Texas’ Famed Bigtooth Maple Trees Are Being Loved to Death by Deer

byPaula Levihn-Coon

Since the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department opened Lost Maples State Natural Area to the public in 1979, thousands of people have enjoyed its colorful beauty in the Texas Hill Country. It has been particularly well-visited during the pandemic, with attendance reaching record highs.scientists have collected data indicating that the future of these trees and the pleasure many take from their color palette could be at risk. An overabundance of white-tailed deer has been killing young trees by browsing on them.

14 Years and a Reversed Veto Later, Dog Advocates Get Their Animal Cruelty Law

byCristela Jones

A new Texas law requires drinking water for outdoor animals, prohibits the use of chain restraints and eliminates a 24-hour waiting period that kept animal control officers from addressing tethered animal situations immediately.

Austin Theater Groups Look to Post-Pandemic Future

byVeronica Apodaca

Live theater felt the effects of the pandemic deeply.

UT’s Black Faculty Numbers Are Up — But Just Barely

byEniola Longe

Five years after Reporting Texas detailed a disproportionately low number of Black faculty members at the University of Texas at Austin, the situation has barely improved. In 2016, 3.6% of UT-Austin professors were Black. In 2020, that number had only risen to 4.1%, about 156 of close to 3,800 faculty members, according to university data. And UT-Austin is not alone among Texas colleges in lacking Black faculty.

NFTs are leveling the playing field for Black artists. Here’s why.

byPamela Hall Vance

This new digital marketplace came into the public eye in the past year. It is now opening doors for Black artists in Central Texas who might have struggled to sell their work in traditional galleries and navigate an art world with museum collections that have been reported to be more than 85% white.

Climate Change Impacting Austin Real Estate Not So Hard to Fathom

byBrendan Long

After graduating from the University of Texas in May 2021, Sami Sparber ran into the same issue many Austin residents are facing – too few places available for rent or sale. “If you found a place to live, you had to apply right away because within hours or days that unit could be gone,” Sparber […]

Archery Gaining Popularity in Central Texas

byZacharia E. Washington

People’s desire to provide their own meat and to get outside during the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with the influence of movies featuring archery and celebrities promoting the sport, fueled an increase in archery participation.

Despite Higher Prices and Short Supply, Texas Heritage Turkey Farms Are Thriving 

byEniola Longe

Across the country, the demand for heritage turkeys — a variety of domestic turkeys retaining historic characteristics from the mid-20th Century — has been on the rise since 2005 with the popularity of the slow food movement.

A Dozen Years On, Austin Organization Still Offering Stuffed Animals for Adoption 

byAlexa K. Haverlah 

Austin resident Wendy Mitchell has offered stuffed animals for adoption for a decade.

Dia de los Muertos Provides Opportunity to Celebrate, Educate

byTaryn Courville

The scenery is a burst of color. Lines of patterned flags blow in the wind and paper marigolds decorate altars and hair. Performers walk around covered in face paint, dressed in traditional Mexican dresses or Aztec costumes. The sound of mariachi, drums and shell embellished ankle cuffs fills the area. Attendees of the Dia de […]

Reporting Texas TV – December 2, 2021

byReporting Texas TV Staff

Journalism students from Moody College at the University of Texas made their sixth and final newscast of the semester on December 2, 2021. This week student journalists report on UT’s efforts to become the world’s highest-impact public university, Record Store Day, and the Travis County Sheriff’s Brown Santa program.

UT Study Hopes to Curb LGBTQ Suicide Rates

byClark Dalton

In April 2021, Lilith, a University of Texas student, attempted taking her own life rather than starting her first year of college. “Most people have idealized versions of themselves, someone they’re going to become one day,” Lilith said. “I never saw this person at the end of the road so I started to think to […]

Longhorn Volleyball Fans Fuel Team’s Success

byKevin Malcolm

Volleyball games in the 4,000-seat Gregory Gymnasium, a 90-year-old building in the heart of the UT campus, are regularly packed — not a common occurrence for many college volleyball teams around the country.

Barton Springs’ Chilly Waters Warmed by the Clarity of Humanity

byDanielle Streetenberger and Sarah Velasquez

The stark gray clouds began to part, the sun glistened on the water, illuminating the rocks and algae below. A group of old men congregate behind the lifeguard tower, begin chatting and cracking jokes about Texas football. Two young men unroll their yoga mats and begin raising their palms toward the sun. Meanwhile, a pair […]

Reporting Texas Newsletter Dec. 3, 2021

Download the Dec. 3 Edition of the Reporting Texas Newsletter

Youth Athletes Happy to Get Back in the Game

byZacharia E. Washington

Central Texans are happy for the return of youth sports, which they see as important for kid’s physical and mental health.

Returning Brown Santa Volunteers Find Themselves Back in Santa’s Workshop This Season

byElexa Sherry

AUSTIN, Texas — Travis County residents are giving back this holiday season. This is the 41st year the Travis County Sheriff’s Brown Santa Program is serving underprivileged families and seniors during Christmas time.  Brown Santa Chairman Louis Moncivais is in his 16th year serving with his family. “There’s a lot of people still struggling even […]

Independent Music Shops Celebrate Record Store Day Amid Supply Chain Delays

byJack Starks

AUSTIN, Texas — Vinyl record fans celebrated an extra holiday last week as Record Store Day returned for Black Friday. “It’s really great being able to celebrate the cool, indie-record-store-only releases that come out on Black Friday,” said John Kunz, the owner of Waterloo Records. Record Store Day started in 2007 to promote the revival […]

UT Invests Millions in Efforts to Become World’s Highest-Impact Public University

byMegan Fee

AUSTIN, Texas — The University of Texas at Austin’s slogan “what starts here changes the world” is taking on a whole new meaning as the institution strives towards its goal of becoming the highest-impact public university in the world.  In doing so, UT’s Board of Regents is looking to extend its $20 million contract with […]

‘Conversion Therapy’ Aimed at Queer People Remains Legal in Texas

byAustin Cheatham

With gay marriage now a constitutional right and the strides made in LGBTQ+ acceptance in American society, it might be hard for some to imagine that just 50 years ago, homosexuality was still considered a mental illness. It took until 1973 for the American Psychological Association to remove homosexuality from its list of mental disorders. […]