EDS: This is a partner story from KUNC. If you choose to use it, please fill out this form to help their tracking.

• Slug: BC-CNS-Warming Warning,650 words.
• 2 photos, audio story available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Alex Hager
KUNC

The arid West is getting drier, and shrinking water supplies pose a boatload of risks to human health throughout the region.

Those findings come from a new federal report on climate change that also covers a broad range of hazards brought on by changing climate patterns due to human activity, from flooding to wildfires, drought to rising sea levels.

The Fifth National Climate Assessment identified drying in the Colorado River basin as one of the greatest climate risks facing the Southwest, as well as the region’s biggest area for future climate mitigation and adaptation. Continue reading “New climate report shows impact of drying on human health in Southwest”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Purple Star School,590 words.
• 4 photos available (thumbnails and captions below).

By Kate Duffy
Cronkite News

GOODYEAR – At a ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday, Great Hearts Trivium Preparatory Academy became one of the first schools in Arizona to be named a Purple Star School candidate.

The school joined Luke Elementary School, Millennium High School and Dreaming Summit Elementary School in the Purple Star pilot program launching in Arizona. All four schools serve families from Luke Air Force Base.

The Purple Star distinction is awarded to schools with programs dedicated to supporting military-connected children in their education and social-emotional development. Continue reading “Arizona Purple Star pilot program kicks off with four schools supporting military families”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Travel Spirals,600 words.
• 2 file photos, video story available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Lux Butler
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Millions of travelers won’t have to look any farther than the lines in front of them this holiday season for evidence that Americans have moved past the pandemic.

Experts say this holiday season will be one of the busiest in the last 20 years, with travel surging to pre-pandemic levels and beyond, and they remind travelers to make sure they are prepared before getting to the airport.

AAA estimates that 49.1 million will drive more than 50 miles for the holiday, another 4.7 million people will fly and 1.5 million will travel by boat, train or other means. The 55.3 million total travelers is the third-highest since AAA started tracking holiday travel in 2000, trailing only 2005 and 2019. Continue reading “Holiday travelers expected to hit the road, skies in near-record numbers”

• Slug: BC-CNS-CN2Go Weekly Update. Runtime 11:16.
• Downloadable audio here. (Note: Some web browsers may not support media download)

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CN2Go Host: This is CN2Go.

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HOST: I’m Kenny Rasmussen, your host for the program today, and we have some interesting stories to share. Continue reading “CN2Go Weekly Update: Murthy speaks, a mom speaks out, Ray Anderson steps back”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Israel March,700 words.
• 6 photos, video story available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Lux Butler
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Former Perry High School student Tomer Ben-Ezer said he has not always felt comfortable living in Washington, but that was not the case Tuesday as he looked around at the crowds and the Israeli and U.S. flags filling the National Mall.

“There’s going to be hate, of course, there’s going to be antisemitism, but as long as we are together, we’re going to be stronger,” said Ben-Ezer, an Israeli flag draped around his shoulders.

He was one of several Arizonans who joined thousands in the shadow of the U.S. Capitol for the Americans March for Israel. The event, organized by the Jewish Federations of North America and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, comes in the wake of more than a month of fighting between Israel and Hamas. Continue reading “Arizonans join thousands at rally to support Israel, decry antisemitism”

EDS: This is a partner story from KUNC. If you choose to use it, please fill out this form to help their tracking.

• Slug: BC-CNS-Tapped Out,1560 words.
• 5 photos, audio story available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Alex Hager
KUNC

With infrastructure that is aging and needs replacement, municipal water departments in the Colorado River basin are starting to invest in new systems that will help cities adapt to a future with a smaller water supply. But that means big spending, costs that will get passed along to the millions of people who use that water in sinks, showers and sprinklers.

“There’s literally nothing else you can have 1,000 gallons of delivered to your house at 2 in the morning for a few bucks,” said Mark Marlowe, water director in Castle Rock, Colorado.

Marlowe and other water experts across the arid West agree, the amount you pay for tap water should probably go up, and likely will over the next few decades — in large part due to aging infrastructure. Continue reading “Tap water is cheap, but old pipes, a shrinking Colorado could change that”

• Slug: BC-CNS-CN2Go Weekly Update. Runtime 9:17.
• Downloadable audio here. (Note: Some web browsers may not support media download)

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CN2Go Host: This is Cronkite News 2 Go. I’m your host, Kiersten Edgett.

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HOST: On today’s show we talk about the results of Tuesday’s election, how two local outrigger canoe teams keep the ocean-based sport alive in the middle of the desert, and what the future of horse racing could look like in Arizona. Continue reading “CN2Go Weekly Update: El Mirage says no to $41.5 million bond, Hawaii in the desert and hopeful for horses”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Gowan Migration,700 words.
• 3 photos, video story photo available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Adrienne Washington
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – In all the time he’s lived near the border, Arizona Sen. David Gowan, R-Sierra Vista, said he has never seen an immigration crisis as bad as the one he’s seeing now.

“It’s the highest incursion we’ve had since I’ve lived down there,” said Gowan, who has lived in Cochise County for 30 years.

That was the message that Gowan and a handful of local officials and activists from across the country hoped to deliver to members of Congress while in Washington this week. As Terrell County, Texas, Sheriff Thad Cleveland said, it’s not just a problem for border states. Continue reading “Gowan, other officials come to Washington to plead for border action”

• Slug: Sports-The Sweet Spot. Runtime 14:08.
• Downloadable audio here. (Note: Some web browsers may not support media download)

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TSS HOST: This is The Sweet Spot where we take a closer look at the week’s biggest sports stories in Arizona. I’m Benjamin Yates, and welcome to the eighth episode of The Sweet Spot! Continue reading “The Sweet Spot: Diamondbacks wrap it up, Sun Devils rack one up, Horizon High goes for three”

• Slug: BC-CNS-CN2Go Weekly Update. Runtime 12:17.
• Downloadable audio here. (Note: Some web browsers may not support media download)

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CN2Go Host: This is Cronkite News 2 Go. I’m your host, Deanna Pistono.

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CN2Go Host: On today’s show we talk about the recent attack on ASU professor David Boyles, the Diamondbacks loss and how prescribed burns in Williams, Arizona help protect the landscape from potential wildfires. Continue reading “CN2Go Weekly Update: LGBTQ+ community upset by ASU response to attack on professor”

• Slug: BC-CNS-GCU Fined,820 words.
• 2 file photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Alexandria Cullen
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Grand Canyon University said it “categorically denies” charges by the U.S. Department of Education that the school willfully misled prospective students about the costs of a doctoral degree, leaving those students deeply in debt.

The comments were in response to the department’s announcement Tuesday that it will fine the school $37.7 million for lying about the costs of its doctoral programs to “more than 7,500 … students,” who wound up paying 25% more than they were told a degree would cost.

The department said it is the largest fine imposed against a school for misrepresentation. Continue reading “GCU pushes back against $37.7 million fine over claims it ‘lied’ about costs”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Abortion Reversal,720 words.
• File photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Renee Romo
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – A federal appeals court said a group of Arizona physicians can challenge the state’s ban on abortions for genetic abnormalities, a law the doctors say could land them in jail because it is impermissibly vague.

The ruling Monday by a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reverses a lower court that had dismissed the suit, saying the physicians did not have standing to sue after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the right to an abortion that was recognized in Roe v. Wade.

But the circuit court said the physicians can sue. It agreed that the doctors have been harmed by the law, the so-called Reason Regulations, because they are “over-complying with the laws because it is unclear what conduct falls within the laws’ grasp.” Continue reading “Physicians can challenge genetic-abnormality abortion ban, court rules”

EDS: This is a partner story from KUNC. If you choose to use it, please fill out this form to help their tracking.

• Slug: BC-CNS-River Reprieve,870 words.
• 2 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Alex Hager
KUNC

A wet winter and a temporary water conservation agreement have eased some pressure on Colorado River policymakers, which is reflected in a new Bureau of Reclamation proposal that says the risk of critically low reservoirs remains but is “much lower.”

The bureau’s Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, released this week, outlines water management plans until 2026 and reflects a shift away from short-term crisis management toward a more permanent rewrite of rules for how the river is shared. Continue reading “River reprieve: Wet winter, conservation deal ease Colorado planning for now”

• Slug: Sports-The Sweet Spot. Runtime 17:09.
• Downloadable audio here. (Note: Some web browsers may not support media download)

[Music bed under] 

TSS HOST: This is The Sweet Spot, where we take a closer look at the week’s biggest sports stories in Arizona. I’m Brandon Tran and welcome to yet another dose of weekly sports stories from across the Valley!

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HOST: On today’s show, we are going to look at some of the similarities and differences between the 2023 and 2001 Diamondbacks World Series teams, as well as how sports card businesses have benefited from this year’s World Series matchup. We also have a mid-season update on the Arizona Cardinals, an overview of the dominance of Centennial football and a recap of the first ever AIA organized sanctions girls Flag Football playoffs. Continue reading “The Sweet Spot: Diamondbacks rise, Cardinals fall, Centennial dominates and flag football arrives”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Medical Relief,1060 words.
• 6 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Angelina Steel
Cronkite News

TEMPE – Millions of dollars worth of medical supplies sit tucked away in a warehouse on W. 14th Street in Tempe. Among them are eight large pallets filled with medical relief supplies waiting to be shipped to the Middle East.

This warehouse is the Phoenix distribution center for Project C.U.R.E., an organization that was founded in 1987 in Colorado to address the staggering shortage of medical resources around the world. Its most recent project: sending medical supplies that could provide emergency relief to civilians in the middle of the Israeli-Hamas conflict. Continue reading “Local organization donating millions of dollars worth of medical aid to the civilians caught in the Israel-Hamas conflict”