Native America Calling

Native America Calling is a live radio program heard on 60 stations in the United States and in Canada. It's produced by the Koahnic Broadcast Corporation, a Native American run media corporation based in Anchorage, AK. In June of 1995 they began providing live daily feeds to their affiliates.All that makes them sound like a niche Public Radio service. Well try this number: They are heard by about 500,000 listeners. It's a call-in type program focusing on politicized topics relevant to Native American communities. They bring in experts and guests to keep the discussion as civil as is possible with such contentious topics. The program is based at KUNM and has become the AIROS flagship program

Things got a little too exciting behind the mic on the program in 2003 though. Only months after he was voted the “Best Radio Personality in New Mexico ” by Crosswinds Weekly magazine Host Harlan Mack McKosato was arrested at a DWI stop. His his BAC registered a .08, twice the legal limit. Only two weeks prior to that he'd been arrested and charged with two counts of battery against a household member.

After doing a few days in jail and paying a fine he went into alcohol counseling. But 3 years later he returned to the program. McKosato turned it around into another program topic. He continues to host the program today and is still a columnist for the Santa Fe New Mexican Newspaper.