Carson Hartzog

I appreciate your feedback and am always open to discussion! I find that BlueSky -- or any social media platform -- isn't conducive to conversation because of character limits. But my email (carson.hartzog@startribune.com) is always open!

Target leaning in on groceries as part of its plan to stop downward slide Executives laid out their plan to spend an additional $1 billion to update both merchandise and stores to win back customers.

Target is spending more than $1 billion this year to improve its grocery section, as it leans into adding more fresh foods and emphasizing the bakery department.

What another sales decline for Target says about consumers Target’s comparable sales fell 2.5% and profits more than 5%, while competitors saw gains and Best Buy had a steady holiday quarter.

Target’s comparable sales fell 2.5% and profits more than 5%, while competitors saw gains and Best Buy had a steady holiday quarter.

This is the Q1 2025 quote from then-CEO Brian Cornell: "We faced several additional headwinds this quarter, including five consecutive months of declining consumer confidence, uncertainty regarding the impact of potential tariffs and the reaction to the updates we shared on belonging in January."

Hi Holly! Appreciate the question. Publicly traded companies are generally required to disclose significant consumer boycotts if they pose a material risk to financial performance. Target said its DEI pullback impacted business in Q1 2025 but has not said so since.

Inside the upheaval at the Minnesota U.S. Attorney’s Office Nearly half its lawyers have left since President Trump’s return, leading to dismissed criminal cases, stalled fraud prosecutions and a rare contempt citation against a Justice Department attorney.

Since Trump began his second term, at least 31 of the 64 lawyers at the MN U.S. Attorney’s Office quit or retired, with attorneys citing concerns about ethics, political pressure and the administration’s decision to make immigration a top priority, according to a 2-month Star Tribune investigation.

Supreme Court strikes down Trump’s sweeping tariffs, upending central plank of economic agenda The Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump's far-reaching global tariffs on Friday, handing him a significant loss on an issue crucial to his economic agenda.

The Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump’s far-reaching global tariffs on Friday, handing him a significant loss on an issue crucial to his economic agenda.

For one glorious day, the Apostle Islands ice caves were open to viewers. Now the ice pathway is gone after a storm. Thousands visited the spectacle for just one glorious day, the first time in years.

Andddd the Apostle Island ice caves are closed after a winter storm broke up much of the ice. It opened for the first time in 11 years on Monday and closed the day after because of the storm. Incredible that I was able to see it. www.startribune.com/apostle-isla...

Some people want Target to take a stand on the surge in federal immigration operations in Minnesota so much that they are willing to be arrested.

Police detained some protesters who demonstrated at the MN Target location where federal agents had arrested two employees weeks prior.
@startribune.com

What kind of immigration-related content are you seeing on social media? Share your experience to help inform our reporting.

We’re looking for volunteers to share their social media feeds for a possible story about how algorithms shape people’s understanding of the ongoing immigration crackdown.

If you’d be willing to share your own experience and insights, fill out the form below.

www.startribune.com/what-kind-of...

Live: Judge orders release of suspects in alleged shovel attack on agent Department of Homeland Security says agent fired in self-defense after being attacked with a snow shovel and broom.

"Photographic evidence from the shooting scene of a Venezuelan man by federal agents last month in Minneapolis supports the account of witnesses there — and appears to undercut the narrative provided by federal officials."

Sit-ins are being held at Target stores across the state. Demonstrators want Target to "stand with Minnesotans" and publicly call for ICE to leave, according to organizers.

Ongoing coverage: bit.ly/3NO1vD6

📷️ Anthony Soufflé/The Minnesota Star Tribune

The Feb. 1 front page of the Star Tribune

The front page of tomorrow's Minnesota Star Tribune: Feb. 1, 2026

The Minnesota Star Tribune, Minnesota Public Radio, the Minnesota Reformer, Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, Sahan Journal, Center for Broadcast Journalism and Minnesota Newspaper Association today released the following statement: “We strongly condemn the arrest of journalists Georgia Fort and Don Lemon, as well as any attempt to intimidate members of the press. The First Amendment recognizes the press as holding a distinct and protected role in our democracy. In America, we do not arrest journalists for doing their jobs. The Minnesota journalism community stands united in defense of press freedom and the essential role reporting plays in holding power to account.”

The Minnesota Star Tribune, @mprnews.org @minnesotareformer.com , @spokesmanrecorder.bsky.social, @sahanjournal.bsky.social, Center for Broadcast Journalism and Minnesota Newspaper Association today released the following statement:

How exhausted Minneapolis journalists are covering a prolonged federal crackdown - Poynter Local journalists in Minneapolis describe exhaustion, safety risks and disinformation as they cover a prolonged ICE crackdown.

“We’ve had political assassinations. We had a multi-fatality school shooting, and now the largest immigration crackdown in American history has all happened in Minneapolis in the last eight months,” said Liz Sawyer, a reporter at The Minnesota Star Tribune.

Bystander video reveals confrontation between Alex Pretti and federal agents 11 days before killing Agents tackled and pinned Pretti to the ground after he kicked out the tail light of their vehicle, according to observers who filmed the encounter.

Bystander video reveals confrontation between Alex Pretti and federal agents 11 days before killing

A chaotic confrontation, a gun and 10 shots: A frame-by-frame analysis of the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti Minnesota Star Tribune analyzed how another encounter with federal agents turned deadly.

The Star Tribune conducted a frame analysis into the videos capturing Pretti's killing. We found the video evidence directly contradicts the administration's initial narrative that Pretti was a threat. I do not recommend viewing if you don't need convincing. Some key findings in the thread:

How immigration detainees move around Minnesota and the nation ICE detained hundreds of thousands of people last year, shuttling them between jails and detention centers around the country, limiting access to legal support.

“Just getting a client to sign a document becomes almost impossible. ... Suddenly, they’re in Texas and there’s no way to contact them.”

In 2025, more than 2,700 immigrants passed through Minnesota detention facilities. They were transferred nearly 8,000 times.

www.startribune.com/how-immigrat...

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Viral images turn local bookstore owner into symbol of Minneapolis anger After federal agents fatally shot Alex Pretti, Greg Ketter drove to the scene to “be in that spot.” Images of the 70-year-old emerging from tear gas and shouting his anger quickly went viral.

Viral images turn local bookstore owner into symbol of Minneapolis anger.

“I didn’t have a motive or other reason,” Greg Ketter, owner of DreamHaven Books & Comics, said. “I just felt I had to go down there. I wanted to be in that spot.”

Gift link: www.startribune.com/viral-images...

Scoop: Hundreds of Target employees pen letter saying the Minneapolis retailer ‘abandoned its community’

“In the face of this tyranny, continued silence from our leaders will never make us safer”

With @carzharts.bsky.social. Stay updated: www.startribune.com/ice-raids-mi...

The latest: Two arrests made after anti-ICE unrest, Trump threatens to send troops to Minnesota The war of words between state and federal officials escalated as the president threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to quell anti-ICE protests.

Target’s CEO has agreed to meet with clergy members after a sit-in at its headquarters. The group is asking Target to make a public statement about ICE’s ongoing presence in Minnesota, including the detention of two employees at its Richfield store.

Full update: www.startribune.com/ice-raids-mi...

Live: Trump threatens to send troops to Minnesota after federal agent shoots man over alleged attack Trump claimed “professional agitators and insurrectionists” were among the demonstrations in Minneapolis as he threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act. The federal government released new details ab...

More than 50 clergy gathered Thursday morning at Target's downtown Minneapolis store for a news conference and then marched to the retailer's corporate headquarters to present demands and ask to speak to CEO Brian Cornell.

Additional info (outside the paywall): www.startribune.com/ice-raids-mi...

Live: Shooting reported in Minneapolis allegedly involving federal agents Gov. Tim Walz address Minnesotans in a live broadcast Wednesday night on the surge of federal immigration agents in Minnesota. A federal judge has declined to immediately rule on the ICE surge in Minn...

During a federal immigration enforcement operation on the north side of Minneapolis, a man was shot in the leg during a foot chase, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation.

www.startribune.com/ice-raids-mi...

Minnesota’s biggest companies starting to feel heat from ICE surge From Target to General Mills and Caribou Coffee, Minnesota’s largest employers are feeling pressure amid a surge of immigration officers in the state following the killing of Renee Good.

Bill George, a former Medtronic CEO and Target Board member, encouraged Minnesota employers to “make a statement.”

“How can you expect a committed, loyal workforce if you’re not there to have their back?” George said.
www.startribune.com/minnesotas-b...

Target employees detained by federal officers were U.S. citizens, legislator says Minnesota Rep. Michael Howard, who represents Richfield, said the employees also were injured in the incident.

Two Target employees detained by federal officers at Richfield store are U.S. citizens, Rep. Michael Howard said. Target declined to comment.

Gift link: www.startribune.com/target-emplo...

Reach me with tips at carson.hartzog@startribune.com | Signal: carsonhartzog.13