This is such a well put together podcast. Amazing to hear things that are so close to my home. I’ll be listening to it again. Please do more!

Loved this series, super informative and gripping! Bravo!!

Anna did a great job on this story. I remember when it first was released and read it in the news but then as time went on never followed up. She did a great job with the story. Coming from a deep ranching and farming background myself I thought the story was very well put together.

What did I love about this story? It is a story of ambition and fall from grace fueled by the perils of human vice, but it also provides a glimpse into the culture of rural communities, the cyclical nature of history, the inter-connectedness and dependence that all of the US has on rural areas - even if one doesn’t readily recognize it - and the consolidation of economic power that affects the lives of so many. One of the things that is striking to me: there is an economic democracy to rural owner-operator farms that appears to hang in the balance as the mega wealthy buy up farm land as investment property. This practice has the potential to squeeze out small operators who cannot compete and are forced into renting, an even more precarious position than farming land one owns. It sounds very much to me like a fight for survival and way of life as the family farm becomes a thing of the past. It’s a shame that some reviewers get so hung up on the inclusion of even a small bit of history about Native Americans being forced off their land, the very same land that lies at the heart of this story. Including that piece of history in the story is relevant to the themes of displacing the people, cultural histories, and stewardship of the land. One might have to look beyond their politics, however, to see it. Though I didn’t immediately jump on this podcast when it first came out, I’m glad I came across it now. I walked away with a greater empathy and appreciation for the rural communities that feed our nation. Also this is a powerful tale about how the consolidation of power into the hands of a few can put the well-being of communities and families at risk.

Hi Anna, I am born and bread in the Columbia Basin. I have listened to and read your reporting for years, a big fan. I really loved this effort, all of you, with music, reporting, compassion for a heart wrenching story that my family too is connected to. Continue your honest work, your serious reporting. Molly P

The first episode got me hooked!! I loved it soo much that I could listen all day!! 100/10

This was a great journalistic piece. Anna King is a great story teller with a capacity for objective views. The story of the great swindle neatly ties together the episodes that cover historical and current states of the agricultural industry in the Columbia basin. Anna does not make herself part of the story but manages to weave in tapestry of great mental visuals and some truly poetic descriptions of the land. A nice break from the sensationalist journalism so many outlets have relied on. Give it a try, you will learn a lot.

I loved it. Thank you.

Interesting story muddied up with anti “white folk” propaganda

Could have really gone into corporate farming, land rights, Bill Gates, fraud details, but seemed to wander about like an NPR focus group wrote the script. Now I love me some NPR but I’m hoping this podcaster can really dig in to a farm story next time.

I’m a Substitute Teacher because they needed them as we recovered from the plague. I drive A LOT! I grew up and live rural. I have a deep connection with the land. This one touched me on so many levels. If a corporate farm had down this they’d have gotten a bail out or some such thing. I’ve been watching the story about the rich buying up farmland and water rights unfold…that’s a story worth digging into too. Thanks for your time, effort, and down home delivery.

Now please go after the story you alluded to about Bill Gates owning so much land…and perhaps farming operations that are at odds with his climate initiatives? Thanks for all your good work!

This is an interesting story that has been told in the most repetitive way possible. I excuse some recap from episode to episode but this seems like it was mostly recap and filler (music and sound effects and sound bites from interviews). If it was a book I would say it needed a good editor with a sharpie. Could have been told in 1/3 if the time.

If only WSJ had been able to report this

Enjoyed the podcast and finished it, but almost turned off several time due to the subtle wokeness throughout. A little disappointed that she comes from a farming background but has allowed herself to become indoctrinated. Usually there’s more common sense from this crowd.

Really enjoyed this quicks 6! I want to know more!!

Couldn’t put my earbuds down

This was one of the best stories I’ve heard in ages! It was educational, interesting and fascinating. The information about the contract futures was particularly informative. Who knew! My uncle was a farmer and some of my cousins still are so I have great respect for Americas farmers. What Cody did was messed up! He’s an outlier from the others and I believe we need to do more to preserve and protect farmers and our ag heritage.

Finally a narrative podcast about rural America told by someone who has chosen to live there and understands the nuances of the subject. Too often it seems major media companies descend on small towns and as soon as they’re off the plane they have to belittle the natives who must be a bunch of rubes to live in these backwater places. No such conceits here as the storyteller lets us know the cattle business is big business and there are complex financial systems at play. The narrator doesn’t speak in condescending tones but clearly inhabits this same world. That’s not to say she’s uncritical of her subject but she’s comfortable talking center pivot irrigation and futures markets and knows this isn’t some hayseed operation but a tragedy at a cattle operation this size has the ability to affect your combo meal at Wendy’s. Highly recommended.

KUOW took a true American Greed tale complete with cattle rustling, gambling, and the LDS Church and made it boring.

The Easterday story is absolutely fascinating. However, Anna King’s telling of it through this podcast was not very good. Alongside repeating the same information over and over (this podcast could have taken place in a single one hour episode and would have provided the same information), Anna King uses this fake western accent that is just so…odd. It honestly made me take her reporting less seriously because it was so unauthentic. Also, I am not part of the Mormon Church, but I believe that she misrepresents them drastically in this story. Overall, I would suggest reading a news article about the Easterday story rather than listening to this podcast.

My partner and I thoroughly enjoyed this podcast because it’s interesting and educational in several ways: about the subject swindle and the family history, about agriculture in eastern Washington, and about the reporter’s own history and work. I have been a member of KUOW for decades and would love more podcasts like this one.

I started to get into the story because I found it interesting but often found myself turning it off because of the narration and the awkward interviews and also a lack of good interviews. It’s Drawn out too much so I’m giving up for now

So interesting and descriptive. I learned so much and couldn’t wait to keep listening.

As a renter with allergies to nearly every plant and animal out there, I was surprised to find myself so engrossed by this podcast. The reporter effortlessly weaves lyrical prose, beautiful imagery, and universal themes of the American experience into this narrative about a specific event that took place in a unique place and was orchestrated by a prominent man. Truly masterful.

I’m only halfway through but if I hear one more summary of who the Easterdays were and what the son did 😂 interest g topic…hope we get more of the actual story promised

Anna King tells an engaging story about ranching and family farming in the west that many of us know little about. Morality tale, family drama and family failings, and warning about where we're headed with our food supply and big "farma" profit motives. Ms. King's voice is authentic and knowing, adding credibility to the story's larger context.

This is so well researched and told, you’ll binge listen and not do anything else- just listen!

I finished this in one day and then couldn’t stop talking about it. My teacher brain is already planning on how to use this podcast with my juniors. Well done! There are so many themes within this short series. My only wish is that you dig more into the land that is bought up by corporations and billionaires. I wonder if other major churches purchase land like the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Really interesting podcast! Well researched and reported.

This story is a gem. It’s genesis is the core of it’s quality: the author coming from a farming family, the ten years she spent learning her beat, learning the history of the land, meeting the local farmers and working methodically to gain their trust. So much work put in. All of this was on display in her story. Her desire to include the experience of the indigenous people who lived on, with and in these same lands adds depth and poignancy.

I binged this podcast once I started! I learned so much about farming and the sad future farming will have! Shared it instantly with friends and family.

She’s not a good story teller

This is a good story but before even getting to the story, it just keeps repeating.. an repeating… And repeating how this family had an “empire” and repeating how they stole money … over and over and over. Found ourselves fast forwarding it to actually get to the story. And the narrators voice is so much louder than the the other people’s recorded voices. So we would trim it up and then it’s her voices blasting and hurry and turn it down.

Listened on a whim and glad I did. Very good telling of a true story. I couldn’t be happier for who won the bid (no spoilers) but the winner will be a good steward of the land and the business aspect. Very sorry for all the family is going through.

Found this podast while searching for another show called “Ghost Turds”. But once I started listening I got hooked. Happy accident.

This podcast was outstanding. Fascinating look at life in rural WA and the complexities that farmers deal with to make a living and grow our food. Loved all the angles you investigated and your persistence to get the story despite the obstacles. Great sound editing too!

Appreciate the journalism and overall production of this podcast. Seems there are more stories from this specific part of our country, briefly mentioned in the podcast, that need telling. Go ahead, Anna King. Keep up the good work.

I have a hard time listening because the host’s voice is so annoying.

Appreciated the different perspectives and interviews while reporting the case

This is an excellently reported and engaging story. Anna King shares this story with lots of thoughtful context and an empathetic eye. Loved it!!

Like so many new podcasts these days, episodes are full of repetition and dangling of additional information. Not going to waste my time anymore. I’m out after 3.

Great work

A podcast about a “…family, fraud, land and power in the American West.” Fact-based, unbiased, well-researched investigative reporting on the largest agricultural fraud case recorded in the USA. It also recounts the tragic history of Native Americans being forcefully displaced by settlers, American farmers losing their family land to the industrial agriculture gobbling up farmland and water rights across the Columbia Basin and vast swaths of America.

Not great. Constant filler. And not worth while filler. The story had interesting potential but the whole time you’re just hearing people say they’re shocked he did it and not actually how it happened. Then the drama of the speculation of the dad passing was just bad journalism. Then there is the awful farming metaphors and her sudden country accent. Just really reaching and bad story telling.

Story was interesting but the tangents was kind of annoying. What exactly does natives and their rights have to with Cody Easterday. Pick a topic and leave the subtle woke message out. Of course that’s NPR style

Too much filler. Cut to the chase.

This podcast is a tale or a yarn, depending on where you’re from that’s grounded in solid research and relationship building. A pretty darn good blend of solid reporting an artful storytelling. Give it a listen. This New York girl with a Pennsylvania and Texas rural heart found it captivating.

Wow. What a story! Heartbreaking, awakening, fantastic. Well done!

There are five minutes devoted to Native Americans and there are reviews on here with people being upset that it was even touched upon. There’s not enough inclusion in my opinion. What is the story about how the land was stolen and taken in the first place? Another generation of white people who keep stealing and lying; the never needing story. As a person of color, I was cringing, listening to white people make excuses for his appalling behavior. I can’t believe this was on NPR.