The Modern West

#MMIW: Mending the Hoop Part 6 May 31, 2023

Native American women are the most stalked, raped, murdered and exploited of any other race in this country.

Rematriation: Mending the Hoop Part 5 May 10, 2023

That's the identity for our tribe is our buffalo. So they are our relatives. I always cry when they come. It's always really emotional when they come home. Because I believe that's going to heal our people.

Killing The Indian Inside: Mending the Hoop Part 4 Apr 20, 2023

This time on the Modern West…to make sure the Plains Indian Wars don’t flare up again, the U.S. army starts taking hostages…the tribes’ children. If they ran away, where would they go? They're 1000s of miles away from home. It was strategic on their part. It really isolated them. Killing the Indian Inside…it’s part four of our series Mending the Hoop.

Bonus Episode: A Conversation with Lakota Historian Jeff Means Apr 06, 2023

It seemed important to share some of the behind the scenes conversations for this series. As a white woman reporting on Indian Country, Melodie always knew she would need extra guidance putting this season together. So she’s been regularly sitting down to talk with Oglala Lakota member and Native American historian Jeff Means to discuss best practices.

The Broken Hoop: Mending the Hoop Part 3 Mar 27, 2023

The Plains Tribes continue their winning streak at the Rosebud and Little Bighorn fights. But it only leads the federal government to crack down harder. Soon, many tribal leaders surrender and, in despair, take their people to live on tiny reservations. Then along comes a new ceremony: the Ghost Dance. And that changes the dynamics of the war drastically.

The War Pipe: Mending the Hoop Part 2 Mar 08, 2023

After the massacre, the survivors flee into the bitter cold night and eventually are rescued by the Lakota. The tribes form a great alliance and decide war is justified. And so, in the months after Sand Creek, what ensues is a series of battles that shocks and awes the U.S. army. Never before have they witnessed the full might of the greatest mounted horsemen in the world.

The Witness Trees: Mending the Hoop Part 1 Feb 22, 2023

For the Arapaho and Cheyenne tribes, the Sand Creek Massacre of November 29, 1864 doesn’t feel like distant history at all. That’s the day that the Colorado cavalry tortured and killed over 200 people, mostly women, children, and elderly – one of the worst atrocities in U.S. history. To the tribes, it feels like there’s still a lot of healing to do. And so, these days, they’re working to do just that.

Mending the Hoop Trailer Feb 08, 2023

Recently, you may have noticed a lot of big news coming out of Indigenous America, from protests at Standing Rock to the return of wild bison to efforts to bring home ancestral remains and artifacts. But when you talk to the movers and shakers, the conversation often comes back around to a bitter history – the Plains Indian Wars. This season we hear the story from the point of view of the Plains tribes themselves. We discover how raw that story still is, and yet how communities are coming together to heal it.

Bonus: Those Who Can’t Teach Anymore Jan 19, 2023

A few seasons back, we had a series called Cowboy Up that dug into the juvenile justice system in Wyoming. If you liked thinking about education in the west, you’re going to love this. We are sharing an episode from the podcast Those Who Can’t Teach Anymore, produced by one of our very own, Charles Fournier. This is a narrative podcast series that takes a look at why teachers are leaving education and what can be done to stop the exodus.

In this episode, we’ll hear from Charles’ wife, Jennie and two other former teachers about why they left teaching. From struggles with mental health, to low pay, to a lack of autonomy in the classroom - they give insight into why we are losing good teachers across the country. This episode sets the stage for the series, which will take you through the history, pop-culture, and politics of education.

Bonus: Reframing Rural Dec 15, 2022

For all you Modern West fans who love our last season about ranching and the cowboy mythos in the American West, have we got a treat for you. We’re going to share an episode from our good pals at the podcast Reframing Rural. It’s now in the middle of its third season “Groundwork,” and they’ve been sharing stories about host Megan Torgerson’s family farm as well as the widening wealth gap in Montana…think towns like Bozeman and Missoula. This episode we’re going to hear about Jeanie Alderson, a fourth-generation Montana rancher and the co-owner of Omega Beef. In the '70s, Jeanie’s parents were among the rural organizers to form the Northern Plains Resource Council. Today, Jeanie continues the council's work standing up for family ranches by fighting against the "Big Four" meatpacking monopoly that's dictating prices and forcing some ranchers out of business.

Revising the Wilderness Tale Nov 23, 2022

This time on The Modern West, we join an 1896 hunting expedition to America’s first national park. The journey reveals cracks in our concepts of Yellowstone, a place entangled with violence toward the Indigenous people who long took care of the region.

The Great Dying: Revisited Oct 28, 2022

November is Native American Heritage Month…and in recognition, we thought we’d re-release the first episode of our third season “Shall Furnish Medicine.” In it, we connected the dots between the spread of European diseases among Indigenous communities when Europeans first arrived and we examined what that history of genocide meant when the COVID-19 pandemic struck home in Native communities. This episode, “The Great Dying,” recently won a couple of big awards – a regional Edward R. Murrow Award for best news documentary and a national Public Media Journalism Association award for best long documentary. Kudos to reporters Savannah Maher and Taylar Stagner! Hope you enjoy!

The Great Individualist Bonus Episode Sep 29, 2022

It's very important when you introduce a new technology, to make sure early adopters don't fail. And I want virtual fencing to work. It’s a bonus episode! Binge the whole season of the Great Individualist now. Find the Modern West under podcasts at wyomingpublicmedia.org. Sponsored by the Lor Foundation. Listen at themodernwest.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Neighbor Is A Verb: The Great Individualist Part 9 Sep 02, 2022

Some think the cowboy has gone riding off into the sunset, never to return. But in our final episode, we hear stories of resilience and community pride. We return to Antonito, CO to hear how Aaron Abeyta started a school there to teach children that success doesn’t mean fleeing your hometown. It means staying to celebrate the unique heritage of the community.

Slow Waters Run Deep: The Great Individualist Part 8 Aug 17, 2022

Wyoming helped develop western water law, including the very idea that public waters belong to all of us. But the state’s reluctance to update its laws has left ranchers scrambling to protect their streams and wells, as drought and water hoarding make water scarcer than ever.

Bonus: Out There Aug 11, 2022

If Out There isn’t already on your radar, it should be. It’s an award-winning show that uses stories about the outdoors to help you make sense of your life and your world. Just like the Modern West, Out There gets up close and personal, but at the same time, each of its episodes invites you to think big, exploring deeper questions that matter to all of us. In this episode, Out There explores something on a lot of our minds this time of year: wildfires.

Becky Jensen had given herself the perfect present for her 50th birthday: a two-week solo backpacking trip. But when she emerged from the trail, she learned that a wildfire had started near her home in northern Colorado. Her house might already be gone.

Becky takes us from the tranquility of the San Juan mountains to a cramped basement where she waited out her evacuation, and explores the difficult process of finding a sense of peace, when a natural disaster threatens everything you’ve built.

A Promise Never To Plow: The Great Individualist Part 7 Aug 04, 2022

A few years ago, the May family set off on a trailblazing path to protect their land, and the carbon it stores, by selling carbon credits on the global market. By promising to never plow the land, the Mays store carbon and protect native wildlife. But with diminishing margins and the looming threat of fire, the road hasn’t been easy.

Only One Bite: The Great Individualist Part 6 Jul 21, 2022

The Rardins are father and son cowboys watching climate change threaten their way of life. They've given up on the old idea of "get big or get out" and joined the regenerative ranching movement. Inspired by how bison improve the land, they raise cattle to protect grasses and reduce emissions. But for many, it's still a financial risk.

Big Is Fragile: The Great Individualist Part 5 Jul 06, 2022

We follow the cow's journey from the mountain pasture to the feedlot and eventually the slaughterhouse. Along the way, we hear from animal welfare advocate Temple Grandin and cattle handlers who all want a fairer, more humane market – and one not so monopolized by large corporations.

Bonus: Middle of Everywhere Jun 29, 2022

The Modern West brings you heartfelt stories about poignant issues happening today in the rural west. A lot of these issues are also felt in other rural communities, across the country. Today we take you to the foothills of the lush Appalachian Mountains in East Tennessee. There you’ll meet people who lost their way of life when a federal agency decided to take their land and flood their rich river valley, burying beneath the water much of our country’s early history, including many sacred Cherokee sites, and threatening an endangered species. This was all done in the name of progress.

From our good friends at the award-winning podcast Middle of Everywhere, with WKMS in Kentucky, this is The Story of Tanasi, the first of a five-part series following a decades-long battle that took the river’s people all the way to the Supreme Court as they tried to save their way of life in the Little Tennessee River Valley. In this first part, called The Birth of a River, you’ll hear a history of the river valley, and learn about the cultural significance and importance of the river to the Cherokee Nation.

Nothing Heals: The Great Individualist Part 4 Jun 22, 2022

This time, we head to Wyoming's Red Desert - and hear the history of the 19th-century range wars. They led to laws requiring grazing fees and regular land health check-ups. But over a century later, some say these regulations haven't done enough to protect our wild spaces. Not to mention our climate.

Cows = Civilization: The Great Individualist Part 3 Jun 08, 2022

The history of how we brought the pastoral cow to live on the arid lands of the West is a violent one. Jim Elliot grew up in the shadow of that history and his stories are quintessential cowboy, full of guns, death and hard winters. But even Jim recognized the tragedy of the attempted annihilation of Indigenous culture and bison to make way for cows. But now, there's growing hope among tribes as bison make a comeback.

Se Benefician De Ella: The Great Individualist Part 2 May 25, 2022

The Abeyta family has been driving sheep down from the mountains of southern Colorado for generations. But it hasn't been easy to keep that tradition alive – they've had to fight for it. Through their eyes, we trace back the beginnings of the cowboy to the Mexican vaquero and find out how those adventurous roots are still very much alive in the American southwest.

The Rolling Stone: The Great Individualist Part 1 May 11, 2022

For the Elliot family, there isn't just one kind of cowboy. There are guys like Jake who chase the idea of the rodeo star, never sinking roots, a rolling stone. And then there's Jim, the hardworking and intimidating rancher. In this episode, we bust some myths about what it means to be a "real" cowboy and whether ranching ever measures up to our American ideals.

The Great Individualist Trailer Apr 27, 2022

The cowboy roaming horseback across the American West is nearly inextricable from what it means to be American. But in reality, most beef is raised out East where there's more grass, and only a tiny fraction of the economy in the West comes from cattle. Now a new generation of ranchers is working to reinvent this iconic way of life to fit a modern world.

Heavy To One, Light To Many: Cowboy Up Part 3 Feb 02, 2022

Fifteen-year-old Kate just lost her mom. On top of that, her learning disabilities are making it hard to go to school. She's missed so much that the school says she might get sent away to a residential treatment center hundreds of miles away. But her grandparents are fighting hard for their right to keep her home.

Caught In The Current: Cowboy Up Part 2 Jan 19, 2022

In Rock Springs, Wyoming, we follow the treacherous paths of two young women. Larissa endures one trauma after another and soon finds herself unable to escape a cycle of probation and incarceration. Another kid, Jess, endures racism and bullying and seems headed down the same road. The system fails them both, but Jess's story takes a turn when she lucks out with a new teacher. But Mr. Baker says kids shouldn't have to rely on good luck.

Stranger On The Side Of The Road: Cowboy Up Part 1 Jan 05, 2022

In 1892, Wyoming hosts its first execution and it's a teenage boy named Kansas Charley. His trial causes a big national debate: is Charley a hardened criminal or a neglected child? It's a question we still haven't answered in the American West, where children are incarcerated in greater numbers than anywhere else. We also hear from a modern-day Kansas Charley who's living out his days in Wyoming's prisons who says, growing up, no one ever asked him the simple question: do you need help?

Cowboy Up Trailer Dec 15, 2021

Everyone likes to say that there's no better place to grow up than in the Rocky Mountains. Building snow forts, riding your bike everywhere, learning how to find your way out of the woods when you're lost. But for kids having a hard time, no one's handing them a map and compass. In Wyoming, kids are incarcerated and dying of suicide at higher rates than anywhere else. Longtime education reporter Tennessee Watson started to wonder if all this had to do with the "cowboy up" attitude we take toward child-rearing in the American West. A three-part series coming January 5th.

We're Still Here: Shall Furnish Medicine Part 3 Nov 10, 2021

When COVID-19 arrives on reservation borders, tribes aren't sure if their newly minted health care programs can hold up against the onslaught. The fear is that this is history happening all over again. But the two tribes on the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming decide early to roll up their sleeves–literally–in a fight for the very survival of their tribal identity.

Enough Is Enough: Shall Furnish Medicine Part 2 Oct 13, 2021

It's the late 1800s. With no government help in sight, Omaha citizen Dr. Susan LaFlesche is determined to bring health care to her tribe. Decades later, the U.S. still hasn't gotten around to fulfilling its treaty promise to furnish medicine. So, tribes find a way to take over their health care system, and a quiet social movement is born.

The Great Dying: Shall Furnish Medicine Part 1 Sep 29, 2021

For Native Americans, the story of pandemics started the moment European colonizers stepped foot off their ships. Savannah Maher's tribe the Mashpee Wampanoag experienced that first Great Dying. Arapaho and Shoshone descendant Taylar Stagner tells the history of how those diseases came West as a form of biological warfare.

Shall Furnish Medicine Trailer Sep 15, 2021

Reservations have been some of the hardest-hit communities in the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, for Native Americans, this all feels awfully familiar...the arrival of a terrible illness that kills elders while the federal government does little to stop it. But this time, tribes know what to do. Coming September 29, we'll bring you a three-part series we're calling Shall Furnish Medicine, tracing that devastating history from its beginnings.

Bonus: Reframing Rural May 26, 2021

If you loved our Ghost Town(ing) series, check out Reframing Rural. Host Megan Torgerson takes you to her Montana homeland and introduces us to all sorts of people we usually don’t hear from. Like in this episode, where high school history teacher and Chippewa descendent Eddie Hentges talks about the challenges of teaching in a small town.

Bonus: Carbon Valley Part 1 May 07, 2021

We're hard at work on our next season but, while you're waiting, we wanted to share Carbon Valley, another podcast from Wyoming Public Media that follows the race to develop an unlikely climate solution.

Bonus: Reversing Ghost Town(ing) Apr 21, 2021

In the process of reporting on rural decline, we discovered an underground movement of people thinking hard about how to help small towns revitalize. We partnered with the Rural America Chamber of Commerce to host a live virtual event, bringing some of these problem-solvers together. The result was an inspiring and clear-eyed conversation. In this episode, we bring you the highlights.

My Modern West: From Surviving To Thriving Mar 26, 2021

From the nurse who moved back to Walden, to the foreign diplomat who grew up in Nebraska, from the ranch kid who's seen the wealthy moving in, to the Asian-American daughter remembering her father's migration to the great American West. Listeners react to Ghost Town(ing) with their stories.

The Fine Art Of Coexisting: Ghost Town(ing) Part 12 Mar 12, 2021

In the final chapter of Ghost Town(ing), host Melodie Edwards revisits her parents' decision about whether to move away from Walden. Her mom has been trying to lure her dad away with all sorts of stratagems. But there's a lot about the craziness of 2020 that entrenched him even deeper.

Small Town Democracy: Ghost Town(ing) Part 11 Feb 26, 2021

Small town politics has a lot to teach us about how fragile democracy is right now. In Walden, we sit in on a beautification committee meeting and see how hard it is to make change happen--and how rural struggles are reflected in American democracy writ large.

Mountains In The Rearview Mirror: Ghost Town(ing) Part 10 Feb 10, 2021

The out-migration of rural youth is one of America’s great migrations--even the history books are calling it that. Younger generations leave because they have a need to feel connected to the great, big world out there. And as that world becomes more connected through the internet, small towns like Walden feel even more isolated. But would they come home if there was more equality in rural broadband?

Immigrations, Interrupted: Ghost Town(ing) Part 9 Jan 27, 2021

Right now, the West is struggling to diversify its economy. But would our economy have already been diversified if a greater diversity of people had been allowed to make their homes here? How the history of racial erasure has hurt small towns, and how welcoming newcomers could turn that around.

A Tale Of Two Towns: Ghost Town(ing) Part 8 Jan 13, 2021

Some former Southern enslaved people and their descendants followed the American dream westward, where they created towns to homestead together. This is a tale of two of those towns—on either side of the Wyoming-Colorado border—and what today's small towns now can learn from their stories.

Bonus: Stranger In A Strange Land Dec 30, 2020

We're on a short holiday break, so here's the first part of a podcast called Grouse, a show about the most controversial bird in the West and what it can teach us about hope, compromise and life in rural America.

The Garden On The Prairie: Ghost Town(ing) Part 7 Dec 16, 2020

Many places in the American West are becoming food deserts, where it's hard to get healthy food. Sometimes that's because people can't afford it or because it means driving long distances. And for really isolated places, sometimes it's because of both. Now, a group of ladies in Wyoming's struggling coal country are working on a plan to solve hunger there.

The Doctor In The Screen: Ghost Town(ing) Part 6 Dec 02, 2020

Living in a pandemic doesn't have many plus sides to it. But there is one bright side for rural America. Telehealth is finally getting to flex its muscles. But adjusting to technology isn't easy for older patients, and that's one thing small towns have lots of: senior citizens. So, we take a trip to Sheridan, Wyoming to see how well telehealth is working for veteran Ron Loporto.

Gabby's Story: Ghost Town(ing) Part 5 Nov 18, 2020

The rural West has been seeing a steeper and steeper decline into despair, especially among white men. But when a Vietnam vet's mental breakdown threatens the safety of Walden, the small town has a response that neighborhoods everywhere could learn from.

The Environmental Billionaire: Ghost Town(ing) Part 4 Nov 04, 2020

2020 feels apocalyptic. It's not just the pandemic; there's also drought, mega-fires, melting glaciers. Meanwhile, the ultra-wealthy are stockpiling land, buying up small family ranches across the Mountain West. It makes you wonder, is it really a good idea to put that much environmental control in the hands of so few?

Meet Your Neighbor: A Conversation About The Rural West And The 2020 Election Oct 28, 2020

Part 4 of our Ghost Town(ing) series is in the works, coming out next week. But while you’re waiting, here's a way that you can get your voice in on the conversation about the state of the rural West.

A Stranger Comes To Town: Ghost Town(ing) Part 3 Oct 14, 2020

The West has long been a haven for the ultra-wealthy. Sometimes, they move into small towns with the aim of revitalizing them. But in Walden, Colorado, one wealthy businessman’s plans went awry, with dire consequences for the community.

Bust Town: Ghost Town(ing) Part 2 Sep 30, 2020

Why are we so fascinated by old ghost towns? And what can they teach us? We go looking for the ghosts of an old silver mining community called Teller City to see if they have any lessons for how the nearby town of Walden, Colorado can keep from falling into the same cycles of boom and bust.

"You Can’t Eat The View": Ghost Town(ing) Part 1 Sep 16, 2020

Years ago, small towns like Walden, Colorado were vibrant. Street dances, a health food store, a movie theatre, the works. At least, that's how host Melodie Edwards remembers it from her childhood. Now it's shrinking, part of the "ghost towning" of the American West. But can communities like Walden find a way to survive? Or will Melodie's parents be forced to move away, like so many others?

Season 2: Ghost Town(ing) Trailer Sep 09, 2020

They say those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. So what can Old West ghost towns teach us about today's shrinking rural towns? Starting September 16, we'll take you to the windswept prairie where towns once stood and to new ghost towns in the making. We're exploring rural decline and resilience, and asking, why does it matter if America's small towns disappear?

The Small-Town Drag Queen Jul 22, 2020

It wasn’t easy growing up queer in small-town Wyoming. And when Taylar went to college in Laramie, an assault left her in pieces…until she found community with Giselle and the Dragonettes. Follow them as they head to the big city for a David Bowie drag competition.

A Walk Across The Prairie Jul 01, 2020

When Emily Chen-Newton moved to Nebraska, she was worried she’d miss her Kentucky mountains. But then she walked a long section of the new Great Plains Trail and realized her new home was a more magical place than she gave it credit for. And not so flat either.

The Rancher And The Wild Jun 17, 2020

Albert Sommers is a rancher who thought he'd seen it all. When he found a mysteriously dead calf, he started wondering: how wild should our wild places be?

Coming Soon To A Feed Near You... Jun 03, 2020

A preview of our summer mini-season: three episodes that take you deep into the real West to meet people thinking hard about the future of this place. Predators, prairie, and pots of glitter.

Episode 10: The Widower Dec 20, 2019

Bob was devastated when his wife died of cancer. He’d been her main caregiver, and afterward, he realized that now he had to face his old age alone. No kids, no family nearby. And living in the West, he started worrying about how inaccessible senior care could be. That’s when his gallows humor took over. (more…)

Episode 9: What You’re Missing About Coal Country Dec 05, 2019

Once upon a time, coal miners took pride in the hard work they did. But these days the coal industry is sluggish and miners are feeling left behind—even disrespected—by the world. What they want most now is to just figure out how to hold on to the strong community that coal once gave them. (more…)

Episode 8: The Man From Lodge Grass Nov 20, 2019

Quincy Dabney loved growing up in Lodge Grass on the Crow Reservation in Montana. But then, just like him, it started falling apart. Now Quincy is working to save the hometown that saved him. (more…)

Episode 7: Bringing The Buffalo Home Nov 13, 2019

It’s been over a century since the U.S. government exterminated bison from the Great Plains as a way to win the war against the Native American tribes there. But now reservations across the West are working to bring them back. (more…)

Episode 6: The Next Yellowstone Nov 06, 2019

Imagine Congress agreeing to create national forests and wildlife refuges these days. Probably wouldn’t happen. So when a billionaire realized a large swath of the Great Plains needed special protections he decided to do it himself, without the government’s help. His dream is for a new kind of privately-owned national park–one as expansive as Yellowstone.

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Episode 5: Belonging Oct 23, 2019

Young people from Gen Z are moving to cities around the West. But in doing so, they’re also out-migrating from rural hometowns in places like Wyoming and New Mexico. Conversations between young people about why they leave and why they stay. (more…)

Episode 4: The Midwife Oct 09, 2019

Most births are uncomplicated. So in rural areas where hospitals are shutting down, women want to give birth at home. Now, states across the country are legalizing and regulating midwifery so they can. This is the story of one rural state, one midwife, and one brand-new mama. (more…)

Episode 3: Adult-Onset Hunting Oct 01, 2019

The number of Americans hunting and fishing is declining, but women are bucking the trend. Host Melodie Edwards finds a sisterhood at an all-women hunting camp—and catches her first fish with her dad. (more…)

Episode 2: Both/Neither Sep 24, 2019

The U.S. government only allows Native Americans to register with one tribe. But what happens when two tribes share one reservation for over a century? Two women grapple with how that affected their identity growing up. (more…)

Episode 1: Carpetbagger Sep 17, 2019

You ask around, and people can’t agree on a quintessential Wyoming writer. And if you can’t identify the literature of a place, you can’t define the place. Authors including CJ Box and Craig Johnson weigh in. (more…)

Season 1 Preview Aug 21, 2019

The Modern West is getting a reboot! New host, new theme music, and brand-new stories just for this podcast. Season 1 starts September 17. (more…)

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