Ashby wants to chart Staunton on new fiscal course

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham [email protected] Rusty Ashby is concerned about the fiscal future of the Queen City. “I think it’s acquired a lot of debt over the last few years, and I think there’s going to be some real infrastructure needs – with roads, with water and sewer, those things that people don’t like to…

Local TV options for DirecTV subscribers in Valley

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham [email protected] Some Valley satellite-TV subscribers will finally be able to receive local television stations as part of their channel lineups. DirecTV is providing local TV stations in the Harrisonburg TV market – including Harrisonburg and Rockingham and Staunton, Waynesboro and Augusta – beginning today. The news was announced yesterday by Sixth…

Father of AFP editor passes away

Chris Graham

William Mark “Billy” Graham, 54, of 30 Fishersville Station Road, Fishersville, died at 6:30 a.m. Wednesday (Jan. 2, 2008) at his home. He was born Sept. 14, 1953 in Deerfield, the son of the late John and Mary Adkins Graham. He was employed for 20 years at General Electric and Genicom in Waynesboro. He was also…

Local United Way readying for funding allocations

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham [email protected] Agencies that had shied away from applying for funding allocations from the United Way of Greater Augusta because of the charitable organization’s fund-raising blackouts got some good news last month. The local United Way has done away with the restrictions on raising money during the United Way campaign season for…

Peering into the Crystal Ball …

Chris Graham

Winners and Losers column by Chris Graham [email protected] PUSH: Waynesboro voters continue to send mixed message The River City mirrors America – split right down the middle in the November bond referendum, the voters send a mix of conservatives and progressives to city council in May, thus guaranteeing more 3-2 splits on the issues of…

Obscenity v. The First Amendment: Why the prosecution of X-rated films affects books

Chris Graham

Story by Matthew Warner What’s so horrible about porn other than the poor quality of most of it? And why should you care? ‘LITERARY OBSCENITY’ Watch out, you writers and purveyors of erotic horror and explicit romance. The folks here in my Bible Belt city of Staunton, Virginia, care quite a bit. Last summer, when…

Big fish in a small media-market pond: These broadcast mainstays in Valley, Charlottesville aren’t going anywhere anytime soon

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham [email protected] When you’re a TV weatherman, a trip to the local burger place can be a challenge not unlike the 10K races that Eric Pritchett runs when he’s not standing in front of a television screen telling us what Mother Nature has in store for us tomorrow. “What’s it going to…