For Spring, NMiF Pauses, Looks Back
Wake up, check your phone, catch up with the news. Rinse. Repeat.
The news cycle in 2025 has been a firehose of broken glass — even more so than in years past. So, for this week’s episode of New Mexico in Focus, we decided to catch our breath and take a step away from the torrent.
We did that by revisiting some previously aired stories that remain important today: a pharmacy desert in Albuquerque’s international district that still sits dry; a University of New Mexico study on microplastics in the human brain that’s getting more eyeballs since we first told viewers about it, thanks to the New York Times; a conversation we had marking four years since the Covid-19 pandemic began in New Mexico about the lasting impacts the virus has had on our physical and mental health — as the state passes the five-year anniversary; and an effort to save a rare Spanish dialect in Northern New Mexico.
And to make sure we kept the show at least a little bit newsy, we began this episode with a review of the recently signed state budget a handful of bills that made it through the Legislature, but not into state law.
We’ll be back next week with some new interviews and analysis.
– Jeff Proctor, Executive Producer
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For Spring, NMiF Pauses, Looks Back
Wake up, check your phone, catch up with the news. Rinse. Repeat. The news cycle in 2025 has been a firehose of broken glass — even more so than in years past. So, for this week’s episode of New Mexico in Focus, we decided to catch our breath and take a step away from the…
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Saving a Dying Spanish Dialect in Northern New Mexico
4.18.25 – “The Legacy Project” is an ongoing archival endeavor from the National Hispanic Cultural Center to preserve a dying Spanish dialect spoken in Northern New Mexico. In this segment that first ran in late 2023, Lou speaks with center Director Zack Quintero about the project. Correspondent: Lou DiVizio Guest: Zack Quintero, director, National Hispanic Cultural…
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Report Examines Microplastics in the Human Brain
4.18.25 – Recorded in February, Senior Producer Lou DiVizio speaks with a UNM researcher about a study that found high levels of microplastics in the human brain. Correspondent: Lou DiVizio Guest: Dr. Marcus Garcia, University of New Mexico Health Sciences For More Information: UNM study finds high levels of microplastics in human brains – New Mexico Daily…
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Providing Medical Access in a Pharmacy Desert
4.18.25 – In a conversation that first ran last summer, City Councilor Nichole Rogers speaks with Senior Producer Lou DiVizio about the International District being labeled a “pharmacy desert” — and how she plans to address residents’ pharmaceutical needs. Correspondent: Lou DiVizio Guest: Nichole Rogers, Albuquerque City Councilor, District 6 For More Information: International District has become…
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Long COVID in NM and the Pandemic’s Lasting Effects
4.18.25 – Five years have passed since the COVID pandemic hit our state. In this interview that first aired last year, Executive Producer Jeff Proctor sits down with Santa Fe-based public defender Jennifer Burrill and Michael Bird, former president of the American Public Health Association, to talk about the physical and mental toll that Long…
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Gov. Lujan Grisham Signs State Budget, Vetoes Several Bills
4.18.25 – This week on New Mexico in Focus, we examine the state budget and some of the bills Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham vetoed. Correspondent: Jeff Proctor For More Information: Majority of New Mexico’s annual spending passes governor’s veto test – Source New Mexico