Texas Standard
David Brown, Angela Kocherga & Laura Rice
May 14, 2026
Who will replace Paxton as Texas attorney general?
It’s the final stretch before the primary runoffs in Texas, but the real test may not be the race most folks are focused on.Next week, early voting begins in the primary runoff contest between incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and challenger Ken Paxton — but win or lose, who’ll take over Paxton’s current seat as attorney […]
Listen
May 13, 2026
Pulitzer-winning writer reflects on loss and survival in the Central Texas floods
Former President Barack Obama made a surprise stop in Texas. We’ll dig more into what his appearance might mean for Democrats heading into the midterms.The number of students in Texas public schools dropped by tens of thousands at the beginning of this school year. We’ll look into why.Plus, another Texas-based company is also now making […]
Listen
May 12, 2026
How ‘churgers’ are providing relief to college students in Austin
A bipartisan bill aims to fix the country’s broken immigration system. Does it stand a chance in Congress?We’ll look at how adult education can help increase income for families coping with rising costs.Plus, free burgers for college students at UT Austin — how “churgers” are providing relief amid rising grocery prices.And the NBA playoffs now […]
Listen
May 11, 2026
South Texas LNG boom promises jobs — but at what cost?
The state’s biggest school district, already under state control, now faces a civil rights investigation by the federal government. The probe into Houston Independent School District focuses on plans to change how special education services are delivered — what some believe may amount to illegal segregation.A massive liquefied natural gas export terminal is rising near […]
Listen
May 8, 2026
After three deaths on a cruise ship, fears over hantavirus are going viral online. A top Texas epidemiologist shares what science says.The race for a U.S. Senate seat from Texas is getting a lot of attention as current Attorney General Ken Paxton tries to take the seat of a fellow Republican. But what about the […]
Listen
May 7, 2026
Valley Fever cases are rising in West Texas
Texas lawmakers have long known about flood dangers along the Guadalupe. So why were calls for life-saving protections not heeded?Amid lawsuits, two top state leaders say they want to make it easier for summer camps along the Guadalupe to reopen this summer, less than a year after the deadly July 4 floods.Plans to open a […]
Listen
May 6, 2026
Paxton faces fundraising squeeze in tight Senate race
Some of Ken Paxton’s usual big backers have not pitched in yet for his U.S. Senate race. What does that tell us about the runoff election?Houston ISD is trying something new next school year, launching so-called AI-focused schools. What’s that mean exactly?The business of craft brewing was growing for years, but now they’re shutting down […]
Listen
May 5, 2026
Supreme Court order keeps abortion pill access in flux
The Supreme Court intervenes in the battle over the medication mifepristone that is used for abortions mailed across the country.An ICE agent shot and killed Ruben Ray Martinez, a U.S. citizen, on South Padre Island in 2025 — but his family in San Antonio didn’t find out how he died for nearly a year. What […]
Listen
About
Texas Standard is grounded in the best traditions of American journalism: fact-based, independent, and politically neutral reporting. The program is a one-hour daily news magazine that airs weekdays on more than 30 public radio stations across the Lone Star State. Visit texasstandard.org/listen to find it on a radio station near you. Or listen anytime to this podcast. Texas Standard is produced in the state capital in collaboration with KUT Austin, KERA North Texas, Houston Public Media, and Texas Public Radio San Antonio, as well as news organizations across Texas, Mexico, and the United States.
David Brown
David Brown is host of the daily statewide public radio news hour, Texas Standard. He is former anchor of the Peabody award-winning public radio business program Marketplace, and a veteran public radio journalist for more than three decades. Brown has covered national and international affairs for NPR and PRI’s Monitor Radio from bases in Atlanta, Boston, London, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C. He has received numerous Murrow awards, National Headliner Awards, AP Broadcast honors and two Grand Prizes from the International Radio Festivals. Brown earned his Ph.D. in Journalism from The University of Texas at Austin, his Juris Doctor from Washington and Lee University School of Law, and is an active member of the California and U.S. Supreme Court Bars.
Angela Kocherga
Angela Kocherga is KTEP news director and also reports in the field on border issues including migration, the border security buildup, binational health, the trade. Her recent work earned a national and several regional Edward R. Murrow Awards. She is a 2019 recipient of the Maria Moors Cabot prize awarded by Columbia University for courageous reporting in Latin America in recognition of her body of work on the border and across Mexico. Emmy winning multimedia journalist Angela Kocherga is news director with KTEP and Borderzine.
Laura Rice
Though Laura’s official title with Texas Standard is Managing Producer, she actually wears many hats. Listeners will sometimes hear Laura on-air as an occasional host or reporter. More often, her work is behind-the-scenes. She helps make editorial decisions about what’s on the program and gives a second set of ears to the audio that makes it over the airwaves. Laura is passionate about working with the next generation of journalists through Texas Standard’s internship program. She also loves leading special projects for the team — including the National Edward R. Murrow Award-winning documentary “Out Of The Blue: 50 Years After The UT Tower Shooting.” Before joining the Texas Standard team, Laura worked just a few cubicles over in the local KUT Newsroom where she served as the station’s Morning Edition producer and fill-in host. Laura found radio after a start in television news. She worked as an anchor, reporter, and producer at stations in Austin, Amarillo, and Toledo, Ohio. She graduated from journalism school at the University of Missouri-Columbia and earned an MA from the University of Texas at Austin’s department of Radio-Television-Film.
Contact Texas Standard
[Please do a page refresh if you don’t see the contact form here]
