Would you like to read a story that involves a different kind of Sandhills rancher, an increasingly popular Lincoln restaurant, a rare Italian breed of cattle and a new kind of Nebraska steak that melts in your mouth?
I did. Which is why I was excited when Sarah Baker Hansen, noted Nebraska food writer and also my better half, suggested it as one of the state’s shockingly untold food stories.
Our newest FFP story, by SBH, is the singular story of Certified Piedmontese, a Nebraska company built on the idea that we might want to eat a different kind of steak — often grass-fed, lower in calories than salmon, still tender — and a high-end restaurant in Lincoln where it’s harder and harder to get a table. Delicious.
I should note: If you are inclined to focus on the political activities of the Peed Family, which owns Certified Piedmontese and Casa Bovina and also funds right-wing candidates and fuels political attack ads against their opponents, I would say two things. 1. A Nebraska company doing something singular is news, no matter who owns it or what their politics are and 2. The Peed’s politics are mentioned high up in the story, though not dwelt upon, because it’s a story about steak.
By the way: We’re also working on a story about Nebraska money in politics. So that’s our stance. We’re not going to ignore the larger political issues at play. We’re also not going to ignore a Nebraska company doing something interesting.
Nitrate news: Yanqi Xu, the fantastic FFP reporter who anchored our months-long series on high nitrate levels in Nebraska water, is on a much-deserved vacation. When she returns, I can guarantee that Xu (pronounced Shu) and FFP are going to continue to pay close attention to water quality, water quantity and related subjects that matter very much to Nebraskans.
In the meantime, Xu did a nice podcast interview detailing her long and winding journey to Nebraska and to investigative journalism. You can listen to it here.
Oh, and I shouldn’t forget: During the holidays, new Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen gave an interview to excellent Nebraska Examiner reporter Aaron Sanderford. Asked about our nitrate series, Pillen said “some of that study has come from a group from far out of state, the coastline, with maybe other agendas.”
This is simply untrue. This nitrate series, from the original story tip to the data collection to every morsel of reporting, has been as Nebraskan as eating a piping hot Runza during a chilly autumn day inside Memorial Stadium. I’m very proud of it. Thank you to the tens of thousands of Nebraskans who read it, the almost 1,500 Nebraskans who have donated to FFP, and the dozens of Nebraskans who have reached out to us since. We’ll keep hammering away at this oh-so Nebraska story in 2023.
During the holidays, I did visit the shoreline right by my family home. That would be the bank of the muddy Indian Creek, six miles from Red Cloud, pop. 1,000. We put on boots, started a bonfire and ate chili. It was all quite coastal.
Tell us how we’re doing: If you haven’t already, take a moment to complete the FFP reader survey. It’s just three questions, and your responses will help us do better in 2023. Take the survey here.
Sincerely,
—Matthew Hansen, Executive Editor
Here’s what we’re into this week: News from around Nebraska
Every week we like to share great Nebraska journalism, no matter who made it. Here’s what caught our eye this week:
- You may have noticed that House Republicans are having a wild brawl this week as they try and fail to do what both parties have pretty easily done for the past century — pick a Speaker of the House. Omaha-area congressmen Don Bacon has, somewhat interestingly, become the most outspoken Republican in the House about the small group of far-right members of his party refusing to vote for Kevin McCarthy. Memorably, he has called them “The Taliban 20” and “terrorists.” Yowzers. Stories from Lincoln’s 10/11 and NCN’s Joe Jordan.
- From the hooray for local media department: There was a load of half-truths and complete bullpucky going around on social media in the hours after an Buffalo Bills player suffered cardiac arrest and collapsed on the field Monday. So the OWH’s Julie Anderson did a valuable local media public service. She called a local cardiologist and wrote a clear, concise story that explains what likely happened. This reader really appreciated it.
- And finally, one more from The World-Herald. Molly Ashford had a really important story about how fentanyl is destroying lives and devastating families in our state.
