright, executive editor of The Birmingham Times, will leave his post Feb. 27 after roughly a decade in the role, closing out a period in which the weekly Black newspaper modernized its operations while maintaining its civil-rights-era mission. Under Wright’s leadership, The Birmingham Times expanded digital coverage, deepened community features and…

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A gigantic Basilosaurus skeleton with deep Alabama roots is now greeting visitors in the lobby of McWane Science Center, offering a larger‑than‑life welcome to downtown Birmingham’s family‑friendly science hub. The new mount showcases Alabama’s official state fossil as a soaring centerpiece and ties the Magic City to an ancient ocean that covered…

MONTEVALLO, Ala. — The University of Montevallo, long known as Alabama’s only public liberal arts college and a haven for quirky, creative students, is cutting a slate of minors and degree concentrations as it works to close a multimillion-dollar budget gap, including African American Studies and Peace and Justice Studies. The Board of Trustees voted…

CALERA, Ala. — A 23-year-old woman was shot to death in a north Calera home Thursday night, the latest domestic violence killing to rattle a community on Birmingham’s southern fringe. Calera police said officers were called to a residence on The Heights Drive late Thursday, Feb. 12, where they found 23-year-old Jennifer Talley of Calera…

HANCEVILLE, Ala. — Nearly a year after a grand jury said the Hanceville Police Department had become a “criminal enterprise” and urged that it be “immediately abolished,” city leaders have now done exactly that, voting this week to dissolve the department and shut down the municipal court that depended on its cases. On Thursday night,…

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — An Alabama lawmaker’s bid to restrict so‑called “chemtrails” is drawing new attention to a long‑running conspiracy theory that scientists say has no basis in fact, even as the proposal advances alongside other efforts to limit state environmental rules. Rep. Mack Butler, R‑Rainbow City, is sponsoring House Bill 25, which would prohibit “the…