Clint Cooper is the Free Press editor at the Chattanooga Times Free Press, representing the conservative side of the newspaper's opinion section. Previously he worked as a lifestyles reporter, and has been an assistant sports editor and Metro staff writer for the newspaper. Prior to the merger between the Chattanooga Free Press and Chattanooga Times in 1999, he was sports news editor for the Chattanooga Free Press, where he was in charge of the day-to-day content of the section and the section's design. Before becoming sports news editor, he was a staff writer. In the Life section, he is responsible for the content of the weekly religion page but also contributes entertainment stories to the current section; health, home and profile stories for the daily Life pages; and general news articles to the news columns. In the past, he has written on technology and baby boomers for the section. Clint has received honors over the years for his writing and design in both individual work and work as part of a team or section. Among those are several best overall team coverage awards from the Southern League (when he was either lead writer or content/design editor), a best section award by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association (when he was content/design editor) and several first-place awards in the community lifestyles category of the Tennessee Press Association contest (as part of a staff). The Chattanooga native is a cum laude graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a degree in mass communications and did postgraduate work there in secondary education. Clint and his wife of 21 years, Donna, have one son, Patrick, 18. He enjoys acting, reading and running. Contact Clint at 423-757-6497 or ccooper@timesfreepress.com. You may friend him on Facebook.
The least conservative Republican in Tennessee's U.S. House delegation in Washington, D.C., according to the recently released 2021 ratings by the American Conservative Union Foundation Center for Legislative Accountability, was U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, R-Ooltewah.
by Clint CooperIf the operation of the Silverdale Detention Center has broken down so thoroughly that prisoners there are constantly at risk, and the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) can no longer be trusted to investigate controversial law enforcement incidents, then a probe by the United States Department of Justice is warranted.
by Clint CooperState budgets usually put a little something in a lot of buckets, but some folks in Hamilton County may think they got shortchanged in the state's record fiscal 2023 financial blueprint. Others may not.
by Clint CooperWhen people feared partisan school board elections in Tennessee when they were being considered in the Tennessee General Assembly last fall, what is happening in Hamilton County's new District 11 is likely what they had in mind.
by Clint CooperWe've never owned a small business, but we've been around those who do for many years.
by Clint CooperWe had a sense this was about to happen.
by Clint CooperIt's all about flexibility, the Erlanger Health System Board of Trustees says.
by Clint CooperIt's the one rumor in the 2022 Hamilton County mayoral campaign that just won't go away.
by Clint CooperIt is one thing for judicial candidates to know the law. It is another for them to know how to interpret and apply it properly and do so with compassion.
by Clint CooperIn an era where parents are demanding to have more of a say in what their child is reading and being taught in public schools, the makeup of a school board is critical.
by Clint CooperSeveral candidates in May's Hamilton County primary election have made reference to a larger than usual turnover in local elected offices, and potential turnover in offices, by positing a need for stability.
by Clint CooperIt was not the life she initially sought for herself, Sabrena Smedley says.
by Clint CooperWhen Coty Wamp begins speaking about her plans for the office of Hamilton County district attorney general, the ideas pour out of her almost faster than the ear can take them in.
by Clint CooperIf three candidates for district attorney general of Hamilton County stood on a stage even five years ago and said that marijuana prosecutions were a nuisance, the audience might have shared a collective gasp.
by Clint CooperWith early voting for the May county primary set to begin on Wednesday, it's been interesting to watch the tenor of the first ever competitive Republican race for Hamilton County mayor change.
by Clint CooperJust over the Tennessee border in Georgia, former state Rep. Stacey Abrams is making a second run for governor.
by Clint CooperMembers of Hamilton County's state legislative delegation may have opened the door a bit on sales tax sharing going to help build a new baseball stadium for the Chattanooga Lookouts last week, but we figure there's plenty of room for others to walk through the same door.
by Clint CooperOver the years, news of public and private housing developments have made big splashes, only to fade into the woodwork with no action for a variety of reasons as the years go by.
by Clint CooperIt was the question heard around the world.
by Clint CooperThe appointment of Hamilton County Criminal Court Judge Tom Greenholtz to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals by Gov. Bill Lee has set off another in a series of appointments and maneuvering with which the Hamilton County Commission is becoming quite familiar.
by Clint Cooper