Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Monday, Aug. 21, 2023:
Fort Worth closed its school libraries, removed 100 books under new Texas law
The Fort Worth ISD closed campus libraries for the first two weeks of school as district employees reviewed book titles for sexually explicit or violent content. The move was made to ensure library materials don’t go against a new state law, according to the district.
The results: Over 100 titles have been removed from shelves, and the former library media services director has switched roles.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram reporter Lina Ruiz joins Texas Standard with the story.
Central Texas farmers and ranchers are on the frontlines of this summer’s record-breaking heat
It’s been a historically hot summer – and that means it’s been a dry one as well throughout most of Texas.
KUT’s Kailey Hunt spoke with Central Texas farmers and ranchers about the unique challenges they’ve faced over a brutally arid summer.
Texas refuses to expand Medicaid. Community health centers and uninsured people suffer
About 6 million Texans receive health insurance through Medicaid. Eligibility requirements are strict and only apply to specific groups, like children and the elderly. Medicaid expansion would help uninsured adults have more healthcare options, but Texas is one of only 10 states that hasn’t expanded yet.
KERA’s Elena Rivera reports on what this means for adults in the coverage gap.
The challenges of opening a new bookstore after the pandemic
A few years ago, as the U.S. and most of the world quarantined at home in response to COVID, the publishing industry saw a surge in book sales – reaching $15 billion in sales for both 2020 and 2021.
That growth was good news for book sellers, but it hasn’t lasted – early estimates show those pandemic-era sales numbers starting to decline. The Standard’s Sean Saldana has been following an independent retail bookstore that just opened its doors.
Big prisons get more attention, but smaller jails can be even more dangerous
Public attention on jails tends to focus on bigger, urban facilities like Harris County – places in the headlines for things like inmate deaths and assaults. But the overall number of violent incidents don’t tell the whole story: Part of the reason bigger facilities have the most violent incidents is simply because they house the most people. By measuring violence and injury in each prison, per capita, the Houston Chronicle discovered little-known facilities where inmates face specific threats at the highest rates.
The Chronicle’s Eric Dexheimer worked on the investigation and joins Texas Standard with more.
Jeff Jenkins travels the world for National Geographic, but calls Texas home
Jeff Jenkins isn’t your typical travel journalist and TV host. Instead of hiding in the jungle in a pith helmet and cargo shorts, Texas-based Jenkins is more likely to find himself in a sumo ring in Japan, swimming with sharks in Mexico or dancing with penguins in Patagonia.
Jenkins joins the Standard today to talk about his new National Geographic program “Never Say Never.”
Residents advocating for historic neighborhood ahead of high-rise apartment vote
South Overton is one of Lubbock’s oldest neighborhoods, with some of its homes dating back further than the city itself. While it’s right across from growing Texas Tech University, the brick roads and classic architecture haven’t changed much.
Texas Tech Public Media’s Sarah Self-Walbrick reports that a newly-proposed housing project has some residents worried about the area’s future.
All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.
