KUT 90.5 and Texas Monthly Collaborate on Examination of Texas Drought
Radio Program Complements Texas Monthly July Issue Cover Story and Panel
AUSTIN, Texas – June 18, 2012 – KUT News, StateImpact Texas and Texas Monthly have collaborated on an in-depth examination of the state of water and drought in Texas, considered to be one of the most critical problems facing Texas.
The one-hour documentary, hosted by Texas Monthly editor Jake Silverstein and produced by KUT News, which won a National Edward R. Murrow Award for its coverage of the 2011 Texas drought, is based on the magazine’s July issue special report, “Life By the Drop: Drought, Water, and the Future of Texas,” which will be on newsstands June 21.
The program airs at 3 p.m. on Friday, June 22, and again at 7 p.m. on Monday, June 25, on KUT 90.5 in Austin and on public radio stations throughout the state, including Houston, San Antonio, and Marfa. Check local listings for dates and times. The program will also be available online at kut.org.
The July issue of Texas Monthly devotes the entire feature well to the subject of water, including a photo essay by Texas’ state photographer Wyman Meinzer and stories by senior editor Nate Blakeslee, along with NPR correspondent John Burnett, Texas Tribune reporter Kate Galbraith, and Roger Hodge.
“We’re coming off the worst single-year drought in Texas history. While parts of the state had rains this past winter, other areas continue to experience drought and there’s still a long-term forecast of real water scarcity,” said KUT News Director Emily Donahue. “This is an old story in Texas; we’ve struggled with water resources for centuries. This collaboration with Texas Monthly asks ‘What can we learn from the past?’ ‘How can we prepare for the future?’”
“Water is one of the three or four most important issues facing Texas,” commented Texas Monthly editor Jake Silverstein. “It always has been. We knew we wanted to go big on this topic and working with KUT and StateImpact Texas was a natural way to do that. The work they’ve already done on water and drought is extremely impressive so we knew that by joining forces we could create a multi-platform story-telling experience that would impress upon listeners and readers how crucial water really is. It’s the difference between life and death.”
Texas Monthly is hosting a symposium, also called “Life By the Drop,” on Thursday, July 12, 6-8 p.m. at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin. The event will be moderated by senior editor Nate Blakeslee and include Todd Staples, Texas Commissioner of Agriculture, Robert R. Puente, president, San Antonio Water System, Laura Huffman, state director, The Nature Conservancy, Andrew Sansom, executive director of the Texas River Systems Institute, and former state legislator Kip Averitt. The magazine will also be discussing the issue on Twitter throughout the month using the hashtag #txwater.
About Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly has a monthly readership of over 2.4 million, reaching one out of every eight Texas adults. Texas Monthly is published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. Emmis owns and operates radio stations and other magazines across the country.
About KUT
For more than 50 years, KUT 90.5, listener-supported public radio from Austin, Texas, has striven to be the most trusted radio source for news and music in Central Texas. A founding member of NPR, KUT established a news department in 2002. Since then, KUT News has won more than 100 state, national and international awards for journalistic excellence. KUT is nationally known for playing a unique blend of handpicked, homegrown and uniquely Austin music. This summer, KUT will complete the KUT Public Media Studios, which will emphasize creative collaboration and increase community interaction by bringing together creative and editorial production, and delivery of content in one interactive, dynamic space.
About StateImpact Texas
Led by KUT News in collaboration with Houston’s KUHF, “StateImpact Texas: Power, Policy and the Planet,” is a local-national journalism project with NPR that examines the impact of state government’s energy and environmental policies on people. Reports are broadcast on public radio stations across the state with additional content published on the StateImpact Texas website. It is one of eight StateImpact initiatives across the country.
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Contacts: Erin Geisler, KUT 90.5, (512) 475-8071
or
Elaine Garza, Giant Noise for Texas Monthly, (512) 382-9017
