PODCAST · news
The Scouting Lounge
by The Dakota Scout
The Scouting Lounge is a weekly podcast from The Dakota Scout, where award-winning reporters Joe Sneve and Jonathan Ellis ditch the gotcha journalism to bring candid, behind-the-scenes conversations with South Dakota’s political leaders, celebrities and newsmakers. Blending sharp insight with dry humor, the show offers a refreshingly human take on the headlines — plus a peek into the newsroom as Sneve and Ellis wrestle with the challenges of fair reporting in a polarized world. From the state Capitol to backstage passes, The Scouting Report is where South Dakota’s biggest stories meet its most honest voices. No scripts. No spin. Just real talk. www.thedakotascout.com
Episodes
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Passing the badge | Going home | Is the Bengs' ad fair? | Parking meter metrics | Legislator troubles | Oct. 10, 2026- Mike Milstead, Josh Phillips
SPONSORED BY BEAL DISTRIBUTING,FIRST BANK & TRUST,JUNA SLEEP SYSTEMS After nearly three decades leading the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff Mike Milstead is preparing to call it a career, handing the badge and the responsibility of leadershi...
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The Trump drag | Democracy, populism & ruling South Dakota | A viral confrontation | Is he a liberal? | 50%+1's two edges | Caring for neighbors | Oct. 3, 2026 - Brian Bengs, Ned Horstad, Elizabeth Schenkel
SPONSORED BY BEAL DISTRIBUTING, FIRST BANK & TRUST, JUNA SLEEP SYSTEMS On this episode of The Scouting Lounge, Joe Sneve and Jonathan Ellis sit down with three South Dakota voices at the center of the state’s political debates. Elizabeth Schenkel, exte...
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Election integrity | About Monea's endorsement | The auditors' admiral? | The political spark | Sept. 26, 2026 Heather Baxter
SPONSORED BY BEAL DISTRIBUTING, FIRST BANK & TRUST, JUNA SLEEP SYSTEMS The GOP nominee for South Dakota Secretary of State is Heather Baxter, an outgoing state lawmaker from the Black Hills. She discusses what it'll take to find integrity in the electi...
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Heavy reading | Energy ethics | DWIs spike | Asking the right PUC questions | World exploration & getting eaten | Asking for chains? | Sept 19, 2026 Don Haggar
SPONSORED BY BEAL DISTRIBUTING, FIRST BANK & TRUST, JUNA SLEEP SYSTEMS The GOP nominee for South Dakota Public Utilities Commission is Don Haggar, a former lawmaker and director with Americans for Prosperity, talks about the irony in running to be a re...
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Horse slaughter & smoking | 13 inches | 25 years since 9/11 | Commissioning public utility politics | Staying dry | Data center outrage & Chi-coms | Sept. 12, 2026 Frank Kloucek
SPONSORS Beal Distributing, First Bank & Trust, Juna Sleep Systems Legendary Democratic lawmaker Frank Kloucek returns to the Lounge, this time as a candidate for the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission.Reporter Todd Epp, a regular contributor to ...
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English origins | Coming to America | Coaching success | Data center lobbying | Defending the Flock | Zoo ask | Turfing a field | Sept. 5, 2026 James Oppenheimer
SPONSORED BY FIRST BANK & TRUST, BEAL DISTRIBUTING & JUNA SLEEP SYSTEMS Sioux Falls City Councilor James Oppenheimer makes his debut visit to the Scouting Lounge studio and discusses AI, data centers, Flock cameras, soccer and keeping a positive attitu...
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Beating a dead pandemic | Banking on journalism's future with The Collegian | Marijuana markets | The Scout's next big step | Aug. 29, 2026 Ben Nesselhuf
SPONSORED BY BEAL DISTRIBUTING, JUNA SLEEP SYSTEMS & FIRST BANK & TRUST Benjamin Nesselhuf, a former South Dakota lawmaker and state Democratic Party leader, talks about the legal cannabis industry and the regulatory climate governing his dispensaries ...
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Room for improvement | ‘Back to normal ... what we have here is good’ | A big job | The Democrats most winnable race? | Using AI to improve record keeping | Online & early voter registration
DID YOU MISS LAST WEEK’S SCOUTING LOUNGE? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up. Hit the link below to listen to “Asking hard qu...
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Asking hard questions | Connecting dots | Clinging to leadership | Flock camera hype | Surveying Smithfield | Surviving a fire | Hiring the right person
DID YOU MISS LAST WEEK’S SCOUTING LOUNGE? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up. Hit the link below to listen to “ Visiting Wrig...
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Visiting Wrigley | Winning state | Forging better athletes | New 9-to-5er | Making a majority | Hiding in the bathroom | Abnormally triggered | Building better businesses
DID YOU MISS LAST WEEK’S SCOUTING LOUNGE? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up. Hit the link below to listen to “ (STRONG LANGU...
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(STRONG LANGUAGE) ‘Doors win wars’ | Vanquished & helpful | Mr. Mandate? | Lessons of ‘02, ‘20 & ‘26 | Did it get in the meat? | The Fifth | Fauci's find, fine & failure
DID YOU MISS LAST WEEK’S SCOUTING LOUNGE? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up. Hit the link below to listen to “South Dakota R...
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South Dakota Republicans will decide | Final days, final attacks | Finding humor in high-stakes politics | Win or lose, what's next? | About those polls... | Audio wars
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Da...
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Twigs & Ernie | A 'nice' $69M surplus | The governor who shall not be named | Legislative-executive cooperation | Fighting over scraps? | Betty's choice
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Da...
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Remembering David | Congratulating Christine | Sneve's correction | Trolling with public info | Running proud | That other runoff | Constitutional communism?
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven...
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Blacklisted? | Political Covidians, cowards or 'Midwest Nice'? | Ellis & Joe's favorite Declaration signers | Power posturing | 'This level of smoke' | Founders, framers & America250
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven...
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A recount advantage | Get ready for court | A divided GOP | Tit for tat in the governor's race | Regulators | America250
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. And share this episode with your family and friends. Downloaded...
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EPISODE 200: 100 cops short | Lincoln Day dinners | McPherson County mania | Erickson-Smith predictions | Double standards & malicious politics | Prosecutor packing | Consolidated election failure
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Zak v. Zach | Sioux Falls Central District civic champions | Two campaigns, two runoffs | Art, walkability, Smithfield, data centers | Lowercase ‘l’ libertarian | Thinking bigger
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Doeden's Matt Hurley & Rhoden's Ian Fury collide | Bombing an intro | USD love, Med school move & keeping Verm alive | Good soldiers | Will civility last | Predictions?
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Toby's Babe Ruth call | The Doeden entourage | 'Simplifying' Sioux Falls civics | Double runoff? | A bunk tax filing or a false residency — choose one | Killing the messenger
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “Partying in Parkston | Hanging at Hansen’s |...
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Partying in Parkston | Hanging at Hansen's | In the K-12 trenches | The pipeline fight's spark | Polling, attack ads & a surge | Spending & sales tax
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Dusty's got pipes | A long-shot's 'Hail Mary' | Data centers, electricity & taxes | Not shooting straight | A dedicated Yote | Lemmon to USD | The grocer | Bad candidates | Homeless draw
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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DSU shines | Coalescing Sanford, Avera & Monument | Navigating new nurses | Skeletons & treasure | Blame Trump | Hunting elephants
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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The postmortem | Ellis & Lalley decompress | Handwritten notes & more debate rulebreakers | The best questions & answers | Sioux Falls mayoral hopefuls up next
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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(Steel) horses | Badlands dirt biking | Re-hooked on phonics | Classroom renegade | Why run? | War or Defense | A'bullsh*t' story | South Dakota's First Lady | SURFing with DSU
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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The mystery of the bogus candidates | 3 theories | 2020's sus count | What a county party does | Courting Dominion | Ballot drought | K-12 superintendent shoutouts
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Running while building | From S.D. Trade to the U.N. | Being Brittany Lindberg's husband | The Scout's Iranian subscribers
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Selling out & selling out | The politics of being A-political | Did $ioux Falls get $nubbed | Four Winds Arts & Music Fest | A wannabe musician's entitlement complex
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Jon & Joe reunite | Discovering mead | Turning trash into goods | Saving the world & trusting your gut | Hemp & Zahntech disruptions
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “Busy busting bad guys | Happy trees | The…
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Busy busting bad guys | Happy trees | The 'No' vote | Westward pork & city growth | Cop turned killer
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Gravy days of newspapering | Field guide for data centers | Building trust | Understanding rural concerns | 50 miles down the road | Pipeline poisoning
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Making a mayor mad | Crafting contracts | SNAP success | Stressing war | Balancing a budget | Policing in Sioux Falls | Creating a new tax
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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Senate lockdowns | Tonnes the Tie Breaker | Fighting for public education | Reading a room & to a room | Getting it wrong | High growth, high costs
The Dakota Scout and the Scouting Lounge podcast are subscriber supported. To receive new posts, episodes and stories and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid…
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'The Dicks' | TIFs, China & the American pork producer | The prison-Smithfield conspiracy theory | A GOP dark horse | Noem '26? | Concourse cash
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “A third penny in a post-penny world? |…
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A third penny in a post-penny world? | Hunting for CHICOMS & political posturing | Betting v. predicting | Fighting over scraps | The SNAP dilemma | Weather-driven smiles
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “Lounge carpet laying | Pipelines + prisons +...
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Lounge carpet laying | Pipelines + prisons + data centers = GOP leadership clash | SLAPPing back frivolous lawsuits | Betting on sports betting | An overdue Medal of Honor | Striking independence
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “A very bad day | Nosey neighbors | Rescued…
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A very bad day | Nosey neighbors | Rescued by a former legislator | Data center defeat | The GOP's consigliere | Nibbling on property taxes | Mayoral run lessons
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “Guess who’s back? | Recharged with a second...
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Guess who's back? | Recharged with a second chance | Civic engagement: ER edition | Foreigners, 'canucks' & headline wars | In the shadow of 'the seating incident'
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “A five-year itch? | Seat drama | Heading…
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A five-year itch? | Seat drama | Heading west | Future Fund feud | Winning by winging it | South Dakota's uniquely-shoddy postal system
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to County clash | Data center discourse…
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County clash | Data center discourse, flipping birds & Jamie to the rescue | Journalism's AI traps | Rallying for those in harm's way | Make Debates Great Again
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “Christmas ambush | Data center deluge | No...
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'Trump Derangement Syndrome is real' | Filibuster fortification | Reclaiming ceded presidential authority | Making 'em work | '26 & beyond
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “Christmas ambush | Data center deluge | No...
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Christmas ambush | Data center deluge | No subsidy for you | What's indoor recreation anyway? | Prison seminary | Leaving the barn door open | About that 'primary' debate
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “The Sporting Lounge? | All ball bearings —...
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The Sporting Lounge? | All ball bearings — 'and drones now' | A 10-game Marshall-Vikings win streak | Bullpen rebuild | Future Falls funding
The Dakota Scout and The Scouting Lounge are subscriber-supported. To receive new stories and podcast episodes and support local South Dakota journalism, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and...
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Rapid City's showdown | Targeting TIFs | Military matriarch | Speech or deception? | 1984 | Hutterite dresses
The Dakota Scout and The Scouting Lounge are subscriber supported. If you enjoy reading The Scout and listening to the newspaper’s weekly podcast, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid...
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The magic of Christmas | Robots are coming | Data center dividends & disruptions | Sioux Falls love | Homebuilding workforce
The Scouting Lounge is listener-supported. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber to The Dakota Scout. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it...
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Getting passed at 90 mph | First winter snow | Dusty Johnson's junk food gambit | LifeSource & second chances | Trump statue drama | TDS or TDS?
The Dakota Scout is reader and listener supported. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their...
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A political ghost | Forged in service | Prison push autopsy | Fundraising concession | Reasoning to run | Gov. Larry Rhoden
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “An interim councilor | Lobbyist distrust |...
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An interim councilor | Lobbyist distrust | Term limits | Candidate Rhoden | Leaving the Democrats | The Grinch, Moulin Rouge | Ellis '26?
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “Cannabis clash 5.0 | Electorate education |...
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Cannabis clash 5.0 | Electorate education | Defending public schooling with a homeschool perspective | Dusty's No. 2? | Finding wins amid dysfunction
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “Toilet humor | Dell Rapids’ good bones |…
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Toilet humor | Dell Rapids' good bones | Tough turbine blades | Regional teamwork | Mapping momentum with math | Parks v. Public Works | Airport funding turbulence
Did you miss last week’s episode of The Scouting Lounge? Downloaded hundreds of times since both free and paid subscribers of The Dakota Scout received it in their inboxes seven days ago, there’s still time to catch up, hit the link below to listen to “Property tax whiff | The young’s burden |...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
The Scouting Lounge is a weekly podcast from The Dakota Scout, where award-winning reporters Joe Sneve and Jonathan Ellis ditch the gotcha journalism to bring candid, behind-the-scenes conversations with South Dakota’s political leaders, celebrities and newsmakers. Blending sharp insight with dry humor, the show offers a refreshingly human take on the headlines — plus a peek into the newsroom as Sneve and Ellis wrestle with the challenges of fair reporting in a polarized world. From the state Capitol to backstage passes, The Scouting Report is where South Dakota’s biggest stories meet its most honest voices. No scripts. No spin. Just real talk.
www.thedakotascout.com
HOSTED BY
The Dakota Scout
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Scouting Lounge have?
The Scouting Lounge currently has 80 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Scouting Lounge about?
The Scouting Lounge is a weekly podcast from The Dakota Scout, where award-winning reporters Joe Sneve and Jonathan Ellis ditch the gotcha journalism to bring candid, behind-the-scenes conversations with South Dakota’s political leaders, celebrities and newsmakers. Blending sharp insight with dry...
How often does The Scouting Lounge release new episodes?
The Scouting Lounge has 80 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to The Scouting Lounge?
You can listen to The Scouting Lounge on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Scouting Lounge?
The Scouting Lounge is created and hosted by The Dakota Scout.
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