Reporting Texas
News and features from UT-Austin's School of Journalism
byOisakhose Aghomo
Sometime close to midnight, as the bass to MC Joao’s “Baile de Favela” dropped, a group of people in business casual hurried across the Coconut Club’s dance floor, drinks in hand, to dance — hooked by the electric beat of Brazilian funk.
Brazilian funk is the latest Latin genre breaking out from TikToks and into the clubs – a testament to Americans’ growing interest in global music.
“I’ve been DJ’ing for maybe 12 plus years here on Sixth Street, and man, like 10 years ago, it was nothing but hip-hop and like pop, Top 40,” said Austin DJ Ray “All Day Ray” Rivera. “You couldn’t play much Latin. You couldn’t do anything like that.”
byMax Mazoch
Developers marketed Whisper Valley as having an affordable cost of living thanks to the solar-panelled roofs and a geothermal system that connects to each home to provide energy-efficient heating and cooling. But as their homes age, Whisper Valley residents report failing geothermal HVAC systems and foundations that have left them with bills in the thousands of dollars.
byIsabel Neumann
A new public-art initiative aims to beautify Austin while providing employment for the city’s growing unhoused population.
The ART for ALL initiative, launched by the nonprofit Raasin in the Sun, connects artists with unhoused people to paint colorful murals on the interior of the Austin Central Library parking garage in 2026, combining social impact with creativity.
“The goal is to turn the library garage site into a city-funded program for unhoused people,” said Tiffany Kowalski, director of project and artist management for Raasin in the Sun.
byErika González
During the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport continued operations — but the control tower felt the impact.
With fewer air traffic controllers available, every decision became more critical and the pace of work intensified, controllers say. Even after the shutdown ended, risks of ground delays and controller fatigue remain.
“We are shortstaffed, managing a constant flow of arrivals and departures and working with traffic levels that really don’t match the number of people we have. So working becomes increasingly difficult,” said one Austin air traffic controller.
