Anchorage Man Indicted On Sex Trafficking, Sexual Assault, Weapons Misconduct Charges
Xavier Lanell Cook Benson is facing 12 counts related to what law enforcement officials allege in a written release, was a brutal and exploitative sex trafficking and prostitution operation in Anchorage, Juneau, Kenai and Fairbanks.
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After Providers Lobby, Walker Reverses Cuts To Homeless Programs
Advocates for the homeless in Alaska are rejoicing after Gov. Bill Walker released an updated budget proposal that restores funding for housing and homelessness services statewide.
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Iron Dog Snowmachine Race Primed For Big Lake Start
The Iron Dog snowmachine race gets underway this weekend, and there are some changes to the race route, which takes riders from Big Lake to Nome and then to Fairbanks.
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AK: Tracking Halibut
Pacific halibut are one of Alaska’s most valuable fish, but we know surprisingly little about what happens to the species during an important time in their life – their spawning period. Amanda Compton caught up with a study in Glacier Bay focused on just how halibut spawn using a special type of tracking equipment.
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300 Villages: Douglas
This week, we're heading to Douglas- a former gold mining town that's now part of the Juneau Borough but still maintains it's unique character. Ed Schoenfeld is News Director for CoastAlaska. He's also a musician who's written half a dozen songs about his community.
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Alaska News Nightly: February 20, 2015
Arctic Drilling Regs Require Relief Rig; Shell Sees 'Critical' Flexibility; University of Alaska Board Of Regents Approves 5% Tuition Increase; Board of Fisheries Nominee Withdraws; Anchorage Man Indicted On Sex Trafficking, Sexual Assault, Weapons Misconduct Charges; After Providers Lobby, Walker Reverses Cuts To Homeless Programs; New Prelim ASD Budget Reinstates Middle School Model; Iron Dog Snowmachine Race Primed For Big Lake Start; AK: Tracking Halibut; 300 Villages: Douglas
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An Interview with Alaska musher Aliy Zirkle
Aliy Zirkle didn't grow up thinking she would become a famous musher. But she always loved the outdoors. And when she was studying biology at the University of Pennsylvania, she walked into a lab one day saw this sign on the door: "Why are you studying biology in downtown Philadelphia when you could be in Alaska?"
A few years later, she was mushing her first team of dogs in the Interior community of Bettles. On the next Outdoor Explorer, Join host Annie Feidt for an interview with this remarkable musher.
KSKA: Thursday, Feb. 26, at 2:00 and 9:00 p.m.
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Our Own Geological Era
What if what we call the natural world no longer really exists, and we live already in a world of our own creation? There is growing evidence that human activity has triggered a new geological era. Scientists are debating whether the evidence we leave behind in the layers of the earth will be plastic, nuclear isotopes, changed biomass indicators, or other things, but they agree that humans have actually changed the planet. The question is – how do we take responsibility for that, and what can we do from this point on? It’s a question that means a lot for Alaska, and it’s what we’re talking about on the next Talk of Alaska.
APRN: Tuesday, 2/24 at 10:00 a.m.
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Marijuana Legalization In Alaska; And Sally Jewell’s Arctic Visit
First, we're discussing what the legalization of marijuana coming up next Tuesday means for state residents in real terms. And also a rare visit from Interior Secretary Sally Jewell to Kotzebue in the Northwest Arctic Borough and the large group of lawmakers who were also in the Arctic.
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New Prelim ASD Budget Reinstates Middle School Model
Anchorage School Board passed a preliminary budget that includes planning time for all middle school teachers and more than 60 new positions. But it's not final until the state legislature passes their final budget later this spring.
Walker Seeks To Scale Up State Gasline Project
When Gov. Bill Walker was elected, there were questions about the fate of the Alaska Stand Alone Pipeline project. The proposed $10 billion state-owned gasline was viewed as a backup plan to the large line currently being pursued alongside the North Slope producers, but Walker had criticized the project as being redundant. Now, Walker plans to keep the ASAP project alive -- and make it bigger.
NAACP leads conversation on helping young men of color succeed
Data from the state's Department of Education and Early Development show that students of color drop out of high school at higher rates than white students. Anchorage's chapter of the NAACP is trying to change that.
New Alaska Branch of Americans For Prosperity Campaigns Against Medicaid Expansion
The conservative group Americans for Prosperity, backed by the billionaire Koch brothers, recently opened an office in Anchorage. They're working to convince elected officials to support their vision of smaller government. And one of their main priorities this legislative session is defeating Medicaid expansion.
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Tlingit Masks On ‘Antiques Roadshow’ Draw Questions From Southeast Alaska
A recent episode of the popular PBS show “Antiques Roadshow” caught the attention of some Southeast residents when a couple of 200-year-old Tlingit masks from Haines appeared on screen.
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Alaska Tops Gallup’s Index of Well-Being
Gallup today released its annual Index of Well-Being, and for the first time, Alaska tops the list. The researchers who produce the Gallup-Healthways report say Alaska residents had the highest well-being in the nation in 2014.
The Gallup report doesn’t attempt to reconcile its findings with all those other lists that have Alaska at or near the top: Suicide rate, sexual assaults per capita and domestic abuse.
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Seward Highway Reopened After Rock Slide
Alaska Department of Transportation and Anchorage police report the Seward highway is open again. It was closed this morning due to a rock slide near the scales south of Potter Marsh. Both lanes of the highway were closed.
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Tanaina Supporters Appeal To UA Board of Regents
Supporters of the Tanaina Child Development Center appealed to the University of Alaska Board of Regents on Thursday, urging the board to help save Tanaina. The center was informed it would need to find a new home late last month, when UAA opted to end an agreement which allowed the childcare facility space on campus.
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YKEDC Gets Grant to Improve Economy, Housing
The State of Alaska has awarded a grant to the Yukon Kuskokwim Economic Development Council, YKEDC, for a truss-manufacturing project. If the plan goes forward, local workers would use the region’s wood resources to build frames for highly energy efficient housing.
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Alaska News Nightly: February 19, 2015
Walker Aims To Ramp Up Alaska Stand Alone Pipeline Project; New Alaska Branch of Americans For Prosperity Campaigns Against Medicaid Expansion; Tlingit Masks On 'Antiques Roadshow' Draw Questions From Southeast Alaska; Alaska Tops Gallup's Index of Well-Being; Seward Highway Reopened After Rock Slide; Tanaina Supporters Appeal To UA Board of Regents; YKEDC Gets Grant to Improve Economy, Housing
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