Media technology produces space and shapes our sense of place. For many people advances in communications technology promise identity and nationhood liberated from the tyranny of geography. As such the history of communication offers an opportunity to reconsider the construction of identityand community in the Middle North.

In this episode I speak with Dr. Maureen Atkinson about her research into post-WWII radio and her reflections on the definition and identity of the Pacific Northwest. Drawing upon the radio archives held in Prince Rupert we discussed issues in early radio from the presence of women to Indigenous voices in radio. I learned that people like Iona Campagnolo used radio to challenge national narratives of the strangeness of the north. Through radio coverage of events like the the opening of Ksan village in Hazleton in the 1970s and the Grandduc Mine disaster of 1965 this episode highlights the importance of local history .

The horror of residential schools is a part of Canada's past. In Canada's north, just as in other settler colonial contexts, Indigenous children were ripped from their communities, taken from their parents and, in the name of civilization, subjected to genocidal forces. The aim of these schools was to erase Indigenous culture, identity and peoplehood. This episode looks beyond the middle north, to explore the history of residential schools in the far north. It takes advantage of a recently created podcast on recreation in residential schools in the North West Territories. "How I Survived" was created to tell the "stories of strength, resilience and spirit, and creativity of former students and Survivors." (https://www.howisurvived.ca/). Join us to learn more about the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the history of sport education, and remarkable histories of Indigenous resilience in the North. It is a fascinating true story that helps us understand a complex history.

In this episode, we speak with Richard Van Camp about storytelling, community, and Denedeh (the land of the Dene). Drawn to story-telling for its power, Van Camp talks to us about history and fiction. His stories of the Weetago (or Wendigo) are remarkable visions of the Strange Things Done in the Middle North. Listen to hear how being outside and community offers an answer to the hungers of the present day.

For access to Richard Van Camp's interviews in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, with the Metis Elders, go to this URL: https://fortsmithmetis.ca/for-the-children/