Idaho Matters

FILE - In this Jan. 12, 2021, file photo residents Ken Fishman, 81, left, and Esther Wallach, 82, right, hold hands as they wait in line for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at the The Palace assisted living facility in Coral Gables, Fla. An ongoing study suggests that older American adults are showing resilience and perseverance despite struggles with loneliness and isolation during the pande...

(Seth Lemmons / Flickr Creative Commons) Are you a diehard fan of true crime? Or maybe you’re fascinated by the strange, darker stories that are often left out of history textbooks? Well, IdaHistory's "Macabre History of Boise: Walking Tour" might be right up your dimly lit alley. Idaho Matters is joined by co-owners of IdaHistory Mark Iverson and Jeff Wade.

(Courtesy Idaho State Historical Society) When something goes bump in the night, some hide under the covers—but Big River Paranormal springs into action. The Big River Paranormal team investigates supernatural activity and helps educate the public about paranormal phenomenon. This week, they're joining the Old Idaho Penitentiary to share their experiences at the historic site. Idaho Matters is joi...

(MICHAEL LYCKLAMA / Idaho Statesman ) Idaho Matters catches you up on the news from the week with help from a panel of local journalists. From COVID-19 coverage to Aaron Von Ehlinger's arrest warrant to contentious school board meetings and elections—there's a lot to cover. Our panel today: Kevin Richert, Idaho Education News Margaret Carmel, BoiseDev Clark Corbin, Idaho Capital Sun James Dawson,...

The owner of this Moscow meadow contracts with the NRCS to plant pollinator-friendly plants. (Mace Vaughan / Xerces Society) The landscape of the Treasure Valley is changing as new development replaces farmland and other open spaces. That can make it tough for bees and butterflies and other pollinators to find the flowering plants they need to survive. As part of our series, 'No More Birds and Bee...

FILE - In this July 1, 2020 file photo, Instacart worker Saori Okawa loads groceries into her car for home delivery in San Leandro, Calif. Okawa is one of an estimated 1.5 million so-called gig workers who make a living driving people to airports, picking out produce at grocery stores or providing childcare for working parents. The pandemic shuffled the deck for the so-called gig economy as fear o...

Dr. William Dittrich M.D. holds the hand of a COVID-19 patient in the Medical Intensive care unit (MICU) at St. Luke's Boise Medical Center in Boise, Idaho on Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021. More then half of the patients in the ICU are COVID-19 positive, none of which are vaccinated. (AP Photo/Kyle Green) (Kyle Green/AP / FR171837 AP) Hospitals in Idaho are bursting at the seams amid our state’s COVID-19...

A protestor opposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates holds a sign in front of City Hall in downtown Los Angeles Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) (Damian Dovarganes/AP / AP) Idaho continues to have one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country—even while the state is suffering through its most deadly surge of COVID-19. We know that hospitals are treating younger, sicker people...

Treefort attendee dancing in the crowd, wearing a mask and a 'COVID Clear' wristband. ( Courtesy of Treefort Music Festival Facebook Page) Treefort Music Fest ended five days of music, yoga, stories, tech and much more early Monday morning. The festival took place throughout indoor and outdoor venues in downtown Boise. It was the largest event in the state that has required proof of vaccination or...

2020 Hacking for Homebuilding First Place Finishers ( Courtesy Of Boise State University) This week, the statewide ‘Hacking for Homebuilding’ competition kicks off, sending local entrepreneurs searching for solutions to real-world challenges in the homebuilding industry. The competition—made possible through Boise State’s Venture College, College of Engineering and College of Innovation and Design...

FILE - In this Aug. 11, 2019, file photo, an iPhone displays the Facebook app in New Orleans. Facebook says it’s going all in to block the spread of bogus vaccine claims. In practice, that means the social network plans to ban a new bunch of false claims in addition to the old bunch of false claims about vaccines or COVID-19 that it has already banned. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File) (Jenny Kane/AP /...

This 1974 microscope image made available by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows changes in cells indicative of adenocarcinoma of the prostate. In results released Thursday, June 3, 2021 by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, doctors are reporting improved survival in men with advanced prostate cancer from an experimental drug that delivers radiation directly to tumor cells...

(WSU Press / Washington State University) Upward Bound began as an experimental program through Lyndon B. Johnson’s war on poverty. Now, there are nearly 1,000 upward bond programs in the U.S. The program serves high school students from low income households where neither parent holds a bachelors degree. The University of Idaho’s upward bound program was unique, correlating with Native American i...

FILE - In this Jan. 7, 2021, file photo, a COVID-19 patient is put on a ventilator at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange, Calif. (Jae C. Hong/AP / AP) It's Friday — which means it's time for our Reporter Roundtable. Our panel of reporters will get you up-to-date on the headlines from the week. On today's show: ICU capacity, COVID-19 in rural hospitals, increasing evictions, the Boise Farmers Market goi...

Story Story Porch Night features photos and stories illustrating what it was like to be at home--looking out-- over the past year. (Michelle L Bliss / Story Story Night Facebook) Story Story Night is back with a special edition Story Story Porch Night at JUMP's amphitheater in downtown Boise. Story Story Porch Night will center on an outdoor photography exhibit that features local families on thei...

Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial ( Idaho Statesman) Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many lawmakers — as well as ordinary people — have compared proof of vaccination and mask mandates to the yellow star Jewish people were forced to wear in Nazi Germany. Comparisons to the Holocaust and to segregation in the United States has become fairly commonplace among the protests against pande...

A Monarch butterfly has a nectar snack on some swamp milkweed. (Stephanie McKnight / The Xerces Society) The landscape of the Treasure Valley is changing as new development replaces farmland and other open spaces, and that can make it tough for bees and butterflies and other pollinators to find the flowering plants they need to survive. As part of our series, ' No More Birds and Bees: Pollinator D...

A "Now Hiring" sign is displayed on a business window, Thursday, March 4, 2021, in Salem, N.H. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) (Elise Amendola/AP / AP) The latest jobs report shows the U.S. unemployment rate has barely improved, dropping from 5.4% to 5.2 %. However, here in Idaho, the unemployment rate dropped below 3% for the first time since March of 2020. Even with heightened fears of the pandemic in...

The Emmys are in the rearview mirror but that means fall TV is here. What will stand out this year? Returning to Idaho Matters to talk TV and film is our Morning Edition host George Prentice.

Ann Enderle, R.N., checks on a COVID-19 patient in the Medical Intensive care unit (MICU) at St. Luke's Boise Medical Center in Boise, Idaho on Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021. There are only 4 open ICU beds available in all of Idaho as of Tuesday. (AP Photo/Kyle Green) (Kyle Green/AP / FR171837 AP) COVID-19 case numbers and deaths continue to climb, putting Idaho among the worst in the nation for the rate...

Activist rally during a demonstration and march, Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021, in New York, to call on New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, Speaker Carl Heastie, and and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousin to extend pandemic era eviction protections in wake of Supreme Court decision lifting the moratorium. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) (Mary Altaffer/AP / AP) At the end of August, the Supreme Court of the Un...

An organism from the Exquisite Creatures Exhibit. (Courtesy of the Discovery Center of Idaho / Courtesy of the Discovery Center of Idaho Facebook Page) The Discovery Center of Idaho is reopened with a brand new exhibit. The world-class Exquisite Creatures exhibit explores the intersection of nature, art and science through the work of artist, naturalist and author Christopher Marley. The Discovery...

FILE - In this Jan. 30, 2018 file photo, inmates walk across the grounds of the Idaho State Correctional Institution in Kuna, Idaho. (Rebecca Boone/AP / AP) We’ve heard a lot about criminal justice reform in recent years—but for people already living behind bars in Idaho, there’s a new nonprofit that’s trying to serve inmates with a connection to the outside world. The medium for that connection?...

Medical professionals pronate a 39 year old unvaccinated COVID-19 patient in the Medical Intensive care unit (MICU) at St. Luke's Boise Medical Center in Boise, Idaho on Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021. (AP Photo/Kyle Green) (Kyle Green/AP / FR171837 AP) Idaho Matters Friday Reporter Roundtable unpacks all the news from the week — from the headlines to what you may have missed. On today's show: Crisis Stan...

FILE - In this Aug. 31, 2021, file photo, Ann Enderle R.N. checks on a COVID-19 patient in the Medical Intensive care unit (MICU) at St. Luke's Boise Medical Center in Boise, Idaho. Idaho public health leaders have activated "crisis standards of care" for the state's northern hospitals because there are more coronavirus patients than the institutions can handle. The Idaho Department of Health and...