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Rethinking the response: Duluth could cut public safety costs by changing who answers 911 calls
Houston uses an emergency telehealth program that allows selected 911 patients to speak remotely with a physician. In one reported year, 92% of the 6,008 people served by the program were directed to transportation other than a Houston Fire Department ambulance.
Duluth searches for budget ‘bloat,’ but labor costs dominate projected shortfall
The city cannot eliminate a multimillion-dollar structural deficit without confronting employee costs, service levels or taxes. That is where the money is — and where the difficult decisions will be.
Howie: The Monsters have unfinished business
Willie Howard, the former NFL linebacker recently named the Monsters’ senior consultant, understands that the AF1 carries responsibilities beyond winning. Most of its players are still chasing something. They need film, exposure and an opportunity to demonstrate that they can play professionally.
Duluth deserves answers, not another recorded statement
Mayor Reinert is an experienced and politically skilled communicator. He regularly uses video to promote city projects, explain policy and shape his administration’s message. That makes his reluctance to participate in unscripted questioning during a public-safety scare more conspicuous, not less.
Spirit of Duluth confronts an uncertain arena future
If replacement ice could not be secured at Amsoil Arena or another regional rink, the tournament might have to eliminate teams, reduce divisions or reconsider its four-game guarantee. Any of those outcomes would weaken one of the event’s greatest selling points.
Martin Sleen’s final run could be Hermantown’s greatest
This autumn, northeastern Minnesota won't simply be watching one of the state's best running backs. It may be witnessing the final high school season of the greatest running back Hermantown has ever produced.
Minnesota Star Tribune announces initial speaker lineup for 2026 North Star Summit
National and regional leaders will gather Sept. 22-23 in Minneapolis to discuss issues shaping the Midwest and the nation
We didn't just lose Sid Hartman. We lost the conversation that started every morning.
Great newspaper columnists don't simply report the news. They become part of their readers' lives. They greet us over breakfast. They spark conversations at coffee shops. They give us confidence that someone has done the reporting, made the calls and knows what really matters. Their bylines become
The newspaper that started it all
More than five decades later, I am still chasing the same goal I had as a 15-year-old sports reporter in Cloquet. Earn the reader's trust. Everything else is just ink.
Howie: A permanent record of Northeastern Minnesota high school sports
This project is rooted in a belief that local prep sports matter. They matter because they teach discipline, resilience, teamwork and leadership. They matter because generations of families share experiences together. Most importantly, they matter because they help define who we are as communities.
Minnesota journalists recognized for excellence in reporting, photography and commentary
The awards, judged by journalists from outside Minnesota, recognize outstanding work published during 2025. The Minnesota Society of Professional Journalists, founded in 1956, advocates for press freedom, journalism ethics and professional development throughout the state.
Duluth Monitor wins state journalism awards
The awards represent a significant achievement for the Duluth-based online news outlet, which has built a reputation for watchdog reporting on local government, development projects and public policy issues in northeastern Minnesota.
Opinion: The newspaper industry doesn't have a revenue problem. It has a leadership problem.
The newspaper industry has spent so much time discussing declining circulation, shrinking advertising revenue, rising production costs and digital disruption that it has largely avoided confronting a far more uncomfortable reality. The greatest threat facing many newspapers today is not the internet, social media, artificial intelligence or even changing reader
Opinion: Why Duluth needs the News Tribune
I have long believed that communities are only as strong as their local newspaper. Today, I would expand that thought slightly: communities are only as strong as their commitment to local journalism. The future of the Duluth News Tribune matters because the future of local journalism matters.
FOX 21's success story is about leadership, trust and excellence
FOX 21's success demonstrates that there remains an audience for serious local journalism when it is executed at a high level. Despite all the changes affecting the media industry, viewers continue to reward organizations that invest in quality reporting and credible journalism.
Howie: The Minnesota Star Tribune’s future may no longer belong to one owner. And that might be the point.
What happens next at the Minnesota Star Tribune may become one of the clearest signals yet about how major regional journalism survives the next generation in America. Not as a dying factory. Not as a billionaire toy. But as an institution Minnesota ultimately may decide is still worth protecting.