Casey Grove, Alaska Public Media - Anchorage
Casey Grove is host of Alaska News Nightly, a general assignment reporter and an editor at Alaska Public Media. Reach him at cgrove@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Casey here.
Alaska News Nightly: Monday, November 1, 2021
Anchorage's mayor speaks alongside prominent vaccine skeptics and proponents of unproven COVID-19 treatments. Also, Girdwood officials work to restore access to infrastructure and neighborhoods. And a debate in Wrangell over whether ancient petroglyphs were recently vandalized.
Alaska’s top doc calls out COVID misinformation, calls for understanding and unity
Dr. Anne Zink recently wrote an editorial in The Washington Post reflecting on many issues around the pandemic. In part of the piece, Zink writes about treating an unvaccinated patient struggling with COVID-19 who had spent hundreds of dollars on unproven, online remedies that didn't help.
Alaska News Nightly: Friday, October 29, 2021
Alaska's chief medical officer calls out misinformation and distrust around COVID-19. Also, teachers are concerned about what they say is book censorship in the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District. And a spooky competition ramps up between neighbors in Skagway.
Alaska News Nightly: Thursday, October 28, 2021
The Alaska Legislature sets a record for the number of days in session in a year. Also, parents of kids with eating disorders in Alaska struggle to find treatment options. And a remembrance of Bristol Bay Native Association CEO Ralph Anderson.
Feds want to foreclose on Alaska lawyer’s properties, including Talkeetna’s historic Fairview Inn, to pay off taxes
Phillip Weidner allegedly owes more than $2 million in back taxes, and the federal government wants to foreclose on a dozen of his properties to pay the debts, according to a lawsuit filed this week.
Hawaii hopes tourism bounces back with travel restrictions lifting again Nov. 1
Hawaii Public Radio’s Casey Harlow has been covering the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on the state and says many out-of-work or under-employed tourism industry workers are hopeful things turn around soon.
Alaska News Nightly: Wednesday, October 27, 2021
Realities diverge after an Anchorage conservative activist dies from COVID. Also, Kenai Peninsula Borough residents rally around the library being able to make its own decision on books. And Hawaii prepares to open to tourists, again.
Alaska’s oil and gas jobs have failed to rebound from pandemic losses, slowing state’s overall recovery
Anchorage Daily News reporter Alex DeMarban says there are many factors and many uncertainties, but it's clear the lack of jobs in Alaska's oil industry has an outsized impact on the state.
Alaska News Nightly: Tuesday, October 26, 2021
The oil industry in Alaska struggles to recover jobs lost to the pandemic. Also, Yakutat residents protest a new logging operation. And a Kasigluk family had to make a difficult decision as a young mother struggled with COVID-19.
Alaska News Nightly: Monday, October 25, 2021
Earmarks make a come back in Congress, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski has an Alaska wish list. Also, unvaccinated city employees in Bethel start to look for new jobs. And the Dixon Glacier opens up a hydropower opportunity.
Alaska News Nightly: Friday, October 22, 2021
Genealogy helps identify a serial killer's victim 40 years after her death. Also, efforts to increase childcare capacity in the state continue. And a look at the complicated, often controversial process of drawing new legislative district lines.
Alaska troopers ID serial killer’s victim 40 years after murder
She’d been known as “Horseshoe Harriet” after her body was found 37 years ago near Horseshoe Lake north of Anchorage. Troopers announced Friday the young woman’s real name was Robin Pelkey, a 19-year-old originally from Colorado. She was murdered by Robert Hansen.
A member of Alaska’s state government is also a member of an anti-government militia
Wasilla Republican Representative David Eastman's name showed up in a list of Oath Keepers leaked online this week, and Eastman told the Anchorage Daily News that, yes, he's a proud member.
Alaska News Nightly: Thursday, October 21, 2021
Wasilla Republican state Rep. David Eastman is part of a far-right, anti-government militia. Also, the state is looking at why Alaska has a hard time retaining teachers. And Alaskans will soon be allowed to drive all-terrain vehicles on some public roads.
Anchorage man murdered mother days after release from psychiatric hold, charges say
Thomas Layou, 38, had known mental health issues, owned guns and had been seen fighting with his mother, Patrice Layou, in the days leading up to her death, the charges say.
Alaska News Nightly: Wednesday, October 20, 2021
The state is preparing to roll out COVID-19 vaccines for younger kids. Also, a whistleblower in Anchorage says she was illegally fired by the mayor’s administration. And the federal subsistence board votes down a proposal to restrict trapping near trails.
Alaska expecting COVID-19 vaccines for wider group of kids in coming weeks
The state of Alaska is working on a plan to make sure kids can get vaccinated as soon as possible. State of Alaska Immunization Program Manager Matthew Bobo joined Alaska Public Media's Casey Grove to talk about those plans.
Alaska News Nightly: Tuesday, October 19, 2021
Hospitals in Anchorage report good compliance with COVID vaccine mandates. Also, the state is spending a lot of money to keep its idled ferry, the Malaspina, tied up at a dock. And high schoolers in Haines turn a rundown skate park into a work of art.
Fairbanks’s Lathrop High wins its first football championship with motto of ‘EMAL’: Every Man A Leader
The Lathrop footballers had not spent the season focused on beating Soldotna, says their coach, Luke Balash, who describes the team's success as a byproduct of learning to be physically, mentally and emotionally capable young adults.
Alaska News Nightly: Monday, October 18, 2021
State senators struggle to come to agreement on a plan for the budget and Permanent Fund Dividend. Also, Anchorage businesses adjust to the new citywide mask mandate. And Fairbanks's Lathrop High School wins its first football championship.