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From the editor: Ohio Supreme Court majority plays politics, strikes blow to open records

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From the editor: Ohio Supreme Court majority plays politics, strikes blow to open records


It was a blatant political stunt, but I appreciate the gesture.

Last week, a Democrat in the Ohio House introduced a bill he’s calling the Super Bowl Entourage Expense Act. What’s behind the oddly specific piece of legislation? Let’s start at the beginning – which is a very good place to start.

Defying most expectations, the Bengals clawed their way to the Super Bowl in 2022. Among those who made the trip to SoFi Stadium in Englewood, California, was Gov. Mike DeWine, along with 19 members of his family.

DeWine was quick to note he paid for the trip, including the cost of the tickets. But when the governor travels, the state provides security for him and his entourage.

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How much did the security detail cost taxpayers? It’s a fair question, so we asked for a breakdown of airfare, food, lodging, overtime and other expenses incurred by the Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers whose job it was to keep the governor safe.

Our request was denied. Lawyers for the Ohio Department of Public Safety said the information fell under a security exemption in Ohio’s open records law. Releasing expense receipts might reveal the size of the security detail, the hotels they stayed at and other tactical information that could be used by bad actors to attack the governor, they argued.

We disagreed – the Super Bowl was a unique event that occurred in the past – but offered a compromise. We modified our request and asked only for the total cost to taxpayers for the security detail. A lump sum, not an itemized list.

They wouldn’t budge. So we filed a lawsuit with the Ohio Supreme Court.

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Nearly two Super Bowls later, the court issued its ruling. In a 4-3 split decision that followed party lines, the Republicans on the court struck a blow against government transparency and ruled the information we sought was not a public record.

In his dissent, Justice Michael Donnelly said it’s “more than a stretch” to conclude keeping gas receipts secret is essential for the governor’s security.

“It is obvious that all disclosures of public records come with some security concerns. As an extreme example, there is no doubt that any governor would be much safer if no one knew his or her name, what she or he looks like, or where he or she lives and works,” Donnelly said. “But the incremental concern at issue here is not, to my mind, sufficient justification for shrouding government spending in secrecy.”

I couldn’t have said that better myself. If there’s a security expert out there who can take a dollar amount and derive from it a sinister plan to hit a target, please send them my way.

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And now we get to State Rep. Eliot Forhan, the Cleveland-area Democrat who wants to create a law that overturns the court’s decision. First, thank you. I appreciate your support of open records. Second, don’t waste your time.

As our state government reporter Laura Bischoff wrote, the bill is dead on arrival. It has no chance of making it through the Republican-controlled General Assembly; if it did, DeWine would veto it; and since Forhan is being investigated by the Ohio Attorney General over accusations of harassment and intimidation, no one is rushing to support him right now.

So what’s next? The Enquirer will continue to fight for government transparency and open records. At any given time, Enquirer reporters have more than a dozen active public records requests, most of which are granted without involving the court.

Even though we lost this one, we forced the discussion. Ohio taxpayers might not know how much they spent to send the governor to the Super Bowl, but the fact his political allies fought to keep it secret suggests it was a sizable sum that would have raised some eyebrows.

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Love ’em or hate ’em, reader comments have been suspended on our website, Cincinnati.com. In our announcement to readers online, we explained that the time and cost required to moderate the comment sections – attached to nearly every story – would be better spent reporting the news. Cincinnati.com was one of the few remaining Gannett-owned sites to feature reader comments; now, we join the other sites in our company in shutting down what too often was a free-for-all of anonymous personal attacks and gratuitous snark.

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I have mixed feelings about it. In theory, online commenting is a natural extension of letters to the editor and other platforms we provide for community debate. But despite our efforts to thwart the trolls with text filters and human intervention, the comment sections did little to elevate the discussion.

Did we make the right call? Drop me an email and weigh in.

Enquirer Executive Editor Beryl Love writes a biweekly column that takes you behind the scenes at The Enquirer. Occasionally, he shares his thoughts on local issues, particularly as they pertain to a free press and open government. Love also serves as regional editor for the USA TODAY Network Ohio. Email him at blove@enquirer.com. He can’t respond personally to every email, but he reads them all.



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Ohio high school girls basketball scores: Friday, Jan. 9, 2026

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Ohio high school girls basketball scores: Friday, Jan. 9, 2026


CLEVELAND, Ohio — OHSAA girls basketball scores from Friday in Ohio, as provided by The Associated Press.

Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, Mich. 43, Notre Dame Academy 35

Baltimore Liberty Union 47, Cols. Hamilton Twp. 34

Berlin Center Western Reserve 68, N. Jackson Jackson-Milton 46

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Blanchester 40, Bethel-Tate 37

Chagrin Falls 37, Burton Berkshire 32

Circleville 62, Amanda-Clearcreek 40

Cle. Hay 88, Cle. Glenville 2

Cols. Centennial 78, Columbus International 50

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Cols. Linden-McKinley 54, Cols. Whetstone 28

Cols. Walnut Ridge 73, Cols. Marion-Franklin 12

Delaware Buckeye Valley 50, CSG 43

Delta 48, Bryan 44

Dublin Coffman 47, Cols. Upper Arlington 39

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Hilliard Darby 43, Thomas Worthington 32

Johnstown 47, Johnstown Northridge 41

Mason 54, Cin. Colerain 32

Newark 56, Ashville Teays Valley 42

Oak Harbor 52, Millbury Lake 31

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Ohio Deaf 50, Ky. School for the Deaf, Ky. 9

Pemberville Eastwood 65, Rossford 35

Pickerington North 41, New Albany 33

Springboro 66, Centerville 33

Stryker 54, Montpelier 20

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W. Chester Lakota W. 76, Fairfield 24

Wauseon 55, Swanton 13

Western Reserve Academy 65, Lawrenceville School, N.J. 33

Westerville Cent. 57, Grove City Cent. Crossing 20

Worthington Christian 57, Tree of Life 16

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Zanesville 58, Newark Licking Valley 40



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Ohio State students hone academic, business skills through study abroad programs

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Ohio State students hone academic, business skills through study abroad programs


Students across various majors at The Ohio State University recently gathered at the Fisher College of Business to discuss how study abroad opportunities have helped them hone skills that will benefit their studies and chosen career paths.

Fisher’s Office of Global Business and its Office of Advancement hosted the inaugural Global Experience Luncheon. The event was held at the Blackwell Inn on the Columbus campus.

The luncheon brought together alumni who have donated to study abroad programs with students who have participated in them, said Dominic DiCamillo, senior director of the Office of Global Business.

“We were excited to partner with Advancement for the first time to facilitate this type of personal connection. The families that have created these endowments, oftentimes, they hoped it would have some sort of positive impact,” he said. “This is the first time for them to hear firsthand from the students who recently participated.”

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Xin Lin, a third-year finance student, shared her experiences studying abroad in Hamburg, Germany, and Chiang Mai, Thailand. While in Germany in summer 2024, Lin completed the Fisher Freshman Global Lab with Professor Michael Knemeyer and studied at the Kühne Logistics University.

During Lin’s semester in Germany, her cohort toured the facilities of several international companies, including the Mercedes-Benz auto manufacturer, Seven Senders logistics enterprise, and Jack Wolfskin outdoor apparel.

“This was my first time being in Europe,” she said. “It was a really eye-opening experience and taught me to be curious about exploring other cultures, which is why I made the decision to study abroad in Chiang Mai, Thailand.”

This past summer in Chiang Mai, Lin completed the competitive Fisher Global Consulting: Nonprofit program, which is funded by an endowment established by Chris Connor, a 1978 Ohio State alumnus, and his wife, Sara. The participating students, called Connor Scholars, gain firsthand insights into the cultures and business practices of countries in developing regions worldwide.

“We were there for two weeks working on the sustainability and the marketing for the local elephant foundation, as well as to support the villagers,” she said. “And my team and I, we worked on the sustainability curriculum for the local school.”

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Lin said participating in study abroad programs sharpened her decision-making and problem-solving skills.

“Leveraging these experiences has strengthened my understanding of international business and macroeconomics,” she said. “Most importantly, it is the growth mindset and the endless learning that these experiences have taught me, and I’m really excited to be carrying these values into my future career and my academic journey.”

Jacob Brodson, a fourth-year marketing major, said participating in the Fisher Global Marketing Lab in Taiwan this past summer was “a transformational, life-changing trip.”

Jacob Brodson (center) said he met more than 25 Ohio State alumni in Taiwan.“If you can go to someplace that’s so fundamentally different from what we experience here on a day-to-day basis, you should absolutely take the opportunity to,” he said. “And Taiwan is that opportunity.”

Brodson said studying marketing and visiting 10 companies in Taiwan gave him a broader perspective on business practices in different countries.

“We went to TSMC, which is the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. That’s the 10th largest company in the world that you probably have never heard of, but they make all the phone and computer chips that are in your cellphones,” he said. “It was an unbelievable experience to see that.”

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Brodson and his classmates also toured a Kenda Tire facility.

“They actually do a lot of marketing at Ohio State sporting events because their U.S. headquarters is out in Reynoldsburg,” Brodson said. “We got to see their entire manufacturing plant in Taiwan.”

Brodson said he was pleasantly surprised to discover a Buckeye community overseas. He met more than 25 Ohio State alumni throughout Taiwan.

“We are halfway across the world and yet the most beautiful thing is that there are still reminders of home. We’re halfway across the country and there are still Buckeyes there,” he said. “That is one of the coolest things – seeing the Ohio State alumni and the fact that this Buckeye tradition transcends countries.”

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Northeast Ohio Weather: High wind, very warm, showers, and storms today

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Northeast Ohio Weather: High wind, very warm, showers, and storms today


CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – A powerful cold front will be tracking through today.

A second system impacts the area tomorrow.

It is very warm and very windy today. High temperatures forecast to be above 60 degrees in many towns before the cold front blows through.

Temperatures tumble through the 50s and into the 40s later this afternoon.

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We have showers and a few thunderstorms in the area. The risk of rain will end behind the front. A south wind shifts west and could gust over 45 mph at times today.

Colder and much less wind tonight with a mostly cloudy sky. Early morning temperatures tomorrow will be in the 30s.

The system tomorrow will track across the Great Lakes and will be centered north of us Saturday night.

Moisture gets drawn up from the south. Showers develop by afternoon.

The rain isn’t expected to be heavy with less than .25″ in the forecast. High temperatures make it into the 40s.

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Colder Saturday night and blustery. Southwest winds could gust to around 30 mph at times.

A window is there Sunday for snow showers and lake-effect.

It’ll be very windy on Sunday. West winds could gust over 45 mph at times. Afternoon temperatures around 30 degrees.



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