State Redistricting: The new Congressional district map was released Friday and Congressman Marsha Blackburn’s Seventh District is no longer a part of Shelby County. The adjoining Eighth (Rep. Stephen Fincher) and Ninth (Rep. Steve Cohen) districts will close the gap. The proposal is only a “concept map” said Speaker of the TN House Beth Harwell. Lt Gov Ron Ramsey explains the thinking of the GOP.

Analysis from the Daily News’ Bill Dries. The effects of redistricting on Davidson County and Murfreesboro. State Senator Andy Berke is now weighing running for the Legislature against running for Chattanooga mayor. Other legislators are eyeing running for new office and assessing the possibilities. Freshman State Senator Kerry Roberts found himself redistricted out of his seat; more from the Tennessean. Analysis of some Middle Tennessee redistricting in the Fourth and Sixth Congressional Districts; more. And the Flyer’s Jackson Baker looks at what happens in West Tennessee. Democrats are still deciding whether or not to take the situation into court.

View the new Congressional map (PDF document) and all other State House and Senate redistricting maps.

Education Reform: Principals are woefully behind on their teacher classroom evaluations, both in Memphis City and Shelby County schools.

Transition Planning Commission: The group guiding the merger of City and County schools has its first public input meeting on Tuesday evening. They are prepared to hear from the public.

Shelby County Commission: Today’s full commission meeting, the first of the year, is also the first since last week’s filing of a lawsuit on County redistricting. The meeting agenda.

General Assembly: The Legislature convenes Tuesday and their plate is full but the time is short this year. They plan a quick session.

Memphis Animal Shelter: Despite an unresolved year-long drama with the shelter, Janet Hooks will be promoted to head the new Division of Public Services, Parks and Community Enhancement.

Civil War Sesquicentennial: Only a year and a half late, but the Commercial Appeal is starting a new feature marking important dates, people and events of the Civil War.

Overton Park Conservancy: They received a half-million dollar operations grant from the Hyde Family Foundations, payble in three installments.

Politics: Do changes to the Republican nomination process spell good news to Tennessee Republicans? From the Knoxville News-Sentinel, a list of East Tennessee legislators to watch in 2012. US Senator Lamar Alexander is getting ready to “express himself” as he steps down from his leadership role.

Charter Schools: Seventeen charter school applications are encountering the usual MCS fog in trying to determine progress on approval.

Collierville: At tonight’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen meeting, they are scheduled to vote on a consultant to help prevent employee fraud.

Republican Presidential Primaries: Tennessee’s political animals are beginning to take sides in the race.

Nashville: The investigation into monetary gifts to student-athletes at Montgomery Bell Academy wasn’t over when they thought it was. Bridgestone Arena was rated sixth in the nation for concert attendance. Metro Parks and Recreation withdraws plans to purchse Nashboro Village Golf Club. State redistricting largely left Nashville untouched.

Redbirds: Redbirds play-by-play man Steve Selby and former St. Louis Cardinal and Memphis Redbird Bo Hart are set to bring the Redbirds Hot Stove radio show to WHBQ56 this week.

Shelby County Sheriffs: Deputy Christopher Pearce was arrested on charges of domestic violence against his ex-girlfirend. More from WMC.

Will There Be a Brokered Convention? Regular Main Street Journal contributor Chuck Bates, on the eve of the Iowa caucuses, looks at the Republican field and wonders, “Are we headed to a brokered convention?”

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Millington: Only two candidates have come forward for the interim mayor position.

Norman Benjamin: Hustled into court on Friday, the former Memphis Police officer pled guilty to five criminal charges, including solicitation of first-degree murder. More from ABC24.

Lifeblood: A four-year old cancer patient is in desperate need of B negative blood.

Shelby County Greenline: Oakland, in Fayette County, will build an 8 mile trail intended, one day, to connect to Shelby County via the CSX railroad bed. If all goes to plan, and the weather cooperates, the Wolf River Greenway and the Germantown Greenway will be connected this Summer.

Pyramid: The ongoing demolition inside the arena is a particular interest to local news. More from WMC.

DeSoto County: The Commercial Appeal profiles First Congressional District Republican candidate Robert Estes. The MS Realtor of the Year is DeSoto’s own Tony Jones. The Johnson Creek Waste Water Treatment Facility is on-time with construction. Not all the County’s boards and commissions are popular with volunteers. The Commercial Appeal has the Bulletin Board for Monday.

Shelby County Chancery Court: The level of corruption and abuse in this office continues to deepen as investigations learn more.

Hertz Investment Group: They are buying five office buildings from the departing Parkway Properties. More in the Daily News.

Elvis Presley: Tupelo gears up to remind tourists they were Presley’s birthplace. Fans begin celebrating his 77th birthday this week. Local businesses are looking forward to the economic boost.

Air Travel: Delta Air Lines and Pinnacle Airlines are ranked second and third, respectively, in on-time performance.

Business: Collierville’s AOC HQ has earned LEED Silver certification. The Daily News’ Small Business Spotlight shines this week on Billie’s Pecans. .

People on the Move, covered by the Business Journal. Today’s Events, from the Daily News. And, in the Commercial Appeal, What to Do for Sunday and Monday; People in Business for Sunday and Monday; and Property Transfers.

Southwest Airlines: Are the stars coming into alignment to allow the airline to come to Memphis International.

Precision Coils: The governor held a press conference to announce that the company is moving from Somerville to the Brownsville Industrial Park; more from the Business Journal.

Financial: The consensus among analysts is for First Horizon National to post a small quarterly profit. The region’s second largest bank, Regions Bank, is moving into “alternative banking”.

Knoxville: The Knoxville Pension Board has a large gap to fill and it’s only growing bigger. And the County Commission is looking into incentive payments by County Trustee John Duncan III.

Cooper-Young: Mayor A C Wharton Police Director Toney Armstrong spoke to residents about fighting their crime problem. But business owners say they want more beat cops.

2012 Republican Primary: Our Tea Party contributor Ed “Doc” Holliday looks at the Republican presidential candidacy of Newt Gingrich and wonders if his past baggage can–or should–be overcome in tea party eyes.

Mississippi: State Senator Merle Flowers has gotten three key appointments in the new Legislature. New Lt Gov Tate Reeves is already getting “solid” reviews.

Agitatrix: Hoping her horoscope for 2012 comes true.

Benito’s Wine Reviews: A bit late, but the wines he and friends enjoyed for New Year’s Eve.

Bigger Than Your Head: Fifty great wines of 2011!

Biking in Memphis: The occasional mistakes of GPS can be entertaining.

dminmem: Let’s not go Krogering.

Dinner Belles: There are never too much easy(-ish) peanut butter bars.

I Face Me: Update on the Chapter-A-Week book club and some suggestions for their first book.

I Love Memphis: Remember JAMJAM1? It’s still out there. Visit Elvis Presley’s old Lauderdale Courts apartment.

In the South, it’s a religion: 2012 was her “year of starting over” but I doubt she knew it would be this much of a restart.

Jen-sized: New blog and new business cards. Gifted, talented or skilled?

Left Wing Cracker: Is this year’s State redistricting an effort to split Steve Cohen’s voter base?

Jackson Sun: The Jackson (TN) City Council erred in voting down the playground in Pringles Park.

Tennessean: The Legislature should delay implementation and amend last year’s new voter ID law.

Mark Goins: Opponents of the new voter ID changes have yet to produce a single disenfranchised voter. (via the Tennessean)

Margaret Parsley: The League of Women Voters plan to monitor this election and report its effects. (via the Tennessean) (Link fixed.)

Tom Humphrey: He is rather grudgingly forced to admit that State redistricting was generally fair and honest. (via the Knoxville News-Sentinel)

Joe Spake’s Daily Buzz: The rest of the day’s news, from all sorts of eclectic places.

Commercial Appeal: Altering the State’s sunshine laws to protect “economic development discussions” is not a good idea. Avoiding leadership to avoid ridicule? Once again wishing good starts, in government coucils and commissions, could last all year. “Yes” to Dr Martin Luther King Jr Avenue. They actually support two plans by Governor Bill Haslam, though both add to government and create more law.

Smart Stuff 4 Work: Never underestimate the value of clarity. (via the Daily News)

Memphis News: The centennial of Baptist Memorial Health Care speaks to our history as a city. (via the Daily News)

Chris Peck: Thoughts on obituaries. (via the Commercial Appeal)

Otis L. Sanford: He’s glad the City Council rubber-stamped the Electrolux deal, but they should have gotten it in writing. (via the Commercial Appeal)

Katy Spurlock and Marc Goodman-Bryan: Success for our children, and by them, is apparently a government-funded thing? (via the Commercial Appeal)

Wendi C. Thomas: The City Council has a responsibility to “read the fine print”. (via the Commercial Appeal)

Andre K. Fowlkes: City Councilman Harold Collins is right: let’s do right by Whitehaven. (via the Commercial Appeal)

Chattanooga Times: A proposed change to Federal immigration rules is fair and inviting.

Chattanooga Free Press: Government jobs are both lucrative and hard to lose.

John Whitehead: Noting with concern the militarisation of local police. (via the Desoto Times Tribune)

David Hampton: Governor Haley Barbour understood that effective leadership requires compromise. (via the Desoto Times Tribune)