Scott Finn

Since Donald Trump’s election, membership in the ACLU of West Virginia has gone up 30 percent, according to executive director Joseph Cohen.

On The Front Porch podcast, Cohen discussed how his organization is preparing for President Trump in three areas:

Drug wholesalers sent 780 million hydrocodone and oxycodone pills into West Virginia over six years, according to an investigation by the Charleston Gazette-Mail.

Meanwhile, 1,728 West Virginians died from overdoses of these two powerful painkillers.

Who let it happen? Investigative reporter Eric Eyre, of the Charleston Gazette-Mail, answered our questions about his series on The Front Porch.

Ken Hechler, longtime West Virginia Congressman, Secretary of State, WWII veteran and author of "The Bridge at Remagen," has died. He was 102.

Hechler served in Congress from 1959 to 1977 and became an advocate for coal mine health and safety, and environmental protection.

How could a billionaire born into wealth become the champion of the white working class?

That question stumped a lot of liberal commentators, but Joan Williams wasn’t surprised.

Williams studies the white working class and is founding director of the Center for WorkLife Law at UC Hastings College of the Law.

Last week in Charleston, a white man shot and killed a black teen, 15-year-old James Means. The accused told police, “The way I look at it, that's another piece of trash off the street."

Unlike other cities where similar things happened, Charleston did not erupt into violent protests.

Why did so much of middle America vote Trump? J.B. Akers says it’s too simple to write it off to racism and misogyny.

Akers is a West Virginia lawyer whose blog post on the Trump election went viral. It’s called, “Trump Won and I Don't Understand Why You Don't Understand.”

Akers said he was motivated to write the essay after reading the reaction of his more cosmopolitan friends on social media.

Does our focus on revitalizing the coal industry hinder the state from diversifying its economy?

A majority of West Virginians want the focus to be on diversification over protecting the coal industry, according to a new survey.

The working class is in trouble - especially the part with roots in Appalachia.

In his best-selling memoir "Hillbilly Elegy," J.D. Vance tells how he escaped the chaos of his mother's drug abuse and serial boyfriends/husbands.

In an interview with "Inside Appalachia," Vance acknowledges the role de-industrialization plays in working-class decline. But he says cultural decline may be even more important.

Our podcast "Inside Appalachia" inspired Matthew Shirley to take a trip to our region. This is a pretty cool fact by itself, made even cooler by where Matthew is from: England.

By pure chance, Matthew was staying as an Airbnb guest with our health reporter, Kara Lofton. Imagine her surprise when she found out why he came to West Virginia!

Matthew is a primary school principal in Callington, England. He became fascinated with our region after listening to the “Inside Appalachia” podcast. So he decided to come here to see it for himself.

For a state that's already assumed to be firmly in Donald Trump's camp, West Virginia has received a lot of attention at the Democratic National Convention.

Often in times like these, you hear about the need for a "national conversation about race." But what exactly does this conversation sound like?

This week on The Front Porch, Rick and Laurie talk to David M. Fryson, West Virginia University Vice President and Director of WVU's Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, about "the conversation," and why it's important to have one when there isn't a crisis.

Subscribe to "The Front Porch" podcast on iTunes or however you listen to podcasts.

If you think there’s no longer a need for volunteers or donations for flood victims – state Senator Chris Walters wants to set you straight.

Walters represents the flood-damaged communities of Clendenin and Elkview. Shortly after the flood, he helped set up a staging area for volunteers and donations.

Did you know West Virginia has a plan, more than a decade in the making, designed to save lives and prevent damage from floods?

And what if you found out this plan is mostly gathering dust on a shelf?