Monthly News: The Most Attention-Grabbing Headlines of January

Alps Mountains Country - Free photo on Pixabay

A crazy start to 2026

02/09/2026

Zachary Myers, Editor

I have somewhat sworn off televised news. I always see hints that newscasters are biased in their reporting, especially when it comes to politics. While there is nothing wrong with a newscaster having an opinion about a politician or issue they do not like, they need to can those thoughts in the aim of neutrality and objectivity in reporting. This is what I attempt to do through this news column. I will share the biggest news stories as objectively as I can given the facts, and then give my personal breakdown of the incident.

January 1st - January 11th:

On January 3rd, the US military arrested Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and brought him to the US to face narco-terrorism charges. Federal indictments accuse Maduro of illegitimately leading Venezuela while also allowing "cocaine-fueled corruption to flourish for his own benefit, the benefit of members of his ruling regime, and for the benefit of his family members" (Deliso, ABC News, 2026).  He started serving as president after the death of Hugo Chavez in 2013, and while he was reelected in 2018 and 2024, the Venezuelan National Assembly said he "usurped" power and over fifty countries do not see him as a legitimate leader of the country. Maduro was previously indicted by the Trump administration in 2020 on deploying cocaine as a weapon. He and his wife have pleaded not guilty to their charges and are being held at a federal detention center in Brooklyn, New York. Several countries and democratic politicians have denounced the actions of the Trump administration, while the administration defended the arrest as protecting American interests.

There have been many legal questions about if the administration was legally justified in capturing Maduro. After doing my own research, I believe the Trump administration, while justified in capturing him, did it in a way that was overly excessive. Based on the charges Maduro is facing, the US had a legal precedent to go over the head of Congress and go in for the arrest, an example people use being the US invasion of Panama in 1989. That being said, the over the top way the administration has gone about the arrest is ridiculous, but not unexpected. From the famous photo of Maduro captured on the plane, to Trump's continued threats to South American nations, this man does not know when to stop. He has been overly excessive ever since he was first elected in 2016, and if he continues like this, our country could be in serious danger.

What to know about Nicolas Maduro, the ousted Venezuelan president - ABC News

January 12th - January 18th:

While there have been a plethora of news stories this week, I want to talk about one that happened last week that will likely have far reaching implications. On January 7th in Minneapolis, Minnesota, thirty-seven year old Renee Nicole Good was shot by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer Jonathan Ross. Several videos taken of the shooting show Ross along with multiple other ICE officers confronting Good in her car during a swarm of nationwide protests against the federal agency. The video shows a different officer shouting an expletive at Good and telling her to get out of the car. 

She then attempts to drive away before Ross shoots into the car. Viral photos of the shooting show blood on the airbag from the impact Good likely made when the car crashed. Multiple conservatives have defended the officer's actions, with Vice President JD Vance saying that Good tried to run over the officer. Witnesses, however, say that it did not seem that she was trying to run over the officer and Minneapolis officials, including mayor Jacob Frey, have repeatedly called for ICE to be removed from the state.

I got on this story way too late because it had been a week since the incident when I saw videos of the shooting. I can now safely say that this was not a justifiable homicide. Renee was attempting to leave the scene, not run over officer Ross, who looked like he stepped away from the car when it first started to move. If he truly thought his and others lives were in danger, he could have shot at her tires rather than through her windshield. Of the ranging opinions about this case, I find myself somewhere in the middle. Renee Good should not have died and the officer did not need to use deadly force, but some action would have been needed if the officer felt the lives of others were in danger. Hopefully the family of Renee finds justice for their daughter.

January 18th - January 24th:

Even if you like winter, what occurred over this weekend had to be too much for everyone. Almost everyone across the country experienced a historic winter storm, filled with record low temperatures as well as record levels of sleet, freezing rain and snow. As of Sunday the 25th, there have been thirteen deaths from the storm, including a tragic plane crash in Bangor, Maine that killed seven people. There have been over a million reported power outages and flight cancellations hit their highest since the COVID-19 pandemic first circulated. Around 11,466 flights were cancelled on Sunday, which was the largest flight cancellation total since COVID-19. Some of the notable weather events include the greatest snow total, which was twenty inches in the Rowland and Clintonville area of Pennsylvania, and the lowest recorded temperature of negative forty degrees reported in the northeast of Forest Center and northwest of Gunflint Lake in Minnesota. 

Here is my opinion of this: I hate winter. I stayed inside for most of this storm, other than going to get meals. My experience obviously cannot compare to the others who had to work and travel through the worst of the storm, so I commend the people who braved the weather for the greater good. Considering we are barely into the true snow winter portion of the season, hopefully this is not a sign of things to come.

January 25th - January 31st:

One of the most beloved actresses of the 1990s has sadly passed away. Catherine O’Hara passed away in her home on Jan. 30 at the age of seventy-one from what has been called “a brief illness” by her agency. She was one of the most awarded actors/actresses of the time, winning two Emmys, a Golden Globe and two Guild awards. O’Hara was known for many iconic roles, in Schitt's Creek, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Beetlejuice and most notably in Home Alone. Home Alone actor Macauly Culkin made an instagram post in the wake of her death, with the caption reading, “Mama. I thought we had time”. 

I was saddened to hear about the death of Catherine O’Hara. I am a fan of Home Alone, even if I do think it is overrated but that is a conversation for another day. She was one of the best characters in the movie, and was a great presence to watch. She also starred as Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas, a favorite of mine, which I didn’t even realize until her death. May she rest in peace and hopefully know that she will live on as an iconic actress.

Catherine O'Hara dead – 'Home Alone,' 'Schitt's Creek' star dies at 71