• Organizers announced that attendance at the 2022 National Western Stock Show was down 18% as the Omicron variant weighed on people’s decision whether to attend the 16-day event.
• The Children’s Museum of Denver has closed temporarily after visitors opposed to its mask requirement were abusive to staff members.
• The transition away from burning coal as a power source is inevitable, and Patty Nieberg of the Associated Press reported on how that transition is impacting places like Craig, Colo.
• Legendary musician Neil Young took a principled stand against Spotify and podcaster Joe Rogan, demanding that the streaming service remove his music if it continues to allow Rogan to share misinformation about COVID-19. As for other musicians following his lead … it has been crickets. Despite that, Spotify’s stock is down 10% since Young’s announcement.
• Facing challenges with human rights issues, timezone challenges and COVID-19, Olympics broadcaster NBC is frantically lowering TV ratings estimates with advertisers to avoid having to offer make-good ads.
• Neither Roger Clemens nor Barry Bonds, two of the most famous and successful players in MLB history whose careers were clouded by steroid controversies, were selected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in their final year of regular eligibility.

So, who won the week?

• The Denver Broncos selected Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator Nathaniel Hackett as its new head coach, leading to optimistic speculation that the team might also land MVP Aaron Rodgers as its new quarterback.
• Twenty-three Coloradans will compete in the 2022 Winter Olympics that start next week, including Golden’s Stacy Gaskill whom I coached on my daughter’s soccer teams when they were ages six to eight. Go Rainbows!
• Denver restaurant group Bonanno Concepts has hired a full-time wellness director to support employees at its 10 restaurants.
• Denver law/lobbying firm Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck set a national record for federal lobbying dollars in a single quarter when it posted $15.96 million in Q4 2021. That was a 29% increase over Q4 2020.
• While the Colorado Rockies’ Todd Helton was not selected to the Baseball Hall of Fame this week, his candidacy continues to make progress. He will remain on the ballot for the next seven years, and experts say his trend line means he eventually will make it.
• The new, reasonably sized Ford Maverick pick-up truck has been such an unexpected hit that Ford has had to cut off orders until summer to meet demand.