Ryan Van Velzer
@ryanvanvelzer.bsky.social
Managing editor of collaboratives at Louisville Public Media: Kentucky Public Radio and the Appalachia+Mid-South Newsroom: 7 NPR stations across Ky., W. Va. and Tenn. Based out of Louisville, Ky. Young Author's Greenhouse Board. Mass shooting survivor
Pinned
I know, I know, media is DYING right? But LOCAL media is still out here doing the work, showing up, donning masks to breathe in fewer petroleum fumes and delivering the information our communities need. Allow me to demonstrate.
A bill that would make it a crime to interfere with or harass first responders, creating a 25-foot buffer zone, passed a Senate committee Thursday.
Harassing an officer in Kentucky? Back up 25 feet under new GOP legislation
A bill that would make it a crime to interfere with or harass first responders, creating a 25-foot buffer zone, passed a Senate committee Thursday.
www.lpm.org
February 12, 2026 at 3:58 PM
A bill that would make it a crime to interfere with or harass first responders, creating a 25-foot buffer zone, passed a Senate committee Thursday.
Life imitating art: CBP basically recreating the plot of 99 red balloons www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/u...
Border Officials Are Said to Have Caused El Paso Closure by Firing Anti-Drone Laser
www.nytimes.com
February 12, 2026 at 11:37 AM
Life imitating art: CBP basically recreating the plot of 99 red balloons www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/u...
A GOP bill seeks to make new data centers cover their own utility costs in Kentucky, preventing existing electricity customers from subsidizing them.
GOP bill seeks guardrails for new data centers to ‘pay their own way’ in Kentucky
A GOP bill seeks to make new data centers cover their own utility costs in Kentucky, preventing existing electricity customers from subsidizing them.
www.lpm.org
February 12, 2026 at 11:29 AM
A GOP bill seeks to make new data centers cover their own utility costs in Kentucky, preventing existing electricity customers from subsidizing them.
A Kentucky House committee passed a bill Wednesday that would put restrictions on how law enforcement agencies use and keep data they collect from controversial license plate readers.
Kentucky GOP bill would limit license plate reader data sharing, storage
A Kentucky House committee passed a bill Wednesday that would put restrictions on how law enforcement agencies use and keep data they collect from controversial license plate readers.
www.lpm.org
February 11, 2026 at 7:11 PM
A Kentucky House committee passed a bill Wednesday that would put restrictions on how law enforcement agencies use and keep data they collect from controversial license plate readers.
Ford’s EV battery plant in Glendale was supposed to be the biggest economic development project Kentucky has ever seen. Now that the plant has shuttered, some former workers feel spurned, but community leaders remain cautiously optimistic. www.wkyufm.org/news/2026-02...
A Kentucky town bet big on Ford's EV strategy. Then the battery plant closed
Ford’s EV battery plant in Glendale was supposed to be the biggest economic development project Kentucky has ever seen. Now that the plant has shuttered, some former workers feel spurned, but communit...
www.wkyufm.org
February 11, 2026 at 1:56 PM
Ford’s EV battery plant in Glendale was supposed to be the biggest economic development project Kentucky has ever seen. Now that the plant has shuttered, some former workers feel spurned, but community leaders remain cautiously optimistic. www.wkyufm.org/news/2026-02...
As Kentucky legislators work their way through a bare bones budget, school superintendents are asking for full funding for transportation and construction.
Kentucky superintendents ask lawmakers to fully fund transportation in public schools
As legislators work their way through a bare bones budget, school superintendents are asking for full funding for transportation and construction.
www.lpm.org
February 10, 2026 at 8:30 PM
As Kentucky legislators work their way through a bare bones budget, school superintendents are asking for full funding for transportation and construction.
‘Kentucky Republicans held an interesting debate on immigration on the Senate floor on Friday. GOP Sen. and retired police officer Danny Carroll kicked it off saying 'We’ve lost our way' www.lpm.org/news/2026-02...
‘We’ve lost our way’ Kentucky Republican senators debate immigration
On the Senate floor Friday, several Kentucky lawmakers held an impromptu discussion of the federal immigration crackdown, with one GOP senator saying we need to “tone it down.”
www.lpm.org
February 9, 2026 at 1:59 PM
‘Kentucky Republicans held an interesting debate on immigration on the Senate floor on Friday. GOP Sen. and retired police officer Danny Carroll kicked it off saying 'We’ve lost our way' www.lpm.org/news/2026-02...
Reposted by Ryan Van Velzer
8/ For more on what kids are experiencing inside the Dilley detention center, read the full story by reporter @micarosenberg.bsky.social:
The Kids Trump Sent to ICE’s Dilley Detention Center
ProPublica went inside the immigrant detention center for families in Dilley, Texas. Children held there told us about the anguish of being ripped from their lives in the United States and the fear of...
www.propublica.org
February 9, 2026 at 12:43 PM
8/ For more on what kids are experiencing inside the Dilley detention center, read the full story by reporter @micarosenberg.bsky.social:
Reposted by Ryan Van Velzer
Nine Republicans broke with their party to vote against against the bill limiting water fluoridation. The one Democrat to vote for it was Rep. Tina Bojanowski, who when voting for it in committee two years ago, suggested that water fluoridation may cause autism (there's no evidence of that.) #kyga26
For the second consecutive year, the Kentucky House passed a bill that would make water fluoridation optional for local utility providers. From @hannahsaad.bsky.social at @wkmsfm.bsky.social #kyga26
Kentucky bill to make water fluoridation optional yet again flows out of state House
For the second year in a row, Kentucky’s state House has passed a bill that would make water fluoridation optional for local utility providers.
www.wkms.org
February 6, 2026 at 6:09 PM
Nine Republicans broke with their party to vote against against the bill limiting water fluoridation. The one Democrat to vote for it was Rep. Tina Bojanowski, who when voting for it in committee two years ago, suggested that water fluoridation may cause autism (there's no evidence of that.) #kyga26
Reposted by Ryan Van Velzer
In the past few years we've had two rounds of layoffs at Louisville Public Media, and we wrote stories about it both times. Management didn't necessarily like what we wrote, but we published them.
Scoop: As Washington Post leadership laid off hundreds of staffers this week, exec editor Matt Murray blocked the paper’s media desk from covering the cuts, spiking a pre-written story despite internal lobbying
www.status.news/p/ms-now-cro...
www.status.news/p/ms-now-cro...
MS NOW’s Crooked Play
MS NOW’s push into video podcasts is accelerating, with the progressive network now in advanced discussions to license popular digital shows for air from Crooked Media and others, Status has learned.
www.status.news
February 6, 2026 at 2:25 PM
In the past few years we've had two rounds of layoffs at Louisville Public Media, and we wrote stories about it both times. Management didn't necessarily like what we wrote, but we published them.
Outside Nashville’s Homeland Security Office, more than 100 people braved the ice-slicked roads on a snowy Friday last week to say a prayer in honor of those killed by federal immigration agents.
As Nashville recovers from storm, fears over immigration enforcement remain
As a historic winter storm devastated Tennessee, the fight over immigration continued to play out at the statehouse and in Nashville’s streets.
www.lpm.org
February 6, 2026 at 3:06 PM
Outside Nashville’s Homeland Security Office, more than 100 people braved the ice-slicked roads on a snowy Friday last week to say a prayer in honor of those killed by federal immigration agents.
A Franklin County judge ruled Thursday he won’t dismiss a lawsuit brought by a group of Kentucky students alleging the state has failed to provide an adequate and equitable education.
Kentucky student lawsuit over ‘inadequate’ education can move forward, judge rules
A Franklin County judge ruled Thursday he won’t dismiss a lawsuit brought by a group of Kentucky students alleging the state has failed to provide an adequate and equitable education.
www.lpm.org
February 5, 2026 at 10:20 PM
A Franklin County judge ruled Thursday he won’t dismiss a lawsuit brought by a group of Kentucky students alleging the state has failed to provide an adequate and equitable education.
A Kentucky Senate committee has passed bills that would limit administrator pay increases to those given to teachers and require more training, as the legislature hones in on public school accountability.
Kentucky public school leaders could get more training, limited raises under GOP bills
A Kentucky Senate committee passed bills that would limit administrator pay increases to those given to teachers and require more training, as the legislature hones in on public school accountability.
www.lpm.org
February 5, 2026 at 7:04 PM
A Kentucky Senate committee has passed bills that would limit administrator pay increases to those given to teachers and require more training, as the legislature hones in on public school accountability.
I'm proud to work for local news willing to take a stand, and communicate its values. Journalism is a bedrock of democracy, and the threats are multiplying: A WaPo reporter's devices seized (also a billionaire defacing the institution), independent journalists arrested, the list goes on.
A statement from LPM on the growing suppression of press freedom in America
Louisville Public Media's president and CEO condemns the arrests of journalists and speaks out on the escalating pattern of press suppression across the country — from federal raids on reporters' home...
www.lpm.org
February 5, 2026 at 2:06 PM
I'm proud to work for local news willing to take a stand, and communicate its values. Journalism is a bedrock of democracy, and the threats are multiplying: A WaPo reporter's devices seized (also a billionaire defacing the institution), independent journalists arrested, the list goes on.
Kentucky gave Ford a $250 million upfront loan to build an EV battery plant that is now shuttered. The company is negotiating with the state ahead of scheduled repayments.
Kentucky lawmakers seek answers on $250M loan after Ford EV battery plant closure
Kentucky gave Ford a $250 million upfront loan to build an EV battery plant that is now shuttered. The company is negotiating with the state ahead of scheduled repayments.
www.lpm.org
February 4, 2026 at 8:44 PM
Kentucky gave Ford a $250 million upfront loan to build an EV battery plant that is now shuttered. The company is negotiating with the state ahead of scheduled repayments.
Emphasizing the unknowns of “cultured” meat grown in labs, a state House committee pushed through a bill that would ban its manufacture and sale in Kentucky.
Republicans seek to ban lab-grown meat before it hits Kentucky shelves
Emphasizing the unknowns of “cultured” meat grown in labs, a state House committee pushed through a bill that would ban its manufacture and sale in Kentucky.
www.lpm.org
February 4, 2026 at 6:40 PM
Emphasizing the unknowns of “cultured” meat grown in labs, a state House committee pushed through a bill that would ban its manufacture and sale in Kentucky.
Reposted by Ryan Van Velzer
Longtime Indiana Republican state Rep. Ed Clere says he's leaving the party to be an independent because he “can’t in good conscience continue to run as a Republican” and that the party has become “unrecognizable” under President Donald Trump.
Indiana Republicans break with longtime state Rep. Clere, who plans to go independent
Indiana Rep. Ed Clere announced last week he would not seek reelection as a Republican state lawmaker.
www.lpm.org
February 3, 2026 at 9:07 PM
Longtime Indiana Republican state Rep. Ed Clere says he's leaving the party to be an independent because he “can’t in good conscience continue to run as a Republican” and that the party has become “unrecognizable” under President Donald Trump.
As Gov. Andy Beshear continues to promote his Pre-K for All plan across the state, Republican lawmakers say they are unconvinced by “its current form.”
‘Unicorns and rainbows:’ Beshear’s pre-K plan won’t happen as is, committee chair says
As Gov. Andy Beshear continues to promote his Pre-K for All plan across the state, Republican lawmakers say they are unconvinced by “its current form.”
www.lpm.org
February 3, 2026 at 6:42 PM
As Gov. Andy Beshear continues to promote his Pre-K for All plan across the state, Republican lawmakers say they are unconvinced by “its current form.”
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is term-limited, but his In This Together super PAC raised $4.3 million in 2025, as the Democrat weighs a potential 2028 run for president.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear’s PAC rakes in $4M in 2025, as he eyes presidential run
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is term-limited, but his In This Together super PAC raised $4.3 million in 2025, as the Democrat weighs a potential 2028 run for president.
www.lpm.org
February 3, 2026 at 1:58 PM
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is term-limited, but his In This Together super PAC raised $4.3 million in 2025, as the Democrat weighs a potential 2028 run for president.
Though Daniel Cameron leads polls in Kentucky’s GOP primary race for U.S. Senate, rivals Andy Barr and Nate Morris far outpace him in fundraising, with help from billionaire-funded PACs.
Cameron leads polls in Kentucky’s GOP Senate primary, though billionaires back opponent
Though Daniel Cameron leads polls in Kentucky’s GOP primary race for U.S. Senate, rivals Andy Barr and Nate Morris far outpace him in fundraising, with help from billionaire-funded PACs.
bit.ly
February 2, 2026 at 2:48 PM
Though Daniel Cameron leads polls in Kentucky’s GOP primary race for U.S. Senate, rivals Andy Barr and Nate Morris far outpace him in fundraising, with help from billionaire-funded PACs.
1. Don’t arrest journalists for doing their jobs. 2. This is not new, it may even be happening in your own backyard www.wvxu.org/local-news/2...
Charges dropped against Cincinnati journalist following protest arrest in NKY
Two journalists were charged with felony rioting in July after a demonstration on the Roebling Suspension Bridge.
www.wvxu.org
January 30, 2026 at 11:35 PM
1. Don’t arrest journalists for doing their jobs. 2. This is not new, it may even be happening in your own backyard www.wvxu.org/local-news/2...
Reposted by Ryan Van Velzer
The judge has ordered a prompt hearing on Thursday in response to petitioners claim that ARC is violating the court order to freeze $4.7M of its bank assets & should be held in contempt of court. Order also notes that ARC attorneys said they want to withdraw because clients are ignoring their advice
January 27, 2026 at 8:45 PM
The judge has ordered a prompt hearing on Thursday in response to petitioners claim that ARC is violating the court order to freeze $4.7M of its bank assets & should be held in contempt of court. Order also notes that ARC attorneys said they want to withdraw because clients are ignoring their advice
In a Tuesday morning earnings call, UPS announced it retired all of its Boeing MD-11 cargo aircrafts. www.lpm.org/news/2026-01...
UPS retiring plane model involved in fatal Louisville crash
In a Tuesday morning earnings call, UPS announced it retired all of its Boeing MD-11 cargo aircrafts.
www.lpm.org
January 27, 2026 at 8:02 PM
In a Tuesday morning earnings call, UPS announced it retired all of its Boeing MD-11 cargo aircrafts. www.lpm.org/news/2026-01...
The first medical marijuana dispensary in Louisville plans to open Jan. 31 in the Highlands neighborhood.
Louisville’s first medical marijuana dispensary to open this weekend
The first medical marijuana dispensary in Louisville plans to open Jan. 31 in the Highlands neighborhood.
www.lpm.org
January 27, 2026 at 4:37 PM
The first medical marijuana dispensary in Louisville plans to open Jan. 31 in the Highlands neighborhood.
Groups spent more than $28 million to lobby members of the Kentucky General Assembly throughout 2025, eclipsing a record set the previous year.
Chamber leads Kentucky legislative lobbying spending in record-breaking 2025
Groups spent more than $28 million to lobby members of the Kentucky General Assembly throughout 2025, eclipsing a record set the previous year.
www.lpm.org
January 27, 2026 at 3:31 PM
Groups spent more than $28 million to lobby members of the Kentucky General Assembly throughout 2025, eclipsing a record set the previous year.