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CobCast

23 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 1 year ago - ★★★★★ - 4 ratings

I'm Jacob Vaughn, a journalist based out of North Texas. Some people call me Cob and this is the CobCast.

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Episodes

Life and Death of the Clyde Barrow Filling Station – CobCast Ep. 21

July 30, 2022 20:37 - 12 minutes - 11.3 MB

In April, a property formerly owned by the family of outlaw Clyde Barrow was demolished. The plan to tear it down began in 2020 and when it was done, the Barrow filling station in West Dallas was reduced to rubble and the remains were taken to the landfill. On this episode of the CobCast, I talk about the history and demolition of the Clyde Barrow filling station. This episode was adapted from reporting I did for the Dallas Observer.   This episode also features music by artists other than...

Appeals and Investigations Have Prolonged the Jean Family's Trauma – CobCast Ep. 20

May 29, 2022 14:54 - 5 minutes - 4.81 MB

For the last few years, former Dallas Police officer Amber Guyger has hoped to appeal her conviction and sentencing for killing an unarmed man in his apartment in 2018. But now that the state’s highest criminal court upheld her murder conviction and 10-year prison sentence Wednesday, Guyger may be running out of options.       Meanwhile, the family of the man she shot and killed says they haven't had the proper chance to mourn their loved one, 26-year-old Botham Jean, throughout the years-...

Mother of Man Slain at Epic Easter Bike Out and Field Party Shooting Says He Will Get Justice – CobCast Ep. 19

April 12, 2022 21:31 - 7 minutes - 7.25 MB

Family and friends trickled into The Loon Bar & Grill after a recent vigil for Kealon Gilmore, the 26-year-old man killed when gunfire erupted at the Epic Easter Bike Out and Field Party on April 2. People at The Loon wore yellow and purple shirts with his name and photo on it.         Gilmore would be at the restaurant just about every day, the manager said, and he always loved the burgers. So, when the owner and manager heard of Gilmore's death, they named the Kealon Burger after him. A ...

Tristan Seikel and Decriminalizing Small Amounts of Cannabis in Denton, Texas – CobCast Ep. 18

February 18, 2022 19:42 - 52 minutes - 48.4 MB

Cannabis reform has moved at a snail's pace in Texas. But activists are trying to speed things up by fighting for reform at the city and county levels. On this episode, I speak with Tristan Seikel, organizer and co-founder of the group Decriminalize Denton, to get an inside look at their efforts to decriminalize small amounts of cannabis in Denton, Texas.   This episode is an audio adaptation of reporting I've done for the Dallas Observer. It is recorded and produced by me.   Will Denton...

How Mark Cuban's Cost Plus Drug Company Could Disrupt 'Big Pharma' - CobCast Ep. 17

February 03, 2022 22:55 - 17 minutes - 15.6 MB

Mark Cuban’s new online pharmacy is slashing drug prices for 100 different generic medications. Its main goal is affordability for consumers, and some think Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drug Co. is just the kind of disruption “Big Pharma” needs in the U.S. Cost Plus Drug ditches the middleman, the pharmacy benefit management companies. Those help negotiate benefits for employers, health insurers and government health programs. These could include rebates and discounts. These companies have been ...

Red Dead Redemption Gamers Are Trying to #SaveRedDeadOnline - CobCast Ep. 16

January 25, 2022 20:56 - 6 minutes - 5.99 MB

Red Dead Redemption players are pissed. The game’s publisher, Rockstar Games, continues to pump out new content for its Grand Theft Auto franchise, and gamers are complaining that Red Dead Redemption 2’s online mode hasn’t seen the same level of development. They're feeling neglected. The seeming disparity between the two franchises and the lack of information about any future plans for the game has led to players demanding answers from Rockstar with the hashtag #SaveRedDeadOnline. For mor...

REvil Indictments, a Ransomware Attack Affected Dallas Employees, and More - CobCast Ep. 15

December 29, 2021 02:17 - 11 minutes - 10.7 MB

A group known as REvil has been pulling off ransomware attacks on businesses and government entities across the U.S., including in Texas. Ransomware is a kind of malware that is used to lock users out of computer data until they pay a ransom.           In 2019, REvil (also referred to as Sodinokibi) stole files from 22 Texas municipalities, hoping to get millions of dollars in ransom. Texas cities never coughed up the cash, but REvil kept pulling off attacks around the world.           B...

CobCast Weekly Roundup – 12/13/21-12/17/21

December 18, 2021 21:04 - 11 minutes - 10.4 MB

In this dispatch of the CobCast, I give you the headlines and details of the stories I've had published in the last week. These stories were published from 12/13-12/17.   Philip Kingston Has His Eyes on a Seat at the Dallas County Commissioners Court https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/philip-kingston-has-his-eyes-on-a-seat-at-the-dallas-county-commissioners-court-12993383   'We Won Again': Texas Supreme Court Leaves Delta-8 Legal For Now, but The Fight's Not Over https://www.dallasobs...

Arlington City Council Gives OK's New Gas Wells Near Daycare - CobCast Ep. 14

December 14, 2021 01:53 - 17 minutes - 16.1 MB

Despite efforts by locals and environmental activists, the Arlington City Council this week gave the green light to three new gas wells near a daycare center.         The council approved a permit for the new wells, which will be operated by the French conglomerate Total Energies. The additional drilling near the Mother’s Heart Learning Center is expected to start early next year. Liveable Arlington, an environmental advocacy group, was one of the driving forces behind the opposition ahead...

Kyle Vess v. Brad Cox and the City of Dallas - CobCast Ep. 13

November 16, 2021 19:33 - 37 minutes - 34.4 MB

On August 2, 2019, Kyle Vess was strapped to a bed at Parkland Memorial Hospital with a swollen ankle and fractures in his face. The Dallas Police Department was holding him on a charge of assaulting a public servant. In their reports, they say he assaulted a Dallas Fire-Rescue paramedic because that’s what the paramedic and others with DFR said happened before police arrived on the scene.   But, that’s not all that happened.   The paramedic is a trained MMA fighter named Brad Cox, and K...

The State of Delta-8 and other THC Isomers in Texas - CobCast Ep. 12

November 09, 2021 22:37 - 6 minutes - 6.18 MB

In court on Friday, Austin manufacturer Hometown Hero won a temporary injunction against the state's ban on THC isomers in court.               Hemp companies, like Hometown Hero, as well as consumers, believed that under state and federal law they could make and consume any hemp-derived THC isomers, as long as they don't have more than 0.3% delta-9 THC. Delta-9 is the primary psychoactive ingredient in weed.                       But last month, the Texas Department of State Health Serv...

CPAC in Dallas Was a Different Kind of Strange - CobCast Ep. 11

August 20, 2021 23:19 - 16 minutes - 15.5 MB

Throughout the Conservative Political Action Conference in Dallas, speakers time and again insisted that liberals wanted to indoctrinate children with critical race theory, steal their guns, rig elections and flood the country with undocumented immigrants. They urged attendees to fight back.   Overall, the event, which would be capped off with a speech from former President Donald Trump, seemed like a watered-down version of the Qanon-affiliated For God & Country Patriot Roundup event that...

At Dallas QAnon Convention, Conspiracy Theories Run Wild and Reporters Kicked Out - CobCast Ep. 10

June 09, 2021 17:08 - 20 minutes - 18.3 MB

Inside the Omni Dallas Hotel were guests who traveled far and wide to attend the QAnon convention this weekend, but across the street gathered a choir. They had set up a piano and were singing in unison. "Singers of Dallas believe in love over fear," read their banner.            For the Turtle Creek Chorale, which organized the gathering, every concert should have a message. They sing about injustices and intolerance and the people harmed by both.           Sean Baugh, the artistic dire...

A QAnon Convention Is Coming to Town. Some Dallasites Want it Canceled. - CobCast Ep. 9

May 25, 2021 01:05 - 16 minutes - 14.7 MB

When a friend sent her an article about an upcoming political convention in Dallas, the QAnon-linked "For God & Country Patriot Roundup," Colleen Morgan thought the name sounded like a misnomer. “Patriots are people who love the country, but these people are putting [Former President Donald Trump] above the country, a person above the Constitution,” she said. “They’re not true patriots to me.” That's why Morgan and other Dallas residents are calling for the convention's cancellation. She h...

North Texans Weather Winter Storm Uri – CobCast Ep. 8

May 07, 2021 16:10 - 15 minutes - 13.9 MB

As North Texas residents grappled with the cold, they extended a helping hand to their neighbors.   This is an audio adaptation written, recorded and produced by me, based on reporting I did for the Dallas Observer. This episode also acts as Weekly Story Roundup No. 9 (2/16/21-2/19/21). You can find links to the stories below.   Music and photography by Jacob Vaughn Co-produced by Music Mythology LLC   Dallas' Homeless Sheltered in Downtown Convention Center Amid Winter Storm https:/...

Annual Count of Dallas, Collin County's Homeless Population Delayed – CobCast Ep. 7

May 07, 2021 16:00 - 15 minutes - 14.5 MB

An annual census of homeless people in Dallas and Collin counties that helps the city determine how its homeless programs are working will still take place during the COVID-19 pandemic, although at a later date, over a longer time period and with far fewer people doing the counting.   This is an audio adaptation written, recorded and produced by me, based on reporting I did for the Dallas Observer. You can find a link to the story below.   Music and photography by Jacob Vaughn   https:...

University of Dallas Backs Professor Who Criticized Biden Nominee for Being Trans – CobCast Ep. 6

May 07, 2021 15:54 - 13 minutes - 11.9 MB

The University of Dallas, a Catholic school, is standing by one of its professors after he wrote a post online that criticized  President Joe Biden’s decision to appoint a trans woman, Dr. Rachel Levine, as assistant secretary at the Department of Health and Human services.   Levine could make history as the first openly trans federal official to be confirmed by the Senate. That didn’t sit well with UD’s chair of its political philosophy department, David Upham.   In a now-deleted Facebo...

Demonstrators Gather in Dallas To Protest U S Actions in Middle East (2020) – CobCast Ep. 5

May 07, 2021 02:33 - 7 minutes - 6.73 MB

Considerably more than 100 North Texans turned out Saturday afternoon in Dealey Plaza to protest the United States' continued presence in Iraq and the recent American airstrike that killed Iran's top general, Qassem Soleimani, and four of his associates. As the protesters waved their signs and chanted their chants, people in cars zoomed passed them on Main Street. Some honked in solidarity, others rolled down their windows, gave protesters the middle finger and yelled "Trump!"  This is an a...

Time Permitting: Developers Say Long Waits for Dallas Permits Hitting Bottom Lines - CobCast Ep. 4

May 07, 2021 02:25 - 10 minutes - 9.16 MB

Time is money. Developers and business owners know this to be true, especially in Dallas where it takes weeks, sometimes months to get required permits for their projects, making building in the city more expensive.  This is an audio adaptation written, recorded and produced by me of reporting I did for the Dallas Observer. You can find a link to the stories below.  Music and photography by Jacob Vaughn   https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/time-permitting-developers-race-to-finish-proje...

Dallas Activist Mark Hughes Recalls Being Named A Suspect In 2016 Police Murders - CobCast Ep. 3

April 29, 2021 23:26 - 22 minutes - 20.5 MB

Mark Hughes, a North Texas activist, went to a rally in Dallas openly carrying an AR-15 rifle to make a point about gun rights and self-defense. That's legal in Texas.  But then Micah X. Johnson, a 25-year-old loner angry over a tide of police shootings of black men nationwide, opened fire on police. Hughes, who had no involvement in the shooting, suddenly found himself an armed black man among a sea of police officers who were being targeted by a sniper.  This is an audio adaptation of th...

North Texans Fight to Keep Their Scenes Alive – CobCast Ep. 2

April 11, 2021 16:53 - 13 minutes - 12.6 MB

As the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, music and arts events and venues shuttered. Through it all, North Texans fought to keep their scenes alive. This episode was originally published on my Youtube channel in June 2020.    Voice over, music, sound design and photography by Jacob Vaughn

Shelley Luther's Salon A La Mode supporters affect neighboring business - CobCast Ep. 1

April 11, 2021 16:45 - 11 minutes - 10.8 MB

Shelley Luther, the owner of Salon A La Mode, opened her business early despite not being deemed essential during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the salon reopened on April 24, people have gathered outside the business in support of Luther. Rob Case, the owner of a neighboring music shop called Fiddle & Bow Music Co, says her supporters' presence has kept him from opening. Originally published May 6, 2020 as an audio adaptation of a story I wrote for the Dallas Observer titled "The Music Shop...

Introducing CobCast

March 13, 2021 22:37 - 1 minute - 1.11 MB

This is the CobCast. I'm Jacob Vaughn, a journalist based in North Texas, and this program is a place for me to do a little bit more with the articles I write. We'll talk politics, art and everything in between.  Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjz4gfeBqx-1SYCtxYubueg Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officiallyjacobv Twitter: https://twitter.com/OfficialJacobV  

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