Local News

The matte grey siding of Meta’s largest running data center campus in the U.S. is visible from the window of the Wild Rooster Bar and Grill, which opened six months ago in Prineville. Outside on the patio, a group of data center employees chew on sandwiches and toss cornhole bags. Inside, the bartender says her husband just got hired, too. But it’s no use asking about it. The workers are sworn […]

Deschutes County Interim Sheriff Rupert says he’s projected to save taxpayers $1 million in the coming fiscal year. Yet some of these cost-cutting measures run the risk of financial pitfalls down the road. Deschutes County Commissioners approved the $72.16 million budget for the Sheriff’s Office on June 17, which is about 16% of the County’s […]

The Bend Police Department has made good on its intention to shore up its internal policy on automated license plate reader technology with Senate Bill 1516. As more law enforcement agencies adopt surveillance technologies, both government leaders and the public are calling for more scrutiny and oversight. Part of that scrutiny involves who gets access […]

An emergency training center nearly 10 years in the making is on the verge of starting construction in east Redmond, but not before local agencies move dozens of homeless people living in tents and trailers.   Deschutes County staff are drafting agreements to pave the way for CORE3, a planned training facility for police officers and firefighters that will double as a coordination center in emergencies. The agreements would let the County lease the undeveloped […]

Six Oregon metro areas have some of the highest rates of alcohol-induced death in the nation for people 65 and older, according to a recent industry study. Roseburg (second), Eugene-Springfield (fourth) and Medford (fifth) are among the top five nationally. Salem (ninth), Bend (11th) and the Portland metro area (15th) fill out the ranks with […]

When her son began receiving free books in the mail at his grandmother’s Washington house, Claire Catt jumped into action. A mother of two “program graduates” from a program which now provides free books every month to children under the age of 5 in states across the country, Catt began pulling volunteers together in 2018. […]

The Discovery West neighborhood will be one of the first to kick off this year’s fourth of July celebrations; drone style. Discovery West is a new neighborhood by the team behind the Northwest Crossing development.  The free event, “Stars and Stripes” will be celebrating the nation’s 250th birthday Friday, July 3. Its main star of […]

In the medical world, artificial intelligence is being used in multiple ways to improve efficiencies and patient care. Last year, St. Charles Health System began offering doctors an AI software program called DAX. So far, 125 primary care providers and workers in ambulatory settings at St. Charles are using it. The physicians use an app […]

Navigating the balance between an appropriate use of AI technology in schools and creating human bots is a delicate, complex issue. In April, the Bend-La Pine School Board passed a resolution requiring the school district to review the use of all technology and apps and create standards for tech use at different grade levels. Communications […]

As some recent university graduates expressed with loud boos during the commencement speeches of pro-AI speakers, artificial intelligence is cause for concern, not excitement, as they enter an increasingly automated workforce.  For starters, studies have shown that AI has already — or stands to — replace millions of entry-level and mid-level positions throughout myriad industries. Think computer programmers, commercial jingle writers and — gulp — some types of journalists. If […]