Paul Pressler is one of the most influential figures you may have never heard of. The onetime judge remade the Southern Baptist Convention, and helped forge the marriage between the GOP and white evangelical voters. As he did so he also committed decades of alleged abuses. A long look at his legacy:

congratulations to @freshparsley.bsky.social, winner of the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in feature writing! the whole staff of @texasmonthly.bsky.social is grateful for your work on this remarkable story, and so proud to see it honored. ❤️ www.texasmonthly.com/press-room/s...

Before Reza Pahlavi started pitching himself as Iran's future savior, he was just a West Texas good ol' boy @texasmonthly.bsky.social www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

Fue en busca de una mejor vida para su familia. Su hermano se negó a dejarlo ir solo. Solo uno de ellos sobrevivió al viaje. Dentro del desastre migratorio más mortal de la historia estadounidense: https://www.texasmonthly.com/interactive/san-antonio-53-migrant-deaths/

ICYMI: Mariano Santiago came to the U.S. from Mexico in search of a better life for his family. His brother, Begaí, refused to let him go alone. Only one survived the journey. Story by Elliott Woods for FERN and Texas Monthly. Link below ⬇️

Data centers are thirsty for water. High-end chips run hot, and they require liquid cooling; the largest state-of-the art data centers require millions of gallons of water to keep their electronics happy. In a place like Webb County, every drop of this water is precious.

A treaty between the U.S. and Mexico aims to manage resources that flow between nations. What happens when the water dries up?

I don't believe in destiny. I don't believe hard work is rewarded. We don't live in a meritocracy. But I believe in inevitability as the result of a series of variables of which one has no control. Being pulled over by ICE is example of chilling inevitability.

“You are preparing to invite children to swim in the very river that may still hold our daughter’s body when you plan to ‘open your gates,’” a new statement from the parents of the remaining camper missing after July's floods reads.

Good news: Thirteen new episodes of our docuseries with PBS will be airing weekly. 🎉 https://www.texasmonthly.com/press-room/texas-monthly-presents-returns-to-texas-pbs-stations-this-fall/

🎸👨‍🎤 ⛓️ An exclusive excerpt from a new oral history of the wild, early days of the Lone Star State’s distinctive and underappreciated punk scene: https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-entertainment/the-secret-history-of-texas-punk/

#journalismjob alert: We've just posted a new role at @texasmonthly.bsky.social, a research chief who will supervise our team of fact-checkers and do some fact-checking themselves www.texasmonthly.com/about/jobs-a...

This week, @texasmonthly.bsky.social’s reporting on the floods in Kerr County has been so purposeful and so deeply empathetic. It was personal. This first person account is so, so horrific and so beautifully written. You’ll cry very hard. (CW: Child death.) www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

Cloud seeding isn’t new. It dates back to the Dust Bowl era, when Texans desperate for rain took to the skies with silver iodide. Today, it’s still used to "nudge" clouds, but decades later, it’s caught in a storm of conspiracy theories. @texasmonthly.bsky.social www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

The most haunting story you will read about the flood. "If I or anyone else had been closer to them, we would have helped her. We would have grabbed one of the kids. But we didn’t know that we were about to be plunged into the water. We simply didn’t know." www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

“I don’t know how long it took—ten seconds, maybe fifteen—for the house to come apart." During the early-morning hours of July 4, the Guadalupe River pulled senior editor Aaron Parsley and six members of his family into its waters. Read his firsthand account:

Catastrophic flooding hit Kerrville overnight. Fourth of July revelers and campers are feared lost in the floodwaters.

Our 2025 list of the Top 50 barbecue joints in Texas is here! Thank you, @bbqsnob.bsky.social and team. 🙏🍖🙌🤠 Feast your eyes (and then feast)! 👀 www.texasmonthly.com/interactive/...

After losing dozens of farm animals to suspected chemical poisoning, two Texas families are pushing lawmakers for a fertilizer ban. www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

Congrats to J.K. Nickell and @texasmonthly.bsky.social, who won an ABA Silver Gavel Award today for this fantastic feature about a Dallas eviction lawyer's heroics www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

The Society of Publication Designers recently announced that Texas Monthly’s art department is a finalist in seven categories, marking the second year in a row. 🏆

Trump sent a teenager in the US legally to a gulag for being Venezuelan www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

In film: Long dismissed or disregarded, the Texas-Mexico border has come to be seen as a violent no-man’s-land thanks to incessant sensational news coverage and cartel thrillers. But these stories paint a different, quieter picture.

Texas Monthly received two dozen nods in the national awards competition this year. 🏆 The magazine was recognized for its writing, design, and digital platform, as well as for general excellence, for works published last year. www.texasmonthly.com/press-room/2...

Political operatives want to crush the state’s independent press. They’re using a crude messaging strategy. www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

Tourists are flocking to the 1,252 square miles of rugged terrain, where visitor safety is a primary concern. DOGE just slashed five employees from the already understaffed park. www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

more than a year ago, the TM editorial staff concluded that we needed to cover this disaster in our backyard in the same way were then covering the uvalde shooting: with human depth and mightily resourced reporting. i’m so proud to see that effort come to fruition today.

are you a recent or upcoming grad looking for an *actual entry level gig* in journalism? one week left to apply to our editorial coordinator job! www.texasmonthly.com/about/jobs-a...

Two @texasmonthly.bsky.social features are finalists for the American Society of Magazine Editors’ sixtieth annual National Magazine Awards. The magazine was also recognized for awards in Design, Photography and Illustration. 🏆 🤠 www.texasmonthly.com/press-room/t...

For my latest story, I reported on the lives of the undocumented contract workers who helped power Elon Musk's expansion in Austin. Sweeping debris, laying plumbing and pouring concrete, these workers built facilities that helped make Musk’s $400 billion fortune. Read for free: bloom.bg/41gG6a3

One of the largest workplace immigration-enforcement actions in American history upended the Panhandle town of Cactus in 2006. The hamlet’s recovery offers warnings about Donald Trump’s plans for mass deportations. www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...