WKU Public Radio

10/09/2025

A baseball team from Louisville features players who have overcome amputations to compete in the sport they love. They're bringing competition--and a screening of a documentary about the team--to Western Kentucky University on Friday and Saturday.

WKU Public Radio's Camille Holland has this story about the Louisville Slugger Warriors:

Players are U.S. military veterans, active duty personnel, Wounded Warriors, and current or former amputee college baseball players.

10/09/2025

The Oldham County school system has voted to not allow a Bible-based "moral education program" for third, fourth, and fifth grade students.

Earlier, Warren County Public Schools also voted against allowing the program.

More from our capitol reporter Sylvia Goodman:

After requesting guidance from the Kentucky attorney general, the Oldham County Board of Education voted not to accept a proposal for Bible-based moral education group Lifewise.

10/09/2025

10/08/2025

Tourists are showing up at Mammoth Cave National Park in south-central Kentucky--sometimes driving hours from other states--without realizing the park is impacted by the federal government shutdown.

A group of local tourism officials is at the park providing help to disappointed visitors. Here's the story from our Derek Parham:

While the visitor center at Mammoth Cave National Park is closed during the federal government shutdown, tourism offices from the nearby region are helping visitors make the most of their south-central Kentucky adventures.

10/08/2025

By August, nine county jails in Kentucky were contracted with ICE to hold their detainees, with the total rising to 914.

A report from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy also found that ICE has arrested nearly 1,300 people in Kentucky from mid-January to the end of July, which is a 37.6% increase from the same period in 2024.

More from our capitol enterprise reporter Joe Sonka:

Data from the study shows one county jail in Kentucky had contracted with ICE to hold roughly 120 detainees in January. By August, nine county jails held more than 900.

10/07/2025

An 88-page letter written by Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman says EPA findings that the agency should limit air pollution for the sake of the environment and public health are "unlawful and scientifically unproven."

In an 88-page letter to the EPA, Attorney General Russell Coleman is encouraging the agency to move forward with a proposal to rescind the 2009 Endangerment Finding.

10/03/2025

The Daviess County Public Library has a new board member amid a local fight over how the library handles certain materials involving sexuality, human anatomy, and LGBTQ+ themes and characters.

Michael Collins attended Thursday's Daviess County Fiscal Court where the vote was taken:

Tim Kline is an attorney with 15 years of experience and a pastor at the Christ the Redeemer parish, associated with the Anglican Church of North America. His appointment may prove pivotal in an ongoing controversy surrounding how the library handles certain adolescent and young adult books discussi...

10/02/2025

Democrat Andy Beshear has twice won election as governor of Kentucky — thriving in a state that has voted for Donald Trump three times.

Beshear has sharply criticized Trump — calling his address this week to military leaders "un-American." Yet, he told NPR that in Kentucky "the temperature is turned down," and in some cases people are "willing to vote for people of both parties."

NPR's Steve Inskeep was in the commonwealth this week to interview Beshear for a segment that aired Thursday morning:

NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear about his cross-party appeal in a state that has always overwhelmingly voted for Trump.

10/01/2025

To our community,

WKU Public Media exists to enhance the quality of life in this region. We accomplish this by presenting unique, non-commercial programming of exceptional quality, from the highest caliber local journalism to world-class arts, education, news, and entertainment programs. Each day we bring our communities a wealth of ideas, information, and inspiration.

The recent elimination of federal support for public media through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting has created a significant, immediate funding deficit for our organization. Despite budget realignment, operational cost reductions, and an incredible emergency fundraising response, the shortfall requires difficult changes.

Effective October 1, 2025, we have reduced our staff by a third, eliminating six full-time and two part-time positions from across our operation. These are valued members of our team, and we’re grateful for their service.

Public media is a public trust. With your partnership, we will adapt and continue to provide a free, reliable, fact-based source for everyone. It is a powerful and poignant time to reshape our community and media landscape. As a sustaining member of WKU Public Media, you can make it possible.

If there’s ever been a time to support your right to know, it’s now.

https://www.wkyufm.org/membership

09/30/2025

Beginning tomorrow, Wednesday October 1st, WKU Public Radio will no longer be airing BBC World News. This programming will be replaced with The Daily and Marketplace.

The Daily is a news program produced by The New York Times and is one of the most popular news podcasts in the nation. Marketplace is the flagship program for the team behind the Marketplace Morning Report and Marketplace Tech.

This change was not made lightly, nor due to any issues with the quality of our previous programming. This is part of our ongoing changes to ensure we can continue to serve our communities as best as we can for as long as we can. Thank you for understanding and for continuing to support WKU Public Media!

09/30/2025

We are back on the air after some tower work at our main transmission site. Thank you for your patience and support.

09/30/2025

A single mother who relied on federal food assistance lost her benefits in 2020 after Kentucky state investigators concluded she’d committed fraud.

The state alleged she’d made multiple same-day purchases, tried to overdraw her account a few times, entered a few invalid PINs and sometimes made “whole-dollar” purchases that are unlikely during typical grocery runs.

The woman from Salyersville in Appalachian Kentucky had an explanation: She worked at the store. She would sometimes buy lunch there and then get groceries after work. Her child would also occasionally use her card.

More on how some Kentucky residents have been unjustly locked out of their food benefits:

With food insecurity rising, Kentucky continues to aggressively investigate individuals on fraud allegations, with some legal experts claiming they rely too much on faulty evidence.