The Daily Rundown: August 21, 2026
⚾ Thanks to a new merger, Las Vegas Dodgers fans will be able to watch their favorite team in the comfort of their own home. Charter Communications announced its buyout of Cox Communications on Thursday, August 20.
The buyout cost $34.5 billion, according to online reports. Spectrum is the commercial brand name for Charter. By mid-September, Spectrum plans to launch its entire suite of products to all consumers in former Cox markets.
Since Spectrum SportsNet LA is the official television home for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Las Vegas residents will be able to catch the games at home. Charter Communications says the game on August 21 against the Pirates will be available on Channel 50 for Contour TV subscribers in Las Vegas.
Charter officials wrote in a statement that all Cox employees will soon have access to all programs and benefits offered by the company.
💈Nevadans spend the seventh-lowest percentage of their income in the U.S. when it comes to hair care. The personal finance company WalletHub recently analyzed the price of men’s barbershop haircuts and women’s beauty salon visits across the U.S.
The average cost for hair care is just over $70. That’s more than 1.08% of the monthly median household income. The lowest spending is in Virginia, where hair care costs residents 0.89% of their income.
Haircuts and other personal care services have increased by around 80% over the past two decades, according to a press release from WalletHub. Experts say focusing on a few core products tailored to your hair type can go a long way and help save you money.
🩷 Shade Tree, the largest domestic violence shelter of its kind in Las Vegas, has drawn its restoration and expansion projects to a close following a $1 million donation from a local philanthropic organization, the Smith Family Foundation, according to reporting by KNPR's Anne Davis.
The shelter had to undergo restoration after a catastrophic pipe burst last January.
Shade Tree’s 25-year-old building now has 250 shelter beds, the most of any local domestic violence shelter with a public address. The beds are redesigned to offer more privacy than the old, barracks-style arrangement.
Shade Tree’s CEO, Linda Perez, said this increased privacy gives the women and children the nonprofit serves a better trauma recovery experience.
“Giving them their own space, their own bed, their own nightstand with a rug and the lamp and the outlets. It's just a better environment for them. I mean, when you think about it, who wants to be in a shelter in the first place?”
Perez said the addition of these beds, along with the extra programs staff poured resources into developing during the renovations, means the shelter is now in an even better position to serve women, children and pets fleeing violence.
The shelter has already placed over 120 clients in the new beds — that's more than double what was available while the renovations were taking place, since Shade Tree kept its doors open during construction.
According to a survey conducted last September by the National Network to End Domestic Violence, domestic violence hotlines received over 230 Nevada-based calls in a single 24-hour period.
🌲 National Park Week begins Saturday, August 22, in honor of the National Park Service’s 110th birthday. Park staff will waive entrance fees on August 25 to mark the day the Park Service was created in 1916.
This year’s theme is “Celebrate America’s Story” in honor of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. Nevada has one officially designated national park, Great Basin National Park. The National Park Service, however, manages more than 400 sites around the country. The week wraps up on Sunday, August 30, with National Junior Ranger Day.
🏗️ The Athletics' stadium on the Las Vegas Strip is beginning to resemble the final product, with the second steel truss arch added this week for what will eventually provide a similar look to Australia's famed Sydney Opera House.
“This week was a very exciting week,” said Tyler Van Eeckhaut, project director for contractors Mortenson-McCarthy. “We set the center truss, which kicks off with a tremendous amount of work for the next upcoming months."
A's President Marc Badain said following Thursday's Las Vegas Stadium Authority meeting that the $2 billion, 33,000-person-capacity domed ballpark remains on schedule to be completed in time for the 2028 season.
“I think everyone's very pleased,” Badain said. “The workforce in this community has delivered on hundreds of projects over the last 30, 40, 50 years, so certainly we're not surprised. It's nice to see the vision come to life and see the trusses come up and take their part in the skyline, and it's going to be a nice anchor on the south part of the Strip. Certainly the first building you see when you land at Harry Reid Airport.”
There was a concern at the prior Stadium Authority meeting over whether the A's might have to build a temporary plaza to be ready when the ballpark opens. Bally’s Corp. at that time hadn’t yet raised financing for an elevated plaza on the property as part of a $1.19 billion mixed-use project that includes restaurants, shopping and entertainment in addition to a hotel-casino and 2,500-seat theater.
But Bally's, as originally planned, now will move forward with the project without the need for the A's to construct a temporary setup.
Part of these stories are taken from KNPR's daily newscast segment. To hear more daily updates like these, tune in to 88.9 KNPR FM.
