By Gabrielle Wallace
Cronkite News
WASHINGTON – Many oil and gas wells across Arizona with no known owners leak methane into the environment, which tribal, state and federal agencies are responsible for cleaning up.
These wells – referred to as “orphaned” – are often not properly maintained and can lead to surface and groundwater contamination causing pollution, health issues and threats to wildlife.
By Lizeth Adriana Calderon
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – Roughly a fifth of expecting and new mothers in Arizona receive little to no prenatal care, which can lead to poor health outcomes for mothers and their children, according to the March of Dimes report from last year.
Overall the health of mothers and infants in the U.S. is on decline, partially because more than a third of Americans live in maternal care deserts, according to the subsequent March of Dimes report. A maternity care desert is an area where access to reproductive health care is limited or women face other obstacles in their ability to access care.
Continue reading “On-call maternity care in rural Arizona boosted by AHCCCS funding”
By Tony Gutiérrez
Special for Cronkite News
Following reports of armed “poll watchers” at Arizona polling places during the last several election cycles, two groups have launched initiatives inviting people of faith to help promote peace at the polls.
Faiths United to Save Democracy is actively recruiting “poll chaplains” to serve at various poll locations, while the Arizona Faith Network, in partnership with Election Protection Arizona, is inviting people of faith to be “peacekeepers.” Medina Moore, voting rights organizer for the Arizona Faith Network, said both groups support each other in their missions.
Continue reading “Religious groups recruit volunteers to provide peaceful presence at Arizona polls”
By Ana Burk
Special for Cronkite News
PHOENIX – In this era of social media, a seasoned political reporter shares key strategies for identifying disinformation during election season.
The American Psychological Association reports that over the past few decades, people’s attention spans have decreased due to constant distractions from phones and other devices. People tend to only read the first line of a story, or watch the first few seconds of a video.
Continue reading “Election Day essentials: The do’s and don’ts for spotting disinformation”
By Aaron Stigile
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – Rallies outside of Maricopa County offices, threats and intimidation directed toward election workers and false election conspiracy theories spread by politicians are all problems Maricopa County officials have had to deal with in the past.
Now, officials are preparing security measures and fighting back against misinformation in the run-up to Nov. 5.
Continue reading “Maricopa County officials confident but wary of threats ahead of Election Day”
By Nash Darragh
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – With just a week to go until Election Day, all eyes remain on the swing state of Arizona. The state’s 11 electoral votes have been increasingly sought after by both Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris over the past few months.
But Republican Kari Lake and Democrat Ruben Gallego are also aiming to secure the final undecided votes from a generation that is voting for the first time.
Continue reading “Arizona Senate candidates Kari Lake, Ruben Gallego targeting younger voters”
By Mia Osmonbekov
Cronkite News
WASHINGTON – Both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have launched get-out-the-vote coalitions targeting the close to half a million Latter-day Saints in Arizona, a battleground state where every voting bloc will count in the presidential race.
Trump pitched himself to Arizona LDS voters while campaigning in Prescott Valley earlier this month. During an online “LDS for Trump” event, Trump told attendees that “we really have the same values.”
Por Lizeth Adriana Calderon
Cronkite Noticias
PHOENIX — La gente hace fila en las afueras del Consulado General de México en Phoenix, uno de los cinco consulados mexicanos en Arizona, en busca de los servicios de salud gratuitos.
En el interior hay una gran sala de espera y una cabina contra la pared que muestra folletos de atención médica. Se lee: “¿Tiene preguntas sobre su salud y bienestar? Acércate a la Ventanilla de Salud para recibir información”.
By Patrick Holleron and Doyal D’angelo
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – There are sure to be adjustments and maybe some growing pains in the upcoming 2024-25 college basketball season for this year’s inductees to the Big 12 Conference.
Arizona State, Arizona, Colorado and Utah all became members of the league following the collapse of the Pac-12 Conference and joined a pantheon of college basketball powerhouses in the Big 12.
The overarching theme of the Big 12 Basketball Media Day was the challenge former Pac-12 teams face while adjusting to the officiating, style of play and travel the newcomers will experience in the Big 12. Continue reading “Arizona schools must adjust to physicality, officiating in inaugural Big 12 men’s basketball season”
By Dylan Ackermann
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – The jarring phone call came as Alex Verdugo was enjoying lunch with his brother, Chris, at a pizza parlor in Minnesota. The call came from Verdugo’s agent with news that the Los Angeles Dodgers had just traded him to the Boston Red Sox.
Verdugo was upset. Then bummed. Then in denial. But it was his brother who helped him accept the dark realities of the business side of baseball.
Chris pointed out that he should feel honored. He was being traded for two potential Hall of Famers – outfielder Mookie Betts and pitcher David Price. Continue reading “‘World’ of support: Alex Verdugo’s family-fueled journey from Tucson leads to baseball’s biggest stage”
By Aya Abdeen
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – The Arizona’s women’s basketball team, four years removed from its national championship appearance under coach Adia Barnes, enters the 2024-25 season in need of a fresh start.
Coming off its first sub-20-win season since 2017-18, Arizona was picked to finish seventh in the conference during the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Media Day in Kansas City.
But those who sleep on the Wildcats do so at their own peril. Continue reading “Arizona Wildcats women’s basketball team determined to prove Big 12 critics wrong in debut season”
By Brandelyn Clark
Cronkite News
LOS ANGELES — On Thursday, Sens. Lena Gonzalez (D-Long Beach) and Josh Becker (D-Menlo Park) officially launched the Mexican Repatriation Memorial Project in Los Angeles.
The project aims to commemorate the 2 million Mexican Americans and Mexican immigrants who were forcibly deported from the United States during the Great Depression, including approximately 400,000 individuals from California. Senate Bill 537, authored by Gonzalez and Becker, was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September. It will enable a selected nonprofit to construct and maintain a memorial in a public area of Los Angeles. The memorial is planned for completion before the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Summer Olympics in LA.
By Hayden Larkin
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – Nonprofit organization Act One funded a school trip to the Orpheum Theatre in Phoenix to see the Tetra String Quartet on Wednesday, which kicked off the organization’s 2024-25 season.
“I just think it was so beautiful,” said Milani Duran, a sixth grader from Sunland STEAM Academy. “Seeing all the different (things), seeing the violin, the cello, it was very different.”
By Lizeth Adriana Calderon
Cronkite News
PHOENIX — People line up outside the Consulate General of Mexico in Phoenix, one of the five Mexican consulates in Arizona.
They’re seeking assistance with visa application, consular and voter registration, community agendas and more. And while they wait, they learn about the free health services the consulate offers. Approximately 200 to 300 people use the consulate’s services daily, according to Consul General Jorge Mendoza Yescas.
By Kendall Flynn
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – MLB prospects in the Arizona Fall League went back to school over the weekend to relive their days of playing college baseball or, for some, experience competing on a college stage for the first time.
The Mesa Solar Sox (9-6) prevailed 14-10 over the Peoria Javelinas (4-11) Friday at GCU Ballpark as part of the AFL’s long-time partnership with Grand Canyon University that allows the Lopes to host games on campus. For GCU players who are set to participate in the MLB Desert Invitational in February 2025, hosting a Fall League offers the chance to see the growth that is possible for them to achieve in a college career.
For Xavier Isaac, ranked as MLB’s 36th-best prospect, playing at GCU was a first-time experience. The Tampa Bay Rays drafted him out of Forsyth High School in Kernersville, N.C. in the first round of the 2022 MLB Draft. At No. 29, he was the highest-selected first baseman in that draft. Continue reading “Back to school: Arizona Fall League prospects take college stage at GCU Park for showcase”
EDS: Clients who used the Cronkite News story slugged Prop. 479, which moved Wednesday, Oct. 23, under a PHOENIX dateline, are asked to run the following correction. The error occurred in the fifth graf of the original. A corrected version of the story has been posted here.
PHOENIX – An Oct. 23 Cronkite News story about Prop. 479, which would continue a half-cent sales tax for Maricopa County transportation, miscast what $14.9 billion in tax revenue through 2045 would fund. It would help to create 28.3 miles of bus routes as well as new traditional and HOV freeway lanes and help to maintain the light rail system. Federal and local funds would be used to create 11.9 new miles of light rail.
By Connor Moreno
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – Phoenix Suns stars Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal will win their team a fair share of games. That’s their job. However, through an otherwise shaky 2-1 start to the season, it’s been the Big Three’s supporting cast that has stabilized the Suns.
Forwards Royce O’Neale and rookie Ryan Dunn have been especially instrumental.
O’Neale needed just the final 3.9 seconds of the third quarter to impact the outcome of a 114-102 Phoenix victory over the Dallas Mavericks Saturday. Continue reading “Phoenix Suns reserves Royce O’Neal, Ryan Dunn breathe life into team to start NBA season”
By Gabrielle Wallace and Marshall Baker
Cronkite News
LAVEEN VILLAGE – President Joe Biden on Friday formally apologized for the 150 years of abuse and harm suffered by Indigenous children that were put into the federal boarding school system.
“I believe it is important that we do know there was generations of Native children stolen, taken away to places they didn’t know, with people they never met, who spoke a language they never heard,” Biden said during a visit to the Gila River Indian Community in front of an emotional crowd. “The federal government has never formally apologized, until today.”
This apology comes after an extensive investigation by the Department of Interior. The Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative began in 2021 and was designed to recognize the long-term impacts of Indian boarding schools from 1819 to 1970. Continue reading “Biden issues formal apology for treatment of Indigenous children within federal boarding schools”
By Ethan Desjardine
Cronkite News
TEMPE – At Arizona State’s baseball fall practices, the body language seems different, the music a little more vibrant, and the vibe slightly more upbeat than in previous years.
Even though ASU’s baseball program is one of the most storied in the country, with 22 NCAA World Series appearances and five NCAA championships, as of late, the program has faced tough times.
The Sun Devils have had just four losing seasons in history, three of which have come since 2017, and in 2024, for the first time since 1959-63, ASU missed the postseason for a third season in a row. Continue reading “ASU baseball hopes to build on last season with new coaching hires, transfers”
By Tucker L. Sennett
Cronkite News
PHOENIX – At his first Big 12 media day, Bobby Hurley talked about playing “Arizona State basketball.” Now entering his 10th season in charge of Sun Devils men’s basketball, an important question begs answering: What is Arizona State basketball?
When considering identities in the Big 12, coach Kelvin Sampson’s high-octane rebounding at Houston and Bill Self’s big-game prowess with the Kansas Jayhawks often come to mind. The answer to that question is not easy for Arizona State.
The Sun Devils have a 155-131 record under Hurley, a collegiate basketball legend and member of a truly dynastic basketball family. But those 155 wins produced just three NCAA Tournament appearances, zero trips to the round of 32 and zero conference championships in the Pac-12. Continue reading “Playing ‘Arizona State basketball’: Bobby Hurley, Sun Devils seek identity in first Big 12 season”
