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Rhonda McBride

KNBA News Producer

Rhonda McBride has a long history of working in both television and radio in Alaska, going back to 1988, when she was news director at KYUK, the public radio and TV stations in Bethel, which broadcast in both the English and Yup’ik languages.

From the Kuskokwim 300 Sled Dog Race — to the revival of the Yup’ik language — to the fight to protect the subsistence way of life, McBride was immersed in Alaska Native culture and history on a daily basis. It was one of the best jobs she ever had, she recalls, because she got to work alongside pioneering Yup’ik broadcasters, who incorporated modern technology with traditional story telling skills to preserve their language and culture.

After almost ten years in Bethel, McBride moved on to the Alaska Public Radio Network in Anchorage. She was also a public television producer at KAKM-Channel 7, where she hosted public affairs programs and moderated political debates. Later she worked at KTUU-Channel 2 and KTVA-Channel 11, where she covered politics, economics, rural, and Alaska Native issues.

At KTVA, McBride hosted and produced Frontiers, a weekly TV magazine show which won national awards for its in-depth coverage of rural Alaska and series of documentaries on the Hiland Mountain Lullaby Project, which brought local artists and inmate moms together to compose songs for their children.

In recent years, she returned to her roots in radio to produce KTOO’s Juneau Afternoon talk show. Currently, she is news director at KNBA Radio.

In 2022, McBride was inducted into the Alaska Broadcaster’s Hall of Fame and awarded an honorary doctorate at the University of Alaska Anchorage.

  • The story about how a 14-year-old Alaska Native boy designed Alaska's flag is well known, but the Qawalangin Tribe of Unalaska says there's an untold story about Benny Benson's battle against the racism of the times. It passed a resolution to set the record straight.
  • U.S. District Court Judge James Robart has ruled in favor of a tribal casino in Birchwood. The judge dismissed the lawsuit filed by neighboring property owners to shut down the casino, which the Eklutna Tribe opened in February.
  • KNBA Top Stories: A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against the Eklutna Tribe’s casino in Birchwood.The search goes on for a cruise ship passenger, who failed to return after a hike in Juneau. A fatal crash on the Parks Highway near Trunk Road. An Anchorage pedestrian, struck by a car last month, has succumbed to her injuries. A look at plans for downtown Anchorage’s new R.V. Park.
  • KNBA Top Stories: Multiple lawsuits have been filed against a regional Alaska Native Corporation after a data breach last year. An early sport fishing opening for Russian River reds. On the North Slope, whaling communities have been celebrating successful hunts.
  • KNBA Top Stories: Sen. Lisa Murkowski says it was agonizing to vote for President Trump's mega-budget bill. An Air Force staff sergeant dies in a kayaking accident on the Chena River. An elderly Palmer man is killed in a one-car rollover. In another fatal rollover in Anchorage two weeks ago, a man dies from his injuries. It’s a new chapter for Pilgrim Hot Springs near Nome.
  • KNBA Top Stories: The Republican U.S. Senate megabill is still a work in progress. Under the latest Supreme Court ruling, some Alaskans could lose U.S. citizenship. The Bristol Bay red salmon forecast is looking brighter with bigger fish expected in this year's run.
  • Fairbanks area businesses fought hard to keep a proposed bed tax increase off the ballot last night. The North Slope’s annual migratory bird festival brought bird lovers and local elders together. After a national rollback of LGBTQ protections, Anchorage’s annual Pride celebration has heightened importance for some.
  • Family escapes Bear Creek Fire near Healy, but not without losses. Lyman Hoffman, Alaska’s longest serving senator, is stepping down. Pel'Meni, a downtown restaurant, finds a way to keep serving Russian dumplings, after a pick-up truck crashed into its storefront.
  • Anchorage Police name suspect who crashed a pick-up truck into the Pel’Meni Restaurant. Rain in Interior Alaska helps but not enough to slow wildfires. Two men are seriously injured in a plane crash at the Big Lake Airport. A Talkeetna man riding his ATV on train tracks died in a collision with a freight train. Proposed cuts to the SNAP food assistance program could shutter village grocery stores.
  • Every glacier has a story, says Homer writer Naomi Klouda. It's a theme she brings to life in her new book "Alaska Glacier Dictionary," which has an A-Z listing of 700 glaciers. Beyond scientific facts and glacial data, the book is full of details about Alaska explorers and Indigenous peoples.