Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Friday, Aug. 25, 2023:
What the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin means geopolitically
Russian paramilitary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a plane crash this week, just months after leading an unsuccessful rebellion against president Vladimir Putin.
With what his death means for Russia, Ukraine and more, Texas Standard is joined by Jeremi Suri with the LBJ School at the University of Texas at Austin:
What’s the economic impact of broadband expansion in Texas?
Despite federal incentives, expanding broadband access to all of Texas remains a difficult task. What it the scope of the issue, and how can it be addressed?
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas research analyst Prithvi Kalkunte joins the Standard with a look.
New referee law aims to prevent abuse from unruly fans
It’s time for Friday night lights in Texas. While student athletes are preparing to take the field, the officials who call the games are hoping a new law gives them a reprieve from some of the more aggressive fans.
Houston Public Media’s Rob Salinas has the story:
Teachers have mixed feelings about Houston ISD reforms under Mike Miles
Houston public schools open Monday, and sweeping reforms enacted by state-appointed superintendent Mike Miles will be put to the test. Houston ISD teachers are already at work, learning the ins and outs of Miles’ so-called “New Education System.”
As Houston Public Media’s Dominic Anthony Walsh reports, educators have mixed feelings about the many changes coming to the district.
An old shipwreck was found in coastal East Texas. What’s in it?
The Neches River runs through the tiny community of Evadale. That’s where a local boater named found something peculiar in the Neches last week: a shipwreck, exposed by the drought and drop in the river’s level.
He brought the boat to the attention of Ice House Museum in nearby Silsbee, which alerted Amy Borgens, maritime archaeologist for the Texas Historical Commission. Borgens joins the Standard with the story.
Funky Austin music veterans come together on ‘Greybirds’
Austin’s T Bird & the Breaks announced an indefinite hiatus years ago, but frontman Tim “T Bird” Crane never left the world of Texas music. In addition to a new single out this summer, Crane had also been collaborating with the Austin duo Greyhounds on a new recording. The project, out today, is called “Greybird.”
The Standard recently sat down with Crane and Sam Patlove from T-Bird and the Breaks and Greyhounds’ Andrew Trube to talk about it.
The gang delivers another custom poem. Reach out to Texas Standard with your topic suggestions!
Texas Tribune managing editor Matthew Watkins stops by with a recap of the week that was in Texas politics.
All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.
