Wednesday, August 19, 2026

Drone Pilots in the Hot Seat as Politicians Squelch Hobby Flights

Consumer drones have become a nuisance to many authorities, including wildland firefighters. In July of 2014, a hobbyist piloted his drone over a fire...
New vegetation fills an old burn area from the Trapper Fire in 2003. (Jake Green)

How Journalists Fan the Flames of Wildfire in the West

Firefighters often talk about the incomparable beauty of a forest burning at night. Fire fascinates. Its flicker in a campsite has always been mesmerizing....

Live-streams transform media coverage of police shootings

News coverage of violence against African-Americans during police operations might turn into a routine if not for the emergence of new tools keeping journalists...

An Expert Weighs in on How Home Movies Fuel Fire Science

Editor Intro: When the Reynolds Creek Fire burned through tourist-heavy Glacier National Park's Going-to-the-Sun Road last summer, a Missouri teen's footage shot from the...

7 days on a right-wing news diet: When a blue reads red

Story by Peregrine Frissell, art by Rene Sanchez I grew up reading George Will in the Missoulian, one of 450 newspapers nationwide that syndicated his...

Why MJR Failed in 2015 and How It’s Moving Forward

“It was just a shitshow for the most part.” That is how Madelyn Beck remembers November 6, 2014, the final night of editing on Montana...

Standing Rock: Native journalists torn between passion and neutrality

Story by Jason Begay, photos by Olivia Vanni See more of MJR's Standing Rock Coverage with this interactive web documentary. Even if it weren’t for that...

Forest Service Burns Through Fire Budget, Reallocates Funding

To fight fires, the Forest Service receives a certain amount of money from Congress each year. Once it’s exceeded that budget, the agency pulls...

A Meteorologist Speaks to Misconceptions of Fire, Weather and Climate

There's a common misconception that the severity of a fire season depends on the snowpack of the previous winter and spring. This is only...

Q&A: New Missoulian Editor Matthew Bunk Talks Desk Changes, New Approach with Former MTPR...

Sally Mauk retired as news director of Montana Public Radio in 2014 and still does political analysis for the station. For many years, she...

Standing Rock: Native journalists torn between passion and neutrality

Story by Jason Begay, photos by Olivia Vanni See more of MJR's Standing Rock Coverage with this interactive web documentary. Even if it weren’t for that...

Three On a Match: Q&A with Andy Smetanka

Interview by Rob Truax, photos by Louise Johns. It’s been three years since Missoula animator Andy Smetanka started on his most ambitious project to date,...