Tuesday, July 28, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1869, a trestle collapsed at Budds Creek in Montgomery County, sending a passenger train into the valley below and killing five in one of Tennessee’s deadliest rail wrecks.

An inspection at Maryville College turned up tens of thousands of honeybees living inside the football press box. Now the hive is headed to Tennessee schools next year. We want to hear from you: What’s the wildest critter or pest you’ve had to evict from your home, car, or workplace?

Depending on when you claim, picking the wrong time to start collecting Social Security could cost you tens of thousands of dollars over a lifetime. Yet most Americans rush the decision instead of running the numbers. Where does your break-even age fit into it? What about your spouse’s check, or the paycheck you’re still earning? In today’s episode of The Flyover Podcast, Ayla breaks down the three claiming options on the table and the one number that reveals which path actually fits your plan. So do you know which of the three is right for you? Tune in here!

Today’s sponsor, Reiturn, is giving investors the opportunity to own equity in a real estate investment platform built for the coming $84 trillion generational wealth transfer before its investment window closes on Aug. 13.

Skrmetti Opens Arguments Against Meta

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti delivered opening arguments yesterday in the state’s trial against Meta, telling a Nashville chancery court that the company designed Instagram to harm children and hid the risks from parents.

The state argued Meta’s business model relies on capturing young users’ attention, pointing to internal 2016 and 2017 documents and citing CDC data showing 43% of Tennessee teens felt “sad and hopeless” in 2023.

Meta’s defense countered that Instagram was built to be engaging, not addictive, noting its safety tools and wellness checks and that Tennessee teens use the app about 35 minutes a day.

Tennessee is one of 42 states suing Meta over claims it built an “addiction machine,” and the case follows recent multimillion-dollar verdicts against the company in New Mexico and California.

Burchett Seeks Flock Camera Regulation

U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee has introduced the Protection Against Mass Surveillance Act, barring federal agencies from buying or accessing license-plate readers like Flock cameras, facial recognition, and biometric tracking systems.

The bill, which includes tools that capture fingerprints, iris, voice, or gait, requires deleting any collected data within 30 days and blocks its use as court evidence.

The proposed legislation follows privacy concerns over Knox County’s proposed rollout of 200-plus Flock cameras, a debate that led the county commission to cancel a meeting on the issue.

The House referred the bill to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

11-Year-Old to Make Opry Debut

Grammy-winning country star Ashley McBryde has invited 11-year-old singer-songwriter Sawyer June to make her Grand Ole Opry debut, extending the offer during a call on WSM Radio that the Opry shared on social media Friday.

June, who has performed at venues across Kentucky and Tennessee, became emotional during the call and told McBryde she was the best friend she’d ever had, prompting McBryde to reply, “You’re a star, Sawyer June.”

The two first met backstage at the Opry in February, where they sat on the floor and sang McBryde’s Bible and a .44 together, a moment McBryde later said convinced her that June belonged on the Opry stage someday.

The Grand Ole Opry has not yet announced a date for June’s debut.

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An $84 Trillion Wealth Transfer Is Coming

By 2045, $84T in wealth will pass from Baby Boomers to Millennials and Gen Z¹ the largest generational transfer of capital in history². And one of the only asset classes both generations agree on is real estate.

But this new generation doesn’t think like their parents: they expect digital-first experiences. Reiturn® was built for the moment.

Reiturn® is a platform that lets anyone invest in real estate for as little as $1,000. No more prohibitively high minimums or accreditation requirements. Features like three-minute onboarding and live performance tracking are designed for the new class of digital-first investors.

The wealth transfer is underway. Now you can own equity in the platform positioned to capture it. Invest in Reiturn® before the perk window closes on Aug. 13.

1Cerulli
2Fortune

➤ Chattanooga: The city’s bomb squad disrupted a suspicious package outside a Goodwill on Friday, evacuating nearby businesses and breaking apart the package’s contents rather than detonating it. (More)

➤ Maury County: Three fire units and a Vanderbilt LifeFlight helicopter responded after a person was trampled by a bull Saturday evening. (More)

➤ Sevierville: Coy “Denver” Parton, one of Dolly Parton’s 11 siblings, died Thursday at 82. He was a crane operator, farmer, and hunter. (More)

➤ Maryville: A father-son team extracted a honeybee colony from the Maryville College football press box, relocating the bees to a nonprofit that plans to place them in schools. (See Video)

➤ Rutherford County: Poplar Hill Middle School’s $59.9 million campus opened Sunday, moving about 850 students from portable trailers into permanent classrooms. (More)

➤ Jackson: Filmmaker Jaron Lockridge and Cinema Ministry Productions premiered a new independent series, House for the Broken, on the red carpet this weekend. (See Details)

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➤ Former Memphis offensive lineman Jordan Devey, who won Super Bowl XLIX with the New England Patriots, died by suicide at age 38 last week. (More)

➤ Tennessee State named Jennifer Bell interim athletic director after placing Mikki Allen on administrative leave amid an internal investigation. Six coaches had issued a no-confidence vote against Allen in late May. (More)

➤ The Titans signed offensive tackle Zachary Thomas after placing starter JC Latham on the physically unable to perform list. Thomas has played only 17 NFL games in his career, and zero since 2024. (More)

➤ Yesterday’s Results: MLB | Tennis | Soccer

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➤ Tennessee joined the “working Pell Grant” program, extending federal aid to short-term job training. Over 300 career and technical programs statewide qualify. (More)

➤ Nashville’s Metro Council will weigh a bill extending part of the city’s existing hotel occupancy tax through 2032. It creates no new tax but aligns Metro’s code with a new state law prioritizing convention center debt. (More)

➤ The Martha’s Vineyard home tied to the Uncle Nearest Whiskey receivership sold for $2,595,000. The receiver, who ousted CEO Fawn Weaver in June, is weighing a Chapter 11 filing. (More)

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Real Estate’s Gatekeepers Just Lost

There’s a reason why so many millionaires invest in real estate. It’s one of the most time-tested asset classes in existence: U.S. home values have appreciated at an average of 4%+ annually since 1967¹. But with prohibitively high minimums, the system was never designed for regular investors.

Reiturn® is changing that. And now you can own a piece of the platform, making it happen.

Built by a team that managed $350M in assets across 3,600+ apartments and delivered 45+ consecutive quarters of investor distributions, Reiturn® is modernizing how everyday people access real estate.

And while REIT investors collect dividends on someone else’s terms, Reiturn® investors capture a cut of every dollar the platform earns: asset management fees, carried interest, and future funds.

Invest in Reiturn® before the perk window closes Aug. 13.

1Griffin Funding

This is a paid advertisement for Reiturn’s Regulation CF offering. Please read the offering circular at https://invest.reiturn.com/

➤ A Newport nonprofit raised its first free flagpole at Army veteran Paul Gregg’s home on Sunday. Veterans in Focus aims to reach all 2,398 Cocke County vets. (See Video)

➤ Naming rights for a gentoo penguin chick at the Tennessee Aquarium will soon be auctioned at a fall fundraiser benefiting conservation efforts. (See Photos)

➤ TriStar Centennial Medical Center in Nashville held its annual NICU reunion Sunday, bringing families back together with the nurses who cared for their premature and critically ill newborns. (See Video)

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➤ What cold feet tell you about your heart. Cold feet can be a warning sign for a much deeper circulation problem that comes from a weak heart and clogged arteries…And could lead to serious clots or cardiac events. 7-second “feet test” can predict a heart attack (could SAVE your life).

The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes. Clicking the links will take you directly to these stories:

➤ Rushing the Social Security claiming decision could cost retirees tens of thousands over a lifetime, so which choice makes sense for you? (Listen Now)

➤ Gunfire erupted at a crowded Seattle food festival, leaving three dead and forcing thousands of visitors to flee. (Hear Episode)

➤ Authorities say a Secret Service agent took part in a fraternity hazing that nearly killed a University of Miami pledge. (Listen Now)