News

All news stories, regardless of topic (local, statewide + national news stories, as well as Talk of Alaska, Alaska News Nightly, Alaska Insight, Alaska Economic Report). Some news stories may also have other categories marked, which will also put them on a subpage. Not all news stories will fall into a subpage.

Less fatalities, more safety for Alaska’s commercial fishing industry

Commercial fishing in Alaska was once known as one of the deadliest professions. It's still pretty dangerous, but the number of fatalities each year is trending downward.

Murkowski: FDA confirmation hinges on GE salmon labeling

The Food and Drug Administration has already declared genetically engineered salmon safe for human consumption, but Sen. Lisa Murkowski said Tuesday she’ll block confirmation of a new FDA commissioner until the agency agrees to require labeling for GE salmon.

APD investigating officer-involved shooting

Anchorage police responding to a disturbance at a home shot and killed a man Tuesday night.

Alaska News Nightly: Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016

VA contractor adds staff to better handle appointment scheduling; BP announces lay-offs in wake of low oil prices; Pre-filed bill aims to nix controversial school AMP test; Auditors review state Dept. of Ed policies; For 2nd consecutive year, Iditarod eyes Fairbanks start; Mat-Su grant targets parents in bolstering family well-being; Sitka Library settles in at new digs; Pre-filed bill would allow discrimination in performing marriage; Alaska Native Medical Center to host state's first Ronald McDonald House; A century of bird data informs modern surveying on Kenai Download Audio

Private contractor adds staff to handle VA service problems

TriWest will cover salary costs for six new employees embedded within Alaska VA to improve appointments and healthcare, primarily in the communities on the road system. Download Audio

BP announces lay-offs in wake of low oil prices

BP is cutting some 4,000 jobs in exploration and production over the next two years amid sharp drops in the price of crude. The company says some of those job losses will be in Alaska, but didn't give specifics. Download Audio

Pre-filed bill aims to nix controversial AMP school test

Rep. Jim Colver of Palmer has pre-filed a bill that would do away with the year-old Alaska Measures of Progress standardized test. Download Audio

Auditors reviewing Dept. of Ed policies

Auditors hired by the state will visit Dillingham City School District this week to ask local teachers and administrators how the Alaska Department of Education is doing. Download Audio

For 2nd consecutive year, Iditarod eyes Fairbanks start

The head of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race will meet with Fairbanks officials next week to discuss possibly starting the 1,000-mile race in that city because of poor snow conditions in southcentral Alaska. Download Audio

Mat-Su grant targets parents in bolstering family well-being

Something as simple as a family meal can go a long way in the fight against drug addiction. New parents are getting support in child rearing skills from a Mat-Su program that focuses on preventing the seeds of drug dependency from taking root in the youngest children. Download Audio

Sitka Library settles in at new digs

It’s official: the contractor handed off the keys to the newly renovated Sitka Public Library this week, and the Sitka Library Commission moved right in. Download Audio

Pre-filed bill would allow discrimination in performing marriage

Alaska Rep. Dave Talerico, a Republican from Healy, has pre-filed a bill that would allow those authorized to perform marriages to turn away couples. Download Audio

Alaska Native Medical Center to host state’s first Ronald McDonald House

Alaska’s first “Ronald McDonald House” is opening next year at the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage. The facility will provide temporary housing at little or no cost for pregnant women and families with children receiving care. Download Audio

A century of bird data informs modern surveys on Kenai

Though it had no airline flights, highways or cruise ships 100 years ago, the Kenai Peninsula still drew visitors, both of the human and feathered varieties. And those early surveys are an early data set for modern day birders on the Kenai. Download Audio

Creative minds in Juneau recreate Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’

Juneau musician Marian Call and the creative crew from Alaska Robotics in Juneau created this wildly wonderful and weird frame-by-frame remake of David Bowie’s 'Space Oddity,' only they changed the lyrics to only the thousand most common words in the English language.

Exxon Valdez litigation ends, but spill’s legacy may be indefinite

Nearly three decades after the disastrous Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989, the litigation for the remaining cash the state and federal governments could pursue from Exxon is at an end. But one biologist says the spill's after-effects may linger for centuries. Download Audio

Interior Department adds $4M to Cobell Scholarship program

The U.S. Interior Department last week announced that it added $4 million to a scholarship program for American Indian and Alaska Native students.

AMP test targeted in pre-filed bill

Representative Jim Colver of Palmer has pre-filed a bill that would do away with the one-year-old Alaska Measures of Progress exam. Just months after AMP’s first run in schools last spring, it started to get a bad rap.

Prisoner dies in state custody at Anchorage hospital

State prison officials have released the name of a prisoner who died Sunday morning The Department of Corrections in a release says 24-year-old Kellsie Green died at Alaska Regional Hospital.

Alaska News Nightly: Monday, Jan. 11, 2015

Rep. Kito prefiles bill to revert to 120-day legislative session; White House invites Alaskan to State of Union; 'The Blob'... on vacation or gone for good?; Councilman calls on Fairbanks marijuana clubs to get retail licenses; Anchorage Assembly to vet commercial cannabis measures; Dillingham drug bust nets $19K cash, 12.5g heroin; Rasmuson Foundation, family gift $24M to Anchorage Museum; Matt Hall wins Copper Basin 300, Aliy Zirkle takes 4th; Former Anchorage Archbishop Francis Hurley dies at 88 Download Audio