NTX Now

Texas lawmakers have begun filing bills for next year's legislative session -- more than 1200 and counting this week. Lucio Vasquez with The Texas Newsroom joins us for a look at what this says about legislative priorities.

With roughly 200,000 service members leaving the military each year, businesses have a growing pool of experienced talent to draw from. But are employers doing enough to recognize the skills and experience veterans bring to the civilian workforce? Dan Clare, a Marine and Air Force veteran and Chief Communications & Outreach Officer for Disabled American Veterans (DAV), discusses why veterans m...

Collin County helped give birth to Ken Paxton's political career – and sustained it. But voters there decided to part ways with Paxton in the recent midterm election. KERA’s Collin County reporter Caroline Love explains why.

This weekend, Fort Worth Opera stages a comedic production about civil discourse and common ground centered on two famous opera lovers: Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsberg. WRR’s Amy Bishop previews the performance.  

As the trial date arrives, friends and family gather outside the courthouse in protest of the arrest of the Prairieland defendants and the ongoing criminal proceedings. But a lawyer's shirt turns the proceedings upside down. Plus, we hear from some of the Prairieland defendants themselves.

The agriculture commissioner-elect, Clayton Tucker, joins us to lay out his plans for his term, with a particular focus on addressing the explosion of data centers in Texas. Also, there are new rules the city of Dallas is proposing aimed at regulating data centers, including their water use and noise. This comes as residents in a South Dallas neighborhood speak out about a small, noisy facility ne...

Miranda moderated Southwest Airlines' Aviation Breakfast late last month and talked with Southwest CEO Bob Jordan and Dallas City Manager Kim Bizor Tolbert about the LEAP Program — a $2.5 billion infrastructure and terminal modernization project for Love Field Airport. 

Every so often, we like to check in with small business owners in North Texas to get a peek behind the curtain into how their companies operate. Today, we're talking with a young entrepreneur who created a platform to give musicians the opportunity to make their mark on the local music scene. Sydney Peters launched Citrusfest in 2020 and brought it to North Texas last year. Plus, Miranda and Ron b...

Born in dance halls during the Great Depression, Western Swing remains one of the most popular cultural contributions from Texas. This week, Fort Worth is hosting a celebration of the genre, featuring global performers, a documentary of rare, archival footage and a grand finale with a 65-piece symphony orchestra. Amy Bishop with our sister station WRR has a preview. Plus, it's finally starting to...

Last week, Plano voters said "no" to new venue taxes for a Dallas Stars arena. Proposition A would have authorized taxes on things like hotel stays and car rentals to help finance the $1 billion project at the Shops at Willow Bend. The Plano City Council promised to put $700 million towards the arena, so how will it be paid for now? For some potential answers, we talked to Steven Haynes, a profess...

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is out for the season after the discovery of blood clots in his lungs, also known as a pulmonary embolism. It affects roughly one in a thousand people in the U.S. every year. You might not expect it to happen to an athlete who's in peak physical condition. But in today’s Vital Signs, Dr. Jose Escobar, a cardiothoracic surgeon at Texas Health Denton, expl...

The Cuellar family started selling Mexican food in North Texas in 1926, when Adelaida Cuellar sold tamales and chili at a stall at the Kaufman County Fair. The family's first restaurant in Dallas, El Chico, opened in 1940 and became a Tex-Mex empire. Using the family archives, Catherine Cuellar has written a book chronicling her family history called "Deep in the Heart of Tex-Mex." Catherine, her...

After years of increased violence in Deep Ellum, the Dallas Police Department launched Operation Deep Cover to put more boots on the ground. But the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas suggested business owners needed to do more, a message that was not well received. Lauren Drewes Daniels is senior editor at The Dallas Observer and has spoken to restaurant owners in the popular entert...

Democratic Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa wants to fire state education commissioner Mike Morath. Morath is in charge of the state takeover of two districts in Tarrant County, including Fort Worth ISD. The takeover was announced late last year, and the state appointed board of managers took over this past spring. Karen Molinar was superintendent of FWISD until the takeover. She is now the CEO of Rev...

New state restrictions on THC this year wiped out a big part of the smokeable hemp market. But makers of THC drinks thought they were safe. That has changed with a new federal ban on hemp-derived THC products above a certain strength. We welcome back previous guests of the show Michael Williams and Andrew Martin, founders of Wild Revival, a THC beverage company in Denton, to hear how they will han...

Have you ever looked up in a tree and thought: I wonder what kind of bird that is? Well Audubon Dallas is here to help. Karen Carpenter is on the board of Audubon Dallas and a birder herself, and we talk with her about bird watching in North Texas.

The political status quo in Texas exploded this week. Democrats will take top offices in state government, and they won a majority in the Texas house. After running on promises of improving public education and making life more affordable, will they actually be able to do it? Texas Monthly news and politics editor Ben Rowen joins us to talk through what the Democrats' priorities might be.

SMU's Cox School of Business has partnered with MassChallenge, a nationally recognized startup accelerator, to create a new fintech coalition. The highly competitive accelerator will select up to 15 startups from hundreds of applicants around the world, connecting entrepreneurs with investors, industry leaders and potential customers. But what exactly is fintech, and how could it help solidify Dal...

Texas Democrats are still taking a victory lap after winning several statewide races for the first time in more than three decades. The results also mark a significant shift among Latino voters, particularly in South Texas, where Republicans made major gains just two years ago. The Texas Newsroom's Lucio Vasquez spoke with Latino voters about what the election means to them. Plus, Miranda and Ron...

Dallas theater director Vickie Washington is back at Undermain Theatre, with a story that spans thousands of years. "For the Rest of Our Lives" explores love, reincarnation and the lives history leaves behind. KERA’s Zara Amaechi spoke with Washington about the production. 

So much of this podcast ties into the political climate we face in America today, and the results of the 2026 midterm elections will shape that climate. We’re taking a little break this week to focus on the election  — but we wanted to catch you up on the story so far. Next week: One of the most controversial trials in North Texas history.

Ron and Miranda break down the day's top headlines. Plus, in January, Democrats will be in control of both the U.S. House and Senate. This is the first time since 2023 that Democrats will have full control of Congress. What remains to be seen is how they'll work with President Donald Trump over the next two years. Keith Gaddie, a political science professor at TCU, joins us to breakdown the electi...

Emilio Alvarez with our sister station WRR tells us about an inventive evening of music happening tonight in Fort Worth. Plus, we round out the show with final election thoughts. 

Tarrant County voters supported Democrats statewide in both the governors race and the U.S. Senate race, as well as on the county level, with Alisa Simmons becoming the first Democrat to win the Tarrant County judge seat in 40 years -- and the first Black person to win the office. Joining us to talk through these races and what these results mean are KERA's breaking news reporter Emmanuel Rivas, K...

Senator-elect James Talarico and governor-elect Gina Hinojosa are the first Democrats to win statewide office in Texas since the 1990s. Democrats won up and down the ballot, including the lieutenant governor and attorney general races. This turns the country's biggest Republican stronghold into a much more complicated place. KERA's managing editor Paul DeBenedetto and TCU political science profess...