Meta to Pay NC $645 Million

Meta agreed to pay North Carolina up to $645 million to settle claims it designed Instagram and Facebook to hook children.

The deal, announced Wednesday by Attorney General Jeff Jackson and 50 other attorneys general, is part of a $17.1 billion national settlement. North Carolina’s guaranteed share is at least $451 million, paid in installments through 2035.

The company must also overhaul both apps for teens by installing a two-hour daily limit for users ages 13 to 17, requiring feeds to go dark from midnight to 6 a.m., silencing notifications during school hours, and hiding “like” counts. Parents can adjust the limits by linking their accounts.

Meta did not admit wrongdoing and called the claims unsubstantiated, framing the deal as a new industry standard and pressing rivals TikTok and YouTube to follow.

Stein Seeks to Delay Election Rules

Democrat Gov. Josh Stein asked a state commission Wednesday to delay three new election rules just days before absentee ballots go out.

In a letter to the Rules Review Commission, Stein objected to rules the Republican-led State Board of Elections adopted in July covering absentee ballots and voter ID exceptions. If cleared, they would take effect Sept. 1, three days before counties begin mailing absentee ballots.

“Implementing such changes so close to an election invites confusion and undermines faith in our democratic process,” Stein wrote.

The state board says the rules bring more consistent procedures to county election offices. Critics counter that they could lead to legitimate ballots being thrown out, or to partisan decisions.

Stein already vetoed a broader Republican election bill this month. The commission has received at least 10 written objections to these rules, enough to trigger a legislative review under state law.

Fauci Advised Cooper’s COVID School Delay

Newly released diary entries show Dr. Anthony Fauci privately advised Gov. Roy Cooper to delay North Carolina’s 2020 school-reopening decision.

Fauci’s diary, released by the U.S. Senate Homeland Security Committee, recounts a 45-minute call on June 29, 2020, in which, by Fauci’s account, Cooper agonized over being the first governor to decide on fall classrooms. Two days later, Cooper delayed the announcement by two weeks without noting Fauci’s role.

The John Locke Foundation’s Donald Bryson said residents “should not have to wait six years and read Dr. Fauci’s private diary” to learn what shaped a decision affecting 1.5 million students. Cooper said at the time that he wanted classrooms open, and later struck a bipartisan reopening deal with Republican lawmakers in March 2021.

Fact-checkers who reviewed the diary, including PolitiFact, found claims that Fauci concealed that his private views were “largely unsupported,” noting his stated default favored reopening schools.

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Statewide: North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein ordered U.S. and state flags at facilities lowered to half-staff through Sept. 1 to honor country music icon Dolly Parton, who died Tuesday. (More)

➤ Also Statewide: Jails across North Carolina are running short of beds as stricter pretrial release rules, court backlogs, and slow prison transfers keep inmates locked up longer, sheriffs say. (More)

➤ Charlotte: The North Carolina Court of Appeals heard arguments over whether NCDOT must pay full market value when it takes an easement in a Mecklenburg County case with potential multibillion-dollar consequences for thousands of similar takings statewide. (More)

➤ Triangle: License plate-reading Flock cameras have spread across the region, fueling a privacy debate regarding police being able to pull a vehicle’s location history without a warrant, which legal experts say tests Fourth Amendment protections. (More)

➤ Brevard: Meanwhile, Transylvania County commissioners discussed controversial Flock license plate cameras earlier this week after citizen complaints, with one vowing to vote no while the sheriff defended their law enforcement benefits. (More)

➤ Fort Bragg: A Laurinburg man, Kenneth Maurice Quick Jr., 26, received three life sentences plus 83 years in federal court for the December 2020 murders of an active-duty soldier and a former soldier. (More)

➤ Wilmington: The C.W. Worth House Bed & Breakfast, a Queen Anne-style inn built in 1893, was named the nation’s best bed and breakfast in USA TODAY’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards, its top finish in three of the past four years. (More)

Enjoy reading Flyover North Carolina? Click here to share with your friends and family. ✈️

➤ Wake Forest football named former UNC quarterback Gio Lopez their starter for 2026. He went 4-7 as a starter for the Tar Heels last year before transferring. (More)

➤ The Wake Forest and Winston-Salem State marching bands will perform together at Wake Forest’s Sept. 3 home opener against Akron, the third time the two schools have united for an opening night performance. (More)

➤ North Carolina basketball center Cameron Fens is likely ineligible after a Tennessee appeals court stayed the injunction that had granted him a fifth college season. Fens committed to UNC in early August expecting to play. (More)

➤ Yesterday’s Results: NFL | MLB | Golf | U.S. Open | Soccer | WNBA | Little League World Series

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ What Happens To Your Body When You Drink The Wrong Water Daily? Drinking the wrong kind of water could be the reason for skyrocketing levels of fatigue, weight gain, and rapid aging. That’s why this former heart surgeon is urging all Americans to make this one tweak to their water now. Those who have are reporting better weight management, more energy, and smoother skin. ==> Watch this breaking presentation now

➤ Researchers at NC State and the state’s Horticultural Crops Research Station are testing sensor patches that “smell” the gases leaves emit, aiming to catch disease up to a week before symptoms appear and curb crop losses that run into the billions. (More)

➤ Boater’s World Manufacturing Group will invest more than $6 million and create 179 jobs at a boat-building campus in Chocowinity, Gov. Josh Stein announced, taking over a 212,000-square-foot Pamlico River plant to build the NauticStar line. (More)

➤ The NC Vintage Bazaar returns to Raleigh’s Jim Graham Building Aug. 29-30 for its 10th event, with more than 200 vintage vendors over the weekend and a Sunday set by rapper Soulja Boy. Tickets start at $10. (More)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Struggling with blood pressure management? The Vital Wrist Blood Pressure Monitor helps monitor your vital signs accurately at home without expensive doctor visits or unreliable readings. Learn more

Flying together with our sponsor

Summer is here. Are you ready to look and feel your best? Direct Meds makes it easier with doctor-supervised GLP-1 weight-loss treatment delivered right to your door. Whether you’re aiming to slim down, boost your confidence, or finally fit into your favorite summer clothes, Direct Meds offers a simple online process and personalized care every step of the way.

For a limited time, new customers can get $150 OFF their first order. Start your summer transformation today and see why thousands are choosing Direct Meds.

➤ NASA astronaut and North Carolina native Christina Koch received the Order of the Tar Heel from Labor Commissioner Luke Farley in Raleigh on Tuesday, honoring the Artemis II crew member’s record-setting career and her push for STEM education. (See Photo)

➤ Crown3, a professional 3-on-3 basketball league founded by two-time NBA champion Josh Powell, brings its 2026 tour to Raleigh’s JD Lewis Center on Sunday, billing itself as an athlete ecosystem focused on community and personal growth. (More)

➤ The NC State Turtle Rescue Team, run largely by veterinary students in Raleigh, treats hundreds of injured turtles, as well as other reptiles and amphibians, each year before returning them to the wild. (See Photos)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ Women Over 50: Why You’re Losing Muscle (And 3 Ways to Stop It) Losing 1% of muscle yearly after 50? Harvard warns this leads to lost independence. But a Doctor of Physical Therapy discovered three simple rules to reverse age-related muscle loss—no weightlifting required. Takes seconds daily and delivers stronger bones, better balance, natural energy, and lifelong independence. (Learn more)

The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes. 

➤ A military judge has finally set a trial date for the accused leader of the Sept. 11 attacks after decades of delays and setbacks. (Full Story)

➤ The Army will build nuclear reactors at five major bases to protect its power supply from vulnerable outside grids. (Hear Details)

➤ A Virginia doctor woke up to a bat trying to crawl into her mouth, and now she has an urgent warning. (Hear Warning)

Have you ever seen a sea turtle nest in person?

1. Yes
2. No

Yesterday’s Results:

Did you ever see Dolly Parton perform live?

1. Yes: 10%
2. No: 90%

Which two well-known American historical figures appear in the ancestry of the Worth family, who originally owned the C.W. Worth House bed and breakfast?

Show me the answer