KFAI Presents: MinneCulture
KSTP-AM is one of Minnesota’s oldest and formerly most successful radio stations. By the 90’s, it had been mostly forgotten, as fans flocked to FM. While music fans enjoyed the stereophonic sounds on the other side of the dial, a new form of radio program began to emerge. Before long, talk radio flourished across the United States, and nowhere was it strong than at “The Talk Station.”
Fueled by a desire to shake up the radio landscape, Hubbard Broadcasting’s Ginny Morris took charge of the station and hired a new set of voices in the Twin Cities to break up the status quo. It was an eclectic cast of characters, and none of them were more unique than Tommy Mischke. Left to his own devices and given the keys to a late night kingdom, the renegade broadcaster blazed his own path. Hear from his colleagues and managers to get the inside story about what made The Mischke Broadcast one of Minnesota’s favorite radio shows, it’s legacy and why it’s a show that could only happen here.
Today, Tommy Mischke might be known as a podcaster and book author, but long before that he known by Twin Cities radio fans as only “The Phantom Caller.”
More than 550,000 Minnesota residents identify as Irish, some of whom can trace their lineage as far back as 1851. In the mid–19th century, the currents of history converged on this landscape as famine drove families from their ancestral fields. Some of them ended up in Minnesota.
When they arrived in the brand-new Minnesota territory, there were no cities waiting for them, no paved streets. Just prairie, timber, and a dream of opportunity.
So they built, carving 160-acre homesteads out of tallgrass and forest. They built a community called Jessenland alongside other Irish families as well as German immigrants. And at the center of it all, they built a church.
For generations, that church—St. Thomas in Jessenland—was the heartbeat of the valley. Baptisms. Weddings. Funerals. Barn dances on Saturday nights and Mass on Sunday mornings. Every family had a pew. Every weekend revolved around it.
But the world changed, and the final Mass was said at St. Thomas in 2006. Kyle Shiely has the story of the oldest Irish farming community in Minnesota.
Formerly Senior Producer of
“In The Bubble With Andy Slavitt”
Find our show at https://lemonadamedia.com/show/inthebubble/
All Things Considered
This the Murrow award winning newscast from Friday, May 29th 2020. It starts with the announcement of charges in the case against Derek Chauvin, the former police officer eventually convicted of murdering George Floyd. It features live reports of cleanup efforts following nights of unrest in Minneapolis and a day of looting in St Paul. It includes Governor Tim Walz activating the Minnesota National Guard.
MPR News - George Floyd Riots
This is mashup of the kinds of stories and interviews we did during the riots in Minneapolis following the murder of George Floyd. It features the only time I can remember a gun being fired live on one of my broadcasts. This coverage won the MBJA award for spot news coverage, among other awards.
Coverage of the Mohamed Noor Trial
This hour is the first hour of live coverage of the verdict reading in the case of Mohamed Noor, the first former police officer convicted of killing a resident of Minnesota. This hour features Tom Crann awaiting the verdict as our reporters wait outside the courthouse, and the reaction from lawyers, officials and the community.