Welcome to The Colorado Sun's daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. Every day we’re sharing an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. For more visit us at https://coloradosun.com/.
Listeners of The Daily Sun-Up that love the show mention: local news, way to start the day, great way to start, concise, well produced, morning, daily, high, informative, always, like, listening, love, colorado sun.
The Daily Sun-Up podcast from The Colorado Sun is a must-listen for anyone looking to stay informed on local news and issues. As an online member of The Colorado Sun, I was thrilled when they started this podcast earlier this year. It has quickly become one of my favorite daily podcasts, alongside national news shows like NPR's Up First and NYT's The Daily.
One of the best aspects of The Daily Sun-Up is its format. It delivers the news in a concise and digestible manner, making it perfect for those who don't have a lot of time to listen to long podcasts. Each episode packs a punch and covers a range of local headlines and stories. I particularly enjoy the history segment, which adds an interesting depth to the show. Additionally, the production quality is top-notch, with catchy strings music that sets the mood for each episode.
Furthermore, The Daily Sun-Up does an excellent job of balancing local issues with a nod to the world at large. While it focuses on Colorado news, it connects these stories to broader themes and events happening globally. This approach makes it more than just a local news podcast; it provides context and global relevance to the topics discussed.
However, there are a few aspects that could be improved upon in The Daily Sun-Up. One suggestion would be to include direct links to the articles highlighted in each episode in the show notes. This would allow listeners who want more information about specific stories to easily access them without having to search separately on The Colorado Sun's website.
In conclusion, if you're interested in staying up-to-date with what's happening in Colorado or have a general interest in state affairs, I highly recommend listening to The Daily Sun-Up podcast from The Colorado Sun. It offers informative and concise reporting that covers a wide range of topics while maintaining the high quality that we've come to expect from this unique publication. Whether you're a longtime Colorado resident or simply curious about local news, this podcast is a valuable addition to your morning routine.

Today we revisit a conversation about happiness with Dr. June Gruber. Dr. Gruber is a clinical psychologist and full Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Colorado Boulder, where she directs the Positive Emotion and Psychopathology Laboratory.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun director of development Alyssa Pinkerton looks at the growth in support for The Sun this year and what plans are ahead as the newsroom and operations teams plan to grow and cover even more of Colorado. coloradosun.com/supportSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, we're revisiting our conversation with Conor Hall, director of Colorado’s Outdoor Recreation Industry Office and a Colorado native. Hall talks about leading and growing the state’s $65 billion outdoor economy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, we’re revisiting a 2023 conversation with Christina Holbrook, who rushed to self-publish her first novel after a brain cancer diagnosis made her worry the traditional publishing timeline wouldn’t move fast enough to bring her book into the world. The leap paid off: the novel went on to win a Colorado Book Award for romance.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today – we’re revisiting a talk about holiday cheer, as Sun writer Kevin Simpson chats with the Colorado woman behind thousands of visits with that jolly old elf, Santa Claus.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today - we're revisiting a conversation about how NORAD in Colorado Springs uses their aerospace technology for a very important holiday mission: tracking Santa Claus. https://coloradosun.com/2023/12/22/norad-santa-tracker-2023/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun outdoors reporter Jason Blevins has updates on the ski and snowboarding season, including the return of Cuchara ski hill in southern Colorado, a new feature about getting better on the snow and now free access to his Outsider newsletter starting Jan. 1.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Colorado Music Experience's G. Brown talks with the Sun's Kevin Simpson about some key figures in Colorado's music history.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun water reporter Shannon Mullane checks in from the annual Colorado River conference in Las Vegas. The top water officials in the Western U.S. are together as a water-sharing agreement among the seven states is still pending. https://coloradosun.com/2025/12/17/colorado-river-gathering-rhetoric-concerns-las-vegas/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Unaffiliated voters now make up half of the electorate in Colorado. A new poll is shedding light on this crucial bloc. Colorado Sun political reporters Jesse Paul and Taylor Dolven dug into the data. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/12/15/colorado-unaffiliated-voters-poll-2025/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since the start of the Trump administration’s tariffs, Colorado global exports grew 6.3% between January and August, compared with the same period in 2024, and imports fell 2.6%. Today, Colorado Sun business reporter Tamara Chuang breaks down the tariff’s effects on Colorado companies. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/12/15/colorado-trump-tariffs-havenly-imports-exports-trade/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Can a billionaire be the model for swiftly addressing the high-country housing shortage? Today, outdoors reporter Jason Blevins discusses a new housing project in Steamboat Springs backed by a tech-focused venture capitalist.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Author César Garcia Hernandez talks to the Sun's Kevin Simpson about his book on immigration politics and policy, "Welcome the Wretched".See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we're joined by Cameron Kirkegaard, a senior at Grand Junction High School, who recently released a documentary he made called Line of Fire, about sexual assault on the U.S. Biathlon Team – that’s skiing and shooting – that has gone unaddressed for decades.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's Sun-Up, Temperature newsletter reporters Michael Booth and John Ingold offer updates on a surprising settlement over religious exemptions for Covid vaccines, and readers' burning questions about a state push to stop burning natural gas in homes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun business reporter Tamara Chuang reviews the annual Colorado economic forecast put together by the business school at University of Colorado and how that outlook is filled with uncertainty going into 2026. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/12/08/chaos-uncertainty-economy-colorado-predictions-forecast/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun outdoors reporter Jason Blevins talks about how the new book “The Way Out” by Colorado author Devon O’Neil can be a model to help advance the conversation on what we learn from mountain tragedies and dealing with the fallout and trauma.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Author Jenny Powers joins SunLit editor Kevin Simpson to discuss "On the Origin of Being".See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun arts and culture reporter Parker Yamasaki digs into the growing number of holiday markets around Colorado and places where you can still find that unique gift while helping local small businesses. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/colorado-holiday-markets/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Colorado lawmakers were recently warned that the state is stuck in a cycle of annual billion-dollar budget shortfalls. Colorado Sun political reporter Jesse Paul discussed the situation with Arlo Pérez Esquivel on the Colorado Today podcast from Colorado Public Radio Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/11/17/colorado-budget-cycles-1-billion-shortfall-medicaid/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we look into the rocky future of the Rocky Mountain Regional Patent Office, which was slated to close during the shutdown and shift remaining employees to Virginia, and now may be relocated somewhere else in the West. Tamara Chung joins to explain what these shifting federal decisions could mean for Colorado and its workers.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun outdoors reporter Jason Blevins takes us up to the hills outside of Paonia for updates on a project to turn potent methane leaking from an abandoned coal mine into less harmful carbon dioxide. Celebrating the DPS ExperienceSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun director of development Alyssa Pinkerton and membership manager Danika Worthington discuss ways listeners like you can get involved in supporting Colorado with free, trustworthy news by supporting nonprofit journalism. Gift membership: https://coloradosun.com/gift-membership Black Friday: https://giving.coloradosun.com/page/black-friday-2025 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Author Mark Easter chats with The Colorado Sun's Kevin Simpson about his book "The Blue Plate: A Food Lover’s Guide to Climate Chaos".See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Historian Derek Everett joins The Colorado Sun’s Kevin Simpson to explain the strange years when Colorado celebrated two Thanksgivings.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we're talking with Colorado Sun business reporter Tamara Chuang about the cost of the Thanksgiving meal in Colorado this year. Many expected costs to be higher this year, but they're not. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/11/22/thanksgiving-dinner-prices-colorado-grocery-2025/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Thanksgiving holiday week is the unofficial start of the Colorado ski season. Today, Sun outdoors reporter Jason Blevins has a preview of the new stuff this winter across the state, big Colorado events before the Olympics and his always optimistic hope for the snow to pick up.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

G. Brown, veteran music journalist and executive director of Colorado Music Experience, joins The Sun’s Kevin Simpson to dish out a Thanksgiving musical feast. From Colorado classics to unexpected holiday favorites, they share the songs, stories, and sounds that set the tone for the season.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun reporter Olivia Prentzel looks at how a Denver-area investigator who relied on Flock cameras to build a theft case was disciplined after falsely accusing a woman of stealing a $25 package. She had her own evidence. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/11/12/columbine-valley-office-flock-camera-extra-training/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Colorado may have just had a statewide election, but the Colorado Sun's politics team is already turning its attention toward the midterm elections next year. Sun political reporter Jesse Paul was recently on Purplish, the podcast produced by CPR News and the Colorado Capitol News Alliance, to talk about what's on the horizon.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Colorado Sun business reporter Tamara Chuang digs deeper into rent decreases across the metro Denver area and how and why it has become a renter’s market right now. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/11/17/rent-prices-denver-falling-apartment-data/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun outdoors reporter Jason Blevins sifts through results from the Colorado communities looking to tax tourists more and how those ballot measures fared across the state, with some surprises. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/11/10/tourism-taxes-election/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Director Victor Hogan II and Writer Alan Brooks talk talk about their collaboration on bringing Brooks's graphic novel to the screen with "Always, Most of the Time".See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Colorado Sun rural reporter Tracy Ross has updates on the Colorado wolf reintroduction as it approaches the two-year mark of when the first wolves were released in Colorado.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Michael Booth and John Ingold talk about a controversial highway expansion in Denver, plus a hospital merger in Estes Park.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Colorado Sun arts and culture reporter Parker Yamasaki breaks down the latest report on the arts in the metro Denver area and how the pandemic recovery is coming along. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/11/08/arts-theater-economy-colorado/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun outdoors reporter Jason Blevins looks into a major land sale in southern Colorado and how concerns about the Trump administration’s plans for public lands could derail the plan.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kevin Fitzgerald, veterinarian and author, sits down with The Colorado Sun's Kevin Simpson to discusses his memoir "It Started with a Turtle"See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Colorado Sun is embarking on a yearlong project to take a hard look at child care issues in Colorado. Today, Sun education reporter Erica Breunlin talks about what she and other reporters will dive into and who they are wanting to hear from.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser has sued the Trump administration more than 40 times since January. Colorado Sun political reporter Taylor Dolven has been tracking the cases and Weiser's win-loss record. She joined fellow political reporter Jesse Paul to talk about what she's found. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/08/04/colorado-attorney-general-phil-weiser-lawsuits-trump/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today Colorado Sun business reporter Tamara Chuang about the evolution of Colorado Gives Day, why it’s more than a day and how it went from $8 million in 2010 to nearly $55 million last year. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/11/01/colorado-gives-day-lasts-39-days-food-bank-snap/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The mountain town of Nederland is regrouping after a major fire destroyed about 30% of the town’s businesses last month. Today, Colorado Sun rural reporter Tracy Ross has updates from the community west of Boulder. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/10/29/businesses-rebuild-after-nederland-fire/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today: Author Allyson Reedy chats with Colorado Sun reporter Kevin Simpson about her new F. Scott Fitzgerald-inspired book, "Mrs. Wilson's Affair".See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today - Sun reporter Tracy Ross talks to award-winning journalist, Nate Schweber, about his new book “This America of Ours: Bernard and Avis Devoto and the Forgotten Fight to Save the Wild”.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today: our health and environment reporters talk about shockingly high costs for people buying health insurance on Colorado's exchange, and whether climate change is disrupting the schedules of the buds and the bees on Pikes Peak.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today Colorado Sun business reporter Tamara Chuang breaks down why rent is dropping in the Denver metro area, and what to expect in the next few months. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/10/22/rent-fall-concessions-denver/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sun outdoors reporter Jason Blevins looks into recent developments in public land access and how river users, landowners and lawmakers are reviving a contentious, decades-long debate over river access in Colorado. cosun.com/mobile-appSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, G. Brown, director of the Colorado Music Experience, joins The Colorado Sun’s Kevin Simpson to talk about the legacy of KBCO’s Studio C—how it began, the artists who helped define it, and its lasting impact on Colorado’s music scene.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we're talking to early childhood reporter Ann Schimke from Chalkbeat Colorado about a slew of local ballot measures focused on raising local dollars for child care.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Politics reporters Jesse Paul and Taylor Dolven discuss their recent reporting on a retreat in Vail where a group of Democratic state lawmakers mingled with lobbyists. Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/10/17/colorado-opportunity-caucus-one-main-street/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Read more: https://coloradosun.com/2025/10/16/colorado-digitize-analog-records-historic/ Today, Colorado Sun business and tech reporter Tamara Chuang discusses the $21 million project across the state to digitize public records dating back to the 1800s.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.