Minnesota’s Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Office of Broadband recently released new broadband availability maps. Beltrami County is rated number one in wireline access to Internet speeds of up to a Gigabit per second (Gbps). 98.78% of Beltrami County now has access to those Gigabit speeds.

The map can be found online at https://mn.gov/deed/assets/county-gigabit-map_tcm1045-297681.pdf   It provides the perspective by county of where the most advanced Broadband networks exist providing the percentage of households served by wireline broadband service with at least 1 Gigabit speeds.  In contrast to Beltrami County, currently only 24.58% of the state has access to Gigabit Internet speeds.  There are nine counties where no Gigabit access exists at all.

“From the perspective of county government, we constantly have our eyes on setting ourselves up to be the best community in which to live, raise a family, to recreate, to be educated, and to work.  Every single one of those values is positively impacted by the availability of broadband.   Even better, for those of us that try to figure out how to cover the cost of so many public services, is the fact that county government did not have to make the investment.   Paul Bunyan Communications deserves a wealth of gratitude for their forward thinking investments that put Beltrami County on the map as the #1 county in the entire state when it comes to broadband coverage!  Thank you Paul Bunyan!” said Kay Mack, Beltrami County Administrator.

“The investments Paul Bunyan Communications has made in robust communications capacity are foundational and will serve this region for decades to come. Successful economic development and growth in the areas Paul Bunyan serves won’t face the bottleneck of not enough service that so many rural areas face every day. It has been an honor to play a role in helping to reach this fantastic milestone through the Border to Border Broadband Grant Program. Congratulations!” added Danna MacKenzie, Executive Director Office of Broadband, State of Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

“It’s yet another exciting day for our cooperative who has been working so hard for so many years to upgrade and expand what is now one of the largest all-fiber optic rural gigabit networks in the country. The key to it all is our staff and Board of Directors.  We are very passionate about providing world class communication services and proud that Beltrami County is Minnesota’s best broadband county!” said Gary Johnson, Paul Bunyan Communications CEO.

According to DEED, the maps use data collected from broadband service providers, reviewed by a third party, and verified if questions are raised. Data is collected annually and the maps and data online are current as of April 2019.

“It’s a great feeling to know we are almost finished expanding and upgrading our all-fiber optic network in Beltrami County, but we are not done.  We have upgrades planned over the next two years in the rural Blackduck area.  Our cooperative continues to expand our network to regions that are still lacking broadband access including rural areas of North Central and Northeastern Minnesota,” added Steve Howard, Paul Bunyan Communications Information Technology and Development Manager.

Andra Vaughn of Bemidji has won the Grand Prize of the MTV Video Music Awards from Viacom Networks.  Andra is a member of Paul Bunyan Communications, an affiliate of Viacom Networks that participated in the sweepstakes.

As the Grand Prize winner, Andra and guest receive roundtrip airfare to New York, NY; three days/two nights hotel accommodations; two tickets to the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards on August 26, and round-trip ground transportation to/from airport and hotel, to/from hotel and the MTV Video Music Awards.

“I’m still in shock. I know a lot of jokesters and thought for sure someone was trying to pull a fast one on me.  I love New York City and to be able to return to New York and go to the MTV Video Music Awards is unreal.  Thank you Viacom and Paul Bunyan Communications!” said Vaughn.

“Just last month one of our members won the CMT Music Awards Grand Prize so to get the notification that Andra won the MTV Video Music Awards was unbelievable.  These are national sweepstakes so the odds of winning are slim, but you can’t win if you don’t enter and it’s a random drawing so you just never know.  Andra saw our promotion of the sweepstakes on our Facebook page and figured why not?  Why not indeed! We’re excited for Andra to get this special trip to the MTV Video Music Awards in New York,” added Brian Bissonette, Paul Bunyan Communications Marketing Supervisor.

Voting for the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards is now open. Comedian Sebastian Maniscalco will host the event live from the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ, on August 26. Since its inception in 1984, the VMAs honors the year’s most celebrated music videos. Featuring unparalleled performances and countless celebrity guests, the event serves as a who’s who of the biggest names in entertainment. Tune-in is Friday, August 26^th at 8/7c. MTV is on Paul Bunyan Television channel 364 or in HD on channel 864.

About Viacom

Viacom creates entertainment experiences that drive conversation and culture around the world. Through television, film, digital media, live events, merchandise and solutions, our brands connect with diverse, young and young at heart audiences in more than 180 countries.

KOJB-FM “The Eagle” has been added to Paul Bunyan Television service and can be found on PBTV channel 959 or PBTV Fusion channel 1059.

KOJB-FM is owned and licensed to the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe. “The Eagle” broadcasts on 90.1 FM to Cass Lake and 105.3 FM to Bemidji with studios and offices located to the north of Leech Lake Tribal College in Cass Lake. The educational mission of KOJB is to enhance the history, language, and way of life of the Anishinaabe people as well as airing national Native American media and noncommercial programming. The KOJB music library currently includes music from Native American rock, powwow, hand drum, country, hip hop, classic rock and hits for the 50’s – today. Additional programming will include weather on the hour, programming from Native Voice 1: Native America Calling, Undercurrents and National Native News.

“We are very excited to have KOJB-FM added to Paul Bunyan Television! One of our goals is for KOJB programming to increase intercultural competency and it’s important that programming be heard. We strive to make it as easy as possible to tune in whether on the radio, online, and now through PBTV service too!” added Brad Walhof, KOJB-FM “The Eagle” Station Manager.

“One of the unique features of Paul Bunyan Television is that we provide many of the local radio stations as part of the service.  We’ve heard from many of our customers who appreciate the opportunity to tune in to local radio through their televisions.  KOJB studios are in Cass Lake and are now connected to our all-fiber optic network powered by the GigaZone. It’s great to have KOJB “The Eagle” a part of PBTV service!” said Brian Bissonette, Paul Bunyan Communications Marketing Supervisor.

Paul Bunyan Television is the only provider in the region offering local radio stations as part of the television service lineup which includes over 20 radio stations and Radio Talking Book services for the visually impaired.

The 14^th Annual Lake Bemidji Dragon Boat Festival presented by Paul Bunyan Communications is July 31-August 3 and the schedule if full of fun for the entire family.  Wednesday features the Sanford Health Taco Fundraiser, Thursday is the 9th Annual Cornhole Tournament for Beltrami County Relay for Life, Friday is the opening ceremonies, parade of teams, and 7th annual Dondelinger GM Sprint Cup Races, and Saturday features a 5k Walk/Run, Race Day Breakfast, and the Dragon Boat races all day.

There is no admission fee and food vendors will be on-site Thursday through Saturday.

For more information and the complete schedule of events visit www.bemidjidragonboat.com   You can also follow the festival on Facebook and Twitter.

The Beltrami County Fair sponsored in part by Paul Bunyan Communications is August 7-11.  Stop by our booth and check out PBTV services like HD, DVR, PBTV Everywhere, and On Demand, our all-fiber optic fast Internet service powered by the GigaZone, and get a free LED lantern from Paul Bunyan Communications while supplies last!

For more information on the Fair, visit www.beltramicountyfair.org

We’re Paul Bunyan Communications and we’re proud to be right here in Beltrami County!

Join in the fun and celebrate the 10th anniversary of Deer River Bar-B-Que and Brew Fest sponsored in part by Paul Bunyan Communications Saturday, July 20, from 3-8 p.m. in the park behind the White Oak Inn & Suites.

For more info visit https://www.deerriver.org/10th-anniversary-2019-bar-b-que-brew-fest/

The Watermark Art Center’s 52^nd Annual Art in the Park presented by Paul Bunyan Communications is July 20-21 at Library Park at the Lake Bemidji Waterfront.

Saturday, July 20              10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Sunday, July 21                 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Art in the Park has been appealing to local residents and visitors from all over the country since 1967. This juried fine arts and craft fair located in downtown Bemidji on the shores of Lake Bemidji in beautiful, tree lined Library Park and boasts an annual attendance of over 4,000 visitors during this two day event. Situated just north of the famous statues of Paul Bunyan, Babe the Blue Ox and the Tourist Information Center, “Art in the Park” features over 100 artists, a dozen food vendors and live entertainment all within easy reach and walking distance of downtown Bemidji and all its amenities.

For more information, visit https://watermarkartcenter.org/our-programs/art-in-the-park/

The 75th Annual Bemidji Jaycees Water Carnival is July 3-7!  The annual tradition since 1944 features all sorts of fun with the rides/carnival at the Sanford Center and the Paul Bunyan Communications Entertainment tent at the Waterfront.

For a complete schedule of events visit www.bemidjijaycees.com/water-carnival.html

The 71^st Annual Deer River Lions Club Wild Rice Festival is July 12-14 sponsored in part by Paul Bunyan Communications.

It’s 3 days of fun in Deer River with bingo, flea market, midway, and beer garden throughout.

Friday features a pow-wow, turtle feed, and live music featuring the Great Outdoors.

Saturday is the Bike Rodeo, amateur music competition, open air concert featuring the Dweebs, and Fireworks.

Sunday it’s the Kiddie Tractor Pull, parade and White Oak Casino presents a free concert featuring Confederate Railroad.

For more information visit www.wildricefestival.com