I'm at a @sxsw.com panel with Austin Mayor Kirk Watson talking about housing. Watson touts the work of he and his colleagues over the past 2 years as part of Austin's "enormous success" on housing. Rents have been falling for nearly 2 years.

Strong drink and a bad attitude are never a good combination. But, occasionally, they do change history. In this episode of The Disconnect learn how a drunken brawl in downtown Austin delivered a system of energy price fixing that persists to this day. kutkutx.studio/the-disconne...

NEW from me: Austin is set to change how it regulates short-term rentals (aka Airbnbs), after court cases have gutted the city's rules. The city's now focused on getting more owners licensed and less on limiting the number of these controversial rentals: www.kut.org/housing/2025... :

Did you know the heart of #ElonMusk’s business empire is in rural Texas? We used records to map how much land he and his lieutenants have in Bastrop County. It’s more than 600 acres. Have a tip about Musk? Email me! www.kut.org/austin/2025-... #musk #spacex #boring #xcorp #txlege #texas

Hello Bluesky! The new season of our power grid podcast The Disconnect is out! This time we look at the oil and gas industry's role in keeping the lights on. We start with the roaring history of martial law, oil bootlegging and con artistry in the East Texas oilfield! kutkutx.studio/the-disconne...

Season 3 of The Disconnect — our podcast about the Texas power grid — has begun. This time: natural gas — how it failed in the 2021 blackout and why TX leaders call it the future of a reliable grid. The first episode is all about the con man who started it all. kutkutx.studio/category/the...

Made a little starter pack of folks reporting on Austin from @kutnews.bsky.social go.bsky.app/QfocwBJ