KTOO News Update

By KTOO Public Media

KTOO News Update episodes

October 27Newscast – Monday, Oct. 26, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261026-News-Update.mp3
In this newscast:
The Juneau School Board will consider a complaint over curriculum being used at Kax̲dig̲oowu Héen Elementary at its Tuesday meeting.
Both candidates vying for the open House District 3 seat in the Alaska Legislature say they aren’t convinced the state’s controversial Cascade Point ferry terminal project will benefit Southeast communitites.
The monthlong moose hunt near Petersburg, Wrangell and Kake closed in mid-October, and final harvest numbers show it was another record-breaking season.
The U.S. Senate campaign of Democrat Mary Peltola is among those asking a federal judge to dismiss a Department of Justice lawsuit that could block or delay election results if she wins.
A high school student from Angoon speaks on her award-winning short film about the U.S. Navy’s bombardment of the village 144 years ago.
12 min
October 24Newscast – Friday, Oct. 23, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261023-News-Update.mp3
In this newscast:
The Juneau Assembly plans to swear in two new members plus a returning one at its regular meeting on Monday night.
The Trump administration filed a lawsuit Thursday seeking to block certification of the state’s U.S. Senate election if the president’s preferred candidate loses the race.
A local filmmaker is debuting his passion project “Girl, Yeti and a Spaceship” in Juneau next month.
12 min
October 23Newscast – Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261022-News-Update.mp3
In this newscast:
The U.S. Geological Survey announced a new estimate for natural gas potential across Alaska’s North Slope
The Alaska Federation of Natives kicked off its annual convention in Anchorage and marked its 60th anniversary
Alaska Native education specialists stressed self-determination at the Elders and Youth conference in Anchorage
Juneau’s top-paid city officials are police officers due to overtime pay
12 min
October 22Newscast – Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261021-News-Update.mp3
In this newscast:
Juneau will have a new seasonal sales tax beginning next year. And there will be some new faces on the Juneau Assembly, while the school board remains unchanged. That’s according to the final results for Juneau’s municipal election shared last night.
Here’s the clue: He is an Alaska resident, a longtime Jeopardy! fan, and won the game on October 13 after decades of training. If you said: Who is Ron Clarke? – you’d be correct.
The small fishing village of Pelican in Southeast Alaska went without a grocery store for more than 15 years. Then, in 2023, a family decided to step in and start one again. What began as just a few shelves of basic supplies has grown, aisle by aisle, into a community hub for locals, tourists, and fishermen alike. KCAW’s Hope McKenney visited the small boardwalk town and has this story.
Governor Mike Dunleavy issued a disaster declaration Tuesday after a non-fatal landslide severely damaged the Ward Cove electric substation just north of Ketchikan. The same storm that caused the landslide also damaged drains near the city harbormaster’s maintenance building.
The U.S. Forest Service is once again moving forward with a large old-growth logging project on Prince of Wales Island. The agency released its draft decision and final environmental impact statement for the Twin Mountain II timber sale last week, kicking off a 45-day objection period.
13 min
October 21Newscast – Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261020-News-Update.mp3
In this newscast:
Heavy rain and high winds are slated to continue slamming parts of Southeast Alaska through Tuesday night. The National Weather Service issued a flood watch as well as high wind advisories and warnings, concentrated mostly in the northern panhandle. Meteorologists expect impacts in Juneau, Sitka, Gustavus, Elfin Cove, Haines, Skagway and Yakutat.
Alaska released more than a billion-and-a-half hatchery fish last year, according to the North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission, the most of anywhere in the world. But a growing body of research has indicated that hatchery fish could harm wild salmon populations by interbreeding with wild fish and competing with them for food. Some stakeholders, many from sport and charter fishing backgrounds, have called for hatchery restrictions from the Board of Fisheries, which oversees state-managed waters.
It’s been nearly a week since President Trump held a rally in Wasilla campaigning for Republican candidates up and down the ballot. He urged supporters to vote for Republicans in the races for House and Senate and unveiled his pick for governor: business owner Bernadette Wilson.
13 min
October 20Newscast – Monday, Oct. 19, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261019-News-Update.mp3
In this newscast:
Two community wellness events focused on cancer are coming up this week in Juneau.
More than 70 people gathered in the rain Saturday morning in Juneau to partake in a nationwide No Kings rally downtown.
Ketchikan’s city and borough mayors have issued a joint disaster declaration after a landslide north of town severely damaged an electric substation last week.
The Ketchikan Wellness Coalition has been awarded federal money to expand health advocacy for Filipino families in Ketchikan and on Prince of Wales Island.
The Elders & Youth Conference and the Alaska Federation of Natives Convention are taking place in Anchorage this week.
12 min
October 17Newscast – Friday, Oct. 16, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261016-News-Update.wav
In this newscast:
A former manager of Juneau’s Switzer Village Mobile Home Park allegedly embezzled funds, failed to pay back millions in loans and sold property she didn’t own. That’s according to a lawsuit her mother, the majority owner of Switzer Village, filed earlier this month.
Juneau’s Tlingit Culture, Language, and Literacy program received a $14,000 food sovereignty grant. The money comes from Native Movement, a nonprofit supporting grassroots-led projects that ensure Indigenous Peoples’ rights.
Alaska’s top two candidates for U.S. Senate disparaged and frequently interrupted each other during Debate for the State Thursday night.
Pumpkin patches are a fall tradition in much of the country. But in Alaska, where the growing season is short and shipping costs are high, getting pumpkins to communities across the state takes extra effort. Still, from Southeast to the North Slope, Alaskans are finding ways to keep the tradition alive.
Former Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor says he, too, is staying in the race for governor despite President Trump’s call for Republicans to unite behind small business owner Bernadette Wilson.
13 min
October 16Newscast – Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261015-News-Update.mp3
In this newscast:
A Ketchikan fire station is back in operation after a fire damaged the facility
The St. Ann’s building in Juneau has grant funding to be redeveloped into a senior care center
Alaska’s ferry laundry is done by people incarcerated a Lemon Creek Correctional Center less than $2 per hour
A group of Sitka’s Mt. Edgecumbe High School alumni, parents and educators want to see improvements at the state-run boarding school
13 min
October 15Newscast – Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261014-News-Update.mp3
In this newscast:
Republican gubernatorial candidate Dave Bronson is pushing back after President Trump endorsed another Republican in the race, Bernadette Wilson.
As a potentially historic El Niño heats up, an Anchorage climate scientist says it might lead to below average snow for most of Alaska, but all options are still on the table.
The Juneau School District is projected to lose close to a sixth of its students over the next five years.
A close-knit family from Kwigillingok are still figuring out life a year after the remnants of Typhoon Halong wreaked havoc on Western Alaska communities.
12 min
October 14Newscast – Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026
https://media.ktoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261013-News-Update.mp3
In this newscast:
A Juneau man was charged with two felonies last weekend after struck and seriously injured a pedestrian early Sunday morning on Douglas Island.
Indigenous scholars from across the country are convening in Juneau this week to learn from local experts, write grants and build community.
Updated preliminary results for Juneau’s municipal election show residents continue to support implementing a new seasonal sales tax in Juneau next year.
A hidden workforce inside Juneau’s Lemon Creek Correctional Center helps to keep the state’s ferry system afloat.
12 min