Think Out Loud Oregon Public Broadcasting

The streaming platform Twitch is most often used by gamers to broadcast live video game competitions and interact with fans. But it’s also home to a growing number of users who are posting news content. Researchers recently looked at how three outlets – the Washington Post, a left-leaning political commentator and a right-wing media channel – use the platform. While creating opportunities to build rapport with audiences, Twitch’s interactive features also break many of the journalistic norms intended to preserve editorial independence.

Maxwell Foxman is an assistant professor of media studies and game studies in the University of Oregon’s School of Journalism and Communication. He co-authored the study and joins us to talk more about the pros and cons of using Twitch to produce and consume news content.

Earlier this month, the Malheur Enterprise reported that the remains of a 27-year-old Idaho woman had been found in a remote area of Malheur County. Last June, Gwen Brunelle told her family she was driving from Boise on a brief trip to California. Her car was found abandoned days later on a gravel pullout less than 30 miles west of the Idaho border.  

The breakthrough in the case came with the involvement of Aloft Drone Search, a nonprofit in Sherwood that uses aerial and underwater drones to search for missing people. Its founder, John Jones, was contacted by Brunelle’s father in March to help find her. Before Jones traveled to southeastern Oregon, he and his team of volunteers began reviewing more than 13,000 images that were previously taken by an Idaho drone company that had also assisted with the search. Last month, Jones alerted the Malheur County Sheriff of something a volunteer had found in one of the drone images that led to the positive identification of Brunelle’s remains. Jones joins us to talk about the discovery, and the role drone technology can play in locating missing people. 

Federal and state regulators are working with officials in states where an avian influenza has been found in dairy cows. So far, Oregon is not one of those states, but officials are taking precautions and coordinating with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among others. Jenifer Cruickshank is an assistant professor and dairy extension specialist at Oregon State University in Corvallis. She joins us to tell us everything we need to know about bird flu in dairy cattle. 

The city of Bend recently launched a program that offers rebates to homeowners who give up their grass lawns in favor of native plants and low-water landscaping. It’s part of the city’s efforts to reduce its water usage by 7.9 billion gallons by 2040. The program is so popular that it maxed out its funding in a matter of weeks and is no longer taking new applications.

Dan Denning is the water conservation program manager for the city of Bend. Rick Martinson is the founder and director of the High Desert Horticultural Center. They join us to talk about the new program and the increasing demand for more sustainable landscaping.

In 1915, U.S. Forest Service ranger Elijah “Lige” Coalman built a fire lookout cabin on the summit of Mt. Hood. The cabin served as a place to view incipient fires and a bit of a party spot, according to the new short documentary Cabin in the Sky: The Mount Hood Lookout. Filmmaker Ned Thanhauser joins us to share the history of the cabin, which lasted until 1940. 

The United Methodist Church recently wrapped up its general conference in Charlotte, North Carolina. At the gathering, delegates removed bans on gay clergy and officiating same sex marriages. The decision comes after decades of disagreement over those policies.In the Pacific Northwest, the Oregon-Idaho conference has already been a fully inclusive ministry.Meanwhile, over the last few years, more than 7,000 congregations nationwide left the United Methodist Church. Many held more conservative theological views and largely left over LGBTQ-related policies.Jan Nelson is a member of the Morningside United Methodist Church in Salem and attended the General Conference in Charlotte as a lay delegate. Reverend Ethan Gregory has been an associate pastor at First United Methodist Church in Portland and will soon head to Salem. They join us with details of what this historic change means.