Alaska Teen Media Institute

In this episode, we’re coming at you with the lore, facts, and a spoiler ridden yap sesh about the new Christopher Nolan movie, The Odyssey.

Based on the Greek epic poem written by Homer, Nolan’s version stars Matt Damon as Odysseus as he attempts to make his way home to Ithaca after winning the Trojan War. The film also stars Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, and many more notable actors.

In the first three weeks of its release, The Odyssey has raked in just over a billion dollars worldwide and is on track to be Nolan’s biggest hit yet. 

A group of our ATMI producers sat down to discuss the film. They broke down the different obstacles that Odysseus and his men were faced with, Nolan’s use of practical sets and effects, and why they think this age old story has become one of the biggest movies of the year. 

Roundtable led by Sadona Holm.

Hosted by Ver Reed.

Audio production by Kyle Smith. Edited by Kaylee LaTocha and Deacon Laurance.

Music by Kendrick Whiteman and Devin Shreckengost.

Film Club was made possible with funding from the Atwood Foundation.

The views expressed in this program do not necessarily represent the views of our sponsors.

Alaska Teen Media Institute is based in Anchorage, Alaska. We would like to acknowledge the Dena’ina people, whose land we work on.

Our August show features live interviews about Stories at the Cemetery and the Alaska primary elections. Plus, Sadona and Persephone cover the year in movies (so far), there’s news and events, and Deacon eats mustard packets in honor of National Mustard Day.

Hosts: Nathan Pobieglo and Deacon Laurance

News: Robbie Raychel

Events: Dawn Sullivan

Board-op: Kyle Smith

Producer: Kaylee LaTocha

This show was made possible with funding from the Atwood Foundation.

This episode originally aired on August 1st, 2026 on KNBA 90.3 FM

Our July show highlights an event that our producer Kaylee LaTocha put on called Letters To America, plus spotlights local and national music. We end the show with a commemoration to America's 250th birthday by having our hosts (and Nathan) devour as many hot dogs as they can while answering a civics superpower questionnaire from Kaylee. 

Hosts: Sadona Holm and Persephone Bearchum

News/Events: Nathan Pobieglo

Board-op: Kyle Smith

Producer: Kaylee LaTocha

This show was made possible with funding from the Atwood Foundation and the Rasmuson Foundation through the Arts in Education Fund, administered by the Alaska State Council on the Arts.

This episode originally aired on July 4th, 2026 on KNBA 90.3 FM

Our Film Club roundtables are back with a discussion on the new horror sensation Backrooms. It tells the story of Clark, a disgruntled furniture store owner who discovers a portal into another dimension in the basement of his store. When Clark goes missing, his therapist, Mary, goes looking for him, and ventures into the liminal space we know as Backrooms.

The Backrooms phenomenon goes all the way back to 2019 starting with a post on 4Chan, where an anonymous person posted an unsettling image of an empty, seemingly ongoing office area with yellow carpet and walls. 

It created a boom in the horror subgenre called “Liminal Spaces” - places that are normally occupied by lots of people but feel uncanny and eerie when empty. In January 2022, a 14 year old named Kane Parsons started making found footage-style short films set in these liminal space. 

At 19 years old Parsons directed the feature-length version of Backrooms and has become the youngest director to open a film at number one at the North American box office. Backrooms also became the highest grossing film for A24, breaking the record in just six days.

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Roundtable led by Sadona Holm.

Hosted by Ormund Alaois;

Audio production and editing by Kyle Smith.

Music by Kendrick Whiteman and Devin Shreckengost.

Film Club was made possible with funding from the Atwood Foundation.

The views expressed in this program do not necessarily represent the views of our sponsors.

Alaska Teen Media Institute is based in Anchorage, Alaska. We would like to acknowledge the Dena’ina people, whose land we work on.

James Dommek Jr. is an Inupiaq podcaster, documentary filmmaker, and storyteller, originally from Kotzebue, Alaska. He’s best known for his true crime podcast Midnight Son, which he also adapted into a series on Hulu called Blood and Myth. 

While he is known for these dark stories of crime and violence, Dommek Jr. decided to show another side of himself and his ancestry at an event called Inupiaq Joy. It was held at The Nave in Spenard on May 20th. 

The show started off with a performance from the Ilakus Dance Group before Dommek Jr. took the stage for an evening of comedy and storytelling. He told four stories that were from his great grandfather, Palangun, who missionaries renamed Paul Monroe. Palangun was one of the last great Inupiaq storytellers and he preserved these stories in collaboration with anthropologist Edwin S. Hall in the 1970s. 

Following the event, Dommek Jr. stopped by the ATMI studio to talk about Inupiaq Joy. ATMI producer, Nathan Pobieglo spoke with him about what went into the event, his great grandfather, and how breaking rules led him to success. 

Watch the episode on YouTube.

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Hosted by Charlie Groat. Video production by Xander Eaton, Logan Ehrhart, and Deacon Laurance. This episode was edited by Kyle Smith and Carter Vermiere.

Our show’s theme music is by Kendrick Whiteman with additional music from Devin Shreckengost. 

This episode was made possible with funding from Rasmuson Foundation through the Arts in Education Fund, administered by the Alaska State Council on the Arts.

With additional support from the Atwood Foundation.

The views expressed in this program do not necessarily represent the views of our sponsors.

Alaska Teen Media Institute is based in Anchorage, Alaska. We would like to acknowledge the Dena'ina people, whose land we work on.

Our June show features a live interview with the house mother of Anchorage's first kiki house, a preview of an upcoming podcast interview with storyteller James Dommek Jr., and trivia about Pride month. Plus News and Events from two new producers.

Hosts: Nathan Pobieglo and Wren Crockett

News: Persephone Bearchum

Events: Sadona Holm

Board-ops: Charlie Groat and Kyle Smith

Producer: Kaylee LaTocha

This episode originally aired on KNBA 90.3 FM on June 6, 2026.

On April 24th and 25th, Nick Carpenter, better known by his band name Medium Build, played four shows at the Bear Tooth Theatrepub. They were billed as Takeaways Town Halls, intimate, acoustic seated shows with stories, requests, new music, and that raw energy only Nick can bring to the stage. He was supported by openers Ken Yates and Whale Songz.

On that Saturday afternoon, just before the second night of shows, ATMI producers Mo Spooner and Rhys James sat down with Nick in the green room of the Bear Tooth for an extended conversation.

This is ATMI’s second interview with Nick. We first spoke with him in 2023 after signing to Islands Records. Since then, Medium Build has put out the album “Country” and has toured all over the world.

Mo and Rhys spoke with him about the intimate nature and format of these Bear Tooth shows, how his songwriting perspective has changed as the scope of Medium Build has broadened, and a little bit about a new upcoming album.

Hosted by Deacon Laurance.

Video production by Xander Rose and Logan Ehrhart. Edited by Xander Eaton, Carter Vermiere, and Logan Ehrhart.

This podcast episode was made possible with funding from Rasmuson Foundation through the Arts in Education Fund, administered by the Alaska State Council on the Arts.

The views expressed in this program do not necessarily represent the views of our sponsors.

Alaska Teen Media Institute is based in Anchorage, Alaska. We would like to acknowledge the Dena'ina people, whose land we work on.

May is Mental Health Awareness month, so we centered our show around that. We chatted with Charlene Aqpik Apok, the founder and executive director of Data For Indigenous Justice (12:27) about the work the organization is doing. ATMI producers Mo Spooner and Rhys James sat down with Nick Carpenter of Medium Build to talk about his recent shows at Bear Tooth (27:21). And we rounded the show out with a roundtable discussion about mental health (47:41).

Plus Kaylee reported on recent local and national news stories (06:00) and Robbie highlighted some upcoming all-ages events around town (42:28).

Hosts: Jay St. John and Deacon Laurance

News: Kaylee LaTocha

Events: Robbie Raychel

Board-op: Rhys James

Producer: Kaylee LaTocha

This youth radio program was made possible with funding from Rasmuson Foundation through the Arts in Education Fund, administered by the Alaska State Council on the Arts. Additional support comes from the Atwood Foundation.

This episode originally aired live on KNBA 90.3 FM Anchorage on May 2nd, 2026.

 

For our April radio show, we kick things off with an interview with Dyani Chapman, the State Director of Alaska Environment Action, about the work her organization is doing to protect the natural world (06:12). We also have a chat with Christine Dittrich, the Vice President of the Anchorage Weavers and Spinners Guild about some upcoming workshops they're hosting (22:25).

We finish things up with a roundtable discussion led by new producer Elsa Boots about life in Anchorage, ATMI projects, and our beloved mascot (42:50).

Hosts: Jay St. John and Wren Crocket

Producer: Kaylee LaTocha

News: Xander Eaton

Events: Robbie Raychel

Board-op: Deacon Laurance 

This youth radio program was made possible with funding from Rasmuson Foundation through the Arts in Education Fund, administered by the Alaska State Council on the Arts. Additional support comes from the Atwood Foundation.

This episode originally aired live on KNBA 90.3 FM Anchorage on April 4th, 2026.

Our March show starts off with an interview with Gwyneth Eggleston, a youth ambassador with the Anchorage Assembly, about a resolution passed to encourage youth voting (06:52). Then we chat with Kass Smiley and Ida Taylor about the B4UDIE Comedy Festival happening in cities across Alaska from March 26th through April 4th, and they joke about their big "sponsor," which appears not to acknowledge the festival in any way, much less fund or endorse it (19:22). From the Anchorage Community Theater's production of "Marvel," director Mary Giles and lead actor Naomi Taymen talk about the story of Alaska's first female aviator, Mary Crosson (43:53). And the show rounds out with some trivia to recognize Women's History Month (54:44).

Hosts: Rhys James and Wren Crockett

Producer: Kaylee LaTocha

This youth radio program was made possible with funding from Rasmuson Foundation through the Arts in Education Fund, administered by the Alaska State Council on the Arts. Additional support comes from the Atwood Foundation.

This episode originally aired live on KNBA 90.3 FM Anchorage on March 7th, 2026.