Managing editor Ryan Hoffman here coming to you on a scorching Friday. First, a quick trip in the time machine to the early days of my newspaper career. One of the first major controversies I covered wasn’t a story about corruption, impropriety or scandal.
No, at the heart of this saga was … a water treatment facility — a topic more bland than tap water itself, or so I thought. I quickly realized these things are impressively complex. They’re also incredibly expensive (hence the controversy).
My mind kept drifting back to those divisive days while reading the latest story by Joshua Shimkus, FFP’s Howard fellow. Josh spent weeks sifting through our state’s water infrastructure needs, and their price tags.
He found a seemingly endless list of projects in communities across Nebraska, from our biggest city to villages of fewer than 1,000 people. They’re all important — and they’re all really, really expensive.
Josh also learned that the federally funded program many communities rely on to finance water projects is woefully underfunded. And when that source of money runs dry, it often falls to ratepayers to foot the bill.
Prison problem: In a span of five years, three Nebraska prisoners killed or were accused of killing their cellmates while double bunked in cells designed for one person. The state paid out nearly $900,000 to settle lawsuits stemming from the deaths.
That’s one of the major findings in FFP intern Shelby Rickert’s most recent story, originally published by Nebraska News Service as part of a depth-reporting class at UNL.
Nebraska’s top prison official said the department has moved away from double bunking inmates in its restrictive cells. But sometimes, space constraints leave no other options.
This is just the latest example of excellent journalism produced by the young journalists at UNL, and it continues a tradition. A year ago, we published a piece our then-intern Naomi Delkamiller produced in the same depth-reporting class.
A ‘Shining Star’: At some point, most of us probably had childhood dreams of stardom. But for most of us, becoming the next Angus Young, hypothetically speaking, remained just a dream.
Dreion is not most of us.
The singer from Omaha saw music as a vehicle to escape the trauma and chaos that defined much of his upbringing. Now after working with Snoop Dogg and landing a gig opening for Earth, Wind & Fire, Dreion’s dreams are closer than ever, writes FFP contributor Leo Adam Biga.
Read Dreion’s story and enjoy his rendition of an Earth, Wind & Fire classic.
The future of Nebraska media: Members of the Flatwater team will be in York Thursday, June 26, for a discussion on the future of Nebraska media. The talk begins at 12:30 p.m. in the Kilgore Memorial Library. We’ll be sticking around after the event, so come say “hi” and let us know about stories that you think need to be covered.
Questions wanted: Speaking of stories, some of our best journalism originates with a tip from you. Have a question that our reporters need to look into? Complete this form or reach our newsroom at [email protected].
Sincerely,
—Ryan Hoffman, managing 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:
- University of Nebraska regents on Thursday approved a 5% tuition increase for the upcoming academic year. The Nebraska Examiner’s Zach Wendling noted this is the third straight year regents have upped tuition.
- The investigation that led to an immigration raid at an Omaha meatpacking plant started in March with an audit of plant workers’ employment documentation — a new tactic in President Trump’s immigration crackdown, reports Henry Cordes with the Omaha World-Herald. Cordes also reported that four protesters outside the plant that day now face federal criminal charges. (Stories may require a World-Herald subscription.)
- Beef prices hit an all-time high. Harvest Public Media’s Anna Pope digs into why it’s gotten so expensive. Spoiler: Prices likely aren’t coming down any time soon.
- Before he became Nebraska’s national champion wrestler, Antrell Taylor faced a series of tragedies far more devastating than any opponent on the mat. A must-read story by Amie Just of the Lincoln Journal Star. (Story may require a Journal Star subscription.)
- A new road in South Sioux City is making use of an old problem. Mixed in with traditional materials are an estimated 2 million plastic bags, reports Mike Tobias at Nebraska Public media.
- Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said officers followed proper procedures when arresting a man who was found dead in a holding cell eight hours later, KETV reports. Schmaderer said the man, Edward Henry, died of a heart attack.
- Gov. Jim Pillen plans to continue pushing for property tax relief by having the state assume more responsibility for funding K-12 education, which may require new sales taxes, reports the Examiner’s Wendling.
- The state selected a Lincoln-based company to build Nebraska’s new prison. The bid came in under budget, but some lawmakers remain skeptical, reports the Journal Star’s Chris Dunker. (Story may require a Journal Star subscription.)
- A story that makes this former small-town newspaper editor’s heart happy … and a bit sad: Nebraska’s oldest weekly newspaper nearly ceased operations two years ago. It stayed open thanks to the paper’s previous owners’ willingness to come out of retirement, and the community’s willingness to support it. Story by 10/11’s Grace McDonald.
