Jesse Hyde
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Articles by Jesse Hyde
Deseret Magazine’s list of 50 ideas changing philanthropy
Last year, we debuted our first Philanthropy Issue and something we called the Deseret 50. The idea was to celebrate the 50 people, organizations and ideas transforming the world of giving. This year, we’re bringing back both the Philanthropy Issue and the Deseret 50. This year’s list highlights 50 initiatives changing how we think about giving itself. I’ve learned a couple things about giving in the two years we’ve built this list, some counterintuitive, at least to me.
I was born in a small town
From the Great Basin to the Ohio River Valley to the Florida Panhandle, the rituals and rhythms of small-town life in America are remarkably similar. High school football on Friday nights. Church on Sunday mornings. And if you’re lucky, some connection to a spit of land that’s been passed down for generations. Recluse, Wyo.
Deseret Magazine’s list of 50 ideas changing philanthropy
Last year, we debuted our first Philanthropy Issue and something we called the Deseret 50. The idea was to celebrate the 50 people, organizations and ideas transforming the world of giving. This year, we’re bringing back both the Philanthropy Issue and the Deseret 50. This year’s list highlights 50 initiatives changing how we think about giving itself. I’ve learned a couple things about giving in the two years we’ve built this list, some counterintuitive, at least to me.
Made to be erased
Anew pencil is a new beginning. For me, that goes back to the start. Before memory. Before language. Before I knew what words were, much less that they could become a life. In a box of old family photographs, there is a studio portrait my mother arranged. I am a toddler in plaid overalls, grinning into the camera, my hair so blonde it’s nearly white, clutching a yellow wooden pencil as though someone had entrusted me with a tiny wand. My eyes are bright with a delight I cannot explain.
‘Crypto Godfather’ Sentenced in Carjacking and Attempted Robbery Original
Adam Iza, known in Los Angeles as the “Crypto Godfather,” was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in federal prison for orchestrating a violent carjacking and attempted robbery in Danbury, Connecticut, in 2024. Iza, whose path from teen tech wiz to alleged criminal mastermind was traced in a 2025 feature in Rolling Stone, admitted he helped finance and organize the attempted robbery of $50 million in Bitcoin; but he disputed his level of involvement in the carjacking when it came time for sentencing.
What went right — and wrong — at the White House fights Original
UFC Freedom 250 — the polarizing fight card held at the White House — is over. Though my co-author and I weren’t on the South Lawn on Sunday, we had an up-close view as the events unfolded in Washington, D.C., trying to understand this moment in history. There was some good, some bad and some ugly. And of course, those categories are up for debate. Here is our post-fight conversation. Aaron Shill: What about the event didn’t sit well with you? Is there anything you feel went too far or crossed a line?
There’s a UFC fight card at the White House. Is it profane — or pure American? Original
If you’re our age, you likely learned of Donald Trump not through “The Apprentice” or politics, but through boxing or professional wrestling. Tyson-Spinks. Tyson-Holmes. WrestleMania IV and V. All were hosted by Trump in Atlantic City during the late 1980s — and his name was impossible to miss. As president, his brand of bare-knuckle, combative politics often reflects the type of events he used to host under his name.
Real Estate Titans the Alexander Brothers Are Found Guilty of Sex Trafficking
The building at 281 Park Avenue South, with its granite base and mansard roof, reeked of old money. Turreted corners. Arched windows. Limestone that looked as if it had just surfaced from the bottom of the ocean. If you were launching a new firm and wanted to convey permanence, stability, and the sort of institutional gravitas that spans centuries, not a couple of months, the building would do a lot of the heavy lifting.
The Lonely Master: From March Madness to Shanghai, the unlikely journey of Jimmer Fredette
Published: March 12, 2018, 10:01 p.m. MDTUpdated: Feb 13, 2026, 12:39 p.m. MST Editor’s note: This story originally published March 12, 2018. On Saturday afternoon, Jimmer Fredette’s number will be retired during halftime of the BYU-Colorado game at the Marriott Center.
Olympian Turned Alleged Drug Kingpin Ryan Wedding Arrested Original
"Most Wanted" poster displayed at a Nov. 19, 2025, press conference announcing new charges against fugitive Ryan Wedding. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images About a week ago, a mysterious Instagram account appeared. The profile was named bossryanw, as in Ryan Wedding, the former Canadian Olympian turned alleged narco kingpin.
Are Authorities Closing In on Olympian Turned Drug Kingpin Ryan Wedding? Original
T he man known as El Jefe, or the Giant, or Public Enemy was once close to Jonathan Acebedo-Garcia. Whether they considered themselves friends or just business associates is unclear, at least from court records. What is certain is that they trusted each other with information dangerous enough to result in either one of them ending up dead. They had met in 2011, at Reeves County Detention Complex in West Texas, the largest for-profit prison in the world.
The crucible of Spencer Cox Original
The schedule forGov. Spencer Coxdid not seem particularly demanding on the morning ofSept. 10. He had an event with some telecom execs in Mona, a small town of mostly pasture and lavender fields down in Utah County, and then a quarterly birthday lunch back at the Capitol with his staff of about 20. He had no public events for the rest of the day. He’d just returned from Mona and sat down in a conference room for lunch when his assistant came in and rushed to his side.
January/February 2026
Kirk’s assassination in Utah forced Gov. Spencer Cox to confront political violence, anger in his own party and whether his call to “disagree better” can actually change anything.
From the crossroads of the West Original
Since the launch of Deseret Magazine nearly five years ago, McKay Coppins has worked behind the scenes as a consultant and vital sounding board — helping shape our tone, our ambitions and our sense of what stories matter most to readers who care about faith, family and the forces reshaping American life. Now, with the launch of “Deseret Voices,” McKay takes on a more public role.
'Crypto Godfather' Faces Charges in Connecticut Kidnapping Case Original
Adam Iza, who investigators call the Crypto Godfather, was set to be sentenced this month in Los Angeles for tax evasion, wire fraud, and running what amounted to a vast criminal conspiracy complete with Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department officers on his payroll, intimidation of rivals, and extortion schemes, as detailed in Rolling Stone. His sentencing has now been rescheduled to March 2 due to new charges announced by the U.S. Attorney in Connecticut. According to a Nov.
The True Story Behind Les Roberts' Miami Art Scam Selling Fake Warhols Original
Les Roberts wasn’t like other art dealers in Miami, or anywhere really. He stood a tidy five-foot-three, spoke softly, had dark, bushy eyebrows, and wore a toupee, jet black. On TikTok, where he had more than half a million followers, he’d sit behind the grand piano in his Miami high-rise and play Billy Joel classics, or don a black-pearl-snap western shirt and strum his guitar. There was something campy about it all, but it seemed harmless. The man was all joy.
How 'Crypto Godfather' Adam Iza Grew a Fortune and Criminal Conspiracy
F or a private detective working in Los Angeles, most investigations tend to follow a predictable pattern. You get a divorce case, or a custody case, and from the time the client pays the retainer, you know what the job will entail. You’ll follow a guy around taking pictures from hotel parking lots, or outside of a club on Sunset, trying to prove he’s having an affair. Or maybe it’s a workers’ comp case. Same thing: You tail a guy, take pictures, prove he’s not really hurt.
He Was a Teen Tech Prodigy. Then He Became the ‘Crypto Godfather’
Suddenly, the gate opened again, and a black Rolls-Royce Phantom pulled up. Another security guard opened the door and a petite Filipino woman emerged in dark sunglasses. Two small children scurried out behind her. Her name was Iris Au and she was Iza’s girlfriend, Childs would later learn. On Instagram, she called herself the Goddess and tended to post selfies in places like Dubai, or on the steps of a private jet, or on a horse. She didn’t look up or say anything to Childs, or anyone else.
Deseret Magazine's list of 50 top philanthropists Original
At its best, America is about more than innovation and ambition. Its promise of exceptionalism is rooted in its generosity — to welcome the stranger, to believe all are created equal, or, as the Book of Matthew puts it: to feed the hungry, clothe the naked and to care for the least among us. The biblical call to our higher angels, enshrined in our Declaration of Independence, has faced challenges in recent years, as public life has grown more fractured, isolated and even nihilistic.
September 2025 - Deseret News
The 50 people, organizations and ideas changing giving in the West and around the world.
‘¿Cuál es el precio de tu vida? Eso es lo que me estás pagando’
La habitación del hotel es fría, aséptica, el único sonido es el suave susurro del aire acondicionado central. No puedo salir, me advierte mi contacto, o podrían secuestrarme. Desde mi ventana, en lo alto del hotel más caro de la ciudad, observo un campo de béisbol y un nuevo complejo de condominios de lujo en construcción. Estoy en el centro de Culiacán y aquí todo parece seguro, como si estuviera en un suburbio estadounidense. Es tranquilo, casi inquietantemente.
‘¿Cuál es el precio de tu vida? Eso es lo que me estás pagando’
La habitación del hotel es fría, aséptica, el único sonido es el suave susurro del aire acondicionado central. No puedo salir, me advierte mi contacto, o podrían secuestrarme. Desde mi ventana, en lo alto del hotel más caro de la ciudad, observo un campo de béisbol y un nuevo complejo de condominios de lujo en construcción. Estoy en el centro de Culiacán y aquí todo parece seguro, como si estuviera en un suburbio estadounidense. Es tranquilo, casi inquietantemente.
'What Is the Price of Your Life? That's What You're Paying Me For' Original
T he hotel room is cold, antiseptic, the only sound the gentle whisper of central air. I can’t go outside, my fixer tells me, or I might be kidnapped. From my window high up in the most expensive hotel in town, I look down at a baseball field and a new luxury condominium complex under construction. I am in the center of Culiacán, and here, things feel safe, like I’m in an American suburb. It is quiet, almost eerily so. Because as soon as the sun goes down, the killing will begin.
What's inside the June issue of Deseret Magazine
Here's something that worries me: Increasingly, friends and family tell me they've stopped following the news. Some have unplugged completely. Others have curated their feeds to include only stories that confirm what they already believe. Not that anyone is proud of this. In fact, these disclosures typically come in the form of a confession. It's just too much, I'm told sotto voce. It's relentless, it's exhausting, and I don't know what to do with it all anymore. As a journalist, I find this troubling.
View from here:The rest is still unwritten
Here’s something that worries me: Increasingly, friends and family tell me they’ve stopped following the news. Some have unplugged completely. Others have curated their feeds to include only stories that confirm what they already believe. Not that anyone is proud of this. In fact, these disclosures typically come in the form of a confession. It’s just too much, I’m told sotto voce. It’s relentless, it’s exhausting, and I don’t know what to do with it all anymore. As a journalist, I find this troubling.
The man in the arena
Doug Burgum, the new secretary of the Interior, is a man shaped by the land. The Badlands of North Dakota are more than a scenic backdrop for him. They're where, in the shadow of Theodore Roosevelt's old stomping grounds, he has staked both his political identity and his legacy.
View from here: The man in the arena
Doug Burgum, the new secretary of the Interior, is a man shaped by the land. The Badlands of North Dakota are more than a scenic backdrop for him. They’re where, in the shadow of Theodore Roosevelt’s old stomping grounds, he has staked both his political identity and his legacy.
Inside the Story of the Murder of Fabio Sementilli by His Wife Monica
In the early years, before the Porsche in the driveway, the pool in the back yard, and the gated house in the hills, there was hair. There had always been hair. Big hair, fabulous hair, bold hair—hair to cut and perm and color and style, often under a big cloud of hair spray. In those years, the ’80s, when Fabio Sementilli styled his own hair to look like the boys in Duran Duran (big and savage and a little ridiculous), he and his sister Mirella owned a salon in downtown Toronto.
View from Here: Who owns the West?
When I was in my early 30s, my dad bought a ranch in Nevada’s Big Smoky Valley, so named because a haze often sits above it. My cousins had grown up on a ranch there, where they had attended a K-12 high school with a graduating class that averaged about four students. I went on several 50-mile hikes as a Boy Scout in the Toiyabes, a majestic range that towers over the valley.
Editor's note: This case was dismissed in November 2005. More information can be found here. OREM - One of the most popular professors at Utah Valley State College was arrested Christmas Day on charges of possession of child pornography. Stephen Miraglia, a behavioral science professor, now faces 11 felony charges of sex exploitation of a minor.
Olympian Turned Drug Lord Ryan Wedding Added to FBI 10 Most Wanted List
March 6, 2025 Wedding in a recent surveillance photo disseminated by the FBI. FBI Ryan Wedding, a former Olympian turned alleged drug kingpin, was named to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list today. A $10 million reward was announced for his capture.
Olympian Turned Drug Lord Ryan Wedding Added to FBI 10 Most Wanted List
Wedding in a recent surveillance photo disseminated by the FBI. - Credit: FBI Ryan Wedding, a former Olympian turned alleged drug kingpin, was named to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list today. A $10 million reward was announced for his capture.
Deseret writer named finalist for the National Magazine Awards
Deseret Magazine writer Natalia Galicza has been named a finalist for the National Magazine Awards from the American Society of Magazine Editors. Galicza was selected as a finalist in the feature writing contest for her story Alone, which appeared in the June 2024 issue of Deseret Magazine. The piece tackles the complexities and the future of solitary confinement. "Journalism, at its best, gives voice to the voiceless," said Deseret Magazine editor Jesse Hyde.
'He Had No Fear': Ryan Wedding's Path From Olympic Athlete to Drug Lord Original
Skip to main content Illustration by MATTHEW COOLEY T he hit man called himself Mr. Perfect. He had been given the list. He wanted the easiest one first. He’d also need a getaway car, a fake ID, and a place to drop the gun. The man who hired him went by Mero Wero. He said he would take care of all of that, plus any expenses. He suggested they start with the ginger, who lived in Niagara Falls, not too far from Mr. Perfect’s home in Toronto. “Driveway job,” Mero Wero said. He’d pay $100,000.
A season of hope Original
After a long, contentious, and at times, exhausting election season, we designed this month's issue thinking our readers will want a respite from politics. As important as it is to participate in our electoral process, and as much space as we've given this year in the magazine to choosing our next president, our lives are much more than our politics. We hope the stories in this issue are a reminder of that.
Get out the vote
Here's an often-overlooked quirk of presidential elections: They're decided not just by those who cast votes but also by those who don't. Consider the 2000 election. It came down to Florida, and the margin was 537 ballots. One could argue they swung the election, but in reality, the election was decided by the 5 million people in Florida who were eligible to vote but didn't. For this month's issue, we sent staff writer Natalia Galicza to Arizona to explore this phenomenon.
Up for debate
Early this year, at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore encouraged an audience of Republicans and Democrats to improve the civility of their political discourse, especially with those they disagreed with. The two don't agree on many issues but have struck up an unlikely friendship built on mutual respect. The theme of that event, sponsored by this magazine and Brigham Young University's Wheatley Institute, was how to disagree better.
Out of the darkness Original
Her name was Alice. She belonged to our Latter-day Saint congregation, and my dad and I were assigned to visit her once a month. I dreaded these visits. I was 14 years old, and the last thing I wanted to do on a Sunday afternoon was sit in the stuffy apartment of an elderly widow who seemed defined by one characteristic above all others: She was incredibly lonely.
View from here: Original
When the founders gathered in Philadelphia to draft the Constitution, they debated for months to decide how a president should be elected. At first, they liked the idea of Congress picking the president - as the British Parliament chooses the prime minister - but discarded that proposal over concerns it would lead to corruption between the executive and legislative branches.
Faith and reason Original
I was in Israel, wandering the Jaffa area of Tel Aviv, when my brother called. The evening before, an air raid siren had pierced the air, but tonight things were calm: couples pushing strollers, a guy with a ponytail at a sidewalk café strumming a guitar. Off in the distance, I could hear the sounds of a soccer game at Bloomfield. No fans were allowed inside as a safety precaution. After all, the country was at war, even if it didn't feel like it. My brother wanted to know what I had learned.
The future of the West
“If the Pilgrims had landed in California, the East Coast would still be a wilderness.” That line is usually attributed to Ronald Reagan, and whether he said it or not, I often quote it (especially to rib a New Yorker) because, well, the Gipper was right. Who would push across a country if you’d already found paradise?
Paradise lost in Israel Original
The pioneers came to make the desert bloom. Hafrachat hamidbar, that's how they said it in Hebrew, and while Uri Hoter never used the phrase himself, he heard it often as a child. By the time he was born in 1976, the kibbutz, known as Be'eri, had been around for 30 years. Its founding was legendary, not just among the pioneers, and not just in the kibbutz, but in Israel itself, because it was part of the founding story of the country. Uri didn't remember all the details.
"The Entire Internet Was Wrong": The Inside Story of Burning Man 2023
A storm was coming. Fausto Zapata had been telling everyone since he had arrived at Burning Man five days earlier. They laughed at him, started calling him “the meteorologist” because, um, what forecast was he looking at? Dust storms were common in the desert, with winds cresting at 60 miles an hour. Temperatures could soar to 110 degrees. Lightning even. But heavy rain? That didn’t happen in Black Rock. This was Zapata’s fourth Burning Man.
"The Entire Internet Was Wrong": The Inside Story of Burning Man 2023
A storm was coming. Fausto Zapata had been telling everyone since he had arrived at Burning Man five days earlier. They laughed at him, started calling him “the meteorologist” because, um, what forecast was he looking at? Dust storms were common in the desert, with winds cresting at 60 miles an hour. Temperatures could soar to 110 degrees. Lightning even. But heavy rain? That didn’t happen in Black Rock. This was Zapata’s fourth Burning Man.
Multiple choice Original
More than half a century has passed since a candidate from outside the Republican or Democratic parties has won a single state in a presidential election (George Wallace in 1968). And yet, according to recent Gallup polling, dissatisfaction with America's two-party system is at an all-time high. Could an alternative be the answer to our gridlocked and hyperpartisan era? Political scientist Lee Drutman thinks so.
Controlling nitrided layers and enhancing predictability of nitriding process with metallography
Nitriding is the thermochemical process for producing surface layers in ferrous alloys, such as steels and cast irons used for making various mechanical components and tools [1]. Ferritic nitrocarburizing (FNC) is a process of nitriding doped with a small amount of carbon [1]. Producing the best nitrided layers for the given application requires a good cooperation between designers of the product and the manufacturing companies making it.
Lateral Attorney Hiring Trends In 2023: Adapting To A Shifting Economy
Trends in the Lateral Attorney Hiring Market in 2023 Certain practice areas have maintained consistent hiring or experienced a modest increase as the economy hints at recovery entering the latter half of 2023. General State of the Economy and Law Firm Financial Stability Though foundational components of the U.S. economy, like steady GDP growth and historically low unemployment rates, show strength, depressed corporate activity levels are affecting the demand for legal services.
The Real Story Behind the Missing Green Vault Jewels
The heist had been planned for months. They had run through the scenarios, studied the streets and bridges and tunnels, scouted the escape routes, purchased the burner phones, and secured the getaway cars. Most important, they had uncovered secrets about the museum. It was November 25, 2019, in Dresden, Germany. The night was dark and cold, the air carrying the musky scent of the nearby Elbe River.
Music Theater Works' 'THE PRODUCERS' takes over 'It's Showtime with Rikki Lee' this Week
Updated 8/3/2023 8:57 AM Music Theater Works will be presenting it's 150th production, "THE PRODUCERS: A Mel Brooks Musical," at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts with a press opening on Friday, Aug. 11. Gearing up for the landmark event, director L. Walter Stearns, choreographer Darryl K. Clark, and Thomas M. Shea, who plays the starring role "Max Bialystock" are featured on this week's episode of radio show and podcast It's Showtime with Rikki Lee.
A Bank-Robbing Prison Gang Is in an Alarming Expansion Mode
In the passenger seat of the speeding squad car, Anselmo Cruz adjusted his bulletproof vest. It was just before midnight on Nov. 30, 2020, and the first call for reinforcements had gone out 10 minutes ago. A tractor-trailer was on fire in front of the military police barracks in the Brazilian city of Criciúma, 130 miles south of Cruz’s home base in Florianópolis. Now his iPhone lit up with a video. A second truck was on fire, this one blocking a tunnel between the two cities.
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