Spectrum was a regional affairs program that ran from 1976 through 1979 (network stations individually broadcast programming of regional interest on Saturday mornings, of which, Spectrum was broadcast for 91.1 KSJN).
Spectrum presented a wide range of “local” subject matter. Everything from debates, speeches, documentaries, and long-form reports could be heard from week to week. Program included many well-known MPR voices, such Bob Potter, Debbie Gage, Rich Dietman, Neal St. Anthony, Dan Olson, and Dale Connelly, among others.
October 28, 1978 - On this regional public affairs program, 4th district candidates Bruce Vento (DFL) and John Berg (I-R), discuss and debate the issues.
November 4, 1978 - On this regional public affairs program, MPR’s Bob Potter provides a summary of state legislative races in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. Program includes report and various interviews of candidates.
November 4, 1978 - On this regional public affairs program, MPR’s Terri Keefe provides a summary of state legislative and county office races in the Rochester and Winona areas. Program includes report and various interviews with candidates.
November 4, 1978 - On this regional public affairs program, a summary of office races in Hennepin and Ramsey Counties. Program includes report and various interviews of candidates of county attorney and sheriff office.
November 11, 1978 - Dr. Lois Phillips Hudson, author and English professor at University of Washington, Tacoma, describes how rape and fear of being raped work to drain women of energy and assurance they might use to be creative.
December 9, 1978 - Excerpts from a National News Council hearing dealing with subjects, ranging from corporate ownership of newspapers to a charge of biased reporting against the New York Times. One case in particular attracted a good deal of attention - a complaint against NBC News that a recent NBC documentary was inaccurate and unfair. The program in question, called, "I Want it All Now!", portrayed the lifestyle of the residents of Marin County, California, as self-indulgent, narcissistic and hedonistic. After hearing six hours of testimony, the council ruled the program was "journalistically flawed".
December 9, 1978 - Norman Isaacs, editor-in-residence at the Graduate School of Journalism and chairman of the National News Council, speaks on freedom of the press and newspapers in modern society. Isaac’s address was at the Minnesota Press Club. This program is a summary of those remarks.
December 16, 1978 - On this regional public affairs program, MPR’s Nancy Fushan, with assistance of Claudia Hampston and Roger Gomoll, look at four artists of the Upper Midwest. Fushan interviews sculptors Mariann Angelica, Catherine Mulligan, Steve Beyer, and Judy Onofrio, who discuss their works, thoughts, and views of themselves in society.
December 30, 1978 - On this regional public affairs program, MPR’s Rich Dietman interviews Andrew Lindberg, who led a Citizens League study of public pension fund financing. Lindberg discusses controversy surrounding the financial health of some of the largest pension and retirement funds in the country.
December 30, 1978 - On this regional public affairs program, MPR’s Rich Dietman interviews Larry Martin, executive secretary of the Legislative Commission on Pensions and Retirement. Martin discusses explanation of the financial health of the state pension funds and how the Citizens League study might be received by the Commission.