Main Street

Tuesday, January 8 – As the state's new legislative session is in its first full week of duties, we revisit a conversation about government and the role journalists have in holding officials accountable. The Good Government Summit, held in April 2018, was supported by ThinkND, the Northern Plains Ethics Institute, Humanities ND, and the Bush Foundation. ~~~ Minnesota guitarist Tim Sparks and bassist James Buckley have collaborated on a new CD titled “Jukebox Dreaming.” It’s an instrumental take

Monday, January 7 – What is a naturopathic doctor, and how do they differ from an MD? What are the limits of ND practice? Joining us to answer those questions and to offer some health tips is naturopathic doctor Alli Svobodny. ~~~~ Meet Holly Brown-Borg, distinguished professor of Biomedical Sciences at UND. In November, she was named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science for her contributions to the biology of aging. She joins us to discuss how her work on hormones

Friday, January 4 – The days of the Bakken boom overwhelmed small towns with an influx of workers, and countless acres of farmland were repurposed for industrial development. My Country No More is a new documentary that follows the rise and fall of the oil boom in North Dakota and paints a portrait of a rural American community in crisis. We visit with filmmaker and North Dakota native Jeremiah Hammerling. ~~~ Dave Thompson is here for our weekly discussion of the latest headlines. ~~~ Matt

Thursday, January 3 – Johnathan Campbell is the site supervisor for the Former Governors’ Mansion State Historic site. Next week at the mansion he’ll be doing a presentation on Asa O. Fisher, the man who donated the building. Johnathan joins us with a preview and other news about the mansion. ~~~ 14th annual Blizzard Bluegrass weekend at Bismarck State College January 11-12 th . The Special Consensus is coming and they recently won the IBMA Bluegrass Album of the year as well as the instrumental

With the cold temps we’ve been having, it’s hard to remember that summer will come again. We share a StoryCorps excerpt about growing up in the garden with cousins Michael and Jason Tomanek.

Wednesday, January 2 – West Fargo economic development director Matthew Marshall is John Harris’s guest in an excerpt from Friday’s Prairie Pulse television show. ~~~ Mark Trahant , editor of Indian Country Today , reflects on 2018. ~~~ Tom Isern has a Plains Folk essay, Difficult Birds. ~~~ Train graffiti is a common sight, but it remains controversial. South Dakota Public Broadcasting’s Michael Zimny talks with an artist who practiced his skills using train cars as his canvas. ~~~ With cold

Monday, December 31 – Are you considering a New Year’s resolution for a simpler, less stressful, less debt-ridden life? When Courtney Carver realized she needed to eliminate stress for the sake of her health, it led to a personal journey of change, and she writes about it in “Soulful Simplicity, How Living with Less Can Lead to So Much More.” This month she’ll be donating $1 for every book sold to Back on My Feet , an organization committed to helping homeless people get back on their feet

Friday, December 28 – Our monthly Editors’ Roundtable show as Doug Hamilton and news director Dave Thompson visit with two guest journalists from around the state. Today’s special guests are Dave Kolpack of the Associated Press, and April Baumgarten of the Grand Forks Herald. ~~~ Matt Olien reviews two films: Mary, Queen of Scots; and Aquaman.

Thursday, December 27 – 2018 was a big year for Colin Kaepernick, the former NFL quarterback who spearheaded the 2016 protests against racial injustice. He has a new ad deal with Nike, resulting in record-setting sales. The protests, and how we talk about race, inspired Anastasia Higginbotham to write “Not My Idea: A Book about Whiteness,” a kids book about racial privilege and injustice. She spoke with Ashley Thornberg this fall. ~~~ Tom Isern shares a Plains Folk essay, Pieces in the Prairie

pstrongThursday, December 27 – /strong2018 was a big year for Colin Kaepernick, the former NFL quarterback who spearheaded the 2016 protests against racial injustice. He has a new ad deal with Nike, resulting in record-setting sales. The protests, and how we talk about race, inspired Anastasia Higginbotham to write “Not My Idea: A Book about Whiteness,” a kids book about racial privilege and injustice. She spoke with Ashley Thornberg this fall. ~~~ Tom Isern shares a Plains Folk essay,