KZMU News

KZMU News listeners, we have a special interview from our longest-running public affairs show, This Week in Moab. On Monday, host Christy Williams-Dunton interviewed KZMU staff and board members about the 'State of the Station.' It's been a season of discovery, change and recalibration.

On the latest Regional Roundup: the American Association for the Advancement of Science hosted its annual meeting in Denver this month. We speak with a rep about the work of AAAS, diversifying science and more. Plus: Black history in Colorado, and a Diné musician captures the sounds of the southwest.

Today on the News Reel we talk to Sophia Fisher, reporter with the Times-Independent. We discuss why a land swap between the state and the federal government recently fell apart within Bears Ears National Monument. We also talk about the Grand County School District’s superintendent, who will retire in July. And we finish off with a story about a local high school wrestling star, who recently won...

For the past five years, the Rural Utah Project has been going door to door on the Navajo Nation teaching people how to use Plus Codes, an addressing system created by Google. Plus Codes are generated based on coordinates and serve as a good alternative to less standardized addresses many on the Navajo Nation were using previously. The project was intended to improve voter registration. But the ne...

Powwows are meant to be safe spaces where Indigenous peoples can socialize and express themselves through song and dance. For some tribes, gender can limit what a person may perform. But those rules didn’t apply at the fourth annual Arizona Two Spirit Powwow held last weekend. Plus: the Moab Museum launches a new exhibit highlighting Japanese American incarceration in Utah, and Sema Hadithi explor...

Tribal officials and environmental justice groups have opposed three hydroelectric pumps in the Black Mesa region, saying the project would deplete already small groundwater reserves. Federal officials denied the project last week. Plus: Utahns shut down traffic in Salt Lake City in support of Palestine, conservation groups critique a new plan to help native fish in the Grand Canyon, and the Aral...

On the latest Regional Roundup: an interview with the director of 'In the Dirt,' a documentary about mountain biking on the Navajo Nation. And, we hear about a weekly community dinner for seasonal workers and a creek that never freezes in winter.

Today on the News Reel we talk to Doug McMurdo, editor of the Times-Independent. We cover domestic violence in Grand County, which has the highest number of cases per capita in the state. We also discuss a new report that found that short-term rental profits in Moab increased by over 130 percent during the pandemic. And we finish off with a story about the recent fatality on Highway 191. // Show N...

Over recent weeks, community members have raised many questions over potential impacts from a 180 acre parcel along Kane Creek Boulevard slated for development. One question that local journalist Jon Kovash has: where’s the money flowing? Today on the news, we speak with Kovash about his research on developer donations to local politicians and their clout with Utah legislators. And: conservation g...

Let's delve into the KZMU News audio archives. We zoom back to 2021, when community members living in trailers and other unique dwellings along Kane Creek Boulevard were evicted to make way for new development. // Show Notes: https://www.kzmu.org/audio-archives-charlie-wood-evictions/

On the latest Regional Roundup, an interview with Dr. Ethan Greene, the Director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, about trends in avalanches and what weather events lead to increased danger. Plus, we revisit our interview with a Moab resident who was a participant from the controversial 1971 Stanford Prison Experiment.

Today on the News Reel we talk to Sophia Fisher, reporter with the Times-Independent, about the mysterious origins of the new Kane Creek development's zoning code. We also talk about the airport’s new service to Phoenix, the local OHV community, and the history of the Old Spanish Trail in Moab, which is receiving new interpretive signage soon. //County is investigating Kane Creek zoning https://ww...

Facing cross-country opposition, the controversial Uinta Basin Railway project has been derailed once again by a recent federal decision. Plus: Moab Regional Hospital mourns employee Annie Relph, who was killed in a head-on collision on Tuesday night. And: protestors criticize Utah Governor Spencer Cox, and private property in Zion National Park will be protected from development. // Show Notes: h...

“It would probably take all day to say everything [the legislators] are doing. There are more than 20 bill files now that have to do with voting access or changing elections in one way or another.” --- TJ Ellerbeck, executive director of the Rural Utah Project.

A look back at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival is featured on the latest Regional Roundup with reviews, interviews and more.

Today we hear from Sophia Fisher of the Times-Independent. We cover new city construction projects, speculative mining activity at the Yellow Cat Mine, a new documentary about a local base jumper who took his first jump after a severe injury, and an op-ed about what really happened with the re-zoning process for the property now under construction down Kane Creek Boulevard. //Dispersed parking, Ka...

Utah lawmakers passed a bill that would ban transgender people from using bathrooms in schools and government buildings that correspond with their gender identities, reports our partners at UPR. This is the third year in a row that lawmakers in Utah have passed legislation that limits the rights of the state’s trans community. We also hear a report on climbers pushing back on new hardware regulati...

On the latest Regional Roundup, an interview with drag queen and environmentalist Pattie Gonia as part of a live broadcast from Aspen Ski Week. And we hear about the first-black owned bank in the Rocky Mountain Region opening in Salt Lake City, as well as a feature on the Denver Stock Show.

Today we hear from Sophia Fisher and Gwen Dillworth of the Times-Independent. They cover the public's response to the Kane Creek development, a new overnight glamping accommodation, and how the Moab Regional Hospital can keep its obstetric unit open when so many rural facilities have folded in recent years. //Rural obstetric units are closing. Why not in Moab? https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/ru...

Molly Marcello speaks with three organizers from Kane Creek Development Watch, a grassroots organization dedicated to fighting a new, 180-acre residential and commercial site along the Colorado River. Kane Creek Development Watch //https://kanecreekwatch.org/

“We need journalism. And we need really good journalism like [High Country News] produces. And we want to keep producing it. And we need to be able to do that under stable, sustainable conditions.” — B. ‘Toastie’ Oaster Learn more about unionizing efforts from three HCN staffers on today’s newscast.

Moab resident Jerry Shue was a prisoner in the famously controversial Stanford Prison Experiment in 1971. He was recently asked to participate in a National Geographic documentary about the study. Over 50 years later, Shue reflects on the experience and what it was like to see his fellow participants again. Photo: Jerry Shue, prisoner 5486, is accompanied to the bathroom by a guard during the Stan...

On the latest Regional Roundup, an interview with author and naturalist Craig Childs about Chaos Theory, the theme of his latest Dark Night event. Plus, we hear about a Navajo musician who is channeling John Cage and his Navajo ancestors to honor those lost in the Long Walk. And, a world record setting 'skiing in jeans' event in Wyoming.

KZMU News is back! News director Molly Marcello and reporter Emily Arntsen discuss where they've been and where the news department is headed.

On the latest Regional Roundup, an audio portrait Bruni Mason who volunteers as a bell-ringer raising money for Moab Solutions. Plus, we hear about the Folsom Trail in Salt Lake City and the fight for OBGYN access in Jackson, WY. And later, an interview with two chefs about their new book using Native American ingredients.