The Future of Free Range Kids in Texas 

byMadi Donham

A state senator wants to rewrite the Texas Family Code to give parents more leeway in how they supervise their children. Supporters of the proposed change say narrowing the definition of neglect will reduce the workload for Child Protective Services and liberate families — especially poor families. Child advocates disagree.

Black Texans Reflect on Racial Justice after a Singularly Difficult Year

During February, March and April, Reporting Texas correspondents will share interviews with Black Texans from different parts of the state, different professions and different perspectives. Subjects will discuss the state of the fight for racial justice and how they think Texans can best move forward after a trying year. Check back for updates.

Austin’s Myanmar Community Rallies Against Coup

byBenton Graham

About 150 supporters of democracy in Myanmar took to the Texas Capitol grounds on Feb. 6 to protest the military coup that took place in the Southeast Asian country six days earlier.

Austin Professional Cuddler Aims to Heal Through Touch

byMadelyn Gee

Professional cuddling is becoming increasingly popular around the country. During the last decade, cuddling businesses have opened in  Georgia, New York and Texas. In 2015, there was even a national cuddling convention in Portland, Oregon.

COVID’s Challenge for UT Students Cycling to Fight Cancer

bySarah Kate Scribner

Armed with bikes and with helmets in hand, a small troop of students from the University of Texas at Austin greet the morning sun ready to train for yet another arduous battle against cancer to be waged in a 4,000-mile campaign. It was 6:45 a.m. on a recent Saturday and the five UT students showed up in […]

Texas Funeral Homes Take a Financial Hit Despite COVID-19 

byJillian Price

Texas funeral homes are making less money during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite at least 27,000 COVID-19-related deaths statewide, because the services that drive their profits are less attractive to families worried about spreading the disease.

Austin Clinic Helps Addiction Patients After Using Psychedelic Drug Ibogaine

byRamón Rodríguez

Root Recovery provides a residential aftercare program to patients as they recover after taking ibogaine to treat opioid addiction. Most clients travel to Mexico to take ibogaine — where it is legal — and then come to Root Recovery. The business has helped about 100 people recoup after ibogaine treatment. In Texas, at least 1,402 people died from opioid overdoses in 2018, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Austin’s Unauthorized Workers Fall Victim to Slowdown in Hospitality Industry

byBenton Graham

As the pandemic has ravaged the hospitality industry, many unauthorized workers have lost employment. According to the Austin Chamber of Commerce, the city’s employment in the hospitality and leisure industry stood at 76% of its pre-pandemic level as of late September.

Journalism’s Path Forward

byKendall Tietz

Newspapers rolling off big city and small-town printing presses. Radio and television broadcasts flying through airwaves. Cable news around the clock. Adding to that information highway, the constant gratification offered by the Internet and social media platforms turning  anyone into a reporter, editor and influencer. One constant is journalism. An industry dependent upon truth, fact-finding […]

Gender Gap Persists in UT System Senior Leadership 

byMadi Donham

In 2015, a group of female UT System employees sent a report to then-UT System Chancellor William McRaven detailing how women were underrepresented in leadership positions in the system. The 2015 report’s authors acknowledge the progress has been made in the intervening five years, but they say more needs to be done.

Resurgence of Armenian Struggle Painful for UT Student

byCaroline Betik

While Armenia’s modern struggle against the encroachment of others is grabbing headlines today across the globe, it can be said what is happening in Armenia is old news. As the first nation to establish Christianity as its national religion 18 centuries ago in 301 A.D., Armenians have accepted their biblical call to, “glory in their […]

Love Across the Aisle

byJessica Treviño

Amidst a time of an ever-widening political divide in this country, two people from opposing political parties somehow managed to come together by a force much stronger than hate: love. I met John a year ago in October 2019 on a dating app. He is tall, handsome, but most importantly, incredibly sweet and compassionate. John […]

Local Businesses Serve Up Lesson in Achieving Voter Turnout

bySarah Kate Scribner

In last November’s election, the voters of Travis County stepped right up for a passion plate of political participation this election. And local businesses would like to think they helped to serve it with a side of incentive. “The idea of getting involved in this year’s election was first proposed by a staff member back […]

Economic Displacement Feared As Austin Gets Moving

bySara Schleede

When Austin voters decided a third time was the charm and  signed a big check to get the city moving with a massive transportation project, they included a plan to mitigate community gentrification. Research suggests big infrastructure projects, especially for transportation, can contribute to economic displacement as property values rise along transportation corridors — already […]

The Uphill Climb for Stricter Gun Laws in Texas

byMadi Donham

A Republican state representative from Odessa — which witnessed the third mass-shooting tragedy nationwide in a single month last year — filed the first gun-safety-related bill of the upcoming 87th Legislature. 

Black-Owned Plant-Based Restaurants Taking Root in Texas

byMadelyn Gee 

Many African-Americans simply are not used to having plant-based ingredients replace meat in the cuisine they grew up with. However, an increasing number of black-owned plant-based restaurants around the state are showing that going meatless is becoming more popular among African-American Texans.

Falconry Soars in Texas 

bySumaiya Malik

Falconry is a niche sport, but the state has seen an uptick in applications for falconry permits. “We have an average of 14 new applicants each year, but in 2019 that number increased to 27,” Megan Nelson, falconry permit coordinator at Texas Parks and Wildlife, said. There are 389 licensed falconers in Texas.

Austin Representative Previews 87th Texas Legislature

byMadi Donham

Lawmakers will wrestle with the budget, health care and once-in-a-decade political redistricting — all in the middle of a global pandemic — when the 87th Texas Legislative session convenes in January. Reporting Texas spoke with Rep. Gina Hinojosa, a Democrat representing House District 49 — the heart of Travis County — about the upcoming legislative session.

Reporting Texas TV Newscast – November 19

byBismarck D. Andino, Alyssa Crosby, and Stephanie Witt

Journalism students from Moody College at the University of Texas made their sixth and final newscast of the semester on November 19, 2020. This week student journalists covered efforts to provide laptops and hotspots for low-income students, post-election rallies for Donald Trump, and the upcoming ring ceremony for graduating seniors.

Austin Public Library to Offer Laptops and Hotspots for Students

byBismarck D. Andino

AUSTIN, Texas — At the beginning of the school year, Maura Cerecedo had only one computer for her three children. Cerecedo couldn’t afford to buy more because she and her husband were laid off from work. She borrowed two laptops from the school, but online learning hasn’t been easy. “The kids in class sometimes have […]