{"id":49189,"date":"2026-06-05T14:07:03","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T21:07:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newmexicopbs.org\/productions\/newmexicoinfocus\/?p=49189"},"modified":"2026-06-05T14:07:05","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T21:07:05","slug":"nmif-hearkens-back-to-the-line-to-hash-out-the-primary-election","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newmexicopbs.org\/productions\/newmexicoinfocus\/nmif-hearkens-back-to-the-line-to-hash-out-the-primary-election\/","title":{"rendered":"NMiF Hearkens Back to The Line to Hash Out the Primary Election"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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If you\u2019re a longtime New Mexico in Focus viewer, you\u2019ve no doubt noticed a shift in how we produce the show over the last few years and the kinds of segments we feature. You may even have strong feelings about it one way or another. I received an email from one such viewer over the weekend lamenting the end of The Line, an opinion panel segment that used to make up the bulk of our program. I\u2019ve also heard from people who applaud the shift we\u2019ve made under the leadership of Executive Producer Jeff Proctor, some who\u2019ve returned to watching the show after some time away, or who started watching regularly for the first time because of it. But since I know this displeased viewer is not without her allies, I wanted to share part of my response to her:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur thinking behind the new approach, which actually began well before I joined the team, was to move away from opinion and toward vetted news and news analysis. While the back-and-forth may be less consistently lively in your opinion, I can assure you the information the guests share is more consistently accurate. And when it’s not, as you saw in the gubernatorial candidate interviews, we fact-check it. I believe accurate news is a better public service for a public broadcaster to offer \u2014 especially in an era chock full of influencers, bloggers and podcasters \u2014 than opinions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, as compared to The Line, when a steady cast of characters would be asked to discuss a long list of hot topics, our more varied guests today are experts on the topics they\u2019re discussing. I believe that also adds value to the conversations we bring you with them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, bolstering news and downplaying opinions is also more in line with the professional experience of our current slate of producers, including myself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I also let this viewer know that, despite all this, she was in luck this week. Our team does still believe there\u2019s a time and place for a group of sharp, engaged, opinionated locals to gather around the table and hash out a big news story. The days following an election being an ideal one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, this week, we welcome back two longtime regulars on The Line \u2014 former Democratic state Senator Dede Feldman and public relations executive Merritt Allen \u2014 for a lively conversation about their takeaways from Tuesday\u2019s primary elections and what they think will matter come November (spoiler: it\u2019s not the candidates\u2019 policy positions).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While that makes up a good chunk of this week\u2019s show, we also round it out with a bit of what we do best these days. I sit down with Source New Mexico Reporter Danielle Prokop to get the details of a news story she\u2019s been following for years that just had a big development. The U.S. Supreme Court accepted an agreement over the Rio Grande Compact last week, settling 13 years of litigation surrounding how New Mexico and Texas share the river\u2019s water. Prokop catches us up on what happened, what it means and how we got here. We\u2019ll also take you into the field with Indigenously Positive, NMPBS\u2019 award-winning collaboration with nonprofit news organization New Mexico In Depth, to explore the healing power of skateboarding in Native American communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NMiF can\u2019t please everyone all the time, but tonight\u2019s episode may get close. Join us for a spirited post-election opinion panel, news about a consequential Supreme Court decision straight out of a reporter\u2019s notebook, and a trip out of the studio to learn about something joyful happening in our community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

-Nash Jones, Host<\/p>\n\n\n\n