Northern Light

The FBI has released hours of video interviews with Israel Keyes, a serial killer who operated in the region during part of his decade-long killing spree. Former NY Governor David Paterson talks about the personal impact of the March on Washington and Martin Luther King's "I Have A Dream" speech, given 50 years ago this Wednesday. A small quake shook the Lake George area overnight, Vermont will commemorate the second anniversary of the devastation left by Tropical Storm Irene, and the NYS Police will be out in force this week and weekend on the NY Thruway.In our weekly gardening conversation, what's best right now and what's still coming, plus a cautionary note

President Obama's bus tour promoting college affordability stopped in Buffalo and Syracuse yesterday. We hear from inside and outside the hall. After Buffalo, Gov. Cuomo gave the rest of the president's tour a miss, stopping instead at the first day of the State Fair in Syracuse. We attend a "wolf howl" in Canada's Algonquin Park and reprise a visit to the wild Rupert River, now tamed by hydro development.We preview a photo exhibit opening in Potsdam that features shots during the 150th anniversary reenactment at Gettysburg, and restored historical photos of Canton. Out theatre reviewer was in Gananoque for a performance of The (Post) Mistress and the Adirondack Almanack gives the weekend conditions report for the Adirondacks.

National and NY GOP leaders have blasted President Obama in advance of his tour of central and western New York to promote his education finance plans. Supporters of a NY tuition plan, "Say Yes to Education," will meet with the president. Hotel development plans in Saranac Lake have attracted the attention of Gov. Cuomo and state economic development officials. We take a postcard tour of an accessible stretch of the Northville-Placid Trail with Brian Mann. It's "animal hearts," from tiny to enormous, on this week's Natural Selections, and Todd Moe talks with an organizer of Cape Vincent's "Day on the River."

Long lines are forming outside the venues in central and western New York where President Obama will speak Thursday, outlining new plans for education programs. The new chief of the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, Betty Sutton, gives her first interview, outlining the issues facing the federal transportation authority. Dredging is part of the maintenance needed to keep ports and channels clear along the inland waterway. The Innovation Trail has that story from Rochester. Two North Country counties move to increase sales tax under "home rule" bills signed by Gov. Cuomo. And a profile interview with Glen Falls rocker Charlie Brennan, whose new CD ...look far... has just been released.

Party "housekeeping accounts" provide a big loophole for big political donors. Electronic waste recycling is up in New York, but national regulations are stalled. A new report from the Tax Foundation tracks the movement of money (and people) out of New York and other states. The DEC plans to restore the sauger to New York waters. And a major algae bloom is blighting St. Albans Bay.The Glimmerglass Opera is previewing their production of the opera "An American Tragedy" today at View in Old Forge. Our book reviewer looks at "Alone in the Classroom," a novel set in Saskatchewan and the Ottawa Valley. Todd Moe talks with Miraim Clavir about her new mystery "Insinuendo."

Our Prison Time Media Project continues with a look at how the drug war has been viewed within the African American community. The War on Drugs and its harsh sentencing policies had many supporters among black legislators and leaders. Rep. Charles Rangel of New York was at the forefront of that effort.President Obama will be visiting central and western New York this week to stump for his administration's education plans. Anti-fracking protesters have promised to put their issues before the president. And in our weekly gardening conversation, it's time to shape up the perennial beds.

Yesterday, Alcoa announced that they will shut down one of its aging pot lines at its Massena East plant for good. A political controversy has erupted over whether some not-for-profit groups should be granted exemptions from publicly disclosing their donors at the state's ethics commission. The Innovation Trail's Ashley Hirtzel reports from aboard a state-of-the-art research vessel the "Muskie" that is currently on its way through Lake Erie collecting data samples for the US Geological Survey. For today's Heard Up North, Sarah Harris interviews George Davis, who has become a cheerleader for the little town of Essex, New York. Betsy Kepes reviews Michael Virtanen's second novel, The River's Tale. John Warren has your look at outdoor recreation conditions around the Adirondacks for this weekend.

Scientists are trying to figure out whether there's a link between tile drainage and phosphorus pollution in Lake Champlain. FBI officials this week released their latest timeline of the activities of serial killer Israel Keyes, who spent part of his time in the North Country and Vermont. Tom French of Potsdam catalogued recordings of his grandfather, Thomas Mitchell, of Thousand Islands Park on Wellesley Island. In this week's "Natural Selections," Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager discuss laughter. Hearth Moon Rising spoke with Todd Moe about her new book "Invoking Animal Magic" and her spiritual connection to the natural world.

Betty Sutton becomes the new Administrator for the U.S. side of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Political opposition to New York's tough gun law, known as the SAFE act has grown, especially in Upstate counties where gun ownership is popular. Mom's Schoolhouse diner will close Saturday, August 17th. Todd Moe talks with Santa Fe artist Alex Jacobs, who has roots in Akwesasne. Todd Moe talks with Lewis County artist Loretta Lepkowski about her exhibit on family farms and the inspiration for her narrative paintings.

The Office of Mental Health says the state will provide more money for outpatient services in the North Country. A new poll finds most New Yorkers are ashamed of the candidacies of Anthony Weiner and Eliot Spitzer, but Gov. Cuomo is experiencing a rebound with voters. St. Lawrence County has gotten a step closer to buying the abandoned property of the former J&L Steel property. The husband of a top aid to Sheldon Silver has been fired and is under criminal investigation by the State Attorney General. St. Lawrence University astronomer Aileen O'Donoghue turns our attention to the wonders of the night sky, including the peak week of the Perseid meteor shower.