Jake Dye

The real takeaway is that Juneau is super lucky to have so many cool and talented folks doing that important work!

Reflecting on — by which I of course mean crashing out about — the fact that while walking the streets of Juneau today I encountered eight journalists who live and work in this city. That’s not even all of them!

Pretty stark contrast to my city, which is going into 2026 with one.

After five hours of gallery walk I’m prepared to revise this “pretty cool” to a “really cool.”

Hah, maybe that’s another caveat I should add, certainly not tourist season.

Breakfast at the Sandpiper Cafe

Fire stove at In Bocca Al Lupo (I think they tried to punish me for not making a reservation by seating me at the bar but sure give me a front row seat to the fire and the pizza man)

Bulgogi burrito at V’s Cellar

The pelmeni were, as advertised, divine

Eating too good

Juneau streets

Juneau streets

Juneau streets

Juneau streets

Major caveat that I’ve only seen downtown and have neither time or money to see anything else but I’m a sicko for a walkable space.

Whale statue under cloudy skies

Main takeaway from one week in Juneau is that Juneau is pretty cool

Jake’s Apple Replay has mxmtoon, Taylor Swift and Carly Rae Jepsen in the top artist slots; Look Up from the Superman score, rain by mxmtoon and What it Sounds Like from Kpop Demon Hunters in the top song slots; and Carly Rae Jepsen’s Emotion, the Kpop Demon Hunters album and the TRON: Ares score in the top albums slots.

Per Apple Replay, Jake’s top artists in 2025 are 1. mxmtoon 2. Taylor Swift 3. Carly Rae Jepsen 4. Bob Dylan 5. The Beatles 6. Fall Out Boy 7. KPop Demon Hunters cast 8. Chappell Roan 9. EJAE 10. Nine Inch Nails

Per Apple Replay, Jake’s top songs for 2025 are 1. Look Up by David Fleming 2. rain by mxmtoon 3. What It Sounds Like by HUNTR/X 4. Run Away With Me by Carly Rae Jepsen SERVING by Miriana Conte 6. Golden by HUNTR/X 7. GAS GAS GAS (EXTENDED MIX) by Manuel 8. the situation by mxmtoon 9. sad disco by mxmtoon 10. I Really Like You by Carly Rae Jepsen

Didn’t listen to a ton of new music this year and I should fix that in 2026! It’s fitting, though, that mxmtoon is my top artist of the year since I got to see her live in March and she was incredible.

Definitely on my list!

Looking forward to meeting everyone!!

Thanks for the tips! Added to my list!

That’s the plan! I’m still doing a little bit of work for the Wrangell Sentinel and the Chilkat Valley News! Been in touch with a few other orgs in the state in the hopes of making something happen too.

Journalism remains my passion and I’m going to do everything I can to keep a foot in the space by freelancing, but after two months of searching I’ve failed to find a path to continue doing that work full time — especially on the Kenai Peninsula. That was not exactly an unforeseeable turn of events.

Jake’s view on an early morning Grant Aviation flight includes the pilot and some control panels as well as the open sky

En route to Juneau (my first time!) for training in my new day job as a field information officer at the Kenai Legislative Information Office.

I have a list of coffee shops and book stores to check out while I’m in town but I’m soooo open to recs!

Fish and Game concerned about northern spread of invasive green crab - Wrangell Sentinel European green crabs, a particularly invasive species known for aggressively displacing native species and damaging important vegetation, have been found on Etolin Island just southwest of …

Only a couple of years after first being spotted in SE Alaska, European green crabs are knocking on Wrangell's door. The State Department of Fish and Game is calling for folks to keep an eye out and report sightings of the invasive species.
#aknews
www.wrangellsentinel.com/stories/fish...

Saw a movie at an AMC tonight for the first time and Nicole Kidman didn’t even say “heartbreak feels good in a place like this” so what was the point?

Chloe Pleznac is a former reporter for Homer News, recently at the center of a story that got national attention when the newspaper's owner, Carpenter Media, changed her story about a local Charlie Kirk vigil. She discusses what happened next. #akleg

Listen:
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...

Bulletin newspaper union pickets in Bend over contract negotiations In Bend, local newspaper union members stage a two day lunch-time picket to draw attention to stalled contract negotiations with owner Carpenter Media Group.

This week, union workers at Bend’s newspaper, The Bulletin, spoke out against its owners, Carpenter Media Group.

Carpenter became the largest media owner in Oregon and the 4th largest in the nation when it purchased a raft of newspapers in the Northwest in 2024.

Editorial: Free speech isn’t free if politicians decide what can be said From Homer to Washington, D.C., too many in power have forgotten that the First Amendment protects even speech that makes us uncomfortable.

The Editorial Board of @adn.com

Free speech isn’t free if politicians decide what can be said

“This is not a small-town squabble. It’s a breach of one of the most basic principles of American democracy: that a free press must be free from government interference.”

re: MAGA Rep. Sarah Vance

Digital archivists find historic Haines photos in VHS tape case - Chilkat Valley News Digital archivists have been capturing forgotten visions of Alaska history by digitizing aging VHS tapes for nearly two years.

Digital archivists Elizabeth Kell and Kevin Allen have been capturing forgotten visions of Alaska history by digitizing aging VHS tapes for nearly two years. A recent find has them seeking subjects of images from a decades-old depiction of Haines.
#aknews
www.chilkatvalleynews.com/2025/10/15/d...

I just asked her if that would be alright and she said she’d be honored. Thanks!

Kenai Conversation: Former Peninsula Clarion staff talk community journalism, resignations On today’s episode of the Kenai Conversation, we’re joined by Erin Thompson, Jeff Helminiak and Jake Dye, formerly of the Peninsula Clarion to talk about their decision to resign from the paper and th...

On today’s episode of the Kenai Conversation, we’re joined by Erin Thompson, Jeff Helminiak and Jake Dye, formerly of the Peninsula Clarion to talk about their decision to resign from the paper and the future of local news on the Kenai Peninsula. #KPBorough www.kdll.org/podcast/kena...

Today is the first day that I'm really not employed at the Clarion, which also makes today the first day since January 2021 that I'm not employed to do journalism. By extension, it's the first day since I got into journalism that I'm not doing that. It's weirder (and sadder!) than I expected.

A Facebook post from KDLL 91.9 FM reads “It’s early o’ clock on a Saturday morning but it’s still a beautiful day to support your local non-profit public radio station! It’s day 3 of our fall membership drive and we’re still working to make up as much as we can of the loss of $140,000 in federal funding this year. You can donate by calling 907-513-1996 or visiting kdll.org to help us keep local programming and local news on the air! Right now, your donation can go even farther, because we’re looking for 8 public radio heroes to take advantage of a donation challenger from our favorite donor, A. Nonymous, who wants to match the first 8 people who donate $500 with another $500. Double your money by calling 907-513-1996!” There’s also a fun photo of KDLL board president Shaylon Cochran with a cup of coffee and a microphone.

I’m working the phones for KDLL’s fall membership drive this morning! Call 907-513-1996 and support local news on the Kenai Peninsula!

Abby the Dog snoozes on the KDLL Studio Couch.

Also the phones clearly aren’t ringing here at the KDLL studio often enough cause my best friend Abby is asleep. WAKE HER UP by calling 907-513-1996 and making a contribution now.

With no local reporters at the Peninsula Clarion, no one is doing local news in this area like KDLL! After the federal $ cut this year, they need support more than ever, and unlike the corporate newspaper run from out of state that I used to work for, everyone at KDLL lives on the central KPen.

At Nikiski town hall, gasline developers field questions, promote project Alaska LNG Project President Adam Prestidge doesn’t fault people for being skeptical about the project’s success. But he expects the skepticism to “fall away” as the project advances.

Alaska LNG Project President Adam Prestidge doesn’t fault people for being skeptical about the project’s success. But he expects the skepticism to “fall away” as the project advances. #KPBorough www.kdll.org/local-news/2...

School district considers new cell phone policy - Chilkat Valley News The school board is considering a policy that would require students to stow their cellphones and other devices while in class.

The Haines Borough School District’s school board is considering a policy that would require students to stow their cellphones and other devices in designated areas in each classroom.
#aknews
www.chilkatvalleynews.com/2025/10/09/s...

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...