It was a whispered comment, a quiet exchange of pleasantries…but they heard my voice anyway. Immediately, squealing and excited barks echoed throughout the large room. The rock star had ... [Continue Story]
Public Affairs
Talbot Council Highlights: 1st Annual Report Documents a County Getting the Work Done
The Spy rarely highlights organized, printed annual reports because most are more promotional rather than educational. But when Talbot County released ... [Continue Story]
- Oxford Pushes Back Hard against Housing Bills that Strip Local Authority
- Eastern Shore Ministers Witness Minneapolis ‘Truth and Freedom’ Protests
- Talbot Council Highlight: About 4,000 Talbot County Residents Receive SNAP Benefits
- MD Senate Panel Advances Bills To Ban Agreements With Ice, Face Coverings For Law Enforcement
- Grading Policy Draws Scrutiny at Talbot School Board Meeting
- Maryland House Take Congressional Redistricting Bill with Big Changes for 1st District
Spy Highlights
From and Fuller: How Long Can America Tolerate Trump?
Every Thursday, the Spy hosts a conversation with Al From and Craig Fuller on the most topical political news of the moment. This week, From and Fuller examine a series of escalating controversies surrounding Donald Trump, including his racist attacks on Barack and Michelle Obama and his recent hostility toward Olympic athletes. They also discuss […]
- New ShoreRivers Director’s Journey from Policy to Preservation: A Talk With Scott Budden
- Maryland Caucus with Foxwell and Mitchell: The Annapolis Legislative Session Enters the 2nd Inning
- From and Fuller: Homeland Security Funding Becomes the Line in the Sand
- Caring for the Academy’s Collection at the Freeman Annex and Hormel Center: A Chat with Bianca Scialabba
- From and Fuller: Will the GOP Pushback Against Trump’s ICE Hold and the FBI Raids a Georgia Election Office
- Foxwell and Mitchell: The Annapolis Politics of the High Costs of Energy
The Arts and Local Design
Review: Caryn Martin at Academy Art Museum By Mary McCoy
There’s something simultaneously ecstatic and terrifying about Caryn Martin’s 60-foot installation, “The Skin of Water,” on view through February 22 ... [Continue Story]
- Spy Review: MSO Trio and Quartet Chamber Ensembles by Steve Parks
- Scholarship Honors the Legacy of Mainstay Founder Tom McHugh
- Looking the The Masters: Gustave Courbet and Nature
- Spy Art Review: Centennial Salute to a Printmaking Icon by Steve Parks
- Looking Back and Forward with Talbot Arts: A Chat with Director Joan Levy
- Shrek the Musical Comes to the Avalon Just in Time for the Holidays
Chesapeake Film Festival Podcast
The Spy-Chesapeake Film Festival Podcast: A Chat with Filmmaker Lance Kramer
This year, the Spy is expanding its commitment to the Chesapeake Film Festival by co-producing a monthly podcast with CFF Executive Director Cid ... [Continue Story]
- The Spy-Chesapeake Film Festival Podcast: A Chat with Filmmaker and CFF Artistic Director Cid Collins Walker
- The Spy-Chesapeake Film Festival Podcast: A Chat with Filmmaker Monda Raquel Webb
- The Spy-Chesapeake Film Festival Podcast: A Chat with Casting Director Kimberly Skyrme
- The Spy-Chesapeake Film Festival Podcast: A Chat with Director/Producer Ted Adams
- The Spy-Chesapeake Film Festival Podcast: A Chat with Rebekah Louisa Smith
Chesapeake Ecosystem
New ShoreRivers Director’s Journey from Policy to Preservation: A Talk With Scott Budden
For Scott Budden, protecting Eastern Shore waterways is both professional and personal. The Chestertown native and new executive director of ... [Continue Story]
- Conowingo Dam Appeal Dropped, Allowing $340M Settlement To Go Forward—Maryland Matters
- Dorchester and Kent Drop out of Challenge to $340 million Conowingo Settlement
- The Next Chapter for ShoreRivers
- ShoreRivers Director to Step Down, Search for Successor Begins
- FEMA Cancels $1 Billion for Flood Prevention Projects in Chesapeake Bay Region
- Intense Maryland Energy Debates in Annapolis Fill a Single Afternoon
Maryland News
Eastern Shore Delegation Concerned over Cost Shifts to Counties
Eastern Shore legislators, led by delegation Chairman Del. Christopher T. Adams, got an early look Friday at how Gov. Wes Moore’s proposed budget ... [Continue Story]
- Redistricting Bill Sails Through House, Faces Troubled Waters in the Senate
- MD Senate gives Preliminary OK for Prohibiting mask Use by Law Enforcement
- Moore’s Budget Fixes Current Deficit, but Analysts Pessimistic about Future
- Eastern Shore Delegation Presses Harris on Local Concerns
- Moore’s Redistricting Commission Recommends ‘Congressional Map Concept’
Health
Let’s Talk About It with For All Seasons’ Lesa Mulcahy: Loneliness at Every Age
Loneliness touches people at every stage of life, but it doesn’t always look the same. In this conversation, the latest installment of our "Let's Talk ... [Continue Story]
- Demystifying Palliative Care with Shore Regional Health’s Christina Ball
- Mobile Dental Care Team Expands Access for Dorchester County Students
- Lets Talk about It with Beth Anne Dorman: Making Sure Our Veterans Get the Help They Need
- Senior Nation: Nature’s Multicolored Autumn Farewell by Susan Covey
- A Spy Chat with Shore Regional Health’s New Clark Breast Center Director Dr. Kathryn Kelley
Brevities
Agent 86 Reconnaissance Footage: Tilghman Island by Air
Agent 86 returned from a short escape to the Caribbean a few days ago and was still pouring sand out of his shoes when Spy management called to ... [Continue Story]
- Seasoned Skiers by Kate Emery General
- Talbot Historical Society Project: It’s Time to Bring Out the Heavy Equipment
- Imbolc By Katherine Emery General
- February 2026 Sky-Watch By Dennis Herrmann
- Talbot Historical Society Project Rewind: It’s Time to Start Shoveling Boys
- Ice Storms, Dismal Oyster Market and Frost’s Birches
Education
Talbot Board of Education Highlight: A Grading Policy Update
The Talbot County Board of Education received an update on Wednesday on the district’s ongoing grading policy review, a months-long effort involving ... [Continue Story]
- Gunston Gearios Wrap Up Historic Robotics Season with Awards
- Scholarship Honors the Legacy of Mainstay Founder Tom McHugh
- Dorchester Education Foundation Launches Wyatt Scholarship
- Good News and Not So Good News: Talbot County Schools Gets their 2025 Report Card
- Benedictine’s Next Chapter: A Chat with Executive Director Scott Evans
Food & Garden Highlights
The Chesapeake Bay Herb Society Feb Meeting: “How To Save the World From Your Own Backyard.”
The Chesapeake Bay Herb Society invites the community to its monthly meeting on Thursday, February 12, at 6:00 PM, held at Christ Church Hall, 111 S. ... [Continue Story]
Commerce
A Fabulous February! — Shopping, Exhibits and Events at The Market at Dover Station
A fabulous February awaits you at the Market at Dover Station! Melt away your winter blues by shopping with our Market partners and enjoying our ... [Continue Story]
- Mr. Arnold Williams, CPA Selected as Board Chair for Qlarant, Inc. By Board of Directors
- A Great New Year — Shopping, Exhibits and Events at The Market at Dover Station
- Maryland Lost 25,000 Federal Jobs in 2025, Latest Data Show
- Chesapeake Fire & Ice is Back For 2026
- Fello Secures $500,000 State Grant for Easton Crossing Community
Community Notes
Mid-Shore Community Foundation Honors Local Leaders and Organizations at it’s Annual Awards Breakfast
Mid-Shore Community Foundation honored people making a difference across the region during its 2025 Annual Awards Breakfast Dec. 5 at the Tidewater ... [Continue Story]
- Londonderry on the Tred Avon Reflects on a Year of Community, Investment, and Recognition and Looks Ahead to 2026
- Tilghman Watermen’s Museum Scholarship Available
- Talbot County Announces Inaugural Community Repair and Reinvestment Fund Funding Round
- Newly Expanded St. Michaels Library to Reopen March 2026
- Hold the Mustard: Easton Parks Board Pulls the Plug on Food Trucks at Town Sports Complex
- Important Dates Set for 2026 St. Michaels Commissioner Election
Senior Life Highlights
Cruisin’ with Christine: A Group Chat with Duval Mills, Jennifer Hughes, and Ericka Taylor
Over the last ten years, the Spy and Londonderry on the Tred Avon have collaborated on stories about this unique retirement community, which educates ... [Continue Story]
- Cruisin’ with Christine: A Chat with Londonderry’s Susan Andrews
- Londonderry on the Tred Avon Welcomes Chef, Brendan Keegan, Jr.
- Senior Nation: Embrace Your Age, Live Your Best Life by Susan Covey
- Cruisin’ with Christine: A Chat with Londonderry’s Jennifer Hughes
- The Difference Between Try And Triumph Is A Little Umph! By Susan Covey
- Cruisin’ with Christine: A Chat with Londonderry’s Ken Sadler
Arts Notes
“Music of the New Nation” Debuts 2/20 at 7pm, Oxford
Ampersand traditional music is offering a free community concert on Friday, February 20, 2026 at St. Paul’s Church, 225 S. Morris St., Oxford, ... [Continue Story]
- The Abeo Quartet Returns to Easton for a Chamber Music Concert on March 1 By James Carder
- Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra Pilots “MSO 101: Demystifying the Symphony” Community Education Series
- Sustainable Development Lecture At Temple B’Nai Israel
- Visionary Museum Founder and New Urbanism Pioneer to Discuss Future of Easton’s Hospital Site
- CBMM’s Bear Me Into Freedom Exhibition Opens Feb. 27
- Symbiosis: an Exhibition Inspired by Lichens at Adkins Arboretum
Ecosystem Notes
Sustainable Development Lecture At Temple B’Nai Israel
Temple B’nai Israel’s Susan and Barry Koh Lecture Series presents The Ethics of Climate Change: The Planet, Our Common Home, on Thursday, February 12 ... [Continue Story]
Education Notes
From County Hall to Catfish: Chesapeake Forum Wraps February with Community, Curiosity, and a Taste of What’s Next
Chesapeake Forum is closing out February with a dynamic mix of programs designed to bring the community together around learning, conversation, and ... [Continue Story]
- Sustainable Development Lecture at Temple B’Nai Israel
- Tilghman Watermen’s Museum Speaker Series: John Rock
- Friends of the Library to Donate $50,000 for St. Michaels Library
- Now Accepting Applications: R. Gordon Graves Community Service Scholarship
- The United States Colored Troops from Queen Anne’s County: Additional Stories of USCT from the Eastern Shore” with Chris Pupke
- Critchlow Adkins Expands Pre-K Programming Through the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future
Health Notes
UM Shore Regional Health Offers Free Childbirth and Parent Education Courses
The Birthing Center at UM Shore Regional Health’s Shore Medical Center at Easton provides classes related to childbirth, parenting and breastfeeding ... [Continue Story]
- For All Seasons Welcomes New Board Members
- For All Seasons: 40 Years of Meeting Community Needs
- Choptank Health Joins National Campaign to Highlight School-Based Health Care
- For All Seasons Hosts One-of-a-Kind Valentine’s Auction
- University of Maryland Shore Regional Health Announces Winter Weather Closures
- UM Shore Regional Health Announces 2026 Safe Sitter® Dates
Commerce Notes
A Fabulous February! — Shopping, Exhibits and Events at The Market at Dover Station
A fabulous February awaits you at the Market at Dover Station! Melt away your winter blues by shopping with our Market partners and enjoying our ... [Continue Story]
- Mr. Arnold Williams, CPA Selected as Board Chair for Qlarant, Inc. By Board of Directors
- A Great New Year — Shopping, Exhibits and Events at The Market at Dover Station
- Maryland Lost 25,000 Federal Jobs in 2025, Latest Data Show
- Chesapeake Fire & Ice is Back For 2026
- Fello Secures $500,000 State Grant for Easton Crossing Community
- Business Owners Encouraged to Enroll in Talbot Works Business Academy
Food Friday
Food Friday: Halftime Plays
The Super Bowl is this Sunday night, in case you wondered. New England is playing Seattle. And that is the extent of my sports update. Otherwise, I am all about the snacks, ... [Continue Story]
Looking at the Masters with Beverly Smith
Looking at the Masters: Delita Martin
Delita Martin was born in 1972 in Conroe, Texas, near Houston, and continues to live and work in nearby Huffman. She says, “Everybody in my family ... [Continue Story]
- Looking at the Masters: The National Gallery of Art, Washington DC (Part 2)
- Looking at the Masters: The National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
- Looking the The Masters: Gustave Courbet and Nature
- Looking at the Masters: Epiphany
- Looking at the Masters: The Feast of Stephen
- Looking at the Masters: Christmas with Grandma Moses
Spy Poetry
Spy Poetry: In This Brief World by Deidra Greenleaf Allan
Editor’s Note: In the spirit of the approaching new year and its opportunity for resolutions and personal change, this poem explores the poet’s journey toward self-acceptance and her understanding of the path to happiness. This is the last poem from Spy Poetry for the foreseeable future until more funding can be secured to support this […]
Food and Garden Notes
The Chesapeake Bay Herb Society Feb Meeting: “How To Save the World From Your Own Backyard.”
The Chesapeake Bay Herb Society invites the community to its monthly meeting on Thursday, February 12, at 6:00 PM, held at Christ Church Hall, 111 S. ... [Continue Story]
- Talbot Co. Garden Club Focuses On Community Gardens in February 24 Lecture
- Wine of the Week: Grosjean Torrette Vallee d’Aoste
- Wine of the Week: Otto Uve
- Adkins Arboretum Mystery Monday: Guess the Photo!
- Wine of the Week: Barbera d’Alba 2024 DOC from the Albino Rocca Winery
- Maryland House & Garden Pilgrimage Opens Talbot Tour Ticket Sales
Design with Jenn Martella
Design with Jenn Martella: “Baycup”
The real estate mantra of “location, location, location” certainly applies to this A+ site with approximately 624 linear feet of riprapped shoreline along the Chesapeake Bay. 21.7 acres provide peace and privacy since all but four acres are taxed under agricultural use. Both the house’s west orientation and the panoramic views of the Chesapeake Bay […]
From and Fuller Podcast
From and Fuller: Will the GOP Pushback Against Trump’s ICE Hold and the FBI Raids a Georgia Election Office
Every Thursday, the Spy hosts a conversation with Al From and Craig Fuller on the most topical political news of the moment. This week, Al and ... [Continue Story]
- From and Fuller: The Trump-Greenland TARFU
- From and Fuller Morning Brief: One Year of Trump
- From and Fuller: Trump Attacks on Federal Reserve Chairman Powell and Foreign Affairs Distractions
- From and Fuller: A New Year of Foreign Conflict and an ICE Shooting in Minneapolis
- Maryland Caucus with Foxwell and Mitchell: The 3 Top Maryland Issues to Watch in 2026
- From and Fuller: A 2025 Year in Review
Maryland Caucus with Foxwell and Mitchell
Maryland Caucus with Foxwell and Mitchell: The Annapolis Legislative Session Enters the 2nd Inning
Every week, Maryland political analysts Len Foxwell and Clayton Mitchell break down the politics and personalities shaping the state and the region on ... [Continue Story]
- Maryland Caucus with Foxwell and Mitchell: Maryland Politics After Alex Pretti Death
- Maryland Caucus with Foxwell and Mitchell: MD’s $1.5 Billion Deficit and the Land of No Easy Answers
- Maryland Caucus with Foxwell and Mitchell: Top Maryland Stories and a Few Winners and Losers in 2025
- Maryland Caucus with Foxwell and Mitchell: An Annapolis Future with a Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk
- Maryland Caucus with Len Foxwell and Clayton Mitchell: The Worrisome Case of Kelly Madigan
- The Maryland Caucus: Maryland’s Budget Crisis + Redistricting Plans Set in Motion
Columnist J.E. Dean
Lindsey Vonn Should Not Have Skied by J.E. Dean
Last Saturday night, I decided not to watch the Women’s Downhill at the Milan Cortina Olympics. I wanted to, but I knew that Lindsey Vonn would be on. ... [Continue Story]
- Donald Trump Has Mastered Roy Cohn’s Three Rules by J.E. Dean
- Why I Worry About War and a Lot More By J.E. Dean
- What Will Trump’s Legacy Be? By J.E. Dean
- Trump Has Killed the Kennedy Center, So Let’s Build a New One By J.E. Dean
- If You Can’t Say Anything Nice… By J.E. Dean
- The Self-Destruction of Trump by J.E. Dean
Columnist Hugh Panero
Longevity Expert Peter Attia and the Epstein Files By Hugh Panero
Some of the richest, most prominent, older, white men in the world are scrambling to find the best crisis management public relations help with the ... [Continue Story]
- The False Nostalgia of Movie Theaters by Hugh Panero
- Netflix Makes a Blockbuster Move for Warner Bros by Hugh Panero
- AI is Coming for the Music Industry
- ICE Trauma and Drama on the Shore by Hugh Panero
- Homeland Security Threatens Canada Goose Migration by Hugh Panero
- Balancing the Maryland Budget in Extraordinary Times by Hugh Panero
Columnist Craig Fuller
Conversations with Craig Fuller: Ambassador and Author Frank Lavin
My friend and former White House colleague Ambassador Frank Lavin has a book coming out in March about his experience in the White House and ... [Continue Story]
- Midair collision over the Potomac: Week two update by Craig Fuller
- A midair tragedy last night in Washington by Craig Fuller
- The Classic Motor Museum starts a new trip in St. Michaels: Craig Fuller talks to Mike Iandolo
- A Community Town Hall focuses on education in Talbot County by Craig Fuller
- MPT, the Chesapeake Bay and Viewers Like You: A Chat with Station Manager Steven Schupak
- So Much Money, So Little Time by Craig Fuller
Columnist Jamie Kirkpatrick
The Plimsoll Line By Jamie Kirkpatrick
To help me pass my recovery-from-surgery time, my friend Spiff loaned me a book, “The Gales of November.” (By the way, “Spiff” is a perfect ... [Continue Story]
Columnist Laura Oliver
Snow Angels By Laura J. Oliver
I watched the snow pile up through the window by the fire, grateful that I wouldn’t be shoveling out my car when it stopped. I live on a street ... [Continue Story]
Columnist Angela Rieck
Do our Animals Love Us? By Angela Rieck
It was a whispered comment, a quiet exchange of pleasantries…but they heard my voice anyway. Immediately, squealing and excited barks echoed ... [Continue Story]
Columnist Al Sikes
The Super Bowl By Al Sikes
This morning is in the wake of Super Bowl 60—and its progeny, another chapter in our culture war, aided and abetted this year by the beginning of the Olympic Games. Reporting on the President’s role is easy. The divider. He got, as is his insistent want, in the middle of things. If the narrative attracts […]
Opinion
Tyranny of the Majority: 1st Congressional District on the Chopping Block by Tatiana Croissette
“We have to save our democracy” has been the Democratic rallying battle cry for the past few years. In Maryland saving “our democracy” apparently ... [Continue Story]
- Will Trump Immigration Policies Threaten the Eastern Shore Economy? By Wilson Dean
- Let’s Send the Message that Easton is Open for Business by Al Silverstein
- Donald the Red: The Modern Viking by Jim Bruce
- Election 2026: Heather Mizeur and Rick Hughes on Respectful Civic Engagement
- Horn Point Cuts Put Chesapeake Oyster Recovery at Risk by Sarah Gavian
- This Bears My Love to You Pooh by David Wheelan
- When Money Buys the Right to Be Heard, the People’s Voice Is Drowned Out by Tom Dennis
- “Fail First” is a Failure Always Ali Asghar Kassamali
- Remembering Mike Hiner by Robbie Gill
- Character Is Policy by Johnny O’Brien
- Trump Policies Disrupt the Eastern Shore Soybean Market by Wilson Dean
- As the Supreme Court Term Begins… Some Reflections by Margaret Andersen
- Opinion: Marylanders Need Pro-Business Policies by Jamie McNealy
- Spy Daybook: Just Because You Can; Does Not Mean You Should by Calvin Yowell
- Reflections on the YMCA Legacy of Ellen Rajacich by Robbie Gill
Letters to the Editor
Letter to Editor: Oxford and Other Towns Face Loss of Zoning Control Under New Bills
I am writing to highlight recently filed state legislation that would significantly limit, or potentially eliminate, key powers of local zoning ... [Continue Story]
- Letter to Editor: Wins for Easton!
- Letter to Editor: Grade for Learning, Not Punishment in Talbot County
- Letter to Editor: ICE Surges are Rehearsals for 2026 Midterms
- Letter to Editor: Questions Talbot Leaders Must Answer on Education
- Letter to Editor: Our Moral Test on Immigration
- Letter to Editor: When Does the Madness End?
