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.”

Murkowski, Sullivan back Senate bill to help Postal Service

Alaska’s U.S. senators have signed on to the Postal Service Emergency Assistance Act. It has aid for USPS that Senate leaders left out of their latest coronavirus relief bill.
A radio sattelite

Questions remain after GCI sells television assets to competitor

The future is uncertain for many employees of Anchorage CBS affiliate KTVA, after the television station’s owner, telecommunications company GCI,announced in late July it is getting out of the broadcast television business.
Customers dined inside at Kriner's Diner on Friday afternoon, Aug. 7, 2020, just a few hours after a state judge ordered the restaurant to shut down dine-in service.

Kriner’s Diner backs down after Municipality of Anchorage seeks to increase fines

A co-owner said in a Facebook video that the new fines would be more than the business could afford.
A digital simulation showing different

Biden vows to block Pebble mine project if elected

“It is no place for a mine,” the former vice president said in a statement to news media.
Joshua Easterly, operations manager at Alaska Club East, uses a disinfectant fogger to clear the gym.

As gyms adapt to operate during a pandemic, some are struggling to get users back inside

Gyms are adapting, but some still face financial strain as Alaskans opt out of indoor exercise.
“Shin-chi’s Canoe” by Nicola Campbell, “Not My Girl” and “When I Was Eight” both by Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton, and “My Name is SEEPEETZA” by Shirley Sterling will be available in fourth grade classrooms and elementary school libraries. (KTOO file photo)

Alaska families: Can we follow you as kids return to school?

Alaska is about to start a very unusual school year. And as we cover schools reopening this fall, we’d like to follow some of you through this transition.
People eat outside on a blocked off section of G St. A white tent is set up in the middle of the street.

Taking advantage of space that used to be for cars, downtown businesses work to weather pandemic

Lack of tourism and changing city restrictions on dining in response to the COVID-19 pandemic have forced downtown Anchorage restaurants to be flexible and creative with the way they keep business running.
Samantha Wells, owner of Little Dipper Diner, talks with assistant manager Frankie Henley at the restaurant on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2020.

Anchorage takes second diner to court over emergency order violation

The city is asking a judge to order Little Dipper Diner to shut down dine-in service immediately. It filed the paperwork, seeking a temporary injunction, in state court in Anchorage on Thursday.

Fish and Game kills 4 bears near Hope as it investigates fatal mauling

The agency says it will analyze DNA samples taken from the four bears to see if they match samples collected at the site of the attack.
Corks from a gillnet lie on t he black sand in front of beach grass.

COVID-19 restrictions spark food security concerns in Western Alaska

Communities like Stebbins with limited access to the road systems are worried about what an outbreak could mean.
An aerial shot of a massive dam holding in mine tailings surrounded by spruce forests and rolling hills.

Global mine standards rest on voluntary compliance

There are concerns that new standards don’t go far enough to protect communities downstream.
Melissa Hutchinson is a waitress and the dayshift supervisor at Gwennie's Old Alaska Restaurant. She's standing behind the bar at the Anchorage restaurant.

‘We’re all angry’: Anchorage restaurants lay off workers and shut down dine-in, while others defy order

Restaurants across Anchorage are having to make tough decisions as they quickly respond to the latest restrictions from Anchorage Mayor Ethan Berkowitz.
A building with a cement sidewalk marked as "emergency"

Some doctors say the state’s COVID-19 dashboard doesn’t tell the full story

The state's hospital capacity has remained at 'green' levels throughout the pandemic, but some are raising concerns about what those numbers don't show.
Clouds hang over forested bay, where some boats and buildings are visible in the distance.

Third year of abysmal salmon runs leaves Chignik looking for answers

Chignik’s early run of sockeye this year is the lowest on record, and it failed to meet its lower-end escapement goal for the third year in a row. With commercial fishing at a standstill, the community is struggling to make ends meet.
Two bearded men pose in the Mr. Fur Face Beard Competition.

What’s it take to win Alaska’s fiercely contentious beard competition? | INDIE ALASKA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=To2JBuFR2VQ Bearded men and women from around the country gather in Anchorage every winter during the Fur Rendezvous to compete in the Mr. Fur Face...
Donald Trump Jr. and his son in river shallows. Trump jr. holds in front of him a sockeye salmon that is bright red with a green head.

Donald Trump Jr. tweets his opposition to Pebble Mine

Opponents of the Pebble Mine found a gift on Twitter Tuesday: Donald Trump Jr. declared he’s against the mine.

State clarifies testing rules for incoming travelers

Out-of-state travelers will be required to either have a negative test taken within 72 hours of departing for Alaska, or proof that they have results of a test taken within 72 hours that are pending
A microscopic black and white image of a syphilis bacteria, which appears as a cork screw shape coming out of a flat surface.

COVID-19 hampers state response to syphilis outbreak

The state just reported the largest number of syphilus cases ever in the state with 250 people infected.

Recall Dunleavy effort misses deadline to appear in general election

The deadline to guarantee a recall vote on Nov. 3 is Tuesday, August 4.