Texas State Archive
W. Lee “Pappy” O’Daniel was a flour salesman turned broadcaster who mastered early mass media to build a political machine. As host of a hugely popular radio show featuring his Hillbilly Boys band, he blended homespun entertainment with relentless self-promotion. He converted his audience into votes, winning the Texas governorship in 1938 and later a U.S. Senate seat. O’Daniel’s radio fame let him bypass party elites and critics, turning airtime into personal power and profit.
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A 13-year fight between a judge and Texas over how the state runs its foster care system is back in court on Monday. Texas wants the judge off the case and her stiff fines canceled. The case is also part of a nationwide push back on judges who force states to take specific actions — decisions that, conservatives say, are 'corrosive to federalism.' -
A discussion about Juneteenth and Texas with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annette Gordon-Reed -
Bernie Tiede, whose murder of a Texas widow was immortalized by Richard Linklater, is suing the state over what he calls its “cruel and unusual” treatment of inmates in hot prisons. -
Clenard Parker, a 42-year-old resident of Chappell Hill, is suspected of stealing the vehicle a day after his application for a commercial driver's license was denied. -
The declaration allows the county judge to coordinate and control traffic and other needs during the eclipse. -
Joyce Slocum, who led both NPR and Texas Public Radio into a new era for public media, died Sunday from complications of colon cancer. -
Austin Police have said they do not believe the crash was intentional. -
Major League Baseball playoffs are beginning, and the Houston Astros are in the running for the whole box of Cracker Jacks. But it wasn’t that long ago that the spacemen were caught cheating by stealing signs. There may not be crying in baseball, but there is cheating. Has America’s game become too tolerant of the low ball out? -
After the Uvalde school massacre, the slow walking of the firing of a Texas Ranger spotlights the lack of transparency about how the DPS failed. With rapid growth during a record drought, what can be done to keep the Texas Hill Country from running out of water? And book bans in Texas are getting worse. -
The Texas Medicaid unwinding process is causing catastrophic coverage losses. No state has kicked more people or kids off Medicaid or had a higher share of renewals end in loss of coverage. There are reports of the state's serious system errors and non-compliance with federal guidelines. What’s happening with Texas Medicaid?
