Columbus
The Daily Yonder
How Will New Work Requirements for SNAP Benefits Affect Food Insecurity, Employment?
As policymakers in DC have continued to negotiate compromises to fund the federal government — and craft a new Farm Bill — there has been no shortage of political wrangling over the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), often referred to as “food stamps.” For example, in mid 2023 an agreement to raise the federal debt ceiling included a provision to tighten eligibility requirements for some SNAP users. This change took effect at the same time that a temporary expansion of SNAP benefits, introduced in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, also came to end.
Federal Program to Save Rural Hospitals Feels ‘Growing Pains’
This story was originally published by KFF Health News. Folks in this Mississippi River town hope a new federal program can revive the optimism engraved long ago in a plaque on the side of their hospital. “Dedicated to the Future of Health Care in the Tri-State Area,” the sign declares....
East Texas Foundation Organizes Strategic Plan to Improve Early Literacy Education at Rural Schools
Like many schools across the nation, elementary students at Newton Independent School District, which covers 500 square miles in rural East Texas, were struggling to read. Although their teachers were equipped with a scientifically supported reading curriculum that provided activities to test student progress, drive home important lessons, and target specific areas of weakness, students continued to score poorly in national assessments.
Commentary: A Terrible Dilemma Faces the Great Basin
This story was originally published by Writers on the Range. The long drive between Salt Lake City, Utah and Reno, Nevada on Interstate 80 feels endless, the landscape timeless. But these basins and ranges of the Great Basin Desert are changing dramatically. Wildfire, climate change and aridification are transforming plant...
Queer, Non-Binary, Happy… Creating the Life You Want Wherever You Are
In Breckenridge, Colorado, a new art show highlighting rural queer voices opens on January 27th. Titled “In Plain Sight: Queer Rural Narratives From the Water and the Land”, the show features queer artists from around the country. Avery Glassman, director of programs and special projects for Breck Create,...
Uvalde Newspaper Publisher Urges Community Journalists to Pay More Attention Before Tragedies Strike
EDITOR’S NOTE: Among the news outlets covering the release this week of the Department of Justice’s report on the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting was the town’s community newspaper, the twice-weekly Uvalde Leader-News. In 2023, the owner and publisher of the paper, Craig Garnett, received the Tom and...
Q&A: The Changed Landscape of Coal Politics
Editor’s Note: This interview first appeared in Path Finders, an email newsletter from the Daily Yonder. Each week, Path Finders features a Q&A with a rural thinker, creator, or doer. Like what you see here? You can join the mailing list at the bottom of this article and receive more conversations like this in your inbox each week.
Analysis: Rural Families Need Broadband Subsidy Program More but Use It Less
Last week, the Federal Communications Commission announced plans to wind-down the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The ACP offers a $30 monthly subsidy for internet service to qualifying households, and up to $75 per month for households on Tribal lands and high-cost rural areas. The program began in 2022 as a follow-up to the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) – which was set up to help households struggling to afford internet during Covid-19.
Pandemic’s High Impact on Rural Areas Stemmed from At-Risk Populations, Vaccination Rates, Study Says
Fixing the “rural healthcare disadvantage” that caused more infections and deaths in rural communities during the Covid-19 pandemic and beyond will take more than throwing money at healthcare, one advocate said. A new study from the University of Wisconsin-Madison has found politics, vaccinations, and the health of communities...
Analysis: Trump’s Popularity Extends Well Beyond Rural Counties in Iowa
Trump did better among rural voters than his Republican challengers did, but the size of his lead in metro counties was a key part of his victory. Sixty percent of rural voters supported Trump on Monday during the Iowa Caucus. Governor Ron DeSantis won 18% of the rural vote, while former Governor of South Carolina Nikki Haley trailed behind with about 13% of the rural vote.
Rural Employment Edges Back to Pre-Pandemic Numbers
Three-and-a-half years after the Covid-19 pandemic created massive layoffs, rural workers are right back where they started, according to a Daily Yonder analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The latest monthly county-level employment report from BLS shows that rural counties have a few more jobs now...
Does Rural America Have Outsized Influence on the Electoral College?
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Keep It Rural, an email newsletter from the Daily Yonder. Like what you see? Join the mailing list for more rural news, thoughts, and analysis in your inbox each week. In late 2023, I wrote a Keep It Rural on the...
Activists Win a Battle for Women’s Reproductive Healthcare in a Rural Colorado Town
On June 8, 2023, Lindsay Yeager of Cortez, Colorado, woke up to a barrage of text messages, asking if she had heard about the local birth center closing. Yeager immediately sprang into action. By that evening, protesters gathered across the street from the city’s hospital with placards and a purpose: keeping the birthing center open.
A Huge EV Factory Is Coming to Rural West Tennessee. Here’s How Locals Are Ensuring They Benefit.
This story was originally published by Grist. “Blue Oval City” sounds like some kind of fantastic, utopian megalopolis of the future. In reality, it’s a massive automotive manufacturing complex that will provide several links in the EV supply chain. The joint venture, between Ford and Korean company SK Innovation, promises 6,000 good-paying jobs for residents of the small, rural communities around Stanton, Tennessee. Many expect it to benefit surrounding towns like Covington, Brownsville, and Jackson as well, while reaching south into Mississippi and north into Kentucky, too.
Making Mountaintop Removal Renewable
The dirt road to Starfire Mine is rough, bumpy, and rutted, with a view of undulating terrain covered and scrubby vegetation rolling out into the distance. This is one of the largest mountaintop removal mine sites in Appalachia – at 27,000-acres, it’s as large as Disney World – and the site of one of the most significant renewable energy projects in development in the eastern U.S.
Q&A: Rural Voter Behavior Is Driven By Economics, Not ‘Culture Wars’
Editor’s Note: This interview first appeared in Path Finders, an email newsletter from the Daily Yonder. Each week, Path Finders features a Q&A with a rural thinker, creator, or doer. Like what you see here? You can join the mailing list at the bottom of this article and receive more conversations like this in your inbox each week.
In a Small Colorado Town, People Rally To Save a Unicorn
On an unseasonably warm day in November, we find ourselves where we never thought possible: in the dramatic throes of saving a unicorn. That’s the big story, but we begin our journey with one of the universe’s known knowns: a small town will get together to help one of their own. That’s just the way it is. Relationships in rural areas are fostered like nowhere else for good and for bad. At any given moment, people know each other and their needs and wants. That’s how we know so much about our unicorn, like that his name is Steven and he needs a kidney.
Lawmen of the Small Screen
Editor’s Note: A version of this story first appeared in The Good, the Bad, and the Elegy, a newsletter from the Daily Yonder focused on the best, and worst, in rural media, entertainment, and culture. Every other Thursday, it features reviews, retrospectives, recommendations, and more. You can join the mailing list at the bottom of this article to receive future editions in your inbox.
Workforce Shortages Plague Rural Hospitals, Legislation to Address It Stalls
With 2023 being the least productive year in Congress since 1933, legislation that could help rural hospitals with their workforce issues continues to wait for any action by lawmakers. Advocates for rural hospitals and healthcare facilities say that workforce issues are one of the biggest challenges facing rural healthcare facilities...
Pedestrian Safety on Rural Roads
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Keep It Rural, an email newsletter from the Daily Yonder. Like what you see? Join the mailing list for more rural news, thoughts, and analysis in your inbox each week. I have a recurring nightmare in which I’m sitting on an...
The Daily Yonder
3K+
Posts
5M+
Views
The Daily Yonder provides news, commentary, and analysis about and for rural America.
Welcome to NewsBreak, an open platform where diverse perspectives converge. Most of our content comes from established publications and journalists, as well as from our extensive network of tens of thousands of creators who contribute to our platform. We empower individuals to share insightful viewpoints through short posts and comments. It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency: our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. We strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation. Join us in shaping the news narrative together.