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Newspaper newsrooms have shed 57% jobs since 2008

Suzanne Downing
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14
Newspaper newsrooms have shed 57% jobs since 2008

Newspaper newsroom employment fell 57% between 2008 and 2020, from roughly 71,000 jobs to less than 31,000. At the same time, the number of digital-native newsroom employees rose 144%, from 7,400 workers in 2008 to about 18,000 in 2020, according to the Pew Research Center.

Overall newsroom employment — including newspapers, radio, broadcast television, cable — in the United States has dropped by 26% since 2008, the center said.

The analysis was based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Rachel Bylsma joins oil and gas association

Suzanne Downing
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2
Rachel Bylsma joins oil and gas association

The Alaska Oil and Gas Association has hired Rachel Bylsma as the organization’s external affairs manager.

Bylsma recently served as the director of constituent services for U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan, a role she maintained since the senator was first elected more than six years ago. Prior to that, she was a senior policy advisor to Gov. Sean Parnell.

Born and raised in Alaska, she is a graduate of Dimond High School. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from George Fox University and earned her Master of Arts degree in public policy from Liberty University while working full-time for Sen. Sullivan.

“It was great to have Rachel on my team and to see her passionate advocacy on behalf of Alaskans. I know she will bring the same tenacity and dedication she exhibited in my office to the Alaska Oil and Gas Association, and I wish her the best,” Sullivan said in a statement.

“We are extremely excited to work with Rachel,” said Kara Moriarty, AOGA President/CEO. “She is a consummate professional and has a strong work ethic. We look forward to putting her skills to work advocating for the long-term viability of the oil and gas industry in Alaska.”

Bylsma will be responsible for the organization’s public relations, government affairs, and event management.

AOGA is a professional trade association whose mission is to foster the long-term viability of the oil and gas industry in Alaska for the benefit of all Alaskans.

Alaska life hack: Delta bison hunt raffle odds are good this year

Suzanne Downing
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1
Alaska life hack: Delta bison hunt raffle odds are good this year

There are only a few days left in the raffle for a chance to hunt a Delta Bison and the odds may never have been better, according to Eddie Grasser, of the Department of Fish and Game.

With six days left to buy tickets, only 800-and-change people have entered the drawing so far, he said.

Visit the Outdoor Heritage Foundation to enter.

All proceeds from this year’s raffle will go to Wildlife Safeguard, whose mission is to support Alaska Wildlife Troopers.

“Your purchase of a ticket will support AWT, and will help stop illegal activities impacting our fish and game resources giving you a more reasonable opportunity to harvest natural foods for your family’s dinner table,” Grasser said in a note to hunters.

The winner of the tag is not subject to stipulations regarding eligibility related to drawing a previous permit or harvesting a bison; however you can’t harvest two bison in the same year.

This permit is for either sex and allows the hunter to hunt the entire season.

Pebbled: Prices of metals may mean mining projects have better luck moving ahead

SENIOR CONTRIBUTOR
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10

By MARK HAMILTON

(Editor’s note: This is the 10th in a series by Mark Hamilton about the history of the Pebble Project in Alaska.)

With a significant move upward in the price of metals, Alaska will begin to see more mining projects begin the long journey to production. 

The permitting process is a long and rigorous one, but necessary to determine if a development project meets the stringent requirements needed to protect the environment. The process begins years before the actual submission of a project for permitting.  

The developer, at significant expense, must put together an environmental baseline study to document the existing physical, biological, and social environment of the site. This extensive study will document the fish, water and air, the animals, the plants, and the human utilization of the study area. The study will begin the examination of the water, surface, and ground, and its usage by season by animals and residents of the area.  

The goal is the full understanding of the flora, fauna, and hydrology. During this pre-permit time frame, several other subjects will be explored. Those include any historical sites that might be affected by the development, identification of migratory use of land or water, areas reported to be important to the indigenous culture, any presence of rare or endangered species, and other issues that may be of concern.

As this multi-year investigation proceeds, preliminary engineering assessments will begin. This is an extremely complex endeavor. You don’t just dig a hole in the ground. The investigation includes many hundreds of core samples to understand the quality and distribution of the ore. There may be 1,000 or more drillings, 75% to map the ore, and 25% discovering the ground water.

This will inform the method of extraction, from a host of possibilities.  Developers will understand how the various ore types would react in the processing plant, the grind size, the needed agents and so forth. They will decide the characteristics of the tailings (the remaining crushed rock after the ore has been extracted).  The characteristic will advise the requirements of the tailings facility in terms of location, size, and whether precautions such as lining of the facility are warranted.  

Just selecting the site for the tailings facility may require hundreds more drillings. They will learn everything possible about the needed water for the mine, understanding its source and the variations by year and in extreme flood scenarios. They will explore the uses by local people and animals, by season. They will explore the power requirements, explore possible renewable solutions, determine the usage of natural gas, hydro, or diesel to produce the power.

Finally, they will need to understand how one gets to the mine, and how the ore gets out. Is it roads, ferries, ports? What route will it take?  Will the ore be transported by slurry pipeline, trucks, or something else? Each of these considerations influences the other.  And the balance of them determine the plan to be presented for permitting.

When the developers have sufficient data and design concepts, they will apply for a permit to initiate the permitting process. If it involves wetlands, the lead f ederal agency typically will be the United States Corps of Engineers.  So much of Alaska is wetlands, that we will certainly see this agency in the future.

Having spent 31 years in the United States Army, I have great faith in the integrity of the Corps. I note that in the case of Pebble Mine they refused to be part of the EPA’s Bristol Bay Watershed Assessment charade, noting that they didn’t have a request for permit as yet. Many of these submissions for permits will be judged to need an environmental impact statement.  In that case, the Corps of Engineers will select an independent third-party consulting firm. The developer does not make this selection, but subsequently will be required to pay for the work to be done.

With the assistance of the independent third-party, the Corps of Engineers will begin the process of “scoping” for the Environmental Impact Statement. In essence, they are determining the test that must be passed in order for the project to receive a positive record of decision. This is a sort of “open book” test.  Remember those?

The Environmental Protection Agency wrote the guidelines and expectations.  It is published in a document called EPA and Hardrock Mining: A Source Book for Industry in the Northwest and Alaska. So begins the very formal evaluation of the science and engineering and environmental considerations. We will follow the process in next week’s column.

The “Pebbled” series at Must Read Alaska is authored by Mark Hamilton. After 31 years of service to this nation, Hamilton retired as a Major General with the U. S. Army in July of 1998. He served for 12 years as President of University of Alaska, and is now President Emeritus. He worked for the Pebble Partnership for three years before retiring. The series continues next week. 

Pebbled 1: Virtue signaling won out over science in project of the century

Pebbled 2: Environmental industry has fear-mongering down to an art

Pebbled 3: The secret history of ANWR and the hand that shaped it

Pebbled 4: When government dictates an advance prohibition

Pebbled 5: EPA ‘just didn’t have time’ to actually go to Bristol Bay

Pebbled 6: The narrative of fear

Pebbled 7: The environmentalists who cried wolf

Pebbled 8: Build your media filter based on science, not narrative

Pebbled 9: The history of hysteria

Alaska life hack: Canada to allow Americans through border starting Aug. 9

Suzanne Downing
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22
Alaska life hack: Canada to allow Americans through border starting Aug. 9

For nearly 16 months, Americans have not been able to cross the border into Canada, except for “essential travel” circumstances, and with very strict conditions for travel.

But beginning August 9, fully vaccinated Americans as well as permanent residents who live in the U.S. will be able to get through the border.

Canada closed its borders to all but essential travel from the U.S. in March of 2020, in order to slow the spread of the Covid-19 virus.

Travelers from other nations may also be allowed to enter Canada beginning Sept. 7, provided the “COVID-19 epidemiology remains favorable,” according to the Canadian government.

Deep dive into details of the opening of Canada:

Starting Aug. 9, Canada plans to begin allowing entry to American citizens and permanent residents, who are currently residing in the United States, and have been fully vaccinated at least 14 days prior to entering Canada for non-essential travel.

Subject to limited exceptions, all travellers must use ArriveCAN (app or web portal) to submit their travel information. If they are eligible to enter and meet specific criteria, fully vaccinated travelers will not have to quarantine upon arrival in Canada.

Transport Canada is expanding the scope of the existing Notice to Airmen that currently directs scheduled international commercial passenger flights into just four Canadian Airports: Montréal-Trudeau International Airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport, Calgary International Airport, and Vancouver International Airport.

Effective Aug. 9, international flights carrying passengers will be permitted to land at the following five additional Canadian airports:

  • Halifax Stanfield International Airport;
  • Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport;
  • Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport;
  • Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport; and
  • Edmonton International Airport.

All travelers, regardless of vaccination status, will still require a pre-entry Covid-19 molecular test result. However effective Aug. 9, the Government of Canada is adjusting its post-arrival testing strategy for fully vaccinated travelers. Using a new border testing surveillance program at airports and land border crossings, fully vaccinated travelers will not need a post-arrival test unless they have been randomly selected to complete a Day 1 Covid-19 molecular test. There are no changes to the mandatory testing requirements for unvaccinated travelers.

“This strategy allows the Government of Canada to continue monitoring variants of concern in Canada and vaccine effectiveness. Using these layers of protection, the Government of Canada can monitor the COVID-19 situation in Canada, respond quickly to threats, and guide decisions on restricting international travel,” the government said.

The three-night government authorized hotel stay requirement will be eliminated for all travelers arriving by air as of 12:01 am EDT on Aug. 9. Fully vaccinated travelers who meet the requirements will be exempt from quarantine.

However, all travelers must still provide a quarantine plan and be prepared to quarantine, in case it is determined at the border that they do not meet the necessary requirements.

“While Canada continues to trend in the right direction, the epidemiological situation and vaccination coverage is not the same around the world. The Government of Canada continues to advise Canadians to avoid non-essential travel outside of Canada – international travel increases your risk of exposure to COVID-19 and its variants, as well as of spreading it to others. Border measures also remain subject to change as the epidemiological situation evolves. As Canada looks to welcome fully vaccinated travelers from the U.S., the federal government will continue to monitor the situation and provide updated travel advice to Canadians,” the Canadian government said.

Conspiracy polling: 20 percent of Americans think the Covid-19 vaccine comes with micro chip

Suzanne Downing
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27
Conspiracy polling: 20 percent of Americans think the Covid-19 vaccine comes with micro chip

A full 20 percent of Americans believe it’s likely the U.S. government is using the Covid-19 vaccine to microchip the population, according to a YouGov/Economist survey of 1,500 respondents. The poll showed that 65 percent of respondents said that the scenario is probably or definitely false, and 14 percent were unsure.

Broken down by political leanings, 8 percent of Biden voters believe it, while 29 percent of those who voted for Donald Trump believe somewhat or definitely in the microchip theory.

When asked whether the Covid-19 virus threat was exaggerated for political reasons, Biden voters overwhelmingly said it likely was not. 82 percent said it was probably not or definitely not exaggerated, while 13 percent said it was likely or definitely exaggerated.

Trump voters took a different view: 76 percent said the threat was probably or definitely exaggerated, and only 17 percent said it probably or definitely was not exaggerated.

That same poll found that liberals are quite familiar with the QAnon phenomenon. In the poll, 23 percent of respondents overall had heard a lot about QAnon, 43 percent had heard a little, and 34 percent were unfamiliar with the concept.

Liberals were much more familiar with QAnon, possibly because of the fixation of mainstream media on QAnon trends. 40 percent of Biden voters were very familiar with QAnon, 42 percent were somewhat familiar, and 18 percent were not familiar.

For conservatives, 15 percent of Trump voters were very familiar with the QAnon trend, 52 percent were a little familiar, but 33 percent had not heard of it.

QAnon is a message board on the internet that is described by Wikipedia as a discredited far-right conspiracy theory alleging that a cabal of Satan worshipers and pedophile/cannibals run a global sex trafficking ring and conspired against President Donald Trump. The mainstream media used the online message board as a boogeyman during the 2020 election cycle. No one knows how many people pay attention to the various QAnon theories that are occasionally spun.

Associated Press describes it: “Loosely tying these movements together is a general distrust of a powerful, often leftist elite. Among them are purveyors of anti-vaccine falsehoods, adherents of Trump’s “Big Lie” that the 2020 presidential election was stolen and believers in just about any other worldview convinced that a shadowy cabal secretly controls things.”

Taking the QAnon question further, 88 percent of Biden voters had a negative opinion of the QAnon trend, while only 46 percent of Trump voters held a negative position on the matter.

73 percent of Biden voters didn’t know anyone who adheres to QAnon, but 14 percent of Biden voters know someone who does believe QAnon. 78 percent of Trump voters didn’t know anyone associated with QAnon, and only 8 percent said they know someone who is.

When asked the question if they believe millions of illegal votes were cast in the 2020 general election, 90 percent of Biden voters said probably or definitely not, while 83 percent of Trump voters said probably or definitely yes.

YouGov describes itself as an international research data and analytics group.

Read the entire YouGov/Economist poll results at this link.

Breaking: Kendall, Lindemuth, and AFN sue over Power Cost Equalization Fund transfer

Suzanne Downing
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28
Breaking: Kendall, Lindemuth, and AFN sue over Power Cost Equalization Fund transfer

The Alaska Federation of Natives, using Recall Dunleavy attorneys Scott Kendall and Jahna Lindemuth, have sued the Dunleavy Administration over the status of the Power Cost Equalization Fund, which provides financial relief to rural communities to help with high cost of power.

Kendall and Lindemuth worked for the administration of Gov. Bill Walker; Kendall was his chief of staff and Lindemuth was Attorney General. They have collaborated to oppose the Dunleavy Administration in court at several turns during the past three years after they were removed from office by voters. Kendall, who was Lisa Murkowski’s campaign manager and who generally attacks Republicans, is especially active in trying to get a recall of Dunleavy on the ballot, an effort that has apparently lost steam.

The lawsuit challenges the governor’s decision to transfer more than $1 billion in the Power Cost Equalization Endowment Fund, a fund located in the Alaska Energy Authority, to the Constitutional Budget Reserve. The lawyers say this sweep violates the Alaska Constitution and upsets the Legislature’s power of appropriation.

“I have authorized my administration to pursue an expedited judgement on the future of the Power Cost Equalization Endowment Fund,” said Gov. Mike Dunleavy. “This issue is too important to delay any further. A decision by the court will help clarify what is in the General Fund and what is not to determine what gets swept into the Constitutional Budget Reserve to repay it. In order for us to fulfill our constitutional duties, both the executive and legislative branches need to know if the PCE is subject to the sweep.”

Dunleavy has proposed protecting the Alaska Permanent Fund, the Permanent Fund Dividend, and Power Cost Equalization in the Alaska Constitution through his Constitutional Amendments, SJR 6 and HJR 7. The next opportunity for the legislature to meet is on Aug. 2, in a special session called by the governor.

This story will be updated. Check back.

Judicial poppycock

Anchorage Daily Planet
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Judicial poppycock

By ANCHORAGE DAILY PLANET

Here is some bad news for elected office-holders in Alaska who thought they could be recalled only for serious infractions. It turns out, they can be recalled on simply a whim, or a policy disagreement, a philosophical difference or, well, just because. Alaska now has “standardless” recalls.

Most of the Alaska Supreme Court says so.

The court upheld a Superior Court ruling that allowed the Recall Dunleavy initiative to go forward because its allegations against Gov. Mike Dunleavy – as flimsy as they were – jibed with Alaska statutes.

But one justice, now-retired Justice Craig Stowers dissented from the ridiculous decision. He said the court’s action was an overreach and a breach of the Alaska Constitution.

“I urge every legislator to carefully consider the court’s opinion today. The opinion opens the door to standardless recall petitions,” he wrote. “The court repeatedly says that Alaska courts are to apply the ‘prima facie’ standard to recall petition allegations and, accepting the allegations as true, if any logical connection can be made between an allegation and a statutory ground for recall, the petition must be found to be legally sufficient. 

“I urge the legislature to, at the least, provide specific statutory definitions for the recall grounds to decrease the opportunity for judicial involvement in what is best done by the legislature — that is, legislating. This is not a partisan issue. The greatly expanded access to recall created by the court’s decision today can and will be used not to actually seek to recall an elected official for cause, but instead to seek to recall an elected official because of disagreements over policy. And in Alaska, disagreement over policy or political philosophy is not a proper subject for recall.”

The Division of Elections had refused to certify the recall application, saying its four allegations against Gov. Mike Dunleavy were not legally or factually sufficient for recall.

The Recall Dunleavy Committee went to the Alaska Superior Court, which sided with the recall initiative backers. The state appealed, but lost, and the high court offered a summary judgment while at the same time saying it would explain later how the committee’s recall application satisfied the legal requirements. What Alaskans got instead was judicial poppycock.

In response to the court’s “explanation,” Dunleavy said:

“The Alaska Supreme Court today issued an opinion that creates a standardless recall process, subjecting elected officials at every level, and across the political spectrum, to baseless, expensive, and distracting recall elections by their political opponents. The court has made it clear that even plainly false allegations of wrongdoing can trigger this process, undermining our election process, and prevents our elected officials from focusing on the many serious issues facing Alaskans.”

What we now have is recall effort targeting Dunleavy, financed by shadowy, anonymous figures and allowed to go forward on laughably flimsy grounds. What we will have in the future, courtesy of the state high court’s innate wisdom, is more of the same if the Legislature does not act.

Our deepest respects to Justice Stowers, a guy who clearly has read and understands the Alaska Constitution, for his clear and reasoned view of the mess.

Read more at Anchorage Daily Planet.

Recall Zaletel petition picking up steam

Suzanne Downing
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11
Recall Zaletel petition picking up steam

A petition to recall Anchorage Assemblywoman Meg Zaletel is closing in on enough signatures to take the matter to a public vote in a special election this fall.

The group pushing for the recall, led by Reclaim Midtown’s Russell Biggs, needs to have nearly 2,500 signatures, plus a good percentage beyond that number just to make sure that enough of the signatures are valid and from the district Zaletel represents.

The discontent with Zaletel began with her push to allow former Mayor Ethan Berkowitz to purchase several buildings around Anchorage to create a homeless industrial complex.

Residents of Midtown Anchorage were outraged to learn drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers for vagrants would be placed adjacent to their neighborhoods. Decisions were made during Assembly meetings that were closed to the public, but during those same meetings the Assembly leaders permitted special invited guests of proponents of the mayor’s plan to be in the chambers. All who protested the plan were banned from the Assembly meetings.

Zaletel and then-Assembly Chair Felix Rivera were targeted for recall.

Rivera survived his recall in April. But the Municipality fought the Zaletel petition in court. The Superior Court judge Kevin Saxby sided with Biggs, but the Anchorage Municipal Attorney Kate Vogel, now gone from the city payroll, appealed the decision to the Supreme Court. The oral arguments for the appeal is Thursday, Aug. 19 at 1:30 pm, during which each side will be allowed 20 minutes to argue the case.

 Most of the signatures on the petition are being gathered at the Carrs grocery story on Abbott Road, Biggs said, although there is some effort being made to go door to door in the District 4 neighborhoods. The progress is heartening, he said.

Meanwhile, the Alaska Supreme Court has decided that just about anything goes with recall petitions and that will probably bode well for Biggs to win in court.

Read Justices explain decision on Recall Dunleavy

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