Brian Arola

Why local MN officials are signing NDAs - MinnPost Recent controversy in St. Louis County raised questions about how widespread NDAs are, why they’re used, and how open records laws apply.

NDAs, used to keep information from the public, are being normalized in local government, including in connection to a proposed data center outside of Duluth.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...

Capitol Conversation Newsletter Signup - MinnPost Minnesota state government reporter Matthew Blake shares the latest from the Minnesota State Capitol. Delivered Wednesday afternoons.

MinnPost's newly launched Capitol Conversations Newsletter by @rlyrealmattblake.bsky.social is sure to be a must read. Sign up: www.minnpost.com/capitol-conv...

Minnesota farmers want trade over a bailout, but they’d take it - MinnPost A bailout could hold Minnesota farmers over as they contend with market disruptions linked to Trump’s trade war.

“The farmers need it, there’s no doubt, but it’s kind of been self-inflicted by the president’s policies."
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...

Rocori school shooting survivors reflect on a day they can't forget Their experiences reveal the unpredictability of grief, as well as a way forward for the Annunciation community.

A club ‘no one asked to be a part of’: Two decades on, Rocori shooting survivors reflect on lingering trauma
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...

Nobel Conference explores sugar’s bitter role in world history - MinnPost Historian Ulbe Bosma talks about his book on sugar as the 61st conference kicks off at Gustavus Adolphus College.

Ahead of today and Wednesday's Nobel Conference at Gustavus, I spoke with researcher Ulbe Bosma about his work researching sugar's bitter role in history. www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...

Outside of a clinic in North Mankato slated to close in December, the DFL organized a rally Friday highlighting Republican cuts to Medicaid and the ACA, which party chair Richard Carlbom says will lead to more hospital and clinic closures and rolled back services.

What happens when the rural Minnesota grocery store closes? Small-town grocery store owners feel a strong sense of responsibility to their communities, but the threat of closure often looms.

Local grocery stores are lifelines for small towns. If the one in Greenbush closed, residents would have to travel 50 miles for other options.

Cuts to food assistance will hurt these grocers and rural Minnesotans.

www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...

Demuth, speaking at MinnPost Festival right now, says there is bipartisan opposition to gun bans. She sees additional mental health funding as being more realistic in a special session.

Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth doesn’t rule out gubernatorial run, but says her current role feels like the right place to be.

After cuts to food stamps, Trump administration ends government's annual report on hunger in America The Trump administration is ending the federal government’s annual report on hunger in America, saying it had become “overly politicized″ and ”rife with inaccuracies.″ The decision comes two and a hal...

@apnews.com compiled county data on food insecurity to include in our stories. It put in context what affordability and access look like by region.

Yesterday we found out the Trump administration will no longer collect this data, calling it "overly politicized."
apnews.com/article/trum...

Sowing Resilience Sowing Resilience features 9 stories on how communities are navigating — and reimagining — the systems that have left them hungry.

Nine newsrooms around the country participated in Sowing Resilience, which will be updated here: inn.org/inn-collabor...

What happens when the rural Minnesota grocery store closes? Small-town grocery store owners feel a strong sense of responsibility to their communities, but the threat of closure often looms.

MinnPost collaborated with Rural News Network on Sowing Resilience, a project exploring food insecurity in rural communities. For it I visited remote areas of Minnesota to learn how vital grocery stores are to quality of life.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...

Farm Aid 40 in Minneapolis was a day I won’t forget. Great story/photos by my MinnPost colleagues www.minnpost.com/arts-culture...

Court rulings and/or legislation seem inevitable to clear up disputed interpretations of Minnesota's cannabis law by cities.

Lawmakers pledge to lower the tone ahead of gun control debate An annual report by the group promoting the pledge showed an uptick in bipartisanship at the Capitol in 2025.

Any goodwill derived from Minnesota lawmakers having to work together more last session will be tested by gun control debates. www.minnpost.com/state-govern...

Two tiers of Minneopa Falls.

Enjoyed this interview with @jaygabler.com about the @duluthnewstribune.com's upcoming Edmund Fitzgerald podcast.

Concern at Minnesota border as more Canadians stay home The leaders of two border communities with longstanding ties hope U.S.-Canada relations will mend soon.

Fewer Canadians are coming to Minnesota this year amid strained U.S.-Canada relations. Last month I crossed the border for an interview with the Fort Frances mayor to hear how he's maintaining friendly relations with his American neighbors in International Falls.
www.minnpost.com/economy/2025...

Tiny Swift County bucks trend with three family owned papers In this western Minnesota county of 9,900 people, three independent, print-focused publications keep the news flowing.

Print is not dead! Greater Minnesota reporter @brianarola.bsky.social wrote about three local, family-owned newspapers in a western Minnesota county that are hanging on in part through collaboration: www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...

Long story short, the last photo before my car broke down along Minnesota’s northern border was of Willie Walleye in Baudette.

O Canada! Giving myself a new, unofficial title as MinnPost’s international correspondent after today’s visit to Fort Frances, Ontario.

Forgot to get a pic of a koshari bowl from Kosharina Egyptian Cuisine because I ate it too fast. Can you tell I skew way toward savory over sweet?

Thus concludes my Steele County Free Fair food diary.

Finished my fair days with these tater kegs, basically jumbo sized tots.

The hard part about fairs is I love trying new foods, but I can’t not get a gyro. So naturally I end up getting new foods AND a gyro.

Cambodian ribeye steak skewers with jasmine rice and pickled veggie slaw. Delicious.

Big poutine fan, and since no one else with me likes it I didn’t even have to share.

Cheese curd tacos were a huge hit. Got brisket one day then buffalo chicken the next, and still wanted more.

I ate my way through Minnesota’s biggest county fair, the Steele County Free Fair, over the weekend. Read on for highlights from one of my favorite events in Greater Minnesota.

‘We want transparency’: Minnesota’s Congressional delegation comments on Epstein files - MinnPost Minnesota U.S. Reps. Pete Stauber and Brad Finstad called for transparency. Stauber also questioned Democrats' political motives.

Two Minnesota GOP congressmembers told me they want transparency when asked about the Epstein files, but what they'll do to ensure the Trump admin releases information remains to be seen.
www.minnpost.com/national/202...

Gov. Tim Walz rocking a Mankato River Ramble hat at Farmfest today.