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About Prairie Sportsman

Prairie Sportsman is an Emmy awarded Pioneer PBS series that celebrates our love of the outdoors to hunt, fish and recreate provided by Minnesota’s vast resources of lakes, rivers, trails and grasslands. Hosted by Bret Amundson, the show takes viewers on outdoor adventures around the state and explores ways we can protect and restore our natural resources.

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Stations Carrying Prairie Sportsman

Minnesota Stations

  • Pioneer PBS
  • TPT Life
  • KSMQ
  • Lakeland PBS
  • PBS North
  • Prairie Public (via MN Channel)
  • North Dakota - Prairie Public (via MN Channel)
 
  • South Dakota Public Broadcasting
 
  • Iowa PBS
 
  • Wyoming PBS

Wisconsin Stations

  • PBS Wisconsin

 

Illinois Stations

  • WQPT

Michigan Stations

  • WKAR
  • WNMU

Prairie Sportsman crew:

Dylan Curfman, 

Executive Producer/Videographer/Editor

 

Cindy Dorn, 

Producer/Writer


Bret Amundson, 

Host/Assistant Producer

 

Dan Amundson, 

Videographer/Editor

 

Cera Cordova,

Videographer/Editor

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Prairie Sportsman has been nominated for multiple Upper Midwest Emmy® awards:

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Conflicting Canines
Upper Midwest Emmy® Awarded Segments
1 / 3 Videos
Conflicting Canines
Prairie Sportsman
Conflicting Canines
Living with Wolves
Prairie Sportsman
Living with Wolves
Bret Amundson 2020 UPPER MIDWEST EMMY® AWARDS NOMINEE | Prairie Sportsman
Pioneer PBS
Bret Amundson 2020 UPPER MIDWEST EMMY® AWARDS NOMINEE | Prairie Sportsman

In 2024, Prairie Sportsman was nominated for five stories: Fighting Forever Chemicals, Connecting Kids to Nature, Deep Crappie Research, Weed Terminator, Healing Purple Hearts

In 2023, Rock Snot Invasion, featuring golden-brown goo mats in North Shore streams, was nominated in the "Environment/Science Short or Long Form Content" category, while Bret Amundson was nominated in the "Program Host/Moderator" category.

In 2022, Conflicting Canines, a documentary about fox migration to urban areas to escape coyotes, won in the "Public Affairs Program" category. Other nominated stories include: Save the Turtles, An Unusual Canvas, Little Ones Learning Outdoors, Mike's Mussels, Raptor Rescue, Legacy of the Lakes, Woodland Bounty,andOne of a Kind

In 2021, the nominated stories were: Insect Cuisine, Ginger's (Conservation) Legacy, An Inspirational Hike, Get the Lead Out, Kettle River Rafting, Vets Hunt and Ag-based Solar Cells, Tapping the Sugar Bushand Quality Bluegills.

In 2020, an Emmy was awarded to Living With Wolves, a story about Dave Mech, a wolf researcher, and Bret Amundson in the "Program Host/Moderator" category. Other nominated stories included Carrol’s Wild Life, Driftless, The Sled Dog Capital, Exploring Red LakeVets Hunt, Ag-based Solar Cellsand Producer/Writer Cindy Dorn was nominated in the Writer - Program (Non-News) category.

In 2019, Prairie Sportsman won its first Emmy for Pollinator Friendly Solar, a documentary about a 1200-acre North Star Solar Array planted with native grasses. Other nominated stories included Pollinator Friendly Solar, TUNE Camp, Raptors Bald and Golden, Beattys at Beargrease and Twisted Sisters. Producer/ Writer Cindy Dorn, was also nominated in the Writer - Program (Non-News) category. 

In 2018, Prairie Sportsman received its first nominations and Bret Amundson was nominated in the "Program Host/Moderator" category. Great Gray Adventure was also nominated which features the Sax-Zim Bog, which is a story about the Arctic Riviera in northeast Minnesota where hundreds of birds, including the great gray owl, winter and feast on voles.

Gift items:

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Major funding provided by:

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Additional funding provided by Shalom Hill Farm, West Central Initiative, and members of Pioneer PBS.