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.”

A view of Anchorage's skyline from the sea

Anchorage will enter ‘modified hunker down’ for December

The order, which goes into effect on Dec. 1, closes down bars and restaurants to in-person service and puts capacity restrictions on other establishments.
A cruise ship seen from behind

The US government wants everyone to avoid cruise travel during COVID-19 pandemic

The CDC issued its strongest recommendation against cruise ship travel, but it hasn't issued a ban as it did at the beginning of the pandemic.

With winter storms on the way, avalanche forecasters in Southcentral warn of dangerous conditions through the weekend

Forecasters are warning of dangerous avalanche conditions in the mountains around Southcentral Alaska.
A public health worker in a tent outside Juneau International Airport bags a freshly collected nasal swab for COVID-19 testing.

Alaska reports a record 13 deaths as spike in coronavirus cases continues

The state on Tuesday reported 13 deaths tied to the coronavirus. It’s the most deaths reported in a single day by the state health department since the pandemic began.
A four story concrete building

Heavily Republican incoming class of Alaska legislators prepares for next session

Only one of the newly elected members of the Alaska Legislature is a Democrat.
Caribou graze on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, with snowcapped peaks of the Brooks Range as a backdrop. (USFWS)

The Trump administration is moving to sell leases in ANWR, but will anyone show up for a sale?

Oil and gas companies aren’t talking publicly about whether they’d bid. But one industry analyst says she’d expect interest in a lease sale to be “lukewarm.”
Cooked turkey on top of a cutting board, next to trays of orange and white platters of food.

For pandemic Thanksgiving, a growing group of Anchorage restaurants are cooking

Amid months of uncertainty and pandemic disruptions, Anchorage restaurant owners say demand for Thanksgiving dinner to-go has been an unexpected boost for business.
a person stands just outside a restaurant window

Hard-hit Anchorage restaurants prepare for more restrictions

As COVID-19 cases soar in Anchorage, restaurants are bracing for the possibility of another shutdown. Acting Mayor Austin Quinn-Davidson said this week that she had no immediate plans for new emergency mandates, but noted the city may need to take action soon.
Signs in a window announce covid closures

Economists try to see what’s ahead for Alaska’s pandemic recession

And some parts of the state have felt the impacts of the downturn more than others. Interior Alaska has had a boost from the military. The Anchorage region has been buoyed by growth in the Mat-Su. But it’s a different story in Southeast.
gasline trail

LISTEN: Norwegian concept of frifluftsliv offers insight to coping with pandemic

There's a Norwegian term for deliberately embracing time spent outside, for both the mental and physical benefits. It's frifluftsliv (pronounced FREE-loofts-leev), something Alaskans will find...
A black Tlingit designed eagle

Tlingit artist from Juneau designs stamp for US Postal Service

The artwork of a Tlingit artist from Juneau will be featured on a new postage stamp set for distribution next year.
A swampy flat area with rolling hills in the background

Alaska agency says it’s neutral on Pebble Mine. Internal documents tell a different story.

Text messages and meeting notes suggest DNR is working to help the mine get a federal permit
The columns of the alaska state capitol

Why a majority Republican caucus isn’t certain in Alaska legislature, despite conservative wins

Newly elected Republicans have been talking about how they will organize as election results are finalized, but their narrow majorities in both houses and some stark policy disagreements mean a caucus is far from certain.
Several 30-foot fishing boatsin the water

After a summer of pandemic disruptions and poor salmon runs, Alaska fishermen await more federal relief money

Government relief money has helped fishermen, and the state is finalizing a plan for how to spend another $50 million in federal dollars for the industry.

Lt. Gov. Kevin Meyer seeks initiative audit to calm election questions

Meyer said the only reason he’s seeking an audit is because “so many people think our Dominion machines are faulty, corrupt and easily manipulated, and I think a lot of this is misinformation that’s coming from the national level.”
A black and white image of a rescuer in the water

Shipwrecked in storm, retired fisherman gets unexpected rescue in Southeast Alaska

70-year-old Kurt Broderson was floating in a survival suit in waves the size of houses when Coast Guard rescuers arrived to save him. He says the event changed his life.
A drillng facility in low arctic light in snow

ConocoPhillips Alaska plans to restart drilling on the North Slope this year

Tor the first time since its fields were brought online, Prudhoe Bay, Kuparuk River and Alpine have no rigs running in them. But, the plan is to have rigs working on two of those fields by the end of 2021.

LISTEN: Governor’s office slow to act in addressing attorney general’s misconduct

The victim in a misconduct scandal that caused former Alaska Attorney General Kevin Clarkson to resign in August says the governor’s office knew for months prior to the resignation about inappropriate texts Clarkson sent the woman.
A row of cares lines up and a medical worker in a blue suit stands by at a window

Anchorage opens pop-up COVID-19 testing sites, encourages everyone to get tested

The city is setting up pop up testing sites over the next several weeks.
assembly members stand for a pledge

Anchorage Assembly urges Dunleavy and Alaska’s delegation to do more to fight COVID-19

In a nonbinding resolution, the Anchorage Assembly voted 9-1 to ask Gov. Mike Dunleavy to implement a statewide mask mandate.