Idaho Matters

(Ryan Kang / AP Photos) County fairs have become Idaho's latest gun rights battleground.  Canyon County and Twin Falls  have been the focus of disagreements over whether guns are allowed at county fairs in the Gem State. Now the battle has moved to the  Festival at Sandpoint .  Idaho Matters  takes a deep dive into the subject. Have a question or comment for the show? Tweet  @KBSX915  using #Idaho...

(National Endowment for the Arts) The National Endowment for the Arts was created by Congress in 1965. The organization doles out grants to arts groups across the country,  including in Idaho . Over the past five years the NEA has awarded more than two million dollars to schools and organizations in Idaho – groups like Ballet Idaho, Idaho Writers Guild and the Sun Valley Film Festival. The head of...

(TIFF 2019) It's been a banner year  in film . From the Avengers to the Lion King, the movies have been non-stop. George Prentice takes a look back at the year in film. He'll also look forward, with  a preview  of the  Toronto Film Festival . Have a question or comment for the show? Tweet  @KBSX915  using #IdahoMatters. 

(Frankie Barnhill / Boise State Public Radio) The city of Boise has officially  filed its appeal  to the U.S. Supreme Court over its controversial anti-camping ordinance. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals last year  declared the ordinance unconstitutional and considered it cruel and unusual punishment . Boise’s ordinance bars anyone from sleeping outside in public places – unless all of the city’s...

(DonkeyHotey / Flickr) Does where you live affect how you donate to political campaigns? That was the question Boise State assistant professor Jaclyn Kettler asked in her new study. The results are out in the August edition of the  “Journal of Elections, Public Opinion, and Parties.”  She looked at how more than 7,000 people donated in a U.S. House election. Then they looked again after those peop...

(Or Hiltch / Flickr) We’ll meet the director of a critically acclaimed documentary  telling the story of an inexperienced group of climbers reaching the peak of one of the planet’s highest mountains to honor their fathers.

(Becky Bohrer / AP Photo) Our regular Friday segment goes deep on the predatory landlords in Boise, school security in the West Ada District, state budget issues and public discussions and rulemaking on gender markers on birth certificates, immunizations and more.  Have a question or comment for the show? Tweet  @KBSX915  using #IdahoMatters. 

(via Twitter) Ketchum native A.J. Eaton is the director of "David Crosby: Remember My Name," one of the big hits to emerge from this year's Sundance Film Festival. The film was snapped up by Sony Pictures Classics and is rolling out this week across North America, picking up steam nationally. He's back in Idaho this week to celebrate his success with friends and family. Have a question or comment...

(Carolyn Thompson / AP Images) The Boise School District is looking to make online learning safer for their students. In order to do that they’ve switched to GoGuardian, a company that will protect their 16,000 school-owned devices while students use the internet, both on and off campus. Have a question or comment for the show? Tweet  @KBSX915  using #IdahoMatters.

(Kyle Green / Idaho Statesman) The Community Council of Idaho is the oldest nonprofit serving Latinos in the state. One of its programs is Head Start, transporting children ages 5 and younger from their homes to daycare. Recently, a bus driver with the program in Caldwell reported a threatening incident with a driver in a nearby car. This was around the same time of a mass shooting that targeted L...

(Chobani) Building on its agricultural success, the Magic Valley is taking its next step from local processing into food science and research. Reporter Rachel Cohen joins us to discuss the developing region and its future in food.

(Scott Graf / Boise State Public Radio)   In May, we visited with water quality advocate Christopher Swain on his decision to swim the 150-mile length of the Boise River. He’s partnered with the Idaho Business for the Outdoors to be the first person to take on this challenge. It’s not the first time he’s done a swim like this, but in an effort to get folks to think about this vital waterway he dov...

(Polygon Realty Limited / Flickr Creative Commons)   Girls on the Run is a program that aims to inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident by using an experience-based curriculum that integrates running. We learn more about the program from Toni Ramey, Girls on the Run Executive Director in the Treasure Valley.  

(Darin Oswald / Idaho Statesman) Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson spent some time in the Treasure Valley last week. Calling Idaho a great place to live during his visit, he spent time with some of our state lawmakers. Idaho Senator Cherie Buckner Webb had an opportunity to speak with Secretary Ben Carson and she said Idaho is in the midst of a housing cr...

(Kyle Green / Idaho Statesman) On Monday, Boise Contemporary Theater's founding Artistic Director Matthew Cameron Clark sent a scathing letter criticizing the nonprofit's board of trustees. The letter was a reaction to his firing earlier this summer. We speak with Clark to hear more about the controversy, and then get analysis from Boise State Public Radio's George Prentice. Be sure to listen to h...

(James Dawson / Boise State Public Radio)   When Idaho’s State Board of Education announced this spring that Marlene Tromp would be the next president of Boise State University, the crowd at the Stueckle Sky Center erupted in applause. After more than a year-long search, the university would have a new leader.  She started the job July 1, and her first few weeks in office came with some significan...

(Heath Druzin / Boise State Public Radio)   Recent shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, have led to renewed calls for extreme risk protection orders — or red flag laws. New research out of California indicates that so called "red flag laws" could help prevent mass shootings. Boise State Public Radio and Guns & America reporter Heath Druzin has more about what the research does — and...

(Norm Gunning / Boise State Public Radio) These days, drones are everywhere—from the ones you can buy at your local Costco to news drones giving birds’ eye views of sporting events. Soon you’ll even be able to get your Amazon deliveries with the company’s “Prime Air” drone fleet. So how are we going to stop all of these flying machines from flying into each other? As the Mountain West News Bureau’...

(Richard Klein / Flickr) Rising home prices  have been a hot topic recently,  especially in Boise . Property tax notices recently came out and  some homeowners  are finding themselves priced out of their houses.  The Idaho Statesman  featured one woman who is selling her house because her taxes are too high.  Idaho Matters  takes a closer look at the effect of higher taxes on home ownership. Have...

(jcwjohns / Flickr) Scleroderma is a chronic connective tissue disease. Folks who have it often suffer in silence without the support they need to cope.  The Southern Idaho Scleroderma Support Group  was created to help raise awareness about the disease and provide  a network  for those diagnosed with it. Have a question or comment for the show? Tweet  @KBSX915  using #IdahoMatters. 

(U.S. Navy) What does the U.S. Navy mean to Idaho? Monday kicks of Navy Week and the captain of the Navy’s namesake sub, the USS Boise, drops by  Idaho Matters  to chat about what they’re doing in the Gem State. Los Angeles-class fast attack submarines,  like the Boise , were designed at the height of the Cold War. Over 350 feet long, these high-tech giants can cruise beneath the ocean’s surface f...

(Don Harder / Flickr) The Western Idaho Fair has been around  since 1897 . It has everything from corn dogs to elephant ears to animals to rides to games. This week the fair will bring in thousands of visitors looking to have some late summer fun. Boise State Public Radio’s Laramie Lavala and Kelsey Thomson take us there with an audio postcard. Have a question or comment for the show? Tweet  @KBSX...

(Justin Hofmann / Flickr) It’s time for our  Reporter Roundtable , where we get you up to date on all the news that made headlines around our region. Joining us this week are  Betsy Russell  with the Idaho Press, Don Day with  Boisedev.com  and  Nicole Foy  of the Idaho Statesman. Have a question or comment for the show? Tweet  @KBSX915  using #IdahoMatters. 

(Adrian Black / Flickr) Recent wildfires in the Stanley area got a little help from  FirstNet . It was a higher frequency network created by Congress after 9-11 to ensure first responders have the service they need to communicate. A “Cell on Light Truck” was sent to the Stanley area fires to help multiple agencies talk to each other.  Idaho Matters  finds out more about FirstNet and how it helps i...

(Idaho Department of Lands) More than 1,000 acres of trees are being cut down at  Bogus Basin.  The timber sales are the result of an infection of the  Douglas-fir  dwarf mistletoe and beetles that take advantage of the sick trees. Almost 80% of tree stands in the Bogus Basin Project area are infected with mistletoe. Sick and dead trees can be dangerous to skiers. That’s why the Idaho Department o...