Today in Public Media

Crowded colonias are illness-inducing; more tuition hikes for California college students; the intertwining of internet and rave culture.

From the Texas Tribune: Conditions, Health Risks Sicken Colonias Residents

Along the 1,248-mile Texas-Mexico border from El Paso to Brownsville, in communities with names like Agua Dulce and Mexico Chiquito, the overwhelmingly Hispanic residents of these colonias tell identical stories: of migrating with dreams of safety and prosperity, of getting swindled or misled into buying worthless land with no modern infrastructure, of sticking it out so their children — most of them American citizens — will get educated. And of getting sick.

From KQED in San Francisco: California Universities To Become Even Costlier

This week, both the University of California and California State University systems are slated to vote on further tuition hikes, meant to offset the funding cuts in the state budget signed by Governor Brown.

From Fronteras: Obscure Law A Clear Break For Military Spouses Here Illegally

The sponsors of the Senate bill readily acknowledge it has a slim chance of passing. It has no Republican support. And with the 2012 election season kicking into gear, the controversial issue of immigration is not one candidates seem to want to touch.

From KPBS in San Diego: Is The Cost Of The Death Penalty Too High For California?

State Senator Loni Hancock says the state simply can’t afford to try, incarcerate and defend the state through the appeals process and she’s introduced a bill to abolish the death penalty.

From Michigan Radio in Detroit: How The Internet Transformed The Rave Scene In Detroit And Elsewhere

Rave was America’s last great outlaw musical subculture: created by kids, for kids, designed to be impenetrable to adults. American rave formed its own mutant funhouse approach to existing looks, sounds and ideologies.  What better place for such a subculture to flourish than on the Internet?