If you came looking for cat videos or galleries of criminal mugshots, sorry to disappoint, but you won’t find those here.

What you will find is reporting focused on local issues, specifically Great Falls and Cascade County government; agriculture, food security and the local food economy; Malmstrom Air Force Base, the Montana National Guard and the greater national security issues that make our corner of the world a major player on the world stage.

The coverage areas may expand over time as this site cements its identity and as our bench of contributors grows. But even then, you still won’t find cat videos or galleries of criminal mugshots unless there comes a day those things somehow impact your life beyond entertainment, gossip or page views for us.

If you’re wondering who I am, good question. I’m Jenn Rowell. Former city/military reporter for the Great Falls Tribune. During that time, my work also appeared in Air Force Times. Before that I did communications for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (the nonprofit that built the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in D.C.) and the National Museum of Health and Medicine. Prior to those few years in D.C., I was the military reporter for the Montgomery Advertiser in Alabama while also covering education, a small town, a city housing authority and more. Earlier on I worked and interned for the Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star and interned for the Daily Press, both in Virginia.

There’s a lot planned for this site, but we’ll start by catching you up on the things you may have missed over the last six months since they received little to no coverage.