Colony High Students Learn To Harvest Moose

by Kyle Wilkinson The Frontiersman    (Blogger’s note: Some people remember dissecting frogs in science class. But wait till you read what students at a high school in Alaska got to do! This is one of the last articles published by The Frontiersman, where I had my first full-time job in journalism before it was …

Long Live The Frontiersman And Print News

by Kevin Burton    On the morning of my first day as a full-time honest-to-God newspaper reporter, a game of musical chairs broke out.    Musical desks too.    I had been hired by The Frontiersman in Wasilla, Alaska, to replace a local government reporter. I was a second choice. The person they hired first …

The Weather Outside Was Cold, Not Frightful

by Kevin Burton    Those color-coded national weather maps always showed the true snow calamity hitting other regions. We in Central Kansas were to be spared.    But there were breathless local forecasts calling for eight inches of snow on Saturday. My “rule of half” said we would get about four.    Sure enough, by …

A River Of Words, Words About Rivers

by Kevin Burton    Residents of one Alaska neighborhood in my newspaper’s coverage area sought to correct a flooding problem by putting rocks in a river.    Riprap, they called it, which is, as I would learn, “a foundation or sustaining wall of stones or chunks of concrete thrown together without order.”    From that …

How I Rode Cold Notes Straight To The Top

by Kevin Burton    Today we finish up the Dictionary Scoop website’s list of jargon phrases used in journalism. As I did yesterday, I will add to the list.    “Above The Fold” is a term that refers to stories and pictures that appear in the top half of the front page. It’s the part …

Cruise Ship Tourism Threatens Alaska’s Capital

by Christian Karim Chrobog The Guardian    “The noise never stops,” says Karla Hart, her voice competing with the hum of approaching helicopters. “I can feel them before I see them.” She looks at her phone to check a website that monitors air traffic and identifies operators. Hart wants to know whether the pilots are adhering …

How Walla Walla, Other Cities Were Named

by Dictionary Scoop    Sometimes, names reveal much about the history of the lands as native communities and original settlers knew them. Arguments, infestations, practical arrangements, mythology, and landscapes, all inspired the current denominations of these ten cities that are thriving today. 1-Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania    Punxsutawney’s name might bring a certain charming groundhog to mind, but its …

50 Years Ago, Terry Jacks’ “Season In The Sun”

by Kevin Burton    When you move into a house, you see it and feel it in a way all your own. You inhabit that space with your special vitality.    The way others see that space, if they see it at all, may be interesting, but it lays no lasting hold on you.    …

I Wish You Christmas Merriness, With Jesus

by Kevin Burton     Well, the big day has come, and I wish you a Merry Christmas!    This covers today and all Christmases. Even after I die, if you’re still chugging along and remember me, remember that old Kev wished you a Merry Christmas.    But on this Christmas Day I have a bigger …

Students Sue District Over Free Speech

by Katie Stavick The Frontiersman    Wasilla, Alaska – Two students filed a lawsuit against the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District Nov. 30, stating that the district has violated their right to free speech.    The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are Ben Kolendo and Quinlen Schachle, both seniors in the District-Kolendo is a senior at Career …