Minnesotans Organize Rally for Public Broadcasting

Last Saturday morning, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a continuing resolution eliminating all Federal funding for local public television and radio stations by a vote of 235-189.  On February 28th, the continuing resolution will be taken up by the Senate.  This funding is critical for public broadcasters.

There is a community rally for public broadcasting this Thursday (Feb. 24th) starting at 11am at the Cray Plaza in St. Paul including special guest Congresswoman McCollum. 

"We urge the Senate to reject this House action, and we hope the final decision on this matter will recognize the enduring value of public broadcasting as America’s largest classroom, its greatest stage, and its most trusted and comprehensive source of information for the citizens of the world’s greatest democracy" - Public Media Association president Patrick Butler

Get more information on this issue at 170millionamericans.org.

How To Understate Excitement

Here is Steve Downing's thoughts on 90.5 KBXE, the new radio station we’re building to secure and enhance the service of KAXE and Northern Community Radio in Bagley, Bemidji, Puposki, Erskine, Clearbrook, Buzzle Lake and beyond.

You can listen here:
Guido on KBXE

I’ve been involved for just over a year now with the 90.5 KBXE project. I have to admit: the learning curve from the start was steep, and not strictly because I didn’t know Thing One about building a new radio station, although that certainly complicated the issue. My real problem was that I knew virtually nothing about Bemidji, or Bagley, or any of the many other communities KBXE will be serving. Growing up, roadtrips for my family always meant Duluth, which had been my parents’ orientation when they were kids, or the Twin Cities, where they’d both gone to college. I’d just never spent any time in Bemidji. I was deprived. I was. I say that without a whiff of facetiousness.

I’m a huge new fan of Bemidji. It took about five minutes. And everyone who knows me well, the folks I see day after day, have all heard me raving about Bemidji and Bagley and Shevlin and Debs and Clearbrook and so on. As I make connections over there now, with people, with businesses, organizations, causes, I’m reminded at every point what a terrific community, community of communities, we are dealing with here, and this is a very, very good feeling.

One of my first KBXE projects was Bemidji’s 2009 Night We Light Parade, and I was honestly surprised at the reception we got as we walked along the parade route beside our float. The friendliness, the vibe, was practically palpable, something in the air, and I don’t think it had anything to do with the candy we were handing out. This was the case, too, a few miles farther west, as we planned our involvement in the 2010 Clearwater County Fair in Bagley. The people at City Hall, the courthouse, the fair board: everyone, everyone, was nothing but welcoming and helpful and fun to work with. I talked at length about this on my January Arts Round-up.

Saturday afternoon, August 7th, at the Clearwater County Fair, The Brothers Burn Mountain performed at the KBXE booth, and that’s one of my signature memories of the whole year. It was late afternoon. There was a lull over at the racetrack. Fairgoers were between things, milling around on the concourse, and when The Brothers Burn Mountain finished their set and moved into an improv percussion jam, the KBXE booth was in every way center stage. We had everyone’s attention, and no one was having a bad time. I still grin involuntarily every time I conjure up that scene, that physical ground-thumping sound.

That is a perfect indicator-predictor of what KBXE and our circle, our circles and circles, of friends, old and new friends, will be doing in the neighborhood, from Red Lake to Naytawaush, Cass Lake to Fosston---Bemidji, Bagley and beyond: bringing people together, in grass-roots common-ground settings, often to listen to music but sometimes for other community-building reasons, too. As we say, KBXE will be a community gathering-place, in the air, on the ground, on the web. Northern Community Radio has been doing this for almost 35 years: connecting people to each other, to the northland, to the universe. This is what we do.

KBXE will be an all-purpose partner, so in addition to improving what we call quality-of-life we’ll also be impacting commerce, impacting local economies. Here’s a for-instance: last July, at the 6th Annual 91.7 KAXE Mississippi River Music Festival, somewhere between three and four hundred people showed up, many of them from out-of-town, and we know that altogether those folks dropped well over $12,000 into local cash registers (festival ticket-revenue not included). This was for gas, lodging, shopping, dinner and drinks, you get the picture. One time, one day. There are obvious multiplier effects, of course, depending on what other events get onto the calendar. KBXE will be doing this sort of business.

So, understatement of the day: this is exciting. It’s exciting for our new coverage area; it’s exciting for our entire coverage area. Northern Community Radio, good as it is and has been, is about to enhance its sound, its member and volunteer and underwriting bases, its product, its service to mission, its human and natural resources. Everything. We’ll need lots of help, your help, to make this happen. Your time. Your talents. Your treasure. Come see us at the Blue Ox in Bemidji, Saturday, February 5th, 6 pm. Come for the fun. There’ll be plenty of that, guaranteed. But come and make a pledge, too. You can spread it out over three or more years, while you and we all spread the love about 90.5 KBXE.

By Steve Downing, aka Guido
Northern Community Radio

What is Northern Community Radio?

by Doug MacRostie

Instead of being tightly focused on one community, or genre of music, or time period; we throw a wider net, and at the same time get more specific. Northern Community Radio has worked for nearly 35 years to build community in Northern Minnesota through 91.7 KAXE with studios in Grand Rapids, serving Hibbing, Hill City, Virginia, Aitkin, Nashwauk, Bovey, Ball Club, Orr, Effie, Deer River and beyond. And in Bemidji at 105.3 and at 89.9 in Brainerd with low powered translators. As producers, we strive to present the stories and voices that make each area unique and share them through radio broadcasts, cultural events and interactive media. This is done through community support and volunteer programming; individuals from all over come together to create what we know as Northern Community Radio.

The idea of 90.5 KBXE was born of two factors. Wanting to preserve, enhance and expand the service of Northern Community Radio to Bagley, Bemidji, Gonvick, Debs, Clearbrook, Shevlin, and beyond.The other factor was a final window to apply from the FCC. It was a long shot, but we took it. And we got it.

With a very active and productive volunteer Publicity Committee, KBXE is already doing the cultural events and interactive media, and we are working to build the station and get the radio broadcasting going by March of 2012.

The process of building a new community radio station isn't easy, and we're making it more difficult by striving to have studios located in Bemidji. We are making it harder. But it's worth it. Having a second studio location for Northern Community Radio will give easier and better access for that region. There are numerous volunteers who make a 70+ mile drive to produce radio programs for KAXE, but a shorter commute for existing volunteers is just the beginning. New volunteers, new voices, new ideas all with easier and more direct access to local, independent, community media broadcasting clearly from a tower between Bagley and Bemidji

Closer than any 'sister station' relationship, the stations will be like the two sides of a brain - able to broadcast as Northern Community Radio for both 90.5 KBXE and 91.7 KAXE. Both will create programs and content. Both will work to discover, define and build the communities through local support, local volunteers and local content.

It's what we do.

Rock on,
Doug

Doug MacRostie
Northern Community Radio
260 NE 2nd St
Grand Rapids MN 55744
218/326-1234
800/662-5799

91.7 KAXE www.kaxe.org
90.5 KBXE www.kbxe.org
www.northerncommunityinternet.org

Bread recipe from KAXE's mini Empty Bowls

Last Saturday's Empty Bowls at KAXE was a great success! Thanks to Joan from Brewed Awakenings for the borscht, Karla from Grand Organic Market for the chili, Frieda Hall for the pumpkin soup, Gail Otteson for the Split pea soup and Sarah MacRostie for the chicken noodle. Another big thanks to Ross Williams for providing his homemade bread!

The big events to support Second Harvest North Central Food Bank and the Community Cafe are happening this week. Wednesday night from 5-7pm is the CELEBRITY BOWL RECEPTION at the MacRostie Art Center. It is a silent auction of professionally made bowls and a preview of one of a kind bowls. Thursday is the main event. EMPTY BOWLS is at the Timberlake Lodge in Grand Rapids. Tickets are $15 and include soup/bread and a handcrafted bowl.

Every contribution you make to Empty Bowls goes directly to serve the people facing hunger in northern Minnesota.

Here are Ross's bread recipes!

No-Knead Bread

Published in New York Times: November 8, 2006
Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery
Time: About 1½ hours plus 14 to 20 hours' rising
The Minimalist: The Secret of Great Bread: Let Time Do the Work (November 8, 2006)

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
1 5/8 cups water (use 1 1/2 cups for easier to handle dough if measuring flour using scoop and level method)
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.


Alternative Fast No-Knead Bread
3 cups flour
1 5/8 cup very warm, almost hot water
¼ teaspoon yeast
1 ¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon red wine vinegar

will raise much faster

Pane Integrale (Whole-Wheat Bread)
(NYT adapted from Jim Lahey,'s My Bread)
2 1/4 cups (300 grams) bread flour
3/4 cup (100 grams) wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons (8 grams) table salt
1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) instant or dry active yeast
1 1/4 cups (300 grams) cool water (55 to 65 degrees)
Wheat bran, cornmeal or flour, for dusting

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.

Sour Dough
3/2008

Sponge:
1 cup starter
1 cup water
1 cup flour

Dough:
Put starter above in bread machine, add:
2 cups flour
1.5 teaspoons salt
1-2 T rye flour

Mix on dough or pizza cycle

Remove and place on board heavily floured with semolina flour
Leave over night to raise on board covered with wet towell ( you may have to rewet towel to get it off)
fold over and let rise
put pan in oven and heat to 450 degrees
slash top and slid bread into heated pan
cover and put in oven

Sour Dough Alternative 2
1 cup starter
1 cup water
3 cups flour
1.5 teaspoons of salt

Mix in bowl
Let raise at least overnight
Line a basket with a floured towell
place loaf in basket
Let rise until doubled
Put in basket and cut top with scissors
Bake as above


Rosemary Pepper Bread
adapted from "Bread Machine Baking" by Lorie Brody and Millie Apter

1 ½ T (generous T) fresh rosemary (or 1 T dried)
1 ½ T honey
1 ½ T vegetable oil
¾ C water + 1 T water
1/3 C quick cooking oats (used non-quick)
3 T cornmeal
2 ½ C unbleached white flour (used bread flour)
1 t salt
3 T nonfat dried milk (used instant)
1 t coarsely ground black pepper
2 t yeast
Note: This is made by adding all the ingredients to a bread machine which will mix and bake it. I just use the bread machine to make the dough and then form it and bake it in the oven. You could do everything by hand. You will need to mix and knead it, let it rise, punch it down and let it rise again.Then punch it down and form it into loaf. Let rise until doubled and bake at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes or until internal temperature is between 190 and 200 degrees. The loaf will sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

"Successful Community Radio"

Yesterday we were visited by Zaidi Khumalo, editor of Katnorus Mail and Anton van Zyl, publisher of Zoutnet Newspapers, both from South Africa. They wanted to see a "successful community radio station." John Hatcher, Professor of Journalism of the University of MN Duluth gave them a tour of media organizations in Northern MN (after visiting Marshal Helmberger at The Timberjay). In the picture to the right, Scott Hall is showing Zaidi and Anton our broadcast studios.