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With the recent unrest in Ferguson, Mo., police departments across the country are under a lot of scrutiny. Questions are being raised about use of force, police militarization and racial profiling. Download Audio:

The Bill Walker and Byron Mallott campaigns have joined forces to defeat Governor Sean Parnell in November. They're calling their combined campaign the Alaska First Unity ticket. The pair announced their decision at a packed press conference Monday afternoon. Download Audio

Classes for the fall semester started Tuesday at University of Alaska Southeast. More than 2,000 undergraduate and graduate students are currently enrolled at the university’s Juneau campus. About a hundred freshmen have settled into campus life at UAS’s new residence hall. The $14.3 million facility opened at the end of August. Download Audio

At the site of an ancient village near Quinhagak, Archeologists race against erosion to uncover Yup’ik artifacts. What they find not only provides a look into the daily lives of Yupi’k ancestors, but also sheds light on a brutal period in the region’s history. Download Audio

Those stories grandpa told of being a secret government spy after the Second World War may be true. Secret documents now made public reveal that Alaskan bush pilots and other civilians were recruited by intelligence agencies to be spies in the event of a Russian invasion. We’ll hear more about Alaska’s secret Cold War history on the next Talk of Alaska. APRN: Tuesday, September 9 at 10:00am Download Audio

As part of a national effort to curb risky drinking habits and prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, the Center for Disease Control awarded grants to six universities across the country - including the University of Alaska Anchorage. Download Audio

The Anchorage Police Department responded to a bomb threat at the Nesbett Courthouse this afternoon. The courthouse was evacuated around 1 pm and the building was searched. They did not find anything. Police also evacuated Boney Courthouse and closed a few downtown streets as a precaution. The area was declared safe by 3 pm, though the Nesbett Courthouse remained closed. The investigation is on going and no other information is available at this time. Download Audio

Cost-cutting on an Alaska Airlines Railbelt route is lowering fares in Southeast. The airline began flying smaller, turboprop planes between Anchorage and Fairbanks earlier this year. They also flew summer routes between Anchorage and Kodiak.

After seven years, Unalaska’s emergency system for towing stranded vessels away from shore is finally complete. A new dedicated buoy for disabled ships got its first full-scale test during an annual drill last week. Download Audio

In an announcement Wednesday, Governor Sean Parnell told Alaskans something they have been waiting to hear for months...the amount of this year's Permanent Fund Dividend. Download Audio

DOT puts out new Juneau Access Project document Thursday, the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities put out a draft document that addresses environmental issues stemming from the battle to extend Juneau’s only highway north toward Haines and Skagway. Download Audio

There are no restaurants in the 500-person town of Thorne Bay on Prince of Wales Island. But that looks like it’s going to change. The Southeast Island School District, which serves Thorne Bay and several other rural schools, is buying a vacant restaurant from the city. They’re going to use food from school greenhouses and a bakery to provide fresh meals for residents and business experience for students. Download Audio

It’s official: The Ketchikan Shipyard will build two new ferries for the State of Alaska over the next few years. The deal was announced on a very rainy Saturday during a barbecue at the shipyard’s huge, enclosed ship construction area.

A KTVA reporter announced that she is the president of Alaska Cannabis Club and quit her job during a live broadcast Sunday night. Reporter Charlo Greene, whose real name is Charlene Egbe, has been reporting on the legalization ballot initiative since April. Listen now:

Absentee voting for the October 7 municipal election begins today at City Hall and Mendenhall Mall. Juneau residents will choose three Assembly and two school board members, and decide on one ballot proposition. Last week, Thunder Mountain High School students had a lesson in civic engagement. The American government class took a field trip to the Juneau Votes Forum at UAS where they posed questions to the candidates. Download Audio:

Meyers Farm in Bethel recently shipped about 500 pounds of vegetables to the Cordova School District. The order was made possible through a program that reimburses Alaska school districts that buy food grown in state. Download Audio:

A 6.24 earthquake rocked Southcentral Alaska shortly before 10 a.m. this morning. No significant damage has been reported as yet, though it knocked ceiling tiles down and shook merchandise off store shelves.

High rainfall this month is being blamed for a major landslide near Sitka. The U.S. Forest Service reports that a 100-acre slide came down in the Starrigavan Valley, about ten miles from town. Although there was no structural damage in the event, hundreds of thousands of dollars of watershed restoration projects in the valley have been wiped out. Listen now:

Over the past several decades, there’s been a renaissance in Alaska Native traditional dancing. KNBA’s Joaqlin Estus recently visited with one of the founders of an Inupiaq dance group in Anchorage, who told her about his personal journey toward tradition. Download Audio