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Thank you for helping us share stories that celebrate the best of Nebraska and hold truth to power.

Flatwater was built for times like these.

When paywalls divide who sees news, Flatwater is for keeping it free for everyone.

When the state feels divided, Flatwater is for celebrating what binds us together.

Help us reach more Nebraskans by donating today: buff.ly/AtGhOOk

Story by Henry Cordes. AP Photo/Alex Brandon.

New: The Nebraska Department of Economic Development, charged with working to grow the state, dropped from 114 full-time employees to 83 between late June and late February — a 27% reduction, or more than a fourth of the staff, in just those eight months.

Read more 🔗 buff.ly/D9rGMXm

Story by Henry Cordes. Photo by Abiola Kosoko.

New: A Flatwater Free Press analysis comparing Nebraska job growth to that of six neighboring states illustrates Nebraska's diminished economic competitiveness — and suggests it has cost the state 70,000 jobs in recent years.

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What You Should Know About Lead Contamination in Omaha, Nebraska For more than a century, factories spewed toxic dust across the city, contaminating the soil and causing lead poisoning. We talked to experts about how to stay safe from lead exposure.

NEW: For more than a century, factories spewed toxic dust across the city, contaminating the soil and causing lead poisoning. We talked to experts about how to stay safe from lead exposure.

w/ @flatwaterfreep.bsky.social

Story by Andrew Wegley. Illustration by Quentin Lueninghoener of Hanscom Park Studio for the Flatwater Free Press

New at Flatwater: Nearly five months after her arrest for theft, Becky Stamp remains the appointed guardian for six vulnerable Nebraskans. One reason: The state’s Public Guardian Office doesn’t have the capacity to take on new clients.

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“I’m not going to be defined,” he said. “I’m not going to be defined as a liberal or a (pro) trans candidate or anything else. I’m John Ewing. I am my most authentic self. What you see is what you get.”

In an interview with The Atlantic's Evan Smith at the magazine’s Atlantic Across America tour stop in Omaha, Mayor John Ewing said the job of running the country’s 41st largest city has required bipartisan dealing and a rejection of national political framing.

Wynn also said that amid a changing media landscape, one thing that has stayed consistent is Nebraskans’ appetite for good journalism.

“People love this stuff,” he said. “People are hungry for it.”

In an interview with The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg, Nebraska Journalism Trust executive director Matt Wynn said the Flatwater Free Press launched when Nebraska needed it most.

"We just kind of were in the right place at the right time, doing the right thing."

“The thing that I’ve gathered from my time spent in rural Nebraska is the perspectives that you come across in small towns are much more diverse than what people assume they can be.

Rural Nebraska isn’t a monolith.”

In a panel Wednesday night as part of The Atlantic Across America tour, Flatwater Free Press investigative editor Natalia Alamdari told The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg that amid growing evidence of GOP backlash nationwide, the politics of rural Nebraska have long been more nuanced.

Story by Chris Bowling. Photo by Rebecca S. Gratz for ProPublica.

For more than a century, a smelter and other factories spewed 400 million pounds of lead dust across Omaha's east side. Faced with similar concerns, 13 states passed laws requiring all kids to get a blood test before kindergarten. But not Nebraska.
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Omaha Is Home to a Massive Superfund Site. Most Kids Living There Aren’t Tested for Lead. For more than a century, a smelter and other factories spewed 400 million pounds of lead dust across the city’s east side. Faced with similar concerns, 13 states passed laws requiring all kids to get a blood test before kindergarten. But not Nebraska.

NEW: For more than a century, a smelter and other factories spewed 400 million pounds of lead dust across Omaha’s east side.

Faced with similar concerns, 13 states passed laws requiring all kids to get a blood test before kindergarten. But not Nebraska.

Story by Destiny Herbers. Photo by Lily Smith.

New at Flatwater: Doug Straub has a trach and a G-tube. He’s totally immobile, wheelchair bound and cannot speak. He’s one of almost 600 Nebraskans who saw their funding cut after being assessed by a new tool, rolled out by DHHS last year.

Read more 🔗 buff.ly/ubfdH8p

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Our final spring event is coming up in two days!

We're teaming up with The Atlantic to discuss the importance of local journalism, Nebraska’s civic innovations and the future of public life in the Midwest. We can't wait to dive in!

Story by Jeremy Turley. Photo by Lily Smith.

The soil that propelled eastern Nebraska into an agricultural powerhouse is also the main reason Omaha sees more sinkholes than several of its Midwestern peers. Read more 🔗 buff.ly/dn0mN72

Thank you to our moderators and panelists for bringing our journalism to life and to our sponsors for making the day possible! See you again soon, Central Nebraska.

We welcomed over 200 people to the historic World Theatre to discuss the Tyson closure in Lexington, mental health access in Nebraska and more. People are hungry to talk about the issues facing our state and we are more than honored to host these conversations.

We brought some of our best reporting to the stage last Friday in Kearney, Nebraska, at our inaugural Flatwater Forum!

"But if you want to start a scaled company, where’s the best place in the country to be? Probably someplace with the resources and the ecosystem that are the equivalent of what we have for volleyball.”