KUT & KUTX Studios -- Podcasts
KUT and KUTX news and music podcasts for Austin, Texas and beyond
A dramatic move at the Texas Capitol upends a decades-long tradition of power sharing as conservative Republicans succeed in banning Democrats from chairing legislative committees.
The end of the CBP One program for asylum-seekers following President Donald Trump’s inauguration has left many with questions about their future.
And: Growing demand and industrial expansion have left Corpus Christi facing a water emergency.
Central Texas top stories for January 15, 2025. The City of San Marcos has completed a project to protect its residents against flood damage. The City of Leander is asking its residents and local businesses to save water. The Eanes Independent School District will be closing one of its six elementary campuses as part of an effort to save money.
With temperatures on the rise, beware the temptation to let down your guard: a waning winter storm and what it means for drivers today.
Gov. Greg Abbott is keen on an idea to pipe Houston’s surplus water to drought-stricken West Texas.
With the U.S. inauguration just 10 days away, what’s in store for the relationship between Washington and Mexico City?
Plus: 2025 taco hacks from taco journalist Mando Rayo.
Central Texas top stories for January 7, 2025. Austin is still struggling to staff its police department. Rents continue to fall in the Austin area. Georgetown is finding new sources of water to meet the demand that comes with its rapid growth.
There’s a fight to lead the Texas House of Representatives, and two names top the list. Yesterday we heard about Justin Burrows; today we’re taking a closer look at his challenger, David Cook, who the support of the House GOP caucus.
How one Central Texas school district is trying to do something about chronic absenteeism.
And: Whataburger has long been celebrated as a Texas fast food icon, but after its sale to a Chicago-based company, many claim it just isn’t what it used to be. Omar Gallaga explains.
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments about restrictions on gender-affirming care for young people. What a ruling could mean.
Texas elected officials will soon have to start disclosing more information about the properties they own – changes that could reveal more about Attorney General Ken Paxton’s recent real estate transactions.
Houston-based Enron went very publicly kaput more than 20 years ago. Now, it’s back? We’ll take a closer look.
Uranium mining is ramping up again in South Texas, raising questions about the environmental and economic implications.
Plus: ChatGPT is known to have its limitations. What one of its blindspots tells us about artificial intelligence.
Central Texas top stories for December 03, 2024. Early voting is underway in runoff races in Travis County, that includes a seat on the AISD Board of Trustees, Austin City Council District Seven and Manor’s mayor. Travis County is seeing a decline in drug-related deaths. Work is underway to build a new pipeline in Lake Travis, but the project is facing delays.
Central Texas top stories for November 25, 2024. A local utility agency is being sued over plans to build a pipeline on environmentally protected lands. Alex Jones is headed back to court today. The Glen Powell lookalike contest took place this Weekend in Auditorium Shores, here’s all you need to know about it. The Texas Longhorns and the Texas A&M Aggies will play football against one another this weekend after a thirteen-year hiatus.
Central Texas top stories for September 10, 2024. Travis County Commissioners today will get a first look at an audit of Central Health. Austin-Travis County medics saw fewer opioid overdoses over the summer. The Austin city council will consider amending its noise ordinance. The City of Georgetown is encouraging residents to conserve water.
The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee comes to Houston talking teachers, Donald Trump and Joe Biden. Andrew Schneider of Houston Public Media was at Kamala Harris’s speech to the American Federation of Teachers. We’ll hear what she had to say in her sprint toward the convention and Election Day.
How El Paso could teach the rest of Texas a thing or two about the future of managing water.
In the Panhandle, a federal plan to expand a wildlife refuge tenfold. Not everyone’s happy about it, either.
Corn or flour? Taco journalist Mando Rayo on some choices we Texans must face.
Plus, the week in politics with the Texas Tribune and poetry from Typewriter Rodeo.
Kamala Harris consolidates Democratic support, shattering fundraising records. How does this change things for Texas Republicans?
After the death of veteran Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who takes her place for the remainder of her term and on the ballot for her open seat?
Sam Watson, an 18-year-old from Southlake, holds the three fastest times ever in speed climbing and will be competing at the Paris Olympics.
The Rio Grande Valley faces an unprecedented water crisis as drought intensifies.
And: a new push to change how Texas imposes the death penalty.
Hurricane Beryl has become the first of the 2024 season to make landfall in Texas, with major power outages reported across the Houston region as heavy rain and damaging winds move up from Matagorda. With floodwaters filling some streets in Galveston and 121 counties under a disaster declaration, we’ll have the latest on the storm.
The San Antonio Water System is under fire after shutting off water to four apartment buildings – affecting 600 units – after their property owners didn’t pay their bills.
And: Business owners and officials in the Rio Grande Valley seek to counter negative stereotypes about their communities by highlighting the region’s assets – and their first step is rebranding the RGV and its neighbors in Mexico as the “RioPlex.” Will it stick?
In an 8-1 decision, the Supreme Court has issued a major ruling on gun rights, effectively disarming domestic abusers.
A meeting today to consider the exceptions to the state’s near-total abortion ban: It’s an effort to deal with fears about prosecution cited by many Texas doctors.
The latest on what could be upcoming federal rules on heat protection for workers.
Elon Musk gets the green light to reincorporate Tesla in Texas – but he’s far from alone. How the move is a part of a larger shift to reincorporate in the Lone Star State and why.
A conversation with Tara López, whose new book “Chuco Punk: Sonic Insurgency in El Paso” examines the city’s punk scene from its beginning to the turn of the century.
And: the week in politics with The Texas Tribune.
Finance titans BlackRock and Citadel Securities are teaming with investors to raise $120 million to open the Texas Stock Exchange. The group still has some regulatory hurdles to clear before opening but plans to start listing stocks for sale as early as 2026.
On its fourth try, SpaceX achieved a breakthrough for its Starship rocket with a successful return to earth. But not all those gathered to witness the event from Boca Chica got what they were hoping for. The Standard’s Kristen Cabrera reports.
As more tourists flock to the remote West Texas town of Terlingua, bringing money and development, some locals are concerned the town’s running dry.
And: In the Big Bend-area town of Alpine, recovery efforts are underway after a fire destroyed a historic building in a central part of town.
After an apparent tornado strike in Temple last night, it’s looking to be another day of severe weather across large parts of the Lone Star State.
A ransomware attack on the Ascension hospital network is still having a big impact on staff and patients almost two weeks later.
After online reports and videos of women giving up the birth control pill, The New York Times finds that prescriptions are not actually declining – in fact, the opposite.
And: The latest album from singer-songwriter Susan Werner, “Halfway to Houston,” takes on the wide landscape of Texas.
One year later, a survivor of the Allen mass shooting talks about his long road to recovery.
New water rules take effect in the Rio Grande Valley as some border cities cope with historically low reservoirs.
With the rise of cloud-based services and AI, the demand for power has soared. What it means for the state Texas.
A new book by University of Houston professor Brandon Rottinghaus takes a look at the political life of Rick Perry, Texas’ longest-serving governor.
And we’ll go to a charreada in San Antonio where Mexico’s rodeo skills are on display.
The U.S. Supreme Court will weigh in on SB4, the controversial Texas law that allows state and local police to arrest and prosecute migrants who enter the state, after delaying implementation of the law last week.
A lack of medical insurance and access to treatment is making life in rural Texas tougher than many might imagine.
Energy insider Matt Smith has the latest on rising gas prices as many Texans hit the road for Spring Break.
The Rio Grande, the body of water that outlines the border between Texas and Mexico, is becoming saltier – affecting people, farmland and livestock on both sides of the border.
And: Amid a statewide teacher shortage, one Central Texas school district is trying to turn things around by creating its own pipeline of new recruits.
The Smokehouse Creek Fire in the Panhandle, already the second biggest wildfire in Texas history, is so far 0% contained. We’ll talk with an evacuee and officials with the Texas A&M Forest Service to get the latest.
With increasingly unpredictable rainfall and extended droughts, you may be thinking about what to plant to survive our new weather reality. The Standard’s Alexandra Hart has ways you can cut water use without letting your lawn die.
Plus: Director Richard Linklater and filmmaker Alex Stapleton on the new HBO three-part series based on Lawrence Wright’s recent book “God Save Texas.”
For the first time in centuries, an American-built – and more specifically, Texas-built – spacecraft has touched down on the moon.
Multiple law enforcement officers who responded to the 2022 Uvalde school shooting have been ordered to appear before a grand jury investigating the failed police response.
The folks calling the shots in the Texas oil industry seem to be getting younger. What does this change mean for the industry?
A giant among advocates for people with disabilities in Texas steps down after a quarter century. We’ll talk with Dennis Borel of the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities about the challenges ahead.
Plus, the week in politics with The Texas Tribune.
Former president and presidential candidate Donald Trump wades into Texas politics with downballot endorsements.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton takes aim at a faith-based group in El Paso providing services for migrants.
In Texas farm country, concerns grow over a lack of water.
In the congressional district that includes 800 miles of the state’s border with Mexico, four republicans are challenging the GOP incumbent as polls show high voter interest in border security.
Plus: High schools push for competitive ballet folklórico.