Top Stories

News stories, radio and TV episodes that warrant one of six spots on our homepage. The homepage is in chronological order of publication date, so stories are moved off the homepage as more are categorized “top stories.”

screen shot of the cover slide for the tapes with an image of water and land from the air

In secret recordings, Pebble Mine execs say Donlin mine is too expensive to build

On September 21, an environmental group leaked footage of top mining executives discussing the proposed Donlin Gold mine. ( Environmental Investigation Agency) On Sept. 21, an...

Alaska’s pro-oil Republican governor is quietly pushing green energy projects too

Even as climate change threatens to impose steep costs in Alaska, Dunleavy is still promoting the state's oil industry. But he says he's excited by the plummeting cost of renewable power sources, and their potential to bring down electricity prices and recruit more business to the state.
Two blue bladders coming out of tubes

Unalaska PA’s ingenuity doubles available ventilators for COVID-19 pandemic

As the coronavirus pandemic hit Alaska, physician's assistant from the fishing community of Unalaska did what she could to make sure her community was prepared.

Pebble execs tell ‘investors’ Murkowski and Sullivan are no barrier to controversial mine

In secretly recorded calls, the CEO of Pebble Partnership told men posing as investors that Alaska's senators' public doubts about the project weren't genuine.
A fighter jet refues under a larger plane in blue skies

Uptick in Russian aircraft flying near Alaska shows ‘probing’ for weakness, Sullivan says

U.S. jet fighters have scrambled at least a dozen times so far this year to intercept Russian military aircraft that fly into airspace off Alaska’s coasts.
A glacier seen from the air with large bowed striations coing out iniot ht ebay

Could the melting Malaspina Glacier create a new bay on Alaska’s southern coast?

What’s happening at the Malaspina Glacier may be the largest landscape transformation underway in the United States, according to researchers.
A woman speaks to someone in a wheelchair. On the back of the wheelchair is a sign that reads, "I'll take dangerous freedom over peaceful tyranny!"

Facebook group for those with grievances against Anchorage’s mayor and Assembly grows

Over the last few months, a Facebook group called “Save Anchorage” has become an organizing place for people with grievances against the Berkowitz administration and the city’s largely progressive assembly. It began with neighbors who objected to the city’s plan to purchase properties to house the homeless and provide substance treatment and grew to include people against public health measures like mandatory masking and business closures.
Two children stand next to a big, inflatable duck, holding signs advertising ticket sales for the Great Alaska Duck Race.

Online raffles are temporarily approved in Alaska, as non-profits adjust to pandemic precautions

The rule change is set to expire on November 15, when the state’s COVID-19 emergency disaster declaration ends.
A woman in a white suit holds a blue surgical mask.

Why does Alaska have the country’s lowest COVID-19 death rate? Doctors explain.

Doctors say early, aggressive restrictions have helped keep the number of deaths in Alaska tied to COVID-19 low. But, they caution, the numbers can change quickly and it is not time to let your guard down.
A woman speaking at a podium

Alaska Senator Murkowski said Friday she would not vote for a justice ahead of Inauguration Day

Shortly before the announcement that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died Friday, Sen. Lisa Murkowski said in an interview that if she...

Justices rule against Galvin, allow Alaska to proceed with redesigned ballot

The ruling Friday reverses the direction the judge took Thursday, when she temporarily stopped the state from printing more ballots that leave off a letter next to candidates’ names showing which party, if any, they affiliate with.
A musher sleds below a spruce tree covered mountain. Dogs are in orange vests

Race officials say the 2021 Iditarod is still on

The Iditarod says it will work with an infectious disease epidemiologist to develop a plan for holding the 1,000-mile race during the coronavirus.
The Trans-Alaska Pipeline is seen running alongside the Dalton Highway, next to a small mountain.

After plummeting this spring, low oil prices show no signs of rising. What does that mean for Alaska?

As impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic linger around the world, it's unclear if or when prices will be high again.
A teacher sits at her desk in a classroom full of tables and chairs but no students

Excitement and betrayal: families and teachers react to Anchorage plan to return to classrooms

As families await more details from the district, they’re trying to figure out what this plan means for them.
A yellow rig leaves a harbor under snow-covered mountains

Shell files offshore drilling plans for Alaska’s North Slope

The company asked the state to validate its exploration plan for five years, which is expected to provide sufficient time for the company to secure a partner and analyze the area’s development potential.
A stop sign on a small road with wooden buildings and rain on the

Neighbors in Hyder, Alaska and Stewart, B. C. ask Canada to ease border restrictions

The town of 65 is stuck on the American side of the border with nearly impassable travel restrictions.
A handful of buildings on a peninsula with foggy mountains in the background

More than a quarter of Alaska communities haven’t claimed state CARES Act grants

63 Alaska communities haven't claimed funds, largely overe disagreements about how to spend the money.
A woman looks at the camera while standing on a bridge

LISTEN: Alaska’s chief medical officer says we need to remain vigilant, ‘it’s darkest before dawn’

Among the most immersed in all things related to COVID-19 is Dr. Anne Zink, the state's chief medical officer. Zink has been as much of a public face for the state's response as the governor himself, while still occasionally doing some work as an emergency room physician.
Donald Trump, wearing a black suit and dred tie, gestures in a rainy lot next to several black SUVs with microphones visible in the foreground

Trump tweets about the Pebble Mine in response to Fox News ad

The developers of the proposed Pebble Mine aired an ad on Fox News last night, and it seems to have hit home with one viewer in the White House.

Alaska judge blocks ballot printing after candidate raises “clear” legal questions about design

Alyse Galvin's lawsuit challenges a new ballot design from state elections officials -- who work for a Republican lieutenant governor, Kevin Meyer -- that only references Galvin’s Democratic Party nomination and not her independent voter registration. Galvin is challenging incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Don Young.