The AP and other news outlets said journalists will face restrictions as they try to cover the U.S. Senate's impeachment trial of President Donald Trump. The AP reported that all throughout the Capitol building, reporters were prevented from stopping to wait for senators or talking to them outside designated media pens.

The interim president of Western Illinois University used the start of the new semester to deliver an upbeat speech to faculty, staff, students, and community members.  Dr. Martin Abraham told the audience in the University Union Grand Ballroom that he believes WIU's struggles are in the past.

The beginning of a new year is often a time to look back and draw inspiration for the future. Today I would like to take this opportunity to look back – far, far back— to 2 exceptional women who lived in the early 1100s. Each fall, I play a piece for the students in my music history class, and ask them what this composition can tell us about people from the past.

The Hoerner YMCA in Keokuk started the new year on the right note. The organization announced it received a $54,315 state grant to help pay for ongoing renovations.

An article in PolitiFact reported that voters will be seeing poll results in their news feeds — lots of them. But not all polls are created equal and it can be hard to put the results into the proper context.