New Mexico in Focus (A Production of NMPBS)

Reports of missing mail collection boxes around the country have prompted an Albuquerque-based software designer to help develop an application that uses communities to keep track of where mailboxes are and are not across the United States. NMIF correspondent Megan Kamerick talked to Russ Biggs about how the web app works and how people can help.    In the mountains above Santa Fe, the M...

As the nation celebrates the 100th anniversary of women winning the right to vote, Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver and Valencia County Peggy Carabajal are working to ensure New Mexicans will have confidence in the November election. NMiF’s senior producer Matt Grubs talks with them about the national controversy over the role the U.S. mail will play in November’s election. It’s part of t...

In the August installment of Our Land, environmental correspondent Laura Paskus revisits the Gold King Mine spill and the destructive impact of the toxic orange plume that went flowing down the Animas and San Juan rivers five years ago. The waste that was released when crews tried to reopen the abandoned mine killed fish and coated river banks with heavy metals. Paskus reports with help from a gra...

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has been shepherding New Mexico through the COVID-19 crisis since the first case hit the state in March. NMiF senior producer Matt Grubs talks to her about trying to balance life and livelihood as she deals with the devastating effects of the pandemic on New Mexicans.   Correspondent Laura Paskus is back with a new installment in her ongoing series of conversations...

With the school year quickly approaching and coronavirus cases surging, New Mexico schools are going to be fully online until at least September 8th. Correspondent Megan Kamerick talks with single mother Bridget Montoya, who is also a nurse working with COVID-19 patients, about balancing her work schedule with her children’s education and safety. Host Gene Grant talks to the new face of the Black...

This week on New Mexico in Focus , correspondent Megan Kamerick talks with artist and quilter Gwen Triay Samuels who had to take a break from helping people experiencing homelessness to battle the coronavirus. Now, as she recovers, she is making face masks for those in need as a way of showing thanks for surviving COVID-19. Host Gene Grant talks to members of Paint for Peace, an art initiative to...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, senior producer Matt Grubs talks to former U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, who now chairs the New Mexico Republican Party. The GOP has accused Governor Lujan Grisham of being too restrictive in her efforts to slow the growth of COVID-19. Correspondent Megan Kamerick interviews Dr. Steven Bradfute, research assistant professor of UNM’s Center for Global Health and Departme...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, host Gene Grant celebrates the third anniversary of the show’s monthly series Our Land with environmental journalist Laura Paskus, who talks about the state’s outlook and attitudes toward the environment. Paskus also presents a new Our Land segment that looks at the apparent death of the Gila River diversion plans. Correspondent Gwyneth Doland gets an update...

New Mexico in Focus begins its 14th season with a look back at the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic since it first hit the state in March, and a look forward from the time women won the right to vote 100 years ago. As part of an online preview screening this week of the PBS program “American Experience: The Vote,” correspondent Megan Kamerick led a conversation about the history of women’s suffrag...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, correspondent Russell Contreras talks with Elizabeth Groginsky, the first secretary of New Mexico’s newly minted Early Childhood Education and Care Department, which will launch next week. Groginsky talks about her plans for creating a cohesive and aligned pre-natal-to-five early childhood system in New Mexico.    Protests against racism and debates over...

Protests this week centered on a statue of Juan de Oñate in Albuquerque. The conquistador's violent role in New Mexican history has been controversial since his own times, and protestors tried to yank down his likeness as a self-appointed group of armed guards riled the crowd. As he was chased from the scene after apparently assaulting several demonstrators, one of the men shot a protestor and has...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, as lawmakers and the governor ready for a June 18 special session, The Line opinion panel welcomes Albuquerque Journal Capitol Bureau Chief Dan Boyd. He and other journalists are busy tracking revenue estimates and budget recommendations as the state looks to fill a nearly $2 billion hole in next year’s spending package. The panel includes Line regulars Dede Feldm...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, host Gene Grant talks with Albuquerque’s Mayor Tim Keller and Chief Administrative Officer Sarita Nair about the recent vandalism and violence that occurred after peaceful Black Lives Matter protests, and why the city has decided not to issue a curfew and resisted calls to ask for help from the National Guard. Correspondent Megan Kamerick talks with a protest orga...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, producer Matt Grubs talks with Christina Campos and Brian Moore, who co-chair the governor's new Economic Recovery Council. The group has been tasked with setting up guidelines, suggestions and best practices for reopening the state's businesses and economy.    Correspondent Laura Paskus looks at ways New Mexico carries on the tradition of honoring San Y...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, correspondent Laura Paskus continues her series of interviews with journalists around the state as they cover COVID-19 in their communities. Although it’s in Texas, El Paso’s proximity to our state and the border with Mexico makes it an important part of the pandemic’s equation. Paskus talks with two veteran border journalists, Bob Moore of El Paso Matters and Lau...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, correspondent Laura Paskus continues her series of interviews with journalists around the state as they cover COVID-19 in their communities. Diego Lopez is a reporter with the Cibola Citizen in Grants. City leaders are clashing in the western New Mexico town as the mayor has demanded businesses be allowed to reopen, despite the governor’s public health order. Nava...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, senior producer Matt Grubs takes a close look at the state’s COVID-19 testing capability with Sec. Kathyleen Kunkel of the NM Department of Health. New Mexico is able to test more than 5,000 people a day, but routinely falls thousands of tests short of that mark. Correspondent Laura Paskus continues with her series of interviews with journalists around t...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, correspondent Megan Kamerick talks with researchers at the University of New Mexico who are among hundreds of scientists around the world working to develop a vaccine for the novel coronavirus that has led to the death of more than 57,000 in the United States alone. Senior producer Matt Grubs talks to executives from hospitals in Las Cruces and Portales. Both Moun...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, correspondent Megan Kamerick talks with Drs. Sanjeev Arora and Leslie Hayes about telehealth and how rural medical centers and hospitals are handling cases of the novel coronavirus. Senior producer Matt Grubs talks to U.S. Sen. Tom Udall about the COVID-19 pandemic as the Senate passes its latest attempt to provide a safety net for the U.S. economy and healthcare...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, correspondent Laura Paskus continues with her series of interviews with journalists around the state as they cover COVID-19 in their communities. Algernon D’Ammassa, a reporter with the Las Cruces Sun-News who lives in Deming, has been covering the pandemic crisis in Southern New Mexico. Correspondent Antonia Gonzales talks with New Mexico’s Indian Affairs secreta...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, correspondent Megan Kamerick talks with officials from the City of Albuquerque and nonprofits helping those without housing. They discuss efforts to help curtail COVID-19 spread among people experiencing homelessness and how the response to this pandemic may shape public health and housing in the future. “Our Land” correspondent Laura Paskus sits down with Santa F...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, senior producer Matt Grubs speaks with Dr. David Scrase, who is part of the team coordinating New Mexico’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. A geriatrician who now leads the Human Services Department, Scrase talks about the state’s testing capacity, how it impacts the spread of the novel coronavirus, and how the health care system is preparing for a spike in case...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, senior producer Matt Grubs speaks with Secretary Bill McCamley of Workforce Solutions about the state’s expanded response for workers who have been laid off because of actions to stop the spread of the new coronavirus. Matt Grubs also follows up with Our Land correspondent Laura Paskus, who broke the news this week that the Pentagon has identified four more possib...

This week on New Mexico in Focus, senior producer Matt Grubs speaks with two psychiatrists about how to deal with the realities of social distancing as the nation responds to the COVID-19 outbreak. For many people, staying at home can start to feel overwhelming, especially as they struggle to explain to their children what’s happening in the world beyond the front door.    The U.S. Censu...

Las Cruces NPR Station KRWG today (3/19/20) hosted a live call-in show for people with questions about COVID-19, partnering with other New Mexico PBS stations: KENW, KUNM and KANW. We wanted to share with all of you in case it helps to answer any lingering questions you may have. Tune in tomorrow for this week's podcast edition of New Mexico in Focus, when we will talk about the state response to...