Marfa Public Radio Puts You to Sleep

Welcome to A Whole Other Country

A Whole Other Country is a new podcast from the award-winning Marfa Public Radio Studios. Back in the ‘90s, in an off-the-grid neighborhood in the mountains of Far West Texas, a wannabe vintner started his own Wild West nation. Reporter and host Zoe Kurland drives up the long, bumpy roads of the Davis Mountains to talk to a cast of neighbors and onlookers who watched the story of the standoff unfold in real time -- the myths of the frontier crashing violently into reality.  Subscribe on Apple Podcasts here [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-whole-other-country/id1842894133]. Subscribe on Spotify here [https://open.spotify.com/show/1tFBXoczZaGPVrZ1ya5qNw?si=-XytMKDZSLWaU6pGOa6dxw].

The Rescissions Act of 2025 read by Zoe

Imagine, you’re sitting in a small radio station in the middle of the Chihuahuan Desert in Far West Texas. The air is dry and still. You’ve spent the day reporting on a long county commissioner’s meeting. Maybe you’ve edited a story about the local herbarium and its keepers. Maybe you sat in the host chair for Morning Edition and All Things Considered, reporting the weather. Perhaps, on this day, you trundled your truck up a mountain to the Marfa Public Radio tower. It’s quiet up there. Looking out from the top of this mountain, you can see everything. You stand for a moment, let it all sink in, visualize that signal sailing through the clear blue sky. Airwaves, airborne. And then it hits you. That signal is at risk. It could be snatched right out of the sky. Congress has just passed the Rescissions Act of 2025, H.R.4, eliminating all federal funding for public media. At Marfa Public Radio, this means one third of our budget is disappearing. For now, everything's still humming, machinery whirring, tower broadcasting. But it occurs to you: if people don’t step up their financial support of this listener-funded station in this crucial moment for the future of public media — the gentle humming and whirring of the broadcast equipment could cease. It also occurs to you that people can quite easily donate at marfapublicradio.org/donate [https://www.marfapublicradio.org/donate] or by calling the station at 1-800-893-5787.  As you await the listeners’ calls - you begin to wonder, what is the Rescissions Act of 2025, really?  In this episode, Senior Producer Zoe Kurland reads the Rescissions Act of 2025 and the senate and house votes that passed it.  This episode of Marfa Public Radio Puts You To Sleep was written, produced, and hosted by Zoe Kurland.

The Texas Administrative Code read by Mitch

You live in Texas. You find a phrase floating around in your mind: Texas Administrative Code. What is that? Is that a code of honor? Is it a code of conduct? Is it a secret code that gets you a discount at your favorite store? Is it a communication code, like morse? You don’t know. But Mitch Borden does know. In this episode, Marfa Public Radio’s Permian Basin Reporter Mitch Borden reads the Texas Administrative Code. To help keep Marfa Public Radio awake and up to code, donate to the station at marfapublicradio.org/donate [https://www.marfapublicradio.org/donate].

The Public Broadcasting Act of 1967 read by Elise

It’s 1967, you find yourself in the hallowed halls of an important national institution, that happens to smell like dust and popcorn. You’re seated in a rigid chair, looking upon the senate floor. The hum of discussion fills your ears as you sink deeper into your seat on the sidelines. Senators are discussing the future of broadcasting. The public kind. In this Episode, Marfa Public Radio’s Executive Director Elise Pepple reads the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967. To help keep Marfa Public Radio awake and broadcasting for free, donate to the station at marfapublicradio.org/donate [https://www.marfapublicradio.org/donate].

The NPR Style Guide read by Carlos

You’re writing up an article for the Marfa Public Radio website and you find yourself wondering… do I use an oxford comma? Is this the correct syntax for the situation? How should I go about capitalization? Should I use italics here? Can I use italics? Marfa Public Radio’s News Director, Carlos Morales has the answers to your questions. In this episode, Carlos Morales reads you the NPR Style Guide. To help keep Marfa Public Radio awake and grammatically correct, donate to the station at marfapublicradio.org/donate [https://www.marfapublicradio.org/donate].