Brian Arola
@brianarola.bsky.social
Greater MN Reporter at MinnPost. Sign up for my newsletter: https://www.minnpost.com/greater-minnesota-newsletter/
Reposted by Brian Arola
Support MinnPost this Give to the Max Day and help us reach our $25,000 goal! We’ve raised over $14,000 so far - any amount you give will help us get one step closer to our goal AND you'll be supporting our local, independent news coverage. Donate now: buff.ly/6UglJEC
November 20, 2025 at 9:56 PM
Support MinnPost this Give to the Max Day and help us reach our $25,000 goal! We’ve raised over $14,000 so far - any amount you give will help us get one step closer to our goal AND you'll be supporting our local, independent news coverage. Donate now: buff.ly/6UglJEC
Appleton, a western Minnesota prairie city, lost half its population when a private prison closed in 2010. ICE's interest in the vacant facility for an immigrant detention center has locals weighing economic promise against moral compromise.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Appleton residents weigh value of potential ICE detention center
Appleton’s private prison, once the town's biggest employer, has sat unused for 15 years. The Trump administration might have plans for it.
www.minnpost.com
November 17, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Appleton, a western Minnesota prairie city, lost half its population when a private prison closed in 2010. ICE's interest in the vacant facility for an immigrant detention center has locals weighing economic promise against moral compromise.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Reposted by Brian Arola
Another excellent piece from MinnPost!
The end of SNAP benefits would likely lead to the loss of a massive number of rural grocery stores. www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
The end of SNAP benefits would likely lead to the loss of a massive number of rural grocery stores. www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Rural Minnesota grocers sound the alarm over SNAP uncertainty - MinnPost
The government shutdown is likely to cause lapses in a key source of grocery store revenue, though court rulings could provide some relief.
www.minnpost.com
November 5, 2025 at 12:58 AM
Another excellent piece from MinnPost!
The end of SNAP benefits would likely lead to the loss of a massive number of rural grocery stores. www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
The end of SNAP benefits would likely lead to the loss of a massive number of rural grocery stores. www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Northern Lights shining bright over Mankato tonight.
November 12, 2025 at 3:09 AM
Northern Lights shining bright over Mankato tonight.
NDAs, used to keep information from the public, are being normalized in local government, including in connection to a proposed data center outside of Duluth.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Why local MN officials are signing NDAs - MinnPost
Recent controversy in St. Louis County raised questions about how widespread NDAs are, why they’re used, and how open records laws apply.
www.minnpost.com
November 3, 2025 at 10:15 PM
NDAs, used to keep information from the public, are being normalized in local government, including in connection to a proposed data center outside of Duluth.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
MinnPost's newly launched Capitol Conversations Newsletter by @rlyrealmattblake.bsky.social is sure to be a must read. Sign up: www.minnpost.com/capitol-conv...
Capitol Conversation Newsletter Signup - MinnPost
Minnesota state government reporter Matthew Blake shares the latest from the Minnesota State Capitol. Delivered Wednesday afternoons.
www.minnpost.com
October 23, 2025 at 11:11 PM
MinnPost's newly launched Capitol Conversations Newsletter by @rlyrealmattblake.bsky.social is sure to be a must read. Sign up: www.minnpost.com/capitol-conv...
“The farmers need it, there’s no doubt, but it’s kind of been self-inflicted by the president’s policies."
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Minnesota farmers want trade over a bailout, but they’d take it - MinnPost
A bailout could hold Minnesota farmers over as they contend with market disruptions linked to Trump’s trade war.
www.minnpost.com
October 23, 2025 at 11:08 PM
“The farmers need it, there’s no doubt, but it’s kind of been self-inflicted by the president’s policies."
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
A club ‘no one asked to be a part of’: Two decades on, Rocori shooting survivors reflect on lingering trauma
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Rocori school shooting survivors reflect on a day they can't forget
Their experiences reveal the unpredictability of grief, as well as a way forward for the Annunciation community.
www.minnpost.com
October 13, 2025 at 10:58 PM
A club ‘no one asked to be a part of’: Two decades on, Rocori shooting survivors reflect on lingering trauma
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Ahead of today and Wednesday's Nobel Conference at Gustavus, I spoke with researcher Ulbe Bosma about his work researching sugar's bitter role in history. www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Nobel Conference explores sugar’s bitter role in world history - MinnPost
Historian Ulbe Bosma talks about his book on sugar as the 61st conference kicks off at Gustavus Adolphus College.
www.minnpost.com
October 7, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Ahead of today and Wednesday's Nobel Conference at Gustavus, I spoke with researcher Ulbe Bosma about his work researching sugar's bitter role in history. www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Outside of a clinic in North Mankato slated to close in December, the DFL organized a rally Friday highlighting Republican cuts to Medicaid and the ACA, which party chair Richard Carlbom says will lead to more hospital and clinic closures and rolled back services.
October 3, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Outside of a clinic in North Mankato slated to close in December, the DFL organized a rally Friday highlighting Republican cuts to Medicaid and the ACA, which party chair Richard Carlbom says will lead to more hospital and clinic closures and rolled back services.
Reposted by Brian Arola
Local grocery stores are lifelines for small towns. If the one in Greenbush closed, residents would have to travel 50 miles for other options.
Cuts to food assistance will hurt these grocers and rural Minnesotans.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Cuts to food assistance will hurt these grocers and rural Minnesotans.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
What happens when the rural Minnesota grocery store closes?
Small-town grocery store owners feel a strong sense of responsibility to their communities, but the threat of closure often looms.
www.minnpost.com
September 29, 2025 at 10:41 PM
Local grocery stores are lifelines for small towns. If the one in Greenbush closed, residents would have to travel 50 miles for other options.
Cuts to food assistance will hurt these grocers and rural Minnesotans.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Cuts to food assistance will hurt these grocers and rural Minnesotans.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth doesn’t rule out gubernatorial run, but says her current role feels like the right place to be.
September 27, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth doesn’t rule out gubernatorial run, but says her current role feels like the right place to be.
MinnPost collaborated with Rural News Network on Sowing Resilience, a project exploring food insecurity in rural communities. For it I visited remote areas of Minnesota to learn how vital grocery stores are to quality of life.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
What happens when the rural Minnesota grocery store closes?
Small-town grocery store owners feel a strong sense of responsibility to their communities, but the threat of closure often looms.
www.minnpost.com
September 23, 2025 at 2:37 PM
MinnPost collaborated with Rural News Network on Sowing Resilience, a project exploring food insecurity in rural communities. For it I visited remote areas of Minnesota to learn how vital grocery stores are to quality of life.
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Farm Aid 40 in Minneapolis was a day I won’t forget. Great story/photos by my MinnPost colleagues www.minnpost.com/arts-culture...
September 22, 2025 at 8:46 PM
Farm Aid 40 in Minneapolis was a day I won’t forget. Great story/photos by my MinnPost colleagues www.minnpost.com/arts-culture...
Court rulings and/or legislation seem inevitable to clear up disputed interpretations of Minnesota's cannabis law by cities.
Good reporting by @brianarola.bsky.social on the legal gray areas around Minnesota's cannabis laws that are being exposed by cities, and the growing expectations that the courts or state lawmakers will need to clarify. www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Cities expose legal gray areas of Minnesota cannabis law - MinnPost
Conflicting interpretations over local government authority make it increasingly likely that judges or lawmakers will soon try to clarify cannabis law.
www.minnpost.com
September 22, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Court rulings and/or legislation seem inevitable to clear up disputed interpretations of Minnesota's cannabis law by cities.
Any goodwill derived from Minnesota lawmakers having to work together more last session will be tested by gun control debates. www.minnpost.com/state-govern...
Lawmakers pledge to lower the tone ahead of gun control debate
An annual report by the group promoting the pledge showed an uptick in bipartisanship at the Capitol in 2025.
www.minnpost.com
September 19, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Any goodwill derived from Minnesota lawmakers having to work together more last session will be tested by gun control debates. www.minnpost.com/state-govern...
Two tiers of Minneopa Falls.
September 13, 2025 at 10:48 PM
Two tiers of Minneopa Falls.
Enjoyed this interview with @jaygabler.com about the @duluthnewstribune.com's upcoming Edmund Fitzgerald podcast.
Thanks @minnpost.bsky.social for covering the forthcoming @duluthnewstribune.com Edmund Fitzgerald podcast!
News Tribune podcast explores legacy of Edmund Fitzgerald
Reporter Jay Gabler taps into the enduring fascination with the Lake Superior tragedy in ‘Edmund Fitzgerald: 50 Years Below.’
www.minnpost.com
September 5, 2025 at 8:58 PM
Enjoyed this interview with @jaygabler.com about the @duluthnewstribune.com's upcoming Edmund Fitzgerald podcast.
Fewer Canadians are coming to Minnesota this year amid strained U.S.-Canada relations. Last month I crossed the border for an interview with the Fort Frances mayor to hear how he's maintaining friendly relations with his American neighbors in International Falls.
www.minnpost.com/economy/2025...
www.minnpost.com/economy/2025...
Concern at Minnesota border as more Canadians stay home
The leaders of two border communities with longstanding ties hope U.S.-Canada relations will mend soon.
www.minnpost.com
September 3, 2025 at 4:07 PM
Fewer Canadians are coming to Minnesota this year amid strained U.S.-Canada relations. Last month I crossed the border for an interview with the Fort Frances mayor to hear how he's maintaining friendly relations with his American neighbors in International Falls.
www.minnpost.com/economy/2025...
www.minnpost.com/economy/2025...
Reposted by Brian Arola
Print is not dead! Greater Minnesota reporter @brianarola.bsky.social wrote about three local, family-owned newspapers in a western Minnesota county that are hanging on in part through collaboration: www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Tiny Swift County bucks trend with three family owned papers
In this western Minnesota county of 9,900 people, three independent, print-focused publications keep the news flowing.
www.minnpost.com
August 22, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Print is not dead! Greater Minnesota reporter @brianarola.bsky.social wrote about three local, family-owned newspapers in a western Minnesota county that are hanging on in part through collaboration: www.minnpost.com/greater-minn...
Long story short, the last photo before my car broke down along Minnesota’s northern border was of Willie Walleye in Baudette.
August 23, 2025 at 1:08 AM
Long story short, the last photo before my car broke down along Minnesota’s northern border was of Willie Walleye in Baudette.
O Canada! Giving myself a new, unofficial title as MinnPost’s international correspondent after today’s visit to Fort Frances, Ontario.
August 22, 2025 at 9:40 PM
O Canada! Giving myself a new, unofficial title as MinnPost’s international correspondent after today’s visit to Fort Frances, Ontario.
I ate my way through Minnesota’s biggest county fair, the Steele County Free Fair, over the weekend. Read on for highlights from one of my favorite events in Greater Minnesota.
August 18, 2025 at 12:50 AM
I ate my way through Minnesota’s biggest county fair, the Steele County Free Fair, over the weekend. Read on for highlights from one of my favorite events in Greater Minnesota.
Two Minnesota GOP congressmembers told me they want transparency when asked about the Epstein files, but what they'll do to ensure the Trump admin releases information remains to be seen.
www.minnpost.com/national/202...
www.minnpost.com/national/202...
‘We want transparency’: Minnesota’s Congressional delegation comments on Epstein files - MinnPost
Minnesota U.S. Reps. Pete Stauber and Brad Finstad called for transparency. Stauber also questioned Democrats' political motives.
www.minnpost.com
August 6, 2025 at 10:53 PM
Two Minnesota GOP congressmembers told me they want transparency when asked about the Epstein files, but what they'll do to ensure the Trump admin releases information remains to be seen.
www.minnpost.com/national/202...
www.minnpost.com/national/202...
Gov. Tim Walz rocking a Mankato River Ramble hat at Farmfest today.
August 6, 2025 at 7:51 PM
Gov. Tim Walz rocking a Mankato River Ramble hat at Farmfest today.