The Crested Butte News, a successful
independent newspaper in a small Rocky Mountain town, has come full
circle and is once again owned by a chain
Magazine

October 2, 2006
The Crested Butte News, a successful independent newspaper in a small Rocky Mountain town, has come full circle and is once again owned by a chain. Also in this issue: The North Coast Journal has been published in Arcata, Calif., for almost 18 years by Judy Hodgson, a journalist who believes in stirring the pot.
Feature
Navajo Times reporter Marley Shebala is
a fiercely determined journalist whose investigative reporting has
helped bring down two tribal presidents
Peter Richardson created an independent film called Clear Cut: The Story of Philomath, Oregon, to
illuminate a culture clash that was tearing his hometown
apart
Hearing Voices, a collective of
independent radio producers, is working to add spice to public
broadcasting
Keoki Skinner deals lemonade and information from his
yellow fruit-stand van in the border communities of Douglas, Ariz.,
and Agua Prieta, Mexico
Sidebar
The North Coast Journal has been
published in Arcata, Calif., for almost 18 years by Judy Hodgson, a
journalist who believes in stirring the pot
The Taos Horse Fly, with its biting
journalism, does its best to live up to its name
Roughneck is a two-year-old monthly
devoted to covering the oil and gas industry in Sublette County,
Wyoming
Since 1992, Dan Price has been publishing a hand-drawn,
illustrated zine called Moonlight Chronicles from his tiny, hobbit-style home in a meadow in Joseph,
Ore.
A 38-year-old female deckhand who calls herself Moe
Bowstern created the zine called Xtra Tuf to
explore the turbulent culture of the fishing industry
Independent radio series and specials cover community
sustainability
Dave Frazier started the online Boise
Guardian in order to keep an eye on local government and
rile his fellow citizens
Jennifer Napier-Pearce uses her own money to produce a
Salt Lake City-based podcast called Inside
Utah
Rick Spilsbury, a Western Shoshone Indian, writes bitingly
and sometimes hilariously about Nevada’s water issues on his
"noshootfoot" blog
John Orr created his "Coyote Gulch" blog to follow
Denver-area politics and Colorado water issues
Several magazines and newspapers provide good independent
commentary on water in the West, but there is always room for
more
Editor's Note
In an introduction to this special issue celebrating
independent media, High Country News associate
editor Jonathan Thompson recalls the exciting, exhausting,
high-caffeine years he spent publishing his own newspaper in a
small mountain town
Essays
A writer recalls the adventures he had had in Quincy,
Calif., 20 years ago, when he was the youthful editor of a
small-town independent paper called the Green Mountain
Gazette
Book Reviews
In Blood Struggle, law professor
Charles Wilkinson gives an inspiring account of Indians’
political and legal struggles during the last 50 years
David Schoenbrod explains why the nation’s
environmental laws are not being properly implemented in
Saving Our Environment From Washington: How Congress Grabs
Power, Shirks Responsibility and Shortchanges the
People
Yellow Cab is anthropology professor
Robert Leonard’s poetic account of his after-dark journeys as
a cab driver in Albuquerque
Writers on the Range
Cell phones have their uses, but they do not belong in the
wilderness
Heard Around the West
Bunker home for sale; Utah FastPass spins out; zinfandel
loses in California; fear of snakes in Mapleton, Utah; Redi Ripe
fruit stickers; fighting tamarisk in California
Dear Friends
High Country News needs your support;
visitors; corrections
Dottie Fox, a tireless wilderness advocate and co-founder
of the group Great Old Broads for Wilderness, dies after a long
fight with cancer
News
Judge reinstates Clinton roadless rule
Interior Department blasted by its own watchdog
Nobody’s happy with BLM’s Roan Plateau
plan
Skull Valley Goshute Tribe’s nuclear-waste storage
plan rejected
Judges throw out some libertarian ballot
measures
Life expectancy in the West
Many Westerners live in poverty, but even more lack health
insurance
Quote by Wyoming Attorney General Patrick Crank
Letters
Featured stories
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REGIONAL CONSERVATION DIRECTOR FOR THE RIVERSIDE COUNTY TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION (RCTC) The Riverside County Transportation Commission (RCTC) is conducting a national search, seeking a dynamic leader and effective manager to be the next Regional Conservation Director....
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NEW AGRARIAN PROGRAM SOUTHWEST COORDINATOR The New Agrarian Program Southwest Coordinator is responsible, in partnership with the NAP Director and Colorado Manager, for implementation of Quivira's apprenticeship program in New...
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NEW AGRARIAN PROGRAM ALUMNI AND OUTREACH MANAGER The New Agrarian Alumni & Outreach Manager is a passionate community builder who enjoys identifying opportunities to develop new programming, supporting beginning agrarians and land...
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CO & NM COALITION TO ENHANCE WORKING LANDS MANAGER Land stewards are more effective when they work as a team and have strong relationships. Our goals are to acknowledge and support the good work...
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HEALTHY CITIES PROGRAM MANAGER The Healthy Cities Program Manager works directly with the business unit's Healthy Cities Program Director to advance the Healthy Cities Program's long-term vision and innovative,...
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MAJOR GIFTS MANAGER - MOUNTAIN WEST, THE CONSERVATION FUND Cultivate, solicit and steward a portfolio of 75-125 donors.
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CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER WITH RURAL COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE CORPORATION RCAC in West Sacramento, CA seeks a strategic CFO to oversee and safeguard RCAC's finances.
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PRECIOUS WATER IN ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK Hardcover and eBook available now. Contact your local bookstore or the author at 970.371.7339 [email protected]
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DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS AND ENGAGEMENT Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers (RFOV) is a non-profit organization with a mission to promote stewardship of our public lands by engaging our community in education,...
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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Sierra Forest Legacy (www.sierraforestlegacy.org) is seeking an executive director to lead our effort to conserve biodiversity and ecosystems in the Sierra Nevada. We seek a...
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SOCIAL MEDIA SPECIALIST (PART-TIME, CONTRACT) High Country News (HCN) is looking for a Social Media Specialist to manage our social media channels, encompassing Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, TikTok, Twitter, LinkedIn, and...
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