Features Reporter

David Madison

David Madison is an award-winning journalist and documentary producer based in Bozeman, Montana. He’s also reported for Wyoming PBS. He studied journalism at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and has worked at news outlets throughout Wyoming, Utah, Idaho and Montana.

Find David Madison

Envelope

Latest from David Madison

A West Yellowstone, Montana, thrill-shooting specialist keeps clients safe while making their machine gun dreams come true at Big Gun Fun.

Find Your "Inner Rambo" At Big Gun Fun In West Yellowstone

Want to shoot an MP5, AK-47, M16, M4, a KRISS Vector or a Thompson submachine gun like the one toted by Bonnie and Clyde? No problem. At Big Gun Fun in West Yellowstone, you can fire weapons most people only see in news footage and action films.

David MadisonMay 11, 2025

Smoking pot may be legal in some states, but it’s not in Yellowstone National Park. When asked by customers the best way to spark up in the park, a West Yellowstone cannabis seller advises don’t — getting stoned in Yellowstone invites a federal charge.

Cannabis Sellers Warn Against Taking Marijuana Into Yellowstone

Smoking pot is legal in some states, but it’s not in Yellowstone. That's why West Yellowstone cannabis sellers warn against taking marijuana into the park as it becomes a federal crime -- and the charges can be harsh.

David MadisonMay 11, 2025

Paul Dey, official and certified beer judge, enjoying a Jeremiah Johnson Brewing Co. beer at The Safari Club restaurant in Thermopolis in a file photo.

Wyoming Is The Second Most Expensive State For Beer Lovers

Beer in Wyoming isn’t as expensive as it is in Alaska, but buying a brew in the Cowboy State is the second highest in the country. Behind the high prices, several factors are at play: tourism, the cost of shipping and a bartender’s sensitivity to locals’ pricing.

David MadisonMay 10, 2025

An amendment attached to sweeping legislation moving its way through the U.S. House has ignited a debate over the sale of federally owned public land. Wyoming’s Harriet Hageman supports the move, while Republicans in other Western states oppose it.

Hageman And House Committee Open Up Sale Of Federally Owned Public Land

An amendment attached to legislation moving its way through the U.S. House this week opens federal land for sale in Utah and Nevada. Wyoming’s Harriet Hageman supports the move, while Republicans in other Western states oppose it.

David MadisonMay 09, 2025

Men Accused Of Dumping Wyoming Oil Field Waste In Utah Face Multiple Felonies

A pair of oil field waste haulers are accused of trying to cut corners and pocket more money by dumping Wyoming oil field waste near a town in Utah. They face multiple felony charges.

David MadisonMay 08, 2025

A coalition of 18 attorneys general from mostly blue states is suing the Trump administration over its directive to pump the brakes on wind energy permitting. Wyoming has plenty of wind turbines, but isn’t part of the lawsuit.

Group Of Mostly Blue States Sue Trump Over Halt Of Federal Wind Energy Permits

A coalition of 18 attorneys general from mostly blue states is suing the Trump administration over its directive to pump the brakes on federal wind energy permitting. Wyoming has plenty of wind turbines, but isn’t part of the lawsuit.

David MadisonMay 07, 2025

The site about 20 miles southwest of Green River could produce 6 million tons of soda ash and sodium bicarbonate a year.

BLM Approves New $5 Billion Pacific Soda Trona Mine Near Green River

The Bureau of Land Management announced Friday it's approved Pacific Soda’s proposed $5 billion Dry Creek Trona Mine Project south of Green River. The project promises hundreds of full-time jobs.

David MadisonMay 05, 2025

Expect More E-Bikes Than Ever On Wyoming Trails This Summer

From a new trail system in the Bighorns to a revised e-bike policy for U.S. Forest Service trails around Jackson, summer in Wyoming appears poised to bring out more e-bikers than ever.

David MadisonMay 04, 2025

The hit HBO MAX series "The Last of Us" has much of its dystopian future set in Jackson, Wyoming, is actually filmed in Albert, Canada.

Sheridan Filmmaker Couldn’t Push Incentives Through In Wyoming, So He Went North

Sheridan filmmaker Sen Patrick Higgins tried to help push Wyoming to give incentives for his industry to film more in Wyoming. When that didn’t work, he went to Montana and lobbied for them there.

David MadisonMay 03, 2025

Wyoming Star Ian Munsick Declares He Has ‘The Greatest Hair In Country Music’

Wyoming native Ian Munsick has real cowboy roots and talent fueling his career as a rising star in Nashville. He also boasts having something else no other artist can claim — the “greatest hair in country music.”

David MadisonMay 02, 2025

A mound of dirt dug out of the ground for water storage sits next to a drilling site at the Lost Creek project in south-central Wyoming. The water is needed to cool down the drill bit when digging for uranium.

Former Wyoming Legislator Now In EPA Approves Long-Delayed Uranium Project

Former Sheridan state legislator Cyrus Western, put in charge of the EPA’s Denver office by the Trump administration, has approved a long-delayed Wyoming uranium mining project. Western says it was past time for “getting government out of the way.”

David MadisonMay 02, 2025

Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon, left, signs a three-state nuclear power compact with Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and Idaho Gov. Brad Little.

Wyoming A Lynchpin In New Three-State Nuclear Compact With Utah, Idaho

Wyoming has emerged as a lynchpin of a three-state compact with Utah and Idaho signed this week to form a nuclear energy partnership. The TerraPower project near Kemmerer could be just the beginning of a small, modular nuclear reactor revolution.

David MadisonMay 02, 2025

Other Authors

Ethics Probe: Wyoming BLM Chief Accepted Gifts, Gave Girlfriend Travel Perks

Wyoming BLM Director Andrew Archuleta is on leave after an ethics probe by the Office of Inspector General, which alleges he accepted a gift dinner and drinks from a private company, and treated his girlfriend to travel perks on the BLM’s dime.

David MadisonMay 01, 2025

Seminoe Dam on the North Platte River southwest of Casper is one of Wyoming's hydropower-producing dams.

Hageman Says Wyoming Can Be Part Of Hydropower Boom Across West

Harriet Hageman says there needs to be more investment in hydropower projects across the West, including Wyoming. She says hydropower can be “the backbone of our region’s energy future.”

David MadisonApril 30, 2025

The American Lung Association has named Fremont County and Casper as having the cleanest air in the United States for year-round particles. At the same time, some Wyoming cities and counties received failing grades for certain types of air pollution.

Fremont County, Casper Have Cleanest Air In The U.S., Lung Association Says

The American Lung Association has named Fremont County and Casper as having the cleanest air in the United States for year-round particles. Casper tied with Honolulu for the No. 1 ranking on the list of cleanest cities for year-round particle pollution.

David MadisonApril 29, 2025

A pair of Wyoming Department of Corrections officers move an inmate.

Homeless Montana Man Awarded $27.75 Million For Vicious Prison Beating

A homeless Montana man whose conviction for sex assault was overturned won a $27.75 million judgment for a vicious beating he took in prison. A private prison company, which also does business with Wyoming, didn’t do enough to protect him, a jury found.

David MadisonApril 28, 2025

Rail cars roll into the Black Thunder mine empty and roll out full of Wyoming coal.

State Wants To Know How Much Coal Is Left In Wyoming, And Who Will Buy It

The Wyoming Energy Authority is preparing a first-of-its-kind analysis of Wyoming’s coal industry. It will determine just how much coal is left in Wyoming, and who will buy it if it’s mined.

David MadisonApril 28, 2025

The Wyoming/Gillette Mustangs had a timultuous three-season run as an indoor football team in northeast Wyoming from 2021-2023. The team folded in 2024, but now Gillette has a new indoor football team, the Wyoming Cavalry.

Wyoming Cavalry Will Return To Arena Football — In Gillette With A New Owner

New owners of the Wyoming Cavalry arena football team, formerly based in Casper, say they’re resurrecting the indoor football squad. It will play out of Gillette, where another team folded last year after three seasons.

David MadisonApril 27, 2025

Defense Contractor With Wyoming Ties Sues Firm Over Explosives Deal For Ukraine

Bizzell Corp., a defense contractor registered in Wyoming, is suing a Pennsylvania firm claiming it defrauded the company of $3.9 million in an explosives deal. The explosives were meant to help supply Ukraine and Israel with munitions.

David MadisonApril 27, 2025

Yucca glauca photographed in Central Wyoming.

Overlooked And All Over Wyoming, Yucca Can Be Your New Prickly Landscaping Choice

Rita Lovell didn’t plant the yucca that stole her heart. It volunteered, showing up on its own in the dry, rocky soil just outside her home. Often overlooked, yucca is all over Wyoming and is gaining popularity as a prickly choice in landscaping.

David MadisonApril 26, 2025

Oil And Gas Producers Want To Chill Despite Push To Drill, Baby, Drill

The Trump administration is pulling out all the stops to “drill, baby, drill” in a push for more oil and gas drilling on public land. But low oil prices have producers in Wyoming wanting to instead "chill, baby, chill” to boost the market.

David MadisonApril 26, 2025

Page 13