Texas Wants to Know

The Texas Senate on Saturday voted to acquit Attorney General Ken Paxton on 16 articles of impeachment and dismissed the remaining four. While House impeachment managers expressed disappointment in the vote, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick had harsh words for the House after the decision.

If you've driven through the Central Texas city of West, odds are you stopped for a kolache at one of several bakeries along Interstate 35. Texas Wants to Know took a road trip to West to learn how the city has maintained its strong Czech connection and how kolaches evolved from a fruit-filled pastry to include the meat-filled goods we know today.

The impeachment trial of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton enters its second week on Monday. Catch up on what you missed in the trial's first four days and find out when it could wrap up in this special episode of Texas Wants to Know.

The Texas population grew at a rate of nearly 16% between 2010 and 2020 -- more than double the growth rate of the U.S. As the country's second state with more than 30 million people, how has the economy reacted? This week on Texas Wants to Know, we look at that question through the lens of healthcare, job growth, and the state budget. Stacey Pogue , senior policy analyst at the nonpartisan public...

The impeachment trial of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton begins Tuesday. This week, Texas Wants to Know breaks down the articles filed against him and what to expect when the trial starts. Austin-based investigative reporter Lauren McGaughy of The Dallas Morning News explains the 20 articles the House filed against Paxton, Bloomberg News Texas bureau chief Julie Fine offers analysis on the charg...

Tropical Storm Harold made landfall on the Texas coast this week, becoming the eighth named storm in the Atlantic this year. As hurricane season arrives, Texas A&M professor of atmospheric sciences Robert Korty and KRLD Chief Meteorologist Dan Brounoff explain what warmer waters, brought on by record-setting summer heat, could mean for the strength and duration of hurricane season. Then, E&amp...

Students across Texas are either already back in school or will be in the next couple of weeks. And this year, more of them than ever will be attending class just four days per week. More than 70 school districts across the state will operate on a four-day calendar, up from around 40 last school year. Education reporter Wayne Carter , of KRLD 's media partner NBC 5 , says districts that have alrea...

The odds of being attacked by a shark in Texas, or anywhere for that matter, are minuscule -- a one in 3.7 million chance, according to the University of Florida . So why do they strike such fear in beachgoers? On the occasion of Shark Week, Texas Wants to Know set out to understand the predators, specifically the ones who live along the Texas coast. This week's guests are Jesse Gilbert, the presi...

As the women's World Cup gets underway in Australia and New Zealand this month, we trace the roots of one of the best players in U.S. Women's National Team history, Carla Overbeck , back to Richardson, Texas, and the Dallas Sting . Overbeck was on the U.S. team that won the first women's World Cup in 1991 and a captain on the 1999 squad that elevated the sport to a new level in the United States....

As the number of 100-plus degree days pile up and Texans continue to set new records for energy demand, it begs the question: Can our power grid keep up with our growing population? This week, Baylee Friday is joined by a former advisor to the chair of the Public Utility Commission of Texas   Alison Silverstein , state Sen. Nathan Johnson (D-Dallas) , and J.P. Dowling with Houston-based Reliant En...

Interstate 35 runs through four of Texas' five largest cities and has seen rural areas turn into suburbs seemingly overnight. In this episode of Texas Wants to Know, we explore how the state is keeping up with growth along the I-35 corridor and hear from those impacted by the construction.

If you drive around Texas, you’ll see no shortage of cities with unusual names. There’s Klondike and Ding Dong; Bacon and Egypt. But we focus on two city names that feel specific to Texas:  Muleshoe  and  Gun Barrel City . Baylee Friday talks to Gun Barrel City city planner Brooke Atkinson and Robyn Sykora, the  executive director of the city's economic development corporation . Then she visits wi...

On this week's episode host Baylee Friday talk to John Mark Meulman from the Collin County Substance Abuse Program , Cynthia Pursely from the non-profit Livegy and Dr. Wendy Eldredge who is the superintendent of Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD .

The first five months of 2023 saw the failure of three major U.S. banks:  Silicon Valley ,  Signature , and  First Republic . With large banks like  Frost ,  Comerica ,  Texas Capital , and others based in our state, what are the chances a Texas-based bank could meet a similar fate? This week, host Baylee Friday talks to Frost Bank CEO Phil Green , Texas Capital CFO Matt Scurlock , and KRLD busine...

Texas has seen a 137% growth in its Asian American and Pacific Islander population over the last 20 years. While AAPI Heritage Month wraps up we pose the question: What's driving the growth in Texas' Asian-American population? Baylee Friday is joined by Lily Trieu , executive director of Asian Texans for Justice , who explains that Texas is a minority-majority state and how many different areas ha...

Lawmakers are making a final push for their bills at the state Capitol as the 88th Texas legislative session enters its final weeks. And as the anniversary of the Uvalde mass shooting nears, the spotlight will shine on bills that would address school safety. To learn what lawmakers are doing to improve school safety, Baylee Friday is joined by state Sen. Roland Gutierrez (D-San Antonio) , who repr...

When the 88th Texas Legislature convened in January, Gov. Greg Abbott (R) listed school choice as one of his top priorities. But with the session set to conclude at the end of May, it's unclear if the Texas House will deliver. This week, Baylee Friday talks to Mandy Drogin of the Texas Public Policy Foundation , a conservative think tank, state Rep. James Talarico (D-Round Rock) , and Texas Monthl...

While barbecue in other parts of the country focuses on pulled pork, ribs, or even sides, in Texas one menu item takes center stage -- brisket. Owner and pitmaster at Austin's Interstellar BBQ , John Bates explains how important brisket is to Texas culture. "Texas barbecue is definitely built around a few key concepts," he said. "It's very much driven by offset smokers. Our style is typically very...

Thirty years ago this week, a fire broke out at a compound occupied by an apocalyptic cult outside Waco. The blaze ended a weeks-long standoff between federal authorities and the Branch Davidians. As it turned out NewsRadio 1080 KRLD in Dallas-Fort Worth played a central role in the early days of the standoff. News anchor Mike Rogers covered the standoff for KRLD and recounts his memories of the w...

If you've ever traveled through the state of Texas, then you've seen a billboard with a cartoon image of a beaver alongside a phrase like, "It’s the brisket for me." Buc-ee's uses billboards along highways to capture the attention of hungry drivers looking for a gas station oasis. In this episode of Texas Wants to Know , host Baylee Friday talks to lecturer Chris Aarons from the University of Texa...

Universal is building its newest theme park in Frisco , on a piece of land that is part of a 2,500-acre development that will include the PGA of America headquarters, two golf courses, a campus of the University of North Texas , and thousands of homes . But how did Universal decide on a suburb 30 minutes north of Dallas for its new micro-park? Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney tells Baylee Friday, Universa...

A hotel was once many people’s only option when taking vacations. In recent years, companies like Airbnb and VRBO have created a different lane with short-term rentals. The rentals are categorized as a stay that is no longer than 30 days. While this option is helpful and more convenient for some people, the areas where these short-term rentals are located have caused stress for others. This episod...

Spring in Texas means severe weather season -- and a busy time of year for storm chasers. "Tornado season" historically runs from late spring to early summer, but this year, the state has already seen several tornadoes through mid-March. KRLD Chief Meteorologist Dan Brounoff says storm chasers play an integral role in helping meteorologists collect data that radar alone can't always provide. Bayle...

Finding a life partner has never been an easy or simple process. The pandemic changed the way we interact socially, and the prevalence of dating advice everywhere you turn on social media can make dating in 2023 overwhelming.  On this episode of Texas Wants to Know, host Baylee Friday explores the different avenues of dating and even gets some advice from an expert. She talks to Porschia Paxton, a...

If you're from Texas, there's a good chance you've heard of the Marfa Lights. It's a phenomenon that some say can be explained away, some believe is supernatural, and others are content to accept as a mystery. This week on Texas Wants to Know, Dr. Karl Stephan of Texas State University tells Baylee Friday what he found after weeks of studying the lights, the president of the Marfa Chamber of Comme...