As Above, Not So Below: Redefining Dress Code on Zoom Amid a Pandemic

byTyler Lewis

Reporting Texas reached out to a few people to see what their Zoom meeting attire says about them.

Renewing Battle Against the Fish Eating Lake Austin

byAimée Knight

Sterile grass carp did too good a job controlling hydrilla and ended up ruining Lake Austin as bass habitat.

Amid Downsizing, Foundation Finds Ways to Serve Homeless

byCat DeLaura

The Other Ones Foundation has cut back its Workforce First program, but it also is offering a new service, a mobile hygiene clinic for people experiencing homelessness.

UT 2020 Commencement Ceremony Goes Virtual

byRyan Chandler

The University of Texas at Austin announced late last month this spring’s commencement ceremony will be held online on May 23. The change comes in light of social distancing orders that restrict the traditional event from bringing thousands of graduates and family members to the Main Mall. The University says that while the situation is […]

Texas A&M Entomologist Provides Insight on Global Locust Devastation

byTyler Lewis

Hojun Song, a professor in the Department of Entomology at Texas A&M, has been researching grasshoppers and crickets, with a focus on the evolution of swarming locusts. Reporting Texas spoke with Song on the video conferencing app Zoom about his research.

 

Reporting Texas TV Newscast May 7, 2020

Austin – Journalism students from Moody College at the University of Texas aired their final newscast of the semester on May 7, 2020. This week students looked into the impact COVID 19 has on the traditional ring ceremony, restaurants reopening and a behind the scenes look at the planning for UT’s first virtual graduation.

South Texas Animal Shelter Needing More Fosters as State Reopens

byMarco Ramirez

EDINBURG – Throughout the coronavirus outbreak, The Palm Valley Animal Society has kept providing the best care possible to all the animals that have shown up at their door.  But their primary focus during this pandemic, has been to keep both their employees and the community safe.  “This has been an unusual situation for all […]

Some Restaurants in No Rush to Reopen During Pandemic

byMason Carroll

LUBBOCK – The empty dining room of House Café Gastropub is filled with the chatter of employees preparing takeout orders. Jason and Kate Diehl have owned a restaurant in this spot for more than seven years, and it is the first time their doors have been closed like this. Restaurants’ dining rooms around the country […]

Cinemas Offering Virtual Film Options to Audiences

byNataleah Small

Movie theaters in Austin across Texas could reopen at 25% capacity on May 1 according to an announcement from Gov. Greg Abbott. However, many cinemas have decided to remain closed due to concerns about COVID-19.  Violet Crown Cinema, located in downtown Austin, began its temporary closure on March 17, but managers have yet to determine […]

Zoom Dates, Facetime Meets, and Drive-Ins? Oh my!

byAlaina Hayden

HOUSTON – Social distancing may be prohibiting some forms of human connection, but it hasn’t stopped people from meeting prospective romantic partners. Dating apps such as Bumble, Tinder and Hinge have seen an approximate 30% increase in user messaging according to Time magazine. Avid swipers such as 21-year-old Chandler Gibson are taking advantage of this […]

Restaurant Owners Say Reopening is a Tough Choice

byLaura Laughead

HOUSTON – While restaurants across Texas can now partially reopen, owners are faced with the choice whether to let their customers come back and dine inside.  An early poll from the Texas Restaurant Association shows that restaurants are about evenly split on reopening during the first wave that started May 1.  A restaurant in Harris […]

Reporting Texas TV Newscast April 30, 2020

Austin — Producers, reporters, anchors and the rest of the Reporting Texas TV group bring viewers the latest on the impact COVID-19 is having on the Austin and UT community.

Austin Announces an Emergency Fund for Artists

byAndrew Almeter

For almost two months, the nightlife in the live music capital of the world has been shuttered. Since COVID-19 caused the cancellation of South By Southwest in early March, Austin musicians and venues have struggled. Connor McCampbell is the founder and frontman of the Austin performance group TC Superstar. He was looking forward to one […]

Ensemble Group Takes Its Tempo Online

byFaith Castle

Among many organizations that cancelled activities due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Mariachi Parades, an ensemble upholding Mariachi traditions, found a new ritual for their performances.  UT Austin’s Mariachi Parades performs weekly virtual songs on their Facebook and Twitter accounts to provide content to their audience. The students individually practice and then send their clips to […]

Hairstylist Petitions Texas Governor to Reopen Salon

byCarli Rappaport

ROUND ROCK – With businesses shut down, many hairstylists are struggling to make ends meet.  Sarah Johnson, a cosmetologist at A-Zany-Do Salon & Spa in Round Rock, Texas, petitioned Governor Greg Abbott to allow hair stylists to see clients one-on-one. Her petition reached over 15,000 signatures in less than seven days. “I’m definitely blown away […]

Texas Exes Changes Plans for Spring Ring Ceremony Due to Campus Closure

byMercedes Gonzales

The University of Texas ring ceremony is the highlight of every semester, with the rings placed underneath a lit Tower and presented to students the next day. But due to the campus closing in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 spring ring celebration could not be held. Texas Exes had to figure out […]

Austin Tattoo Artists Grapple with the Impacts of COVID-19

byHope Lenamon

Usually full of the people, life and art that have come to define Austin, tattoo shops in the city shut their doors over a month ago as part of efforts to combat COVID-19. Tattoo artists and shops are trying to adapt to their new normal and find alternate ways to survive.

Austin-based Roommates Develop Low-cost Ventilator Unit Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

byNataleah Small

Two Austin-based roommates have developed a low-cost ventilator unit made from parts widely available around the world in response to global shortages amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In vitro testing on pig lungs for their prototype could begin soon at Dell Medical School. 

UT Student Demonstrates How To DIY Your Own Protective Mask

byAshleigh Osburn

AUSTIN – Jeannelle Romero began to make masks for her family and friends right before COVID-19.  “So, when I made one, I felt like my parents really liked it,” said Romero. “There wasn’t really a demand for it yet.” When there became a high demand for masks, Romero was unable to find the fabric she […]

UT Scientist’s Research Should Shorten Path to Novel Coronavirus Vaccine

byAimée Knight

Jason McLellan works with the spike proteins that give the virus its shape and allow it to attach to receptors on human cells and begin to replicate.