rural

In late July, the Postal Service cut back on services in 540 of Missouri’s ZIP codes by reducing mail collection from morning and evening to morning-only collection. And residents have already noticed the shift.

Federal dollars will help bring internet connection to rural communities across the U.S. But new guidance from the Trump administration is asking states to consider the lowest-cost options. What's the status of efforts to fund broadband infrastructure?

The Trump Administration asked states to find the lowest-cost option in the latest program to build broadband infrastructure in rural areas. That opens the door for more types of technology, which some worry could be less reliable in the long-term.

More than 100 rural grocery stores in Kansas closed their doors from 2008 to 2018. But an initiative that invests in rural communities is keeping small groceries afloat.

Kansas farmers are hurting after China’s retaliatory tariffs on the United States closed a major market for the state’s biggest crop. Despite a productive year, farmers across Kansas may not break even.

The past couple of decades have been tough on newspapers. Kansas has lost about 50 publications in the past 20 years. As owners of many small, family-run newspapers are getting older, it’s uncertain who will keep the presses running when they retire.

Small Kansas high schools are switching to six-man football to keep their teams alive, while their towns’ populations shrink. And state high school sports officials think it’s a trend that will likely grow.

Without congressionally approved funding, public media stations say communities will be left with aging infrastructure amid growing risks from extreme weather.

In "Small Town Missouri," Caitlin Yager tours rural locales around the Show-Me State. Her goal was to "humanize" communities outside the big cities, as well as highlight niche attractions like historic spas and haunted sites.

Public radio and television stations in rural areas may be hit the hardest after Congress clawed back $1 billion for public broadcasting.

Talks of overhauling the U.S. Postal Service have picked up since President Donald Trump began his second term. With service cutbacks already underway and privatization on the table, rural residents are bracing for more disruptions. Plus: There are more than 40 species of fireflies in Missouri, but for the past few years, people have been concerned about the populations diminishing.

As a new Postmaster General with ties to FedEx assumes control of the agency, postal workers and their customers are bracing for either scenario, especially as corporate America weighs in.