In this episode, Oklahoma Memo founder and curator Ryan Welton talks with engineer and entrepreneur Colby DeWeese about Tobe Energy, a hydrogen-tech startup with a prototype system designed to make green hydrogen cost-competitive with hydrogen made from fossil fuels.

The company has raised $1.8 million, built its own manufacturing and testing facility in Oklahoma City, and is partnering with Tulsa-based Zeeco to speed up commercial deployment.

Key topics discussed:

• Why hydrogen production hasn’t changed in over a century

• How current systems waste energy as heat — and how Tobe’s design fixes it

• Why hydrogen is already essential to agriculture, food and petrochemical industries

• How hydrogen solves the “solar and wind don’t run 24/7” problem

• The emerging market for synthetic fuels made from captured CO₂

• Why Oklahoma’s infrastructure, workforce and industrial land give it an edge

• The founder’s engineering background and the influence of his father’s work at TV Guide

In this episode, Ryan Welton talks with Caitlin Beasley, Policy Engagement Manager at Metriarch, and Amanda Gaddy, director of Women in Recovery’s parent-child reunification services at Family and Children’s Services, about the new “Paths to Recovery” report — a statewide look at maternal substance use, incarceration, and treatment-first solutions.

The report centers on interviews with Oklahoma women who have navigated substance use disorder and the professionals who serve them. One key finding: “We’re moving kind of in the wrong direction,” due to increasing felony child-neglect prosecutions against pregnant women — a trend that discourages them from seeking help.

Beasley and Gaddy stressed that treatment works, prison doesn’t, and meaningful reform requires funding, legislative change, and public understanding of addiction as a health issue, not a moral failure.

Resources Mentioned

🟢 Click or tap here for the 'Paths to Recovery' report

Major points from the conversation:

1. Maternal substance use was repeatedly identified in Oklahoma as a factor in infant and maternal mortality cases.
2. The 'Paths to Recovery' report is based on interviews with Oklahoma women who have navigated substance use disorder, and with the people who serve them.
3. Some women in Oklahoma are being charged with felony child neglect for using substances while pregnant.
4. Advocates say these prosecutions are rising and making the situation worse.
5. Fear of being punished keeps pregnant women from seeking help for addiction.
6. Most women struggling with addiction were victims first, often dealing with trauma and multigenerational cycles of incarceration and addiction.
7. Treatment-first programs like 'Women in Recovery' allow mothers to stay with their children while getting help, instead of going to prison.

From Bedlam heartbreak to baseball brilliance, Ryan (Boomer Sooner!) and Jeremy (Go Pokes!) tackle it all. They break down Oklahoma State’s dismal season and coaching search, Oklahoma’s identity crisis under Brent Venables, the national coaching carousel, the World Series, Thunder basketball, and even the CFL playoffs — complete with a proper poutine and Canadian football trivia.

Topics Covered:

• Oklahoma State’s unraveling season and future coaching direction
• Oklahoma’s quarterback struggles and Venables’ leadership test
• The growing contagion of college football firings
• Dodgers vs. Blue Jays: World Series predictions
• Early NBA storylines and the Thunder’s chemistry
• CFL playoff excitement and why the rouge rule matters

Call to Action:

Subscribe to Bedlam Buds wherever you get your podcasts, and sign up for Ryan’s daily newsletter at OklahomaMemo.com for morning sports recaps and Oklahoma insights.

This week’s Oklahoma Memo connects the dots between Shutdown Day 24, a Nov. 1 subsidy deadline, and the knock-on effects for families, farmers, and food prices. We talk through takeaways from a conversation with Sen. James Lankford, signals from Rep. Tom Cole, and a letter from at-risk House Republicans pressing Speaker Mike Johnson for action.

We also dive into the East Wing demolition: how the First Lady’s offices became central to American memory, why a new ballroom raises questions about private money on public grounds, and the unanswered maintenance and governance issues that follow. We close with USDA payments, SNAP realities in Oklahoma, and Barack Obama’s push on state redistricting.

• Shutdown leverage vs. governance—why temporary extensions might matter
• What East Wing history says about institutions and norms
• Farm support flowing amid uncertainty—and SNAP stakes for households
• Party dynamics ahead of key deadlines and holidays

• Oklahoma Memo newsletter (free, weekdays at 7:00 a.m.): oklahomamemo.com
• Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes (search “MIMS Pod”): https://www.youtube.com/@MIMSnewspod

Hashtags: #OklahomaMemo #Shutdown #EastWing #SNAP #USDA #HealthPolicy #Redistricting

In this special edition of Oklahoma Memo, host Ryan Welton sits down with Sen. James Lankford on Day 23 of the federal shutdown. The senator explains why talks broke down, what’s at stake for Oklahoma families, and how his Prevent Government Shutdowns Act could keep Washington working.

Topics include:

• Why shutdowns are “easy to start, hard to stop.”
• The fight over ACA subsidies and health-care spending.
• The impact on farmers, WIC recipients, and 687k Oklahomans on SNAP.
• Paying federal workers still on the job.
• Finding friendship and faith amid partisanship.

🎧 Listen on YouTube, Spotify, Apple podcasts, and OklahomaMemo.com

Hosts: Ryan Welton (Sooners) and Jeremy Cook (Cowboys)

Length: 40 minutes

Summary:

This week on Bedlam Buds, Ryan and Jeremy unpack a full sports weekend for Oklahoma fans: the Sooners’ dominant defense and revived ground game in a 26–7 win, the Cowboys’ “what-if” loss that turned on two devastating fourth-quarter plays, and a look ahead to OU’s game against Ole Miss and OSU’s test in Lubbock.

Plus: why the Thunder’s chemistry feels championship-caliber, how Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers are breaking baseball in a good way, and what the cloud outage that delayed the episode says about modern life (and grading finals).

In this episode:

• OU’s defense continues to set the tone
• John Mateer’s QBR surprises skeptics
• Why OU-Ole Miss might be a shootout—or a statement
• The OSU-Cincinnati turning point: third-and-16 and a 100-yard heartbreak
• Rodney Fields Jr. and signs of hope for the Cowboys
• Thunder roster talk: role players buying in, rotations that work
• Dodgers vs. Blue Jays preview: pitching, chemistry, inevitability

In this episode, Oklahoma Memo host Ryan Welton sits down with Andy Bigbie, founder of Bigbie Insurance and Benefits — Oklahoma Memo’s first advertiser and a lifelong entrepreneur.

Andy discusses:

• His journey from benefits consultant to serial entrepreneur
• Why he relaunched his insurance agency
• How he helps Oklahoma employers and employees navigate coverage
• Real-world tips for open enrollment and HSAs
• The outlook for Oklahoma’s economy and startups

📍 Episode length: ~30 minutes

🎧 Listen: OklahomaMemo.com or wherever you get your podcasts

💬 Leave a question for Andy in the comments!

#ad #OklahomaMemo #Podcast #Entrepreneurship #Insurance #Benefits #SmallBusiness #OKC

This week, Oklahoma Memo’s Ryan Welton welcomes back Grant Hermes, host of Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes, for a deep dive into how Washington decisions hit home in Oklahoma.

They discuss:

• The real-world fallout of the federal shutdown on rural healthcare, including hospital closures in towns like Stilwell.
• Why ACA and Medicaid subsidy expirations could leave Oklahomans hours from emergency care.
• A new Supreme Court case threatening the Voting Rights Act and what it could mean for minority representation.
• The growing “No Kings” protest movement planned for cities across America this weekend.

Grant also previews his new conversation with a University of Michigan professor on how rural hospital closures hollow out entire towns—economically and medically.

📰 Subscribe to Oklahoma Memo for daily local news at oklahomamemo.com

🎧 Listen and subscribe to Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or subscribe to his Substack.

Oklahoma Memo founder and host Ryan Welton sits down with Tulsa Flyer Executive Editor Gary Lee to talk about the launch of Tulsa’s newest nonprofit newsroom — and why it matters. Lee shares how community listening sessions sparked the project, how it will complement the Oklahoma Eagle, and what partnerships and sustainability plans will help it thrive.

Topics Covered:

• Why Tulsa Flyer was created
• The newsroom’s Tulsa-first mission
• Partnership with Oklahoma Eagle
• Collaborations with local outlets
• The Tulsa Documenters Program
• Sustainability and reader donations

Resources:

• TulsaFlyer.org
• Oklahoma Eagle
• Oklahoma Memo Newsletter

Ryan Welton and Jeremy Cook talk about the weekend that was in college football — an Oklahoma disappointment in Dallas against Texas, and an OSU loss at home to Houston.

What’s inside

• Breaking: Penn State fires James Franklin mid-season; the buyout shock and why donors/brand dynamics likely mattered.
• OU–Texas recap (23–6): Why the Sooners’ offense lacks an identity, what the defense did right, and why “saving the playbook” isn’t a thing.
• QB & staff talk: How OC philosophy, run-game development, and O-line issues are colliding for OU.
• OSU status check: Roster churn, injuries, and why “one mistake kills the drive” is the Cowboys’ current tell.
• Coaching carousel: Who rises, what profiles fit OSU (and why), and how fast a rebuild can really happen in the portal/NIL era.
• Look-ahead picks: OU at South Carolina (why it’s a must-stabilize week) and OSU vs. Cincinnati on Homecoming (how to manufacture an upset).
• MLB corner: Who's advancing to the World Series?