Jake Dye

It’s gonna be soooooo weird not to be covering the election results tonight, but Ashlyn and KDLL have everything you need to get informed and go vote!

Lone Haines runner ‘ran her best race of the season’ at state in Palmer - Chilkat Valley News Coach Jordan Baumgartner said he’s seen Hedden improve in every race this year — even running her fastest time of the season on Saturday.

Sophia Hedden was the lone racer for Haines High School at the ASAA Cross Country Division I State Championships in Palmer on Saturday. She landed a 15th-place finish by completing the five-kilometer run in 23 minutes and 3.13 seconds.
#aknews
www.chilkatvalleynews.com/2025/10/06/l...

My respite from local news was shorter than anticipated. Went to Palmer on Saturday to help a few southeast newspapers with coverage of cross-country state championships. Find stories by me in the Wrangell Sentinel, Juneau Independent and Chilkat Valley News, also photos for Petersburg and Sitka.

Thompson is sixth, Mangaccat 19th as Juneau’s top finishers at state cross country championships A day of "pouring rain" leading up to the race makes for "really, really muddy" finale, Crimson Bears leaders say.

Erik Thompson and Kaia Mangaccat landed the top finishes for Juneau-Douglas: Yadaa.at Kalé on Saturday at the Alaska School Activities Association Cross Country Division I State Championships in Palmer.
#aknews
www.juneauindependent.com/post/thompso...

Girls cross-country team wins state; Meissner and Loucks take individual titles - Wrangell Sentinel Wrangell’s Boomchain Loucks and Jenna Meissner both won first place as the fastest runners in their races at the state cross-country Division III championships in Palmer on Saturday, Oct. 4. …

Freshman Jenna Meissner led the Wrangell girls to their first state title — in any sport — in her school's history at the state cross-country Division III championships in Palmer on Saturday.
#aknews
www.wrangellsentinel.com/stories/girl...

Journalists at 3 Alaska Newspapers Quit Over Charlie Kirk Story The publications in Alaska lost significant staffing after the owners made changes to an article that had drawn criticism from a Republican state lawmaker.

Several journalists resigned this week from three newspapers in Alaska after the publications’ corporate owner made significant edits to an article about Charlie Kirk’s death, after pressure from a Republican state lawmaker who had criticized the coverage.

Journalists at 3 Newspapers Quit Over Edits to a Charlie Kirk Story

@nytimes.com reports on the resignation of four Alaska journalists.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/03/u...

Federal shutdown closes offices, operations around Kenai Peninsula The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife permitting office and the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge and Visitor Center are closed.

The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife permitting office and the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge and Visitor Center are closed. #KPBorough www.kdll.org/local-news/2...

I’m just watching through it for the first time on Paramount+! I’ve got just one episode left in the original series 👀

Fuller Lake is full on a clear day near Cooper Landing, Alaska, on Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025.

A vista is seen from Fuller Lake Trail near Cooper Landing, Alaska, on Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025.

Is this what people without jobs do? Because otherwise it’s just been lots of Star Trek.

$20 per hour is what I was making when I resigned as the only news reporter at the Peninsula Clarion, asked to write 2-3 stories per day. I received one raise while I was there, up from $17 when I started — that increase largely wiped out by the tripling of my insurance premium this year.

Sound Publishing says that they accept Jake’s resignation effective on Oct. 13

Not quite, they’re sticking to our planned last day:

Mass resignations at two Alaska newspapers after out-of-state owners bow to political pressure | Alaska Beacon Monday’s action by reporters and editors marks a second walkout by Carpenter Media Group employees this year in the state.

Mass resignations at two Alaska newspapers after out-of-state owners bow to political pressure, reports James Brooks for the @alaskabeacon.com

Voters to consider three names in race for Soldotna assembly seat One candidate has suspended his campaign, another is battling the borough in federal court over public access and the third is a retired school principal looking to dip his toe into local politics.

One candidate suspended his campaign, another is battling the borough in federal court over public access and the third is a retired school principal looking to dip his toe into local politics. www.kdll.org/local-news/2...

Last night 4 reporters resigned from the Peninsula Clarion in Kenai & the Homer News. Listen on my podcast to the Clarion’s lone news reporter @jakecdye.bsky.social explain his decision to walk & the future of journalism on the Kenai Peninsula:

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/e...

#akleg

Editor, most news staff of Carpenter Media’s Alaska newspapers resign due to censoring of story Article about a Charlie Kirk vigil referring to controversies involving him was altered after a GOP Alaska lawmaker complained to company management

The editor and nearly all reporters at the Homer News, Peninsula Clarion, and Juneau Empire announced their resignations after corporate management deleted content from a story about Charlie Kirk in response to a complaint from a Republican state lawmaker.
www.juneauindependent.com/post/editor-...

Proud of the staff at The Homer News and the Peninsula Clarion who are resigning. Unfortunately, thanks to Sarah's cancel culture crusade, Alaska is losing four fantastic local journalists. Vance NEEDS to be held accountable for her overreach of power.

Jake attempts to log into his work email but an error message reads “Your password was changed less than an hour ago”

So much for working a final two weeks in good faith, we’ve all already been locked out of our email accounts.

Several staff at 2 Alaska newspapers resign over handling of article by parent company Carpenter Media Two reporters and two editors from the Peninsula Clarion and Homer News cited actions by their parent company in altering an article after pushback by a state lawmaker in their resignations.

A group of reporters and editors at two Kenai Peninsula newspapers are resigning over what they say was the handling of a recent article by their parent company, Carpenter Media Group, after it was criticized by a Republican state lawmaker.

The first page of a resignation letter by Regional Editor Erin Thompson, Sports Editor Jeff Helminiak and reporters Chloe Pleznac and Jake Dye. [Excerpt because the letter is too long to include in full] "Vance also said in the letter that she was “fully aware” of an effort to boycott Homer News advertising — stating that the paper would experience financial and reputational harm if it did not change its approach to covering community events. Rep. Vance never contacted the Homer News editorial team to discuss her concerns. Without consulting the editor of the Homer News or the reporter who wrote the story, Carpenter Media removed the original article from the Homer News website, only to republish a modified version several hours later that reflected the changes demanded by Rep. Vance. In the modified version republished by Carpenter management, there was no note to indicate the article had been changed. We want to be clear: We have no problem with Rep. Vance expressing her opinion of our coverage. We cover difficult and sometimes controversial topics. Respectful dialogue about that coverage is welcome. As a community newspaper, we regularly provide Rep. Vance with a forum to discuss her views. What we do have a problem with is Carpenter Media management changing a story at the behest of an elected official. We believe this destroys the credibility the public has placed in us as reporters and editors. This willingness to acquiesce to a public official’s editorial demands and have conversations with her about the direction of our coverage is a betrayal not just of the journalists who work for Carpenter Media, but of the company’s integrity as a purveyor of news."

The second page of a resignation letter by Regional Editor Erin Thompson, Sports Editor Jeff Helminiak and reporters Chloe Pleznac and Jake Dye. [Excerpt because the letter is too long to include in full] These actions were taken despite there being no immediate urgency to remove the content — Rep. Vance's criticisms were raised regarding what she perceived as political bias, not factual inaccuracy. Despite requests, we have not been informed of the content of dialogue between Rep. Vance and Carpenter Media management. In discussion with management our editor was told that the article did not meet their editorial standards and that the editing and reporting was “juvenile.” We cannot live up to the core responsibility of a community newspaper in such an environment. We, employees of both the Homer News and Peninsula Clarion, are resigning our positions, effective Oct. 13, 2025. Leaving these newspapers, at which we have spent a combined four decades, is not a decision we make lightly. We are proud of the work that we do covering local government as well as the arts, food, history, outdoors and sports. Though this decision is extremely painful for all of us, it is not difficult. We cannot do our jobs knowing that pressure from an elected official can mean our stories are edited without prior consultation with us. Because we care deeply about the work we do and what it means to the community, we are all giving the standard two weeks’ notice instead of resigning outright. We hope Carpenter Media takes the opportunity to get personnel in place to continue the legacies of the Peninsula Clarion and Homer News. We hope this incident provides incentive for Carpenter Media to handle threats from officials in a way that safeguards the valued trust that readers have in newspapers. The community deserves it."

Editors and reporters of the Homer News and Peninsula Clarion submitted their notices of resignation today, after management from Carpenter Media Group made changes to a published story last week in response to intimidation from a state lawmaker and without input from our newsrooms.
#aknews

Shame on Capenter Media for caving to political pressure and not standing up for a free, independent press in Alaska, and shame on AK State Rep. Sarah Vance for targeting the Homer News with false accusations and misinformation.

Cancel culture, it turns out, is conservative All aboard the conservative cancel culture train!

Leave it to Homer GOP Rep. Sarah Vance to try to cancel a local paper for describing a man who once said Black women like Justice Jackson do not have "the brain processing power to be taken seriously” as holding “racist and controversial views."

My latest from the Memo:

#akleg

I don’t know what the corporate overlords from Carpenter Media said to Vance, but it certainly was a failure to uphold our integrity or to support the talented reporter and editor who worked on this story.

Rep. Sarah Vance writes on Facebook: “A RESPECTFUL THANK YOU Thank you to the owners of Homer News and Carpenter Media for their thoughtful and professional response to my concerns about biased reporting. (We have had a respectful email exchange) Revising and republishing the article in a more balanced and objective manner shows a real commitment to journalistic integrity. I deeply appreciate their willingness to listen and improve, which reflects respect for the community and dedication to fair, unbiased reporting. 👏🏼Please join me in thanking Homer News for these positive changes and supporting their ongoing efforts. Let’s encourage them to make unbiased journalism a lasting standard for our local paper. #homernews #TruthMatters #TPUSA #charliekirk”

Rep. Sarah Vance this morning taking a victory lap for her successful intimidation of the free press.

A copy of “How Media Ownership Matters” by Rodney Benson, Mattias Hessérus, Timothy Neff and Julie Sedel, published by Oxford University Press in April 2025, rests on a desk near Soldotna, Alaska, on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025.

Moving this up in my tbr this week just for no specific reason at all.

Yeah, I’m not sure how effective her boycott could be — there aren’t many advertisers left, let alone those who are ideologically aligned with Vance. I wouldn’t sacrifice integrity for the bottom line and maybe these corporate owned papers need to be replaced with something more locally accountable.

Vance threatened a boycott in her original letter that she sent to our corporate overlords in Oregon and Mississippi.

I stand behind the original story and my colleague who wrote it. Carpenter Media cracking under pressure, so quickly and without for any support for our work, is bad for our credibility and bad for journalism in this state. Vance got this story changed, which one will she go after next?

As a reporter working for this company (the Peninsula Clarion and Homer News editorial teams work very closely together and share stories and an editor) I am not at all satisfied by a person from out of state rewriting our work in response to intimidation.

The story has been republished to the Homer News in an edited form that strips some language and moves the definition of Kirk’s beliefs far down page. The edits were not done by our newsrooms, our reporter’s byline was removed, and there is no note indicating that the story has been changed.