Tommy Tomlinson
Tommy Tomlinson has hosted the podcast SouthBound for WFAE since 2017. He also does a commentary, On My Mind, which airs every Monday.
He's the author of "The Elephant in the Room," a memoir about life as an overweight man in a growing America. He spent 23 years as a reporter and local columnist for the Charlotte Observer, where he was a finalist for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize in commentary. He has also written for publications including Esquire, ESPN The Magazine, Sports Illustrated, and Garden & Gun. He’s a graduate of the University of Georgia and was a 2008-09 Nieman Fellow at Harvard University.
Tommy and his wife, Alix Felsing, live in Charlotte.
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This week on SouthBound, host Tommy Tomlinson talks to Jim Barger Jr., author of a new book called “Rivers and Dreams,” on former President Jimmy Carter’s life as a fisherman — and how he often used fishing to cast the lines of diplomacy. -
For the first time in its modern history, South Carolina has executed a prisoner by firing squad. WFAE’s Tommy Tomlinson, in his “On My Mind” commentary, says the echoes of that moment will last far longer than a rifle shot. -
The deadline to get Real IDs is fast approaching … but actually acquiring a Real ID in North Carolina is the opposite of fast. WFAE’s Tommy Tomlinson, in his "On My Mind" commentary, says we should be prepared for more government backlogs.
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The new season of a TV show set 9,000 miles away has a plotline that will resonate with everybody in North Carolina. WFAE’s Tommy Tomlinson, in his "On My Mind" commentary, says it speaks to the power of our state’s fiercest rivalry.
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This week on SouthBound, host Tommy Tomlinson talks to Tennessee singer and mandolin player Sierra Hull. She’s got a new album, "A Tip Toe High Wire," coming out next week that continues her musical journey beyond her bluegrass roots.
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Fort Bragg officially has its old name back. But WFAE’s Tommy Tomlinson, in his “On My Mind” commentary, says it might be enlightening to know who it was named for in the first place.
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This week on SouthBound, host Tommy Tomlinson talks to Davidson-based painter Elizabeth Bradford. She paints large nature scenes with lots of things happening at once, and talks about how hearing a slam poet changed her painting style.
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A big NBA trade shook the sports world last week. WFAE’s Tommy Tomlinson, in his "On My Mind" commentary, says trades of ballplayers should shake us in a more fundamental way.
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Two counties in the Charlotte area have a new county line after a long dispute over their border. WFAE’s Tommy Tomlinson, in his "On My Mind" commentary, says borders help define us … and not always for the best.
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This week on SouthBound, host Tommy Tomlinson talks to author Andy Corren. Andy wrote an obit a few years ago for his self-described “redneck Jewish” mother. That obit went viral, and he has expanded it into a hilarious and touching memoir called “Dirtbag Queen.”
