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  • State of the Union v. State of the Swamp?

    Plus: Protests and reader soundoff Share with a friend Amie here with your Tuesday events! If you’re in Mason City, go vote today. The televised Trump rally State of the Union is tonight, which you can watch here live. Or, you can watch The People’s State of the Union from MoveOn.org, or State of the Swamp…


  • 🗞️ Please, we want to hear your opinion again

    What’s one thing you’d change about how you get news here? Dear Iowa Starting Line reader, Thank you for being a part of the community we’re building here at Iowa Starting Line. As a reader supported news organization, you’re at the center of everything we do. Our audience grew significantly last year, and we’d like…


  • Where to find fish frys in NE Iowa

    Plus: Positively Iowa & pet photos! Share with a friend 🗣️ It’s Friday. Ramadan Mubarak to our Muslim readers!   Time for Only in Iowa, Positively Iowa, this week’s pet photo, and news you can use.   It’s Public Schools Week next week, but Iowa public schools aren’t doing great. Maybe we should fund them? Nah,…


  • Hope you haven’t changed your last name, women!

    Plus: Meet a candidate, protests, and a viral post Share with a friend Amie here. As someone who has changed my last name from what it was at birth, the current SAVE Act currently in the US Senate is a tad worrisome. (Scroll down for more on that.) New map for Iowa cancer rates by…


  • Iowa’s Winter Olympians and Paralympians to watch

    Plus: Positively Iowa & pet photos! Share with a friend 🗣️ It’s Friday the 13th, and Galentine’s Day: Time for Only in Iowa, Positively Iowa, this week’s pet photo, and news you can use. (NOTE: I am moving reader replies to Tuesdays to shorten this one up a bit, so find them there next week!)…


  • Valentine’s Day? In THIS economy?

    Plus: Meet a candidate, protests, and a viral post Share with a friend Amie here. We’re still having Valentine’s Day? In THIS economy? (Link goes to the most depressing candy heart messages you’ve ever seen.) Where’s the beef? Beef industry groups are once again looking for nominations for Iowa’s Best Burger. Nominations opened yesterday and…


  • 🗣️ Your letters: ‘Communist bastards’ and Buxton stories

    Plus: Your emails and Positively Iowa Share with a friend 🗣️ It’s Friday: Time for Only in Iowa, Positively Iowa, this week’s pet photo, and reader replies.   I give it three stars: Want to help fight increasing light pollution? Check out the Orion constellation this month or next, then report your findings to the Globe…


  • Iowa’s little-known Black history

    Plus: Meet a candidate, protests, and a viral post Share with a friend Amie here. It’s February, the shortest month, and that clearly sedated groundhog saw his shadow yesterday, meaning six more weeks of winter (ughhhhh).   It’s Black History Month. Here are some cool stories of Black Iowa history you might not know about.…


  • 6 Iowa waterfalls that are even more stunning in winter

    Plus: Your emails and Positively Iowa Share with a friend 🗣️ It’s Friday: Time for Only in Iowa, Positively Iowa, this week’s pet photo, and reader replies.   RAGBRAI route announced: The annual cross-state party on wheels will start this July in Onawa and end up in Dubuque, organizers announced this week. It’s the shortest route…


  • Trump comes to Iowa today. Here’s what to know

    Plus: Meet a candidate, protests, and a viral post Share with a friend Amie here. President Donald Trump is in Iowa today and will be giving a speech at the Horizon Events Center in Clive at 3 p.m. (A link to register for the event has apparently been taken down.)   Are you headed to the…