Subsidies prop up ranching, grazing degrades the land and politics underpin the system.
Ranching
Posted inArticles
Americans generally like wolves − except when reminded of politics
Recent studies found that attitudes toward wolves became more polarized when people’s political identities were activated.
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Mexican wolves are rebounding, but are they ready for delisting?
A new bill from Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar looks to remove endangered species protections.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
How ranchers accused of breaking the rules dodge oversight
Elected officials interfere with agency efforts to protect the land.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
Congress made it easier to ignore grazing’s harm to public lands
Federal law requires agencies to review the environmental impacts of grazing, but government employees allege the system is riddled with loopholes.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
The wealthy profit from public lands, and taxpayers pick up the tab
Roughly two-thirds of grazing on Bureau of Land Management land is controlled by just 10% of permit holders.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
How we reported Free Range, our grazing investigation
Data and analyses used in the stories.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
Reno’s Gay Rodeo is back
Nearly 40 years after an armed sheriff, anti-LGBTQ activists and a judge’s order shut down the Gay Rodeo Finals, this year the riders came home.
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Yellowstone protects wolves. What happens when they leave the park?
Crossing what’s an arbitrary boundary for wildlife, an apex predator becomes prey.
Posted inOctober 2025: Limits to Growth
What’s it like to be a cow?
A cattle rancher reflects on her occupation and the growing movement to understand how other animals see the world.
Posted inSeptember 2025: Who Controls Our Food?
Who controls food in the West?
Consolidation, shifting politics, water rights and the myth of the cowboy all play into the region’s ability to feed itself.
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When we harm wolves, we harm ourselves
Anger over these wild creatures shows a lack of perspective.
Posted inJune 2025: The Promised Land
Wolves return to the West
After being driven to near-extinction, these animals, and the politics around them, are back.
Posted inJuly 2025: Seeds as Sustenance
Searching for sparrows in the Sky Islands
Grassland restoration in Sonora, Mexico, helps to conserve North America’s bird life.
Posted inMay 2025: The Art of the Cruise
The hidden costs of wolf conservation
‘Pay for presence’ aims to compensate ranchers for predator-related losses, but Western states might not be able to afford it.
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The Eastern Shoshone are reclassifying buffalo as wildlife instead of livestock
The intent is to restore buffalo on the land and challenge the link between animal and product.
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Farmers face frozen jobs and heavier workloads under DOGE ‘efficiency’ budget
Billions in halted or canceled grants, gutted local offices, market turmoil and broken trust are at stake across the West.
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The crusade to end federal public lands in New Mexico
Howard Hutchinson, a private property rights activist, leads a coalition that’s quietly organizing a county-level rejection of the Antiquities Act.
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The art of moving a buffalo
Pedro Calderon-Dominguez’s daily work requires calm, quiet and patience.
Posted inArticles
Wyoming moves past wolf torture incident
Despite the torture and killing of a wolf in Daniel one year ago, the state has found a way to manage its wolves.