Colorado Matters

Who gets into public service these days? We're at Colorado State University to find out from students in a leadership program. Then, it's been a century since performer and civil rights champion Josephine Baker left the U.S. for France. In Loveland, a sculptor lovingly captures her in clay. And later... one part ska. one part punk. one part pirate?! Music from the Fort Collins band, "The Swashbuck...

A Halloween haunting with Denverite's third annual DenverFright. Local writers gather on stage at The Bug Theatre to send chills down your spine, including Stephen Graham Jones and Teague Bohlen. Denver historian Phil Goodstein takes us to a cursed block Uptown. And the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance's scariest resident shambles in! 

As the Supreme Court deliberates changes, the Voting Rights Act turns 60. We look at its past, present and future with local political analysts -- this after Colorado took action in its last legislative session to make sure access is enshrined in state law. Colorado state law also requires all county jails to offer in-person voting for eligible individuals -- we explore how the process is working...

The bombing victims of United Flight 629 will be memorialized after seven decades. It was the first attack on a US commercial airliner. Atop Denver's old control tower, we speak with a woman who lost her parents. Then, a new film about musician and AIDS activist Carl Bean, who sang what's considered the first gay anthem. 

A Colorado doctor was diagnosed with the same lung cancer he’s researched and treated all his life. He only recently decided to share his story when chemotherapy made him horribly sick. Dr. Ross Camidge talks about sharing the same path as his patients, and how he views death and what comes next. Then, from artwork to hidden history on the walls, Purplish explores the many stories the state capito...

A lot of people risk falling rather than use a walker; there's just too much stigma around them. Today in Aging Matters on Colorado Matters, we visit a lab where they're developing a so-called "sexy walker," but the project is about far more than vanity: it's frankly life or death. Then, food banks prepare for a rush as SNAP benefits run dry. Plus, our colleagues at Indie 102.3 help score the seas...

All Things Considered Host Ari Shapiro, who has just left NPR after 25 years, came to Denver to receive a prestigious award. We spoke at this year's Damon Runyon dinner. Then, the disproportionate toll domestic violence takes on children. Plus, how your Google search affects the air you breathe. And Denver band BRŪHA is a family affair. 

The government shutdown will hit federal workers hard tomorrow as they miss their first paychecks. What will it take to find a solution? We'll check-in with our Washington, D.C. reporter, Caitlyn Kim. Then, the cost of child care can often rival college tuition. At the same time, child care workers have traditionally been underpaid and undervalued. A new documentary, "Make A Circle," challenges th...

We continue "If You Can Keep It," our series to get historic context about this moment in presidential politics; political scientist Seth Masket from the University of Denver joins us. Then, a Denver man hopes to create a brand for unity in America to show people are less divided than it seems. Later, will Halloween be a trick or a treat this year? It's just one thing we ask Denver7 chief meteorol...

 U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen, a Democrat who represents the state's 7th Congressional District, is concerned that federal layoffs, furloughs, and funding cuts to grants, will have a devastating effect on mental and behavioral health services, including helping people trying to break addiction. Then, for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we re-share a discussion about the importance of knowing breast...

There are two statewide ballot issues in the November election. Voters will decide the future of Colorado's "Healthy School Meals for All" program; Purplish explains both related measures. Then, Colorado authors respond to a massive settlement with an A.I. company that's been using their work. Plus, the "Wired, Wired West" explores the power needed to support Artificial Intelligence. Then, Colorad...

Democratic U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper is a holdout on re-opening government until there's a plan to keep health insurance premiums down. We ask about paths for compromise and his frustration with cuts to green energy. Then, we remember NPR founding mother Susan Stamberg. Plus, Pueblo-born musician and composer Mary D. Watkins on honoring the Black experience in America. And Wonderbound's Rock...

 Now that Colorado-based Dominion Voting Systems is being sold, there are questions about what that will mean to upcoming elections. We talk with county clerks who rely on the system that's been at the center of election lies and debunked conspiracies. Then, as the U.S. Supreme Court appears poised to rollback another provision of the Voting Rights Act, Colorado's taken action to make sure access...

Eighty percent of the world's population can't see the Milky Way. Light pollution interferes. Author and adventurer Craig Childs, of Norwood, Colorado, writes about a trek from light to dark in his new book. "The Wild Dark" takes readers from the incandescence of Las Vegas to the spangled skies of rural Nevada. Childs spoke with Sr. Host Ryan Warner at the Mountain Words Festival in Crested Butte...

More and more motorcycle riders are dying on Colorado roads. Last year, 165 motorcyclists died, the highest number ever recorded in our state. Sgt. Ivan Alvarado with the Colorado State Patrol explains some of the reasons behind the trend. Then, we speak with Laurie Montoya, the founder of the Lakewood-based non-profit, BikerDown Foundation , which advocates for and helps bikers who get injured an...

Respect is the first law of the world's Indigenous peoples, says a man on a quest to right a historic wrong. On this Indigenous People's Day, Rick Williams has hope. We learn about his life mission in Colorado In Depth. Then, the two statewide ballot measures that voters will decide in November's election. And the Denver band, Bison Bone . 

A mission-driven restaurant in Grand Junction takes an innovative approach to hunger and nutrition. Then, the plight of federal workers amid layoffs, furloughs and the shutdown. Later, we check in to the Movie Manor in Monte Vista. Also, the filmmakers behind short horror movie "The Ant" who are crawling their way to the top. And, a choreography of hot air balloons from around the world. 

When it comes to the changing climate and increasing wildfires, you may not think of dragonflies, but it turns out they're a good test case to show the impact on an entire ecosystem. Then, Aging Matters looks into classes to help older Coloradans avoid scams. Plus, how a small town football team in Colorado started winning for the first time in generations. Leif Lathrop is the coach at Primero Hig...

In Rep. Jeff Hurd's district, which includes Grand Junction and Pueblo, the cost of some health insurance plans is about to be astronomical. But Hurd says the issue shouldn't be used as leverage in the shutdown. We also ask about militarizing U.S. cities and the Epstein files. Then, Denver's new city librarian on the evolution of libraries , from digital literacy to distributing food. Then, why th...

Ahead of his concert in Denver October 16 at the Ogden Theater, we re-share Chandra's conversation with Grammy-winning Christian rapper Lecrae. As he was getting a unique tattoo that shows his connection to Colorado, he reflects on how growing up in Denver shaped his life and music and how his faith has guided him. This interview originally aired on October 8, 2024. 

Federal officials have said attacks on ICE agents are up more than 1,000 percent. CPR’s Ben Markus and Allison Sherry spent more than a month investigating these claims; here's what they found. Then, Colorado banned conversion therapy for minors; the U.S. Supreme Court could upend that. We go into the case with Purplish. Plus, how school crossing guards are dealing with increasingly hostile driver...

It may come as no surprise that Adams State University in the San Luis Valley would be the first in Colorado to be designated a "Hispanic Serving Institution," given how deep the valley's Hispanic heritage runs. But the school is now losing the money that came with the title. Then, how the Trump administration's crackdown on student visa holders is impacting international students in Colorado. Plu...

 "Chaos and confusion." That's what the head of the American Academy of Pediatrics says families are up against as the federal government rethinks established science for everything from vaccines to autism. Dr. Susan Kressly was recently in Colorado for the AAP's annual conference. Then, an effort to get girls interested in construction jobs. Plus, we visit "The Gathering Place" which elevates the...

Expanded, domestic use of the military – and talk of civil war – deserve scrutiny… no matter who's president. As President Trump talks about fighting a war against "the enemy within," we speak with a political scientist about the implications. Then, in Day 1 of the government shutdown, we speak with our Washington reporter Caitlyn Kim. Also, college campuses are microcosms of a lot of the big issu...

The federal government could shut down tonight if Congress doesn't find common ground. CPR's Washington, D.C. correspondent Caitlyn Kim explains the impasse and potential impact on Colorado. Then, a program that creates a bond between inmates and wild mustangs comes to an end; StoryCorps shares the experience of two men whose lives were changed by the program. Also, a Denver man's very personal ex...