OPINION: Beware of the return to normalcy
Jessie Christopher Smith, Reporter
June 3, 2020
Something to consider in the wake of #BlackOutTuesday: I've noticed many people -- from celebrities and everyday citizens to journalists and federal employees -- sharing images of police officers kneeling with protesters, participating in marches with protesters, and taking selfies with protesters. While...
Cattlemen scrape by while processors reap the profit
Brooklyn Wayland
April 23, 2020
The Mid America Stockyards in Bristow, Oklahoma, sits nearly empty as cattlemen bear the brunt of a troubling time in the agriculture industry on Thursday, April 23, 2020. Processors and packers seem to be the only ones profiting during COVID-19. Photo: Brooklyn Wayland, Gaylord News Oklahoma...
Online classes lead to claims of privacy invasions
KaraLee Langford
April 21, 2020
With Covid-19 abruptly forcing the remainder of the spring college semester to virtual learning through technologies such as Zoom or Skype, some faculty have struggled to make the transition smooth. College students say they didn’t sign up for online classes, which limits a student’s opportunities...
Supreme Court to rule on tribal justice remotely via telephone
Brooklyn Wayland
April 13, 2020
A tribal sovereignty issue that has been wending its way through the courts for two decades may be finally heading toward a final decision before a home-bound U.S. Supreme Court. McGirt v. Oklahoma oral arguments will be held in front of the Supreme Court despite the coronavirus pandemic...
State census response rate a little better than 10 years ago
Hogan Gore, Gaylord News
April 8, 2020
Forty-one percent of households in Oklahoma have completed the nation’s first primarily digital census with one-third of surveys completed online since the count began last week. As good as it may appear, that puts Oklahoma towards the bottom of the state response ranking. Currently the Sooner state i...
The Last Picture Show
April 2, 2020
NINNEKAH -- As the COVID-19 outbreak worsens in the United States, some Oklahoma drive-in theatres were trying to keep their doors open to cure cabin fever. Drive-ins across Oklahoma were open until Gov. Kevin Stitt expaned his “safer-at-home” policy to all 77 Oklahoma counties on Wednesda...
Inhofe in the clear on questionable timing of stock sales?
Brooklyn Wayland
March 26, 2020
Oklahoma’s senior senator appears to have been cleared of any improprieties in connection with the sale of thousands of dollars of stock in January and February shortly before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Oklahoma activists had raised questions about the sales by Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-O...
Sen. Inhofe flies plane upside-down, announcing he is still fit for reelection
Karalee Langford and Brooklyn Wayland
March 5, 2020
Photo by KaraLee Langford Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) released a campaign video of him flying a plane upside down to announce his campaign for reelection in 2020 and prove he’s still not too old to be in Congress. “I’ll be announcing for office upside down and that’s to overcome the critici...
Oh, frack!
Brooklyn Wayland and Karalee Langford
February 28, 2020
Photo by KaraLee Langford Kendra Horn took steps Thursday to distance herself even further from the left-wing elements of her party by announcing her opposition to a fracking ban. She said she is opposed to legislation proposed by U.S. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D, NY) and Darren Soto (D, F...
Tribal jurisdiction on Supreme Court docket again with McGirt v. Oklahoma
Brooklyn Wayland
February 26, 2020
Oral arguments in a case that could reshape tribal justice in eastern Oklahoma have been set to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court on April 21. The case, McGirt v. Oklahoma, argues under the Indian Major Crimes Act the state does not have the authority to prosecute convicted child rapist Jimcy M...
Week in Washington: Gaming compacts take center stage
February 14, 2020
Photo by Hogan Gore WASHINGTON -- Here’s a look at our stories in and around Washington this week: Tribe Officials Discuss Gaming Compacts at State of Indian Nations Gaming compacts in Oklahoma came up after Monday’s State of Indian Nations address, highlighting the ongoing conflict be...
U.S. House Committee Moves Bills on White Supremacy Symbols, Cybersecurity
February 14, 2020
A Confederate flag ripples in front of a sign during a rally on Saturday, March 4, 2017. Photo by Michael Duncan WASHINGTON -- The House Committee on Homeland Security sent a series of bills to the House floor seeking to combat multiple white supremacy demonstrations and costly cyberattacks over...
