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.”

U.S. Education Secretary visits Bethel, discusses No Child Left Behind's impacts in Alaska

U.S. Secretary of Education, Margaret Spellings is being guided through Alaska this week by Senators Ted Stevens and Lisa Murkowski. Her first stop was...

Governor pushing for Matanuska Maid privatization before December

Governor Sarah Palin has accepted a recommendation by the State Creamery Board to sell the Matanuska Maid dairy operation. Palin held a press conference...

Anchorage Police and FBI looking for Joshua Alan Wade

Anchorage police today said they want to talk to Joshua Alan Wade about the disappearance of Mindy Schloss, an Anchorage nurse who has been...

NTSB: Strong winds a factor in Aug 16 float plane crash

Photo: National Transportation Safety Board The National Transportation Safety Board says there appears to have been strong winds at the time a Seawind Aviation float...

State of Alaska looking to sell Matanuska Maid

The State Creamery Board has decided to sell the struggling state-owned Matanuska Maid dairy. The board made the decision yesterday, after learning the co-op...

State government facing employee shortages

The State's Department of Administration is heading up a new cabinet-level working group to plot a course that will provide new state employees and...

Warmer Alaska enticing migratory songbirds farther and farther north

A warming climate is bringing a new song bird into Alaska. The Alaska Bird Observatory (ABO) catches migratory birds in Fairbanks every summer as...

Bob Barker and 'PAWS' offer to take Alaska Zoo's 'Maggie' south to sanctuary — for free

An animal sanctuary in northern California has offered to take Maggie the elephant and pay for all costs of her relocation. The Performing Animal...

Governor's mansion in Juneau slated for major repairs in multiple phases

The Governor's residence is Juneau is getting ready for significant repairs that are likely to take until next summer to complete. The expensive project...

Former U.S. Senator Mike Gravel brings Presidential campaign to Alaska

Alaska's former U.S. Senator Mike Gravel returned to Alaska this week and many of the state's political veterans turned out for his speeches and...

Pavlof volcano continues rumbling after 18,000-foot ash explosion last week

Pavlof Volcano on the Alaska Peninsula keeps on burbling and puffing. It is Alaska's most active volcano and it can provide challenges for those...

Toshiba moving ahead with nuclear power proposal for Galena

Toshiba is ready to move forward with seeking a license for the nuclear reactor proposed for Galena. The Japanese corporation announced its intentions in...

Dinosaur excavations underway on the North Slope

Scientists have successfully built a tunnel into the abundant fossil dinosaur deposits along the Colville River on the North Slope and are taking out...

ExxonMobil asks Supreme Court to review $2.5 billion penalty

Earlier this week, ExxonMobil filed a petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review the $2.5 billion punitive damage judgment in the 1989 Exxon...

Will Alaska build the Gravina Island bridge? Not likely.

The commissioner of transportation says he would like to build a bridge to gravina island, but that finding the funds for such a project...

State heading out to inspect bridge near Denali Park

The State will conduct a special inspection of a bridge that's similar in design and age to the one that collapsed in Minneapolis. The...

Governor’s ethics considered as husband goes back to work at BP

News that Governor Sarah Palin's husband Todd is returning to his pre-election job on the North Slope has gotten some public attention in the...

Owners of Selendang Ayu plead guilty and pay $10 million

Photo by U.S. Coast Guard A final federal settlement was reached today with the owners of the Selendang Ayu, the freighter that ran aground off...

Bruce Babbitt boosting opposition to Bush oil leasing in Bristol Bay

The man who helped buy back federal oil gas leases 11 years ago is in Bristol Bay rallying opposition to the Bush administration's plan...

Infamous Alaska jet finally sold

Texas businessman-turned Valdez resident Larry Reynolds has signed an agreement to purchase the state's infamous Westwind II aircraft. The jet was bought by former...