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.”

An image of President Biden in front of microphones

6 political takeaways from Biden’s decision to step aside

President Biden is passing the torch to Vice President Harris, which changes the narrative of the race against former President Donald Trump.

Alaska Democratic Party endorses Kamala Harris after Biden steps aside

Party officials met Sunday evening and coalesced behind Harris, according to a news release from the Alaska Democratic Party.
A orange and white helicopter flies in front of a mountain

A Yakutat-bound charter flight is missing after leaving Juneau on Saturday

There were three people on board the Beechcraft Bonanza when it departed Juneau.
buttons

Ranked-choice repeal measure awaits signature count after Alaska judge’s ruling

The Alaska Division of Elections must recount signatures after a judge disqualified almost 3,000 names, citing violations of state law.
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris

Leading Alaska Democrats support Kamala Harris to replace Biden on ticket

Alaska Democrats quickly backed President Biden's choice not to seek reelection as well as his endorsed successor, Vice President Kamala Harris.
a boat

Searches underway for 2 missing men on Chena and Yukon rivers

Elia Ansaknok was reported missing on the Chena River in downtown Fairbanks Friday, with Robert Peter reported overdue to Fort Yukon Saturday.
a judicial hearing

9th Circuit hears appeals in Southeast Alaska king salmon troll fishery lawsuit

Three federal judges heard arguments Thursday for and against a lower court ruling that threatened to halt Southeast Alaska’s king salmon troll fishery.
a grave

King Cove man charged with killing parents in Anchorage house fire

Joshua Gould, 46, is charged with murder and arson in the February deaths of James and Kathryn Gould.
two people on stage with their arms in the air

Kamala Harris pledges to ‘earn and win’ the nomination after Biden’s endorsement

Vice President Kamala Harris said she wants to unite the Democratic Party.
two peole walk down a hallway in the white house, with their arms around each other's backs

Biden drops out of 2024 reelection race, endorses Harris for nominee

President Biden is discontinuing his campaign to seek a second term in the White House, throwing the Democratic race for 2024 wide open.
A beige building.

Anchorage shelter contract extended as leaked text investigation stews

Assembly Chair Chris Constant said he’s seen a draft of the investigation report and has been discussing next steps with city lawyers.

Anchorage police chief says body camera footage of Handy shooting to be released ‘probably within a week’

A new body camera policy starting on Monday mandates the release of footage of police shootings within 45 days.
Petersburg dispatchers

Alaska institutions and businesses reckon with impacts of wide-ranging cloud software glitch

Across the country, the faulty software update disrupted health care providers, airlines and banks, among others.
A sign that reads "Anchorage Police Department." There is an office building behind it.

Prosecutors clear Anchorage officers who shot and wounded murder suspect

Parker Boydston and Jordan Varak were legally justified when they shot 22-year-old Kaleb Bourdokofsky early on June 1, prosecutors say.
a dog in a kennel

The Fairbanks animal shelter is overwhelmed with surrendered dogs

Shelter operations supervisor Kimberly Imbert said the facility is seeing at least twice as many dogs being dropped off as adopted out.
a group of students cutting seal meat outside

Alaska Native students gain cross-cultural experience through Ilakucaraq program

In Kotzebue, the teens learned about edible wild plants, cut and jarred dried, black seal meat in oil, and helped build drying racks for hanging fish.
a man in a tie claps

Trump paints a familiar vision for his 2nd term at the Republican convention

For the first time, the former president recounted in detail the assassination attempt on his life, before turning to divisive rhetoric he has long used on the campaign trail.
A stone sign in the middle of a lawn reads "James M. Fitzgerald United States Courthouse & Federal Building." In front of the sign are pink, yellow and orange flowers.

Federal prosecutors: Resigned Alaska federal judge had conflict of interest in 23 criminal cases

The revelations about the compromised cases illustrate the growing fallout over former U.S. District Court Judge Joshua Kindred’s resignation.
a sign

Widespread technology outage disrupts Alaska 911 service, global flights and banking

The problem affected airline communications, causing the FAA to ground all domestic American Airlines, Delta and United Airlines flights.
a worm hanging from a thread

Tongass National Forest exits years-long insect outbreak with a ‘bad haircut’

Insect infestations began tearing through Southeast Alaska years ago, leaving behind scores of balding trees and annoyed hikers.