December 11, 2003 - For the most part folk music is happy wholesome stuff. But there is a dark edge to some of it, and that's where a new local band Folk Underground comes in. MPR’s Euan Kerr talks with the trio about their first album release "Buried Things." It features a mixture of traditional music and the band's own material which displays members describe as 'happily morbid.'
December 11, 2003 - The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis have released a report stating that they have credible evidence that 33 priests working in the diocese sexually abused a total of 69 children over the last 50 years. According to the diocese, the most recent incident happened in 1988. The numbers are part of a national survey which will be released in February. Gary SHOW-ner is an expert on clergy sex abuse and works with the Walk-IN Counseling Center in Minneapolis . He say the numbers are troubling, but lower than the diocese in other parts of the country
December 12, 2003 - MPR’s Marisa Helms reports on thousands of Mexican Americans in Minnesota celebrating a Mexican national holiday, the Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe.
December 12, 2003 - Jan McElfish, member of the American Swedish Institute, gives MPR’s Great Cunningham a tour of the Turnblad Turn-blahd Mansion during the holiday season.
December 19, 2003 - MPR’s Art Hughes reports on Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak’s picks for new police chief. Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak is expected to announce his pick for police chief tomorrow. Rybak is confident in his nomination, even though the final two candidates face considerable opposition by the city council, which ultimately acts on the selection. Report includes comments from mayor and city council members.
December 22, 2003 - Minneapolis Police Chief Robert Olson bid farewell in a City Hall sendoff today. Olson's term expires just after the new year, but today was the day set aside for looking back on his nine years on the job. Meanwhile, Mayor R.T. Rybak officially moved to replace Olson with Dayton, Ohio Police Chief William McManus. However, the mayor still has to convince a majority of the City Council to confirm McManus' nomination. Minnesota Public Radio's Art Hughes reports.
December 26, 2003 - Stephanie Hemphill profiles John Munter, a man in northern Minnesota who is growing hazelnuts. It's part of his attempt to live off the land. He says hazelnuts are the perfect crop for a future of global climate change.
January 1, 2004 - MPR’s Marianne Combs reports on the Minnesota Opera's interpretation of the "The Handmaid's Tale." Not only has Poul Ruders’ modern opera been embraced by audiences and critics alike, it is also timely. Based on Margaret Atwood's novel, the production tells of a world where religion is used to justify political agendas and women are stripped of their rights.
January 6, 2004 - A profile report of former Major League Baseball player Paul Molitor, upon the announcement of his induction to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Molitor was born in St. Paul, Minnesota and graduated from Cretin High School.
January 7, 2004 - Mayor R.T. Rybak's pick for police chief, William McManus, met with residents at a south Minneapolis community center last night. The mayor's office organized the meeting in anticipation of two key council actions today. With the full council vote a week and a half away, Rybak is applying pressure on those council members who are still not supporting McManus.