October 19, 1978 - Barry Commoner, scientist at the Center for the Biology of Natural Systems in St. Louis, speaking at Nobel Conference XIV - Global Resources: Perspectives and Alternatives, held at Gustavus Adolphus College. Commoner’s address was titled "A New Historic Passage: The Transition to Renewable Resources." He shares and his view that if we shift to renewable sources of energy, we will survive.
October 24, 1978 - Gubernatorial debate sponsored by the League of Women Voters with the cooperation of Common Cause of Minnesota, held at the Janet Wallace Fine Arts Center on the Macalester campus. First of three debates being held. This one features the DFL incumbent Governor Rudy Perpich, I-R nominee Al Quie, and American Party candidate Richard Peterson. Panelists are Dana Schroeder, co-publisher of the Grant County Herald; Arv Johnson, WCCO Radio government correspondent; and Ted Kolderie, executive director of the Citizens League, a non-partisan public affairs research organization in the Twin Cities. The moderator is Helene Borg, president of the League of Women Voters.
October 30, 1978 - League of Women Voters Senate debate, held at Janet Wallace Fine Arts Center at Macalester College in St. Paul, and sponsored by the League of Women Voters with the cooperation of Common Cause of Minnesota. Participants were Paul Helm, American Party candidate; Dave Durenberger, I-R candidate; and Bob Short, DFL candidate. Topics included taxes, BWCA, social issues, women’s rights, international affairs, and guns. Debate was moderated by Jerry Franck, president of the Minnesota chapter of Common Cause. Questions were asked by a group of three panelists representing print journalism, broadcast journalism and the public. Panelists included Gary Dawson, staff writer for the St. Paul Dispatch and Pioneer Press; Jane Belau, public affairs interviewer for channel 13 cable television in Rochester; and Barbara Stuhler, associate dean of Continuing Education and Extension at the University of Minnesota.
November 1, 1978 - Senate debate sponsored by the League of Women Voters with the cooperation of Common Cause of Minnesota, held at the Janet Wallace Fine Arts Center on the Macalester campus. Features DFL, I-R and American Party candidates for the six-year Senate seat. DFL incumbent Wendell Anderson arranged his appointment to the rest of Walter Mondale's Senate term when Mondale was elected vice president. Ever since, Anderson has fared poorly in several public opinion surveys. His I-R challenger, Rudy Boschwitz, held a 20-point lead over Anderson in the early days of the campaign; but in the latest Minnesota Poll, that lead has been cut to just 3 percent. Boschwitz has mounted an aggressive, expensive campaign in his effort to defeat Anderson. The American Party candidate, Sal Carlone, is a private investigator and general contractor who has never before sought public office. Tonight's panelists are Steve Dornfeld, staff writer for the Minneapolis Tribune; Karen Boros, WCCO Television reporter; and Ann Darby, deputy director of community outreach programs for the Minneapolis Urban League. The moderator is Helene Borg, president of the League of Women Voters.
November 4, 1978 - MPR’s Dick Daly reports on President Jimmy Carter’s visit to Duluth in support of Minnesota DFL candidates before 1978 elections.
November 7, 1978 - Highlights from American Lutheran Church Convention held recently in Moorhead. Program includes conversations with Dr. Paul Wee, General Secretary for Lutheran World Ministries; Bishop Josiah Kibira of Tanzania, president of the Lutheran World Federation; and Dr. Keith Bridston about conflict in Rhodesia, South Africa and Namibia. At convention, church delegates considered whether the church should divest itself of holdings it has in companies which do business in South Africa. Program begins with a report on current situation in Africa.
November 8, 1978 - Rudy Boschwitz speaking at press conference following his election to the U.S. Senate. Program begins with brief report from MPR’s Bob Potter on other election results.
November 11, 1978 - Dr. Lois Phillips Hudson, author and English professor at University of Washington, Tacoma, describes how rape and fear of being raped work to drain women of energy and assurance they might use to be creative.
November 28, 1978 - Boston Municipal Judge Margaret Ann Burnham speaking at Women in Law Conference at Boston University.
December 9, 1978 - Excerpts from a National News Council hearing dealing with subjects, ranging from corporate ownership of newspapers to a charge of biased reporting against the New York Times. One case in particular attracted a good deal of attention - a complaint against NBC News that a recent NBC documentary was inaccurate and unfair. The program in question, called, "I Want it All Now!", portrayed the lifestyle of the residents of Marin County, California, as self-indulgent, narcissistic and hedonistic. After hearing six hours of testimony, the council ruled the program was "journalistically flawed".