Baton Rouge News Today | 2 Min News | The Daily News Now!

Louisiana named K-12 superintendent Cade Brumley to lead its largest university system, all 180 passengers and crew aboard a paddle-wheel cruise ship were accounted for after a tanker struck it near the New Orleans riverfront as investigators examine the cause, and national Democratic strategists are reassessing Deep South political prospects following recent electoral gains and demographic shifts.

⸻

Stories & Sources

After a big blue wave, some Democrats think the Deep South is in play
https://findsource.ai/s/13r0e

5 key takeaways from Mississippi River crash in New Orleans: What happened? What’s ne...

Hancock Whitney agreed to acquire Trustmark in a $3.2 billion all-stock transaction creating a $58 billion-asset regional bank across six Southeastern states, Louisiana’s December congressional runoffs will test whether national Democratic momentum carries into the state, and the LSU Foundation’s assets rose more than 30% to $1.42 billion as it increased campus construction investments and took on over $200 million in bond financing for student housing and parking facilities.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Hancock Whitney to acquire Trustmark in $3.2B deal
https://findsource.ai/s/17bty

‘LaPolitics’: Can Democrats win in the congressional runoffs?
https://fi...

A family of seven safely escaped an overnight house fire in Baton Rouge that investigators believe was intentionally set, firefighters contained the blaze to the front rooms and prevented it from spreading to neighboring homes, and the Red Cross was contacted to assist the seven displaced residents.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Family of 7 escapes overnight house fire; arson suspected
https://findsource.ai/s/u2lba

Adults and children escape after house set on fire, Baton Rouge officials say
https://findsource.ai/s/12ztv

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into the...

Rural voter shifts flipped statewide offices in Texas, Kansas, and Iowa, Zachary scheduled Veterans Day ceremonies alongside the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall, and CVS announced it will split off its pharmacy business.

⸻

Stories & Sources

This time, rural voters ‘just weren’t there’ for the GOP
https://findsource.ai/s/4k0mg

Zachary holds flag-raising ceremony and second annual Veterans Day parade
https://findsource.ai/s/zchl9

CVS is planning a huge corporate breakup after drug price criticism. Did Louisiana play a role?
https://findsource.ai/s/rb8ra <...

Black voting advocates credited organizing for a midterm turnout surge that helped elect Scott Colom as Mississippi’s first Black U.S. senator since Reconstruction and left Jamie Davis narrowly behind in Louisiana, Louisiana Republicans redrew districts to dismantle a majority-Black congressional district, and a Louisiana cook with no criminal record was arrested in an ICE crackdown.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Black voting advocates in the South say the midterm surge was not just a ‘blue wave’
https://findsource.ai/s/1ts36

In some states, Republican redistricting backfired. But what about in Louisian...

Eight years after a hit-and-run killed her son on Florida Boulevard, a Baton Rouge mother continues to press for the driver to come forward and for justice, and Tangipahoa Parish deputies are searching for a 19-year-old suspect in a gunpoint carjacking who is also suspected in other carjackings and a shooting and has outstanding warrants.

⸻

Stories & Sources

‘I’m not letting this go’: Mother of 2018 hit-and-run victim wants answers
https://findsource.ai/s/1cg0y

Couple carjacked at gunpoint in Amite; 19-year-old wanted
https://findsource.ai/s/7zkcz

⸻...

LSU researchers received a nearly $2 million USDA grant to develop a mucosal avian influenza vaccine for poultry, national political organizations are increasing spending in Louisiana after a tighter-than-expected Senate race and ahead of December congressional runoffs, and Louisiana rose 17 spots on the Tax Foundation’s competitiveness index after a tax overhaul while now having the nation’s highest combined average sales tax rate.

⸻

Stories & Sources

LSU gets nearly $2 million USDA grant to develop bird flu vaccine for poultry
https://findsource.ai/s/10qb3

National party money flowing to La. after nail-b...

Baton Rouge pickleball instructor Tim Spinosa appeared on QVC to showcase his tethered-ball training paddle, which has sold 10,000 units and is in talks with major retailers, and Guttmacher Institute data show advanced practice clinicians provided nearly one-third of U.S. abortions last year amid varying state scope-of-practice rules and ongoing legal challenges.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Baton Rouge pickleball instructor’s tethered-ball paddle featured on QVC
https://findsource.ai/s/1r7uz

A third of US abortions provided by non-physicians last year, data show
https://findsource.ai/s/1ncsg

⸻

...

SpaceX is targeting Friday for a Starship test flight that could create a glowing jellyfish-shaped cloud over south Louisiana, the Louisiana attorney general announced 35 arrests in a three-month operation targeting registered sex offenders who illegally used social media and gaming platforms, and Baton Rouge police reported good leads but no arrests 13 days after the fatal shooting of 13-year-old Madison Harris.

⸻

Stories & Sources

SpaceX launch Friday could produce ‘space jellyfish’ visible in Louisiana
https://findsource.ai/s/1yd1y

35 arrests made in Louisiana operation targeting child predators on social media
https...

Louisiana leads the nation in influenza activity for a fourth consecutive week with 208 hospitalizations and six deaths amid elevated positivity and emergency room visits, top Congressional Democrats are urging the Trump administration to delay new Medicaid work requirements set for January 1, and LSU Laboratory School is mourning former championship football coach Willis Stelly.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Flu activity in Louisiana continues to lead the nation
https://findsource.ai/s/x2dmb

States need time to prep for Medicaid work requirements, top Dems in Congress say
https://findsource.ai/s/18u3o ...

BASF launched a $1 billion methylene diphenyl diisocyanate production facility at its Geismar site with 600,000 metric tons of annual capacity as the first phase of an expansion expected to double its MDI capacity, and the Livingston Parish Planning and Zoning Commission approved the final site plan for the approximately 400-person Joe Moore Event Center anchoring a 32-acre mixed-use development along the Diversion Canal.

⸻

Stories & Sources

BASF strengthens Louisiana operations with new $1B production facility
https://findsource.ai/s/qdt7u

Event center advances as part of Livingston mixed-use development
https://fi...

Former LSU coach Ed Orgeron survived a life-threatening sepsis infection after a rapid diagnostic test helped doctors prevent organ damage, a transportation driver pleaded guilty to stealing more than $30,000 in merchandise from interstate shipments, and observers cited signs of a potential economic and cultural renaissance in Louisiana beyond its food, music, and hospitality reputation.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Coach O survives sepsis after innovative diagnostic test
https://findsource.ai/s/n7kpc

Stolen shipments highlight risks along Louisiana’s logistics chain
https://findsource.ai/s/1lcxb

Guest column: Louisiana’s rena...

Collegiate athletic programs across the Gulf South are expanding in-house mental health staffing for Black student-athletes, the University of Louisiana System is reviewing President Rick Gallot’s financial status over $350,000 in reported back taxes, and Baton Rouge’s Nineteenth Judicial District Courthouse is investigating reports of inmates smuggling contraband in holding areas.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Playing college sports can take a toll on Black athletes’ mental health. How are schools helping?
https://findsource.ai/s/1r6jl

UL System President Rick Gallot owes $350K in taxes, records show; he faults accountant
https...

Baton Rouge is moving toward a formal evaluation of whether to end its consolidated government with East Baton Rouge Parish, a group of U.S. senators is threatening to block a stopgap spending bill unless it restricts funding for the conflict in Iran ahead of a December 11 shutdown deadline, and Louisiana Congressman Steve Scalise is weighing his future after losing his House leadership position.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Baton Rouge Weighs Cost of Going It Alone as City-Parish Separation Debate Advances
https://findsource.ai/s/1r3hn

US senators demand end to Ir...

Longtime Catholic High School football coach Dale Weiner has died after a 30-year tenure in which he reached 300 career victories, Baton Rouge’s industrial market is facing a supply crunch as warehouse demand surges and vacancy stands at 4.24 percent, and Scott Colom’s victory is drawing attention for flipping several Mississippi counties and representing a significant Democratic gain in the South.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Long-time Catholic High Coach Dale Weiner has died
https://findsource.ai/s/1u6bt

Baton Rouge industrial market remains tight as warehouse demand surges
https://findsource.ai/s/o...

Louisiana borrowers face resurging federal student loan collections amid high default rates, State Representative Mike Bayham has died at 52 after a serious illness, and the East Ascension Rotary Club is hosting its annual food festival fundraiser in Gonzales.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Collections are coming for millions of student loans in default
https://findsource.ai/s/1u364

‘Very passionate, very principled’: St. Bernard state Rep. Mike Bayham dies
https://findsource.ai/s/106bo

Rotary Club of East Ascension hosting food fest fundraiser
https://findsource.ai/s/3v4rl

...

Former LSU basketball stars, coaches, and community members memorialized late legendary coach Dale Brown with an emotional tribute from Shaquille O’Neal, and Louisiana Representative Michael Bayham Jr. of St. Bernard Parish died at 52, prompting colleagues to remember his commitment to public service.

⸻

Stories & Sources

‘Daddy Dale’: Shaquille O’Neal, former players deliver emotional tribute to LSU legend Dale Brown
https://findsource.ai/s/1kali

Death toll rises to 8 in Brooklyn building collapse as rescuers dig through rubble
https://findsource.ai/s/b6peu

Michael Bayham Jr., first-term...

The Family Resource Group in Baton Rouge launched its 22nd annual holiday sock drive to collect 52,000 pairs of new socks by December 11 for area shelters and outreach groups, and BASF began operations at its expanded Geismar plastics facility, doubling the Ascension Parish plant’s annual capacity to 600,000 metric tons of methylene diphenyl diisocyanate and creating the largest facility of its kind in North America.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Family Resource Group collecting new socks for 22nd annual holiday drive
https://findsource.ai/s/atgg3

BASF starts operations at new plastics unit, says it i...

Louisiana workforce and education officials are evaluating training capacity to address a shortage of skilled craft workers for $260 billion in incoming industrial projects, while Southern University is receiving $1 million in Apple technology to expand student and researcher hardware access.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Are we ready?
https://findsource.ai/s/14ju7

Southern library to get $1M worth of iPads, MacBooks, more through state partnership with Apple
https://findsource.ai/s/1f1l5

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into the sound. Soli Sound Pillow.
https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn

Louisiana homeowners are pressing officials to investigate insurer failures amid an ongoing property insurance crisis, Baton Rouge leaders face up to a two-year study on separating city and parish governments, and Entergy Louisiana announced plans to double its capacity over five years to meet rising industrial and artificial intelligence power demand.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Commentary: Letlow campaigned on insurance accountability. Here’s what that should look like.
https://findsource.ai/s/14nb4

Proposed city-parish deconsolidation study could take two years
https://findsource.ai/s/jhhww

Here’s the realit...

Southern University is receiving nearly one million dollars in Apple hardware under Louisianas broadband initiative, federal officials indicate congressional authorization for a second nuclear waste repository is required before the state can host a proposed nuclear campus, and lawmakers alongside industry leaders are pressing the White House to expand immigrant work permits ahead of the January congressional transition.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Democrats, industry groups press for immigration changes post-midterms
https://findsource.ai/s/1uil1

Congress has to act first before nuclear campuses take shape, US Energy secretary says
https://findsource.ai...

The Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport has officially transitioned to an independent operating authority following FAA approval, and Clinton-based Landmark Bank has broken ground on its first branch in Baton Rouge along Jefferson Highway.

⸻

Stories & Sources

BTR completes transition to an independent airport authority
https://findsource.ai/s/17b4k

Why Landmark Bank is betting on the Baton Rouge market
https://findsource.ai/s/xvl5i

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into the sound. Soli Sound Pillow.
https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn

⸻

Advertise on DNN...

The Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge prepares to lobby the Metro Council after proposed budget cuts eliminated 250,000 dollars in municipal support, and Baton Rouge police investigate the fatal shooting of 45-year-old Shakisha Perry.

⸻

Stories & Sources

States are counting on battery farms. Some towns don’t want them.
https://findsource.ai/s/d9cg0

Woman dies after being shot inside vehicle
https://findsource.ai/s/dj9eg

Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge to ask Metro Council to maintain funding after proposed 2027 budget
https://findsource.ai/s/1d...

Former Ascension Parish presidential candidate Murphy Painter Sr. testified on the opening day of a defamation trial concerning a secretly recorded conversation, Ascension Public Schools named its Support Personnel of the Year, and the East Feliciana Council on Aging appointed a new volunteer instructor to maintain creative workshops for local seniors.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Art, quilting class continue with new volunteer instructor
https://findsource.ai/s/12he4

Support Personnel of the Year named
https://findsource.ai/s/1m1ta

Former candidate for Ascension president testifies about tape he cl...

Hundreds of American flags are being distributed to residents during a Baton Rouge giveaway event, Southeastern Louisiana University is preparing to host a two-day holiday market in Hammond to benefit collegiate recovery services, and Ascension Catholic High Schools volleyball team has advanced to the state championship tournament following a playoff sweep.

⸻

Stories & Sources

WAFB, Joubert Law Firm to give away 750 American flags
https://findsource.ai/s/q65b6

Roomie’s Merry Market coming to Southeastern
https://findsource.ai/s/mmst8

Playoff football preview; ACHS volleyball punches ticket to s...

Baton Rouge recreation officials are advancing a plan to curb Sunday tee times at City Park Golf Course to expand public park access, and the U.S. Department of Energy has finalized a 480-million-dollar loan to Arena Energy to refurbish offshore platforms and expand drilling along the Louisiana coast.

⸻

Stories & Sources

City Park Golf Course to cut off tee times early, expand public use on Sundays in new initiative
https://findsource.ai/s/15e5u

Energy Department loans $480M to Texas firm to drill in shallow waters off Louisiana coast

East Baton Rouge Parish leaders introduced a formal plan to explore separating the city of Baton Rouge and the parish into distinct governments, and Mayor-President Sid Edwards presented United Cajun Navy founder Todd Terrell with a key to the city for his disaster response and humanitarian efforts.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Leaders outline next steps in exploring East Baton Rouge Parish government split
https://findsource.ai/s/1hxlm

United Cajun Navy founder receives key to Baton Rouge
https://findsource.ai/s/l6lfy

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into the...

Scammers are impersonating a Donaldsonville car dealership to defraud out-of-state buyers, Rodney and Holly Robinson Peete visited Baton Rouge to raise awareness about overactive bladder, and country music singer Sammy Kershaw resolved a dispute with CMA leadership and plans to attend the upcoming awards show.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Scammers impersonate Donaldsonville car lot: ‘I wish they would die and go away’
https://findsource.ai/s/9r0gt

From Football to Health: Rodney and Holly Robinson Peete share their Story
https://findsource.ai/s/d39w4

Sammy Kershaw accepts CMA ap...

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer expressed confidence in retaining his leadership role amid growing caucus pushback, while community members in Iberville Parish, Louisiana, gathered to honor fallen World War II veterans through a historic living oak memorial.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Schumer ‘confident’ he’ll lead US Senate Dems despite criticism
https://findsource.ai/s/1vpca

Plaquemine live oak trees honor local WWII veterans
https://findsource.ai/s/1pvwh

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into the sound. Soli Sound Pillow.
https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn

⸻

Adver...

The Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport has transitioned into an independent regional airport authority to streamline operations and expand flight options, and a tenured LSU law professor will return to teaching following an unsuccessful legal battle over his suspension for classroom political remarks.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Baton Rouge airport begins governing itself as regional airport authority
https://findsource.ai/s/p9wwh

Law professor returning to LSU after suspension over Trump, Landry comments
https://findsource.ai/s/1d0ma

A Louisiana builder’s huge donations could transform LSU’s constr...

Doctors at Ochsner report that GLP-1 weight-loss drugs may help lower the risk of certain cancers through weight management, and a federal judge in western Louisiana sentenced an Oakdale man and four former law enforcement officials to prison for a fraudulent visa bribery scheme.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Ochsner doctor says GLP-1 drugs could help lower risk of certain cancers
https://findsource.ai/s/17ydq

Oakdale man sentenced to 10 years in visa fraud conspiracy
https://findsource.ai/s/1uati

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into the sound. Soli Sound Pill...

Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors member Harvey Honore Jr. and his son face lawsuits and a sheriffs investigation over alleged unpaid subcontractor invoices, while Louisiana State University has named its construction school after donor and executive Art Favre following a major financial contribution.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Subcontractors sue LA contractors board member and son alleging unpaid construction work
https://findsource.ai/s/1t72l

LSU names construction school, building after Art Favre, Performance Contractors following new donation
https://findsource.ai/s/1ltir

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into...

Communities across the Baton Rouge area are hosting a series of Veterans Day tributes and hosting the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall, a long-running defamation lawsuit stemming from the 2019 Ascension Parish president’s race is heading to trial, and the Baton Rouge Metro Airport is transitioning into an independent operating authority amid expanded nonstop service.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Veterans Day 2026 events in Baton Rouge area include ceremonies, parades and memorial tributes
https://findsource.ai/s/1lwfu

7 years after election scandal, former Ascension Parish president candidate’s defamation case heads to trial
https...

Louisiana has launched an initiative distributing roughly 25,000 Apple devices to community organizations for workforce training, and a new economic report shows the Baton Rouge metropolitan area led the state in job growth over the past year.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Louisiana partners with Apple to expand digital access, workforce training
https://findsource.ai/s/muxn1

Baton Rouge leads Louisiana metros in job growth as state employment hits record
https://findsource.ai/s/7zx4b

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into the sound. Soli Sound Pillow.
https://solipillow.com/disc...

River Parishes Community College is seeking local matching funds for a proposed $50 million educational and community hub in Gonzales, Ascension Parish Chamber of Commerce leadership participants are launching several civic and educational initiatives, and the city of Gonzales has officially opened the $7.2 million Freeland Jackson Center.

⸻

Stories & Sources

A look at the $50 million project that could transform RPCC’s Gonzales campus
https://findsource.ai/s/1qanh

How Leadership Ascension teams are investing in the parish’s future
https://findsource.ai/s/unadp

After a string of delays, Gonzal...

House Republicans elected Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan as minority leader over Louisiana Congressman Steve Scalise, West Feliciana Parish announced plans to build a new three-bay fire station, and campus police arrested two suspects accused of stealing electric scooters near Louisiana State University.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Republicans replace Louisiana’s Scalise with Ohio’s Jim Jordan as their leader in US House
https://findsource.ai/s/1grk6

New fire station coming to West Feliciana Parish. See where.
https://findsource.ai/s/1slqx

Thieves targeting scooters at LSU’s Nicholson Gateway...

Baton Rouge police arrested a suspect in the fatal shooting of a fifteen-year-old boy, Representative Jim Jordan defeated Louisiana Congressman Steve Scalise for House Republican minority leader, and former rowing club treasurer Thomas Saquet received a lifetime ban from US Rowing following his arrest on child sexual abuse material charges.

⸻

Stories & Sources

New Orleans man accused of distributing child porn banned for life by USRowing
https://findsource.ai/s/10evu

Jim Jordan elected House GOP minority leader over Louisiana’s Steve Scalise
https://findsource.ai/s/7uld4

Man...

Dozens of Baton Rouge-area high school football teams learned their postseason matchups following the release of the LHSAA state playoff brackets, and Baton Rouge police arrested a suspect on manslaughter charges in connection with a fatal May shooting that left a teenager dead.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Louisiana high school football playoff brackets released. See Baton Rouge-area matchups
https://findsource.ai/s/h8f8e

Man arrested for allegedly killing 15-year-old in Baton Rouge
https://findsource.ai/s/1r01z

Video shows Lake Charles police officer straddling, punching man in...

Baton Rouge will hold two public memorial services on Wednesday to honor the late LSU basketball coach Dale Brown, and Apple is donating 18,000 computers to public entities and local organizations across Louisiana to help close the states digital divide.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Louisiana prepares to say goodbye to LSU legend Dale Brown at public services Wednesday
https://findsource.ai/s/gq6mr

Apple to provide 18,000 computers to Louisiana groups, local governments
https://findsource.ai/s/32mjc

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into the sound. Soli Sound Pillow.
http...

Texas quarterback Arch Manning prepares to face LSU in Baton Rouge this Saturday, and registration has opened across Louisiana for the annual Gordon Gives holiday bike giveaway.

⸻

Stories & Sources

Arch Manning says he has ‘no connection’ to LSU ahead of return to Louisiana
https://findsource.ai/s/1dtc9

Gordon McKernan to give away 600 free bikes to Louisiana children
https://findsource.ai/s/1n1j3

⸻

Stressful news? Relax into the sound. Soli Sound Pillow.
https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn

⸻

Advertise on DNN
adv...