About Western Montana News | Independent News. Bold Opinions.

About

Founded in 2021, Western Montana News is an independent, community-powered platform delivering bold opinions and in-depth news coverage. We focus on the people, culture, and events shaping our region, offering perspectives you won't find elsewhere.

As a proudly independent and locally owned publication, we are committed to truthful reporting, bold opinions, and keeping our communities informed and engaged. Our goal is to amplify local voices and highlight issues that matter most to Western Montana.

Publisher

Publisher & Founder

Roy McKenzie, founder and publisher of Western Montana News, is dedicated to delivering honest, independent reporting that highlights the people, culture, and issues shaping Western Montana. Since launching in 2021, he has led the publication with a commitment to straightforward coverage and diverse community perspectives.

Under his leadership, Western Montana News continues to inform and engage readers while staying true to its local, independent roots.

Contact Roy: [email protected]

Contact Us

Phone
‪(406) 219-1491‬

General Inquiries
[email protected]

Op-Ed's & Letters
[email protected]

Press Releases
[email protected]

Mailing Address
2120 S. Reserve Street #1087
Missoula, Montana 59801

Contributors

Western Montana News is powered by a diverse group of local contributors, each bringing unique perspectives and expertise. Among them are a retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel, a University of Montana law professor, and a leading pro-life advocate. Our contributors also includes prominent business leaders, local physicians, parents, and a former Missoula City Council member, all committed to providing straightforward analysis and independent viewpoints.

Together, their voices shape the stories we tell—offering insight, opinion, and investigative depth that keep Western Montana informed.

Want to contribute? Email [email protected].

<img alt='Roy McKenzie' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/avatar-roy-1717650118239-500x500.jpeg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/avatar-roy-1717650118239-1000x1000.jpeg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Roy McKenzie is the Publisher of Western Montana News, where he reports on local government, politics, and current events in Missoula County. His work includes coverage of local responses to key events, election integrity, and political developments shaping Western Montana.

<img alt='Darin Gaub' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/cropped-darin-gaub-avatar.webp' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/cropped-darin-gaub-avatar.webp 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Darin Gaub is a retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel, Blackhawk pilot and commander, and the author of VERITAS VINCIT. He serves as Montana State Director for the State Freedom Caucus Network and is Editor in Chief of The Montana Sentinel, with additional editorial roles at CD Media and Armed Forces Press. A frequent guest on Fox News, NTD, and Newsmax, his work appears in outlets such as The Epoch Times, Real Clear Politics, Real Clear Defense, and others.

<img alt='Travis Mateer' src='https://www.freemissoula.news/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/travis-mateer-500x500.jpg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/travis-mateer-960x1000.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Travis "William Skink" Mateer is an artist and citizen journalist documenting the New Normal in Missoula, Montana. Read more of his work at Zoom Chron.

<img alt='Steve Rossiter' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/steve-rossiter-e1631124946961.jpg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/steve-rossiter-e1631124946961.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Steve Rossiter is a 21-year Missoula resident and a retired aviation professional from federal civil service.

<img alt='Robin Sertell' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/cropped-robin-sertell-headshot.jpeg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/cropped-robin-sertell-headshot.jpeg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Robin Sertell is an author, speaker, and pro-life activist who was miraculously saved from three saline infusion abortion attempts before she was born. She currently serves as the Chair of Montanans for Life, a pro-life political advocacy group focusing on creating a culture of life in Montana.

<img alt='Roger Mitchell' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/avatar-roger-1715490208452.jpeg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/avatar-roger-1715490208452.jpeg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Roger Mitchell is a self-taught builder, writer, and web developer with 35 years in residential construction who writes about current events, politics, religion, and philosophy from his home in western Montana. Roger is Publisher at Poor Roger's Almanac.

<img alt='Roger Koopman' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/cropped-roger-koopman-avatar-scaled-1.jpg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/cropped-roger-koopman-avatar-scaled-1.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Roger Koopman is president of Montana Conservative Alliance. He served four years in the Montana House of Representatives and eight years as a Montana Public Service commissioner. He operated a Bozeman small business for 37 years.

<img alt='Zachery Schmidt' src='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/cropped-zachery-schmidt-headshot.jpg' srcset='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/cropped-zachery-schmidt-headshot.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Zachery Schmidt

Zachery Schmidt is the founder of The Montana Chronicles and a freelance journalist with nearly a decade of experience in conservative media, with bylines in The Tennesse Star, Daily Caller, and The College Fix.

<img alt='Trevor Walter' src='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/cropped-trevor-walter_headshot-500x500.jpg' srcset='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/cropped-trevor-walter_headshot.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Trevor Walter, a fourth-generation Montanan from Sheridan, is a constitutional conservative running for House District 69. He and his wife Kerry co-founded Freelance Marketing Group, one of Montana’s oldest digital marketing firms, and his family has run Charles Walter Inc., the state’s oldest family-owned grocery, for over 135 years. With three decades of business experience, Trevor aims to bring accountability, fiscal discipline, and Montana values to Helena.

<img alt='Bill Lussenheide' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/cropped-bill-lussenheide-headshot.jpg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/cropped-bill-lussenheide-headshot.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Bill Lussenheide

Bill Lussenheide lives in Florence Montana, and is an elected Ravalli County Republican Central Committeeman, and serves as Treasurer for the Montana State Republican Party.

<img alt='Leslie D Soule' src='https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/aa645fed298413af217fdb080f7a15429b98d8243b912f46f4ce7126e2f95d24?s=500&d=mm&r=g' srcset='https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/aa645fed298413af217fdb080f7a15429b98d8243b912f46f4ce7126e2f95d24?s=1000&d=mm&r=g 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Leslie D. Soule is a fantasy author and citizen journalist and Chair of the Helena Chapter of the Montana Libertarian Party.

<img alt='Doug Bohn' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/avatar-bohnzy-1657806337018-500x500.jpeg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/avatar-bohnzy-1657806337018-1000x1000.jpeg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Former V.P. and Spokesman for Montanans For Multiple Use. Ravalli County Republican Central Committee Precinct Captain. Doug has been politically active since mid-1980's.

<img alt='Shannon Maness' src='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/cropped-shannon-maness-headshot.jpg' srcset='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/cropped-shannon-maness-headshot.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Shannon Maness represents House District 70 in Beaverhead County. A father of two and small business owner in Dillon, he has been active in local schools, church, and community organizations, and currently serves as youth hunt coordinator for Pheasants Forever.

<img alt='Dawn Longie' src='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/cropped-dawn-longie-headshot-scaled-1-500x500.jpeg' srcset='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/cropped-dawn-longie-headshot-scaled-1.jpeg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Dawn Longie is a veteran spouse and advocate from Park City, Montana. Her writing focuses on leadership, accountability, and the values that keep veterans and their families thriving long after service ends.

<img alt='David Rand' src='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/cropped-david-rand-headshot-scaled-1-500x500.jpg' srcset='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/cropped-david-rand-headshot-scaled-1.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

David Rand lives in Bozeman and writes about housing, markets, and public policy in Montana. He leads the soon-to-launch Land Liberty Movement, a nonprofit working to make it easier for Americans to build, own, and live affordably. You can follow his work at David-Rand.net.

<img alt='U.S. Senator Steve Daines' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-steve-daines-headshot.jpg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-steve-daines-headshot.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

U.S. Senator Steve Daines

Steve Daines is a Republican U.S. Senator from Montana, serving since 2015. He previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2013 to 2015 and worked in the private sector before entering politics.

<img alt='Paul Sperry, RealClearWire' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-paul-sperry.jpg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-paul-sperry.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Paul Sperry, RealClearWire

Paul Sperry is an investigative reporter for RealClearInvestigations. He is also a longtime media fellow at Stanford’s Hoover Institution. Sperry was previously the Washington bureau chief for Investor’s Business Daily, and his work has appeared in the New York Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and Houston Chronicle, among other major publications.

<img alt='Rob Natelson' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/cropped-rob-natelson-headshot-e1680562703320.jpeg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/cropped-rob-natelson-headshot-e1680562703320.jpeg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Rob Natelson is former law professor at the University of Montana and was chairman of Montanans for Better Government. Natelson is the Independence Institute’s Senior Fellow in Constitutional Jurisprudence and heads the Institute’s Article V Information Center.

<img alt='Casey Whalen' src='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/cropped-BI46twcY_400x400.jpg' srcset='https://westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/cropped-BI46twcY_400x400.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Casey Whalen is an independent journalist and activist aiding his community and shining a light on the cultural Marxism revolution unfolding in America. Whalen is the creator of North Idaho Exposed.

<img alt='Lawrence Reed' src='https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/9a4481fffed09b24dd6440d91bc64c2dabe4fba8c603bbdc95a1da5235124f6c?s=500&d=mm&r=g' srcset='https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/9a4481fffed09b24dd6440d91bc64c2dabe4fba8c603bbdc95a1da5235124f6c?s=1000&d=mm&r=g 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Lawrence W. Reed writes a monthly column for the Frontier Institute in Helena, on whose board he serves. He is president emeritus of the Foundation for Economic Education and blogs at www.lawrencewreed.com.

<img alt='Cait Corrigan' src='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/cropped-cait-corrigan-headshot-500x500.jpg' srcset='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/cropped-cait-corrigan-headshot.jpg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Cait Corrigan is a JD candidate, a former Congressional Candidate, and advocate for religious and medical freedom. She serves as National Ambassador to VFAF, Veterans for Trump and is an American fellow to the Montana Veterans Association.

<img alt='Samuel Pascal Redfern' src='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/cropped-samuel-pascal-redfern-headshot.jpeg' srcset='https://www.westernmt.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/cropped-samuel-pascal-redfern-headshot.jpeg 2x' class='avatar avatar-500 photo lazyload lazyload' height='500' width='500' />

Samuel Pascal Redfern

Samuel Pascal Redfern is a Montana Native and an Iraq combat veteran who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom and lives in Missoula. He is president of the Montana Veterans Association and founded the USOH Warrior Team Hunt program and Montana Conservative Liberty Alliance.