Dec 24, 2024

O Fraser fir

Laura Hackett/Blue Ridge Public Radio

We visit Christmas tree farmers in North Carolina hit hard by Hurricane Helene. Plus, old-school restaurants and the Arctic tundra.

Segments From this episode

Minimum wages will rise in more states and cities in 2025

by Mitchell Hartman

Dec 24, 2024

The $7.25 federal minimum wage has not changed for more than 15 years, but state and local increases have proved popular with voters.

Twenty states still follow the federal minimum wage, which has been stuck at $7.25 since July 2009. Above, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders speaks at a news conference in 2023.

Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images

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Netflix bets big on Christmas NFL streaming

by Meghan McCarty Carino

Dec 24, 2024

Despite hiccups with a boxing match, the ad revenue a live football double bill would bring is one of the reasons it's worth the gamble.

One reason Netflix is dipping its toe into streaming live sports? Advertising dollars. The vast majority of most-watched broadcast television programs in 2023 were NFL games.

Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images

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Christmas tree farmers in North Carolina struggle through a challenging season

by Laura Hackett

Dec 24, 2024

Farmers and scientists are concerned Hurricane Helene floodwaters may have spread a deadly fungus to the region's beloved Fraser firs.

Dee Clark examines a Fraser fir — prized for its shape, smell and the way it holds its needles — at his farm in Pineola, North Carolina. He estimates his losses from Helene are about $3 million.

Laura Hackett/Blue Ridge Public Radio

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A Warmer World

For millennia, the Arctic absorbed more carbon than it emitted. That's changed.

by Amy Scott and Maria Hollenhorst

Dec 24, 2024

The region is warming much faster than the rest of the planet and releasing greenhouse gases from its thawing soil. Umair Irfan of Vox explains.

As the Arctic warms, it is releasing greenhouses gases from its thawing soil and becoming more accessible to oil and gas extraction.

Maxim Marmur/AFP via Getty Images

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Old-school restaurants bank on nostalgia to keep holiday diners coming back

by Corinne Ruff

Dec 24, 2024

Many family-owned eateries are built on tradition. This time of year, they host tradition-seeking regulars coming in for holiday get-togethers.

The deli business at Monte Carlo triples just ahead of Christmas Eve as regulars stock up on staples like sausage and roast beef.

Corinne Ruff

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Music from the episode

"Aminals" Baths

"Just a Memory" Dirty Art Club

"Lost Girl Noelle (Deltarune)" GlitchxCity, DJ Cutman

"Esperar Pra Ver" Poolside, Fatnotronic

"Wavelengths" Mocky

The team

Nancy Farghalli Executive Producer

Maria Hollenhorst Producer II

Andie Corban Producer I

Sarah Leeson Producer I

Sean McHenry Director & Associate Producer II

Sofia Terenzio Associate Producer I

Jordan Mangi Assistant Digital Producer

Nicholas Guiang Assistant Producer

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