Good Thursday. West Virginia University mens basketball head coach Bob Huggins was handed a three-game suspension and a $1 million salary reduction in response to his using a homophobic slur in a live radio show earlier this week. He'll still make $3.2 million per year (and will still have a job), but the $1 million loss in salary will go to WVU's LGBTQ+ Center, the Carruth Center and other state and national organizations that support marginalized communities. the Charleston Gazette-Mail's Jared MacDonald reports.
Here are some other stories that caught my attention today. Take a look at this:
- Frito-Lay Distribution Center: PepsiCo's Frito-Lay held a ribbon cutting ceremony at their new distribution center in Scott Depot on Wednesday. The $16 million facility will employ nearly 100 associates, according to the Herald-Dispatch's Fred Pace. Staff photographer Sholten Singer was also on hand at the ceremony, capturing several photos for an online gallery on H-D's website. (Fred Pace and Sholten Singer, The Herald-Dispatch)
- Fiddlin' Fancy: Phillip Bowen, a 38-year-old fiddler originally from Montgomery, West Virginia, has been playing the traditional instrument since he was little. He now shares music to great acclaim on social media, taking well-known songs (like Coolio's "Gangster Paradise") and adapting them to the fiddle. Podcaster Trey Kay, host of the "Us and Them" podcast, recently spoke with Bowen about his music and the place he grew up. (Trey Kay, Us & Them)
- Mass Killings: In the first four months of this year, 115 people have died in 22 mass killings in the United States, according to reporting shared on the Boston Globe's Instagram page. (That's an average of one mass killing a week.) In each of those 22 mass killings, firearms were used, the report said. Click the link to view the Globe's charts and maps that further tell the story. (Martin Finucane and Christina Prignano, The Boston Globe)