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Last week, Madison's Office of the Independent Police Monitor released a new finding: that police violence played a role in the death of a man in custody in 2024, contrary to the county's medical examiner's autopsy report. To talk about the place of medical examiners in the criminal justice system, host Dana Pellebon is joined by scholar, Terence Keel, author of The Coroner’s Silence: Death Records and the Hidden Victims of Police Violence. Keel researches the relationships between medicine, science, race, and religion, with a focus on how the science of medicine in the US has been used to perpetuate racial injustice and inequity, especially when it comes to state monitoring and surveillance. He says that coroners are an overlooked piece in the criminal justice puzzle and that death investigation systems provide cover for violent state systems.  In 2013, the Death in Custody Reporting Act made it possible for Keel to look at the numbers. He found that in the twenty-year period after the Act, over 32,000 people were killed in police custody, leading him to argue that dying in custody has become the new capital punishment. They also talk about the history of the coroner role, one that dates back to the Colonial era, the rise of civilian oversight commissions, and the impact of coroner's reports on Black and Brown communities. Terence Keel is a professor of human biology, society and African American studies at UCLA. His latest book is The Coroner's Silence: Death Records and the Hidden Victims of Police Violence. Featured image of the cover of The Coroner’s Silence: Death Records and the Hidden Victims of Police Violence. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Dying in Custody Has Become the New Capital Punishment appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

A group of local historians are hard at work unearthing and preserving the rich histories of Madison's neighborhoods. Using maps and oral histories, Make History Madison is a crowd-sourced, place-based public history initiative that encourages people of all ages to contribute photos, research, testimonials, and observations about the places in Madison that matter to them. On today's show, host Douglas Haynes speaks with four guests involved in the project, Martín Alvarado, James Levy, Angela Richardson, and John Wedge. As much as their work involves celebrating Madison's vibrant history, they also tell the painful histories of dispossession and displacement that are part of our shared past. Alvarado discusses the displacement of African Americans from the Greenbush neighborhood to Madison's South Side, and Richardson describes the experience of learning about the Shenk-Atwood neighborhood as a layer cake. You can learn about your building or block using archival tools at the Madison Public Library and their Living History collections. Alvarado says that small newspapers are a treasure trove of our ancestors' oversharing. Richardson describes the process as “collective remembering” and this work is an “antidote” to the Trump Administration's “airbrushed history,” says Wedge. As the contributions of Black, LGBTQ, and Indigenous peoples have been scrubbed from federal websites, the work of local historians to preserve the past is more important than ever. Ultimately, Make History Madison isn't just about documenting the past, but about using the past to engage with the present and the future, says Levy.  On Tuesday, June 23, 2026, Make History Madison presents Music Venues We Have Loved at The High Noon Saloon in association with WORT 89.9 FM and Madison Public Library. Martín Alvarado is a Community Engagement Librarian at the Madison Public Library and host of Global Revolutions on WORT 89.9 FM. James Levy is the founder and Executive Director of the Race and Place Coalition and the Whose Land? public history project. A scholar trained in African American history and former Associate Professor of History at UW-Whitewater, his projects employ oral history and collaborative community research to foster public dialogue about the connections between race and geography. Dr. Levy's current book project, forthcoming from the University of Wisconsin Press, is titled The Color of Farming in the Heartland: A History of Land and Race in Wisconsin since 1800. Angela Richardson is an artist, educator, and passionate “hyperlocal historian.” Her primary research focuses on the Schenk-Atwood neighborhood and Madison’s near east side. John Wedge is a historian, labor advocate, and public arts organizer. Originally from London, he has a Ph.D. in American History from the University of Illinois. He is Executive Director for WEAC Region 6, and singer, guitarist, and co-founder of northern soul/rock band The Periodicals. Prior to Whoseland.org and Make History Madison, he co-produced The Greatest War: World War I, Wisconsin, and Why it Still Matters. Featured image of the Make History Madison logo. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post You Can Make History with Make History Madison appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · The Data on Remote Work: Productive but Lonely Emma Harrington(Photo courtesy University of Virginia) The global COVID-19 pandemic wrought a variety of social and economic changes.  Some, like social distancing, were temporary.  Other changes remained in place long after the most acute crisis subsided.  According to U.S. Census data, prior to the pandemic, people who worked from home accounted for about 3% of the working population.  After peaking at 20% during the height of the omicron COVID outbreak, that percentage has stabilized at about 17% of employees – some 27 million people work partially or entirely from home.  The issue has become a point of contention in labor relations, with many managers seeking to institute “back-to-the-office” policies, with resistance from labor organizations and individual employees.  Much has been made of the productivity of at-home workers, but less attention has been paid to the isolation of workers working from home.  Emma Harrington is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Virginia.  Her new book “In Person: How Working Together Fuels Creativity, Productivity, and Growth” will come out in October from Crown Currency Press.  Emma Harrington joined the Monday Buzz– remotely – by phone, on June 22, 2026. Featured image: Working from Home animation (Image by Aapriano, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post The Data on Remote Work: Productive but Lonely appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: The Juneteenth episode; A solution for the reflecting pool; Schrodinger's peace deal; A four ton elephant communicates its feelings at a GOP convention; Odd man out at the G7,  And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy Becky Phan  on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post When the Circus Came to Mel's Backyard appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

On today's show, host Esty Dinur celebrates Juneteenth, “America's second Independence Day,” with Dr. Timothy Golden. They talk about the symbolic importance of this federal holiday and how the US still struggles to make freedom meaningful for Black people. Juneteenth was made a federal holiday in 2021 after decades of campaigning by former teacher Opal Lee. Dr. Golden says that Juneteenth becomes “hollow” when we juxtapose the recognition of emancipation with Congress's inability to pass meaningful police and voting rights reform. The spirit of celebration is “neutralized” by the treacherous and tragic reality that enslaved Black people in Texas were kept enslaved after emancipation and the bad faith of our federal institutions who will not pass legislation that would support symbolic celebrations like Juneteenth.  In the wake of emancipation, Dr. Golden says that we think of freedom too narrowly. He points to the work of Reconstruction that was ultimately undercut in the way that racial terror continued under state law. He says that full democratic participation continues to be deferred for Black Americans because of mass incarceration and voter suppression. They also discuss Dr. Golden's experience as an actor, the “white gaze,” and the philosophy of Ida B. Wells.  Timothy J. Golden is Visiting Professor of Philosophy at Whitman College in Walla Walla, WA. His areas of philosophical specialization are Africana Philosophy (African American Social and Political Thought, Critical Race Theory, and Black Male Studies), Philosophy of Religion, and 19th and 20th Century European Philosophy. His books include Frederick Douglass and the Philosophy of Religion: An Interpretation of Narrative, Art, and the Political (Lexington Books, 2022), and Racism and Resistance: Essays on Derrick Bell’s Racial Realism (State University of New York Press, 2022). He is also a lawyer with more than 20 years experience concentrating in criminal defense, and he is an actor in local theater with solo performances in the stage plays Thurgood (portraying Thurgood Marshall) and How I Learned What I Learned (portraying August Wilson), and performances in  Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice (Shylock), The Winter’s Tale (Leontes, King of Sicily), and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Peter Quince).  Tim earned his Juris Doctor from the Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University and his Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Memphis.  Featured image of a Juneteenth parade in Denver, CO via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Celebrate Juneteenth, But Keep Working appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

June is a high milk production month called “the flush” by dairy farmers. On today's pre-recorded show, hosts Bert Zipperer and Pete Hardin of The Milkweed highlight the Dairy Month. They break down cheese consumption trends, the history of the dairy industry in the state, and hear from two Wisconsin dairy farmers, Jan Shepel and Adam Faust.  Shepel and Faust say they wish more people understood how hard they work. They share stories of the highs and lows–the droughts and floods–that they've seen over the years and how they've given names to their cows. The Wisconsin dairy industry contributes $50-55 billion to the economy annually but sits at a historic low of 5,000 dairy farms in the state.           They also dive into the role of cooperative creameries, the trend of cross-breeding beef and dairy cows, consumer demand for dairy protein in the form of whey and cottage cheese, and the rise of cheese prices.  Featured image of dairy cows in Vernon County, Wisconsin via Flickr (CC BY 2.0). Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Honoring Dairy Month with a Farmer Roundtable appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

If you have ever been asked “What's your sign?” you have Linda Goodman to thank—or blame. She was America's first New Age celebrity, and today host Ali Muldrow is joined by her biographer, Courtney Ann LaFaive, to talk about her legacy. They discuss LaFaive's new book, Follow the Signs: Searching for Linda Goodman, America’s Forgotten Astrology Queen. Linda Goodman was a literary celebrity publishing accessible books on astrology and relationships, like Love Signs, a massive volume about heterosexual coupling. LaFaive discovered Goodman's books as a teenager, decades after Goodman was popular, and found in them a way to “decode the mysteries of adulthood.” She learned to understand how people have different relationships to their inner world and how to understand intimacy and connection. She also gained a language for compatibility in relationships and a feminine knowledge counter to patriarchy. Through the language of cycles, LaFaive says you can find a more feminine way of thinking about how life unfolds, returning to face challenges again and again.  LaFaive says that astrology is both scientific and quasi-religious: it's something that can be seen scientifically through astronomy and people relate to it through faith. It's also political and Goodman's story is a cautionary tale for how our society deals with misinformation and illusion. In writing this book, LaFaive fell out of love with Linda Goodman but still strove to tell a compassionate story.  LaFaive will give a reading next Tuesday, June 23 at 6pm at A Room of One's Own.  Courtney Ann LaFaive is the author of Follow the Signs: Searching for Linda Goodman, America’s Forgotten Astrology Queen published by the University of Iowa Press in May 2026. She is a native of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and teaches creative writing at the University of North Dakota. Featured image of the cover of Follow the Signs: Searching for Linda Goodman, America’s Forgotten Astrology Queen. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Decoding the Mysteries of Adulthood through Astrology appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

On today's show, host Dana Pellebon is in conversation with Dr. Mary Fariba Afsari about her new memoir, Labor: One Woman’s Work. Dr. Afsari is a child of Iranian immigrants, a working mother, and the founder of a mobile health clinic, bringing reproductive healthcare to rural patients in the Pacific Northwest. In 2015, Dr. Afsari literally mobilized her practice to meet women where they are. Her clinic on wheels–FemForward Health–travels throughout rural Oregon because too many of these communities lack full-scale OB-GYN services. Dr. Afsari says that people have started driving to find her because they've been recommended by word of mouth. It's a sign of how broken the healthcare system is that a mobile RV clinic is providing better care than industrial medicine to women of color and rural women. Post Dobbs, Dr. Afsari says the fight for reproductive justice is more important than ever.  Dr. Afsari's memoir chronicles her career serving women like her grandmother who died of a pregnancy related complication. She says she wants readers to get a sense of the range of experiences she has from obstetric emergencies to joyous births. They also discuss Dr. Afsari's philosophy of meeting patients with curiosity, how race plays a central role in whether a woman will survive a pregnancy, the lack of gender-affirming care, and the criminalization of OB-GYNs post Dobbs.  Residents of Dane County may be aware of a similar service providing  mobile forensic nurse exams. Mary Fariba Afsari, DO, is a board-certified OB-GYN and the founder of FemForward Health, a mobile women’s health clinic in Portland, Oregon. She completed her medical school at Touro University college of Osteopathic Medicine, her Obstetrics and Gynecology residency at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and holds an MS in Health Communication from the Tufts University/Emerson College joint program. Dr. Afsari is a passionate advocate for healthcare equity and reproductive justice. She speaks widely on the intersections of medicine, identity, and systemic healthcare reform. Her debut memoir, Labor: One Woman’s Work, was published by Avid Reader Press in April.  Featured image of the cover of Labor: One Woman’s Work. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post One Mobile Clinic Practices Reproductive Justice in Rural Areas appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Last night Russia killed 11 civilians and attacked a historic cathedral in Kiev. On today's show, guest host Yuri Rashkin is in conversation with journalists Zarina Zabrisky and Jason Jay Smart, as well as politician Lev Parnas to talk about Russia's ongoing war on Ukraine and the status of support for Ukraine in the US. Zabrisky is a war correspondent currently living in Kherson, a city with more than 250,000 people located in an active “red zone.” She documents the phenomena of “human safari” drone strikes in which Russian troops use small drones equipped with cameras to identify targets. Zabrisky says that even though the people of Kherson experience violence on a daily basis since the start of the war, the city is still their home and they have complex reasons for staying. The people of Kherson have responded to Russia's use of fiber optic drones by covering parts of the city in fishing lines.  Smart says that Russia's attacks on churches, like the one bombed last night in Kiev, is a strategy of destroying symbols of the shared history between Russia and Ukraine. He's noticed that Russia has shifted its language around Ukraine from being a place that has “gone astray” to one that is full of “heathens.” This religious rhetoric is helping Moscow attract far-Right US agitators like Candace Owens and perpetuate an idea of Russia as a Christian nation upholding the faith. Zabrisky and Smart say that Ukraine is far from achieving peace and safety. But Smart predicts a paradigm shift in Russia in the near term.  Parnas joins the conversation to discuss the “love fest” between Washington and Moscow and the status of support for Ukraine within the Trump administration. He also discusses his role during the first Trump administration and what he predicts from Todd Blanche as Attorney General. Featured image of a street in Kherson destroyed in a Russian attack in 2024 via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0).  Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post A Kaleidoscopic View of Ukraine at War appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · Summer Programs Out of Reach for Many Parents Randy Neve (photo courtesy Wisconsin Out of School Time Alliance) Jennifer Smith (photo courtesy Wisconsin Out of School Time Alliance) With school out for the year, working parents struggle to find a summer program to keep the kids busy, entertained and safe over the hot summer months.   A new survey by the Afterschool Alliance suggests that nearly half of all parents seeking summer programs fail to find an appropriate slot for their kids.  Wisconsin Out of School Time Alliance Network Lead Randy Neve and Program Coordinator Jennifer Smith joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on June 15, 2026. Featured graphic courtesy Afterschool Alliance. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Summer Programs Out of Reach for Many Parents appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · Purchase With Purpose Offers Tips for Avoiding Big Tech Kyle Bradley (photo courtesy LinkedIn) Media activist, professor and author Bob McChesney used to say that if you're getting something for free on the internet, then you're the product.  Data harvesting cookies, bots, apps, devices, AI chatbots  – even kitchen appliances – spy on you 24 hours a day, reporting their findings back to the corporations such as Google, Apple, Meta and X.  These little bits of spyware are so pervasive that even the most vigilant privacy advocates have trouble avoiding them altogether.  Kyle Bradley has spent his career writing about data-driven tech and artificial intelligence, and is the director of Purchase With Purpose.  He joined the Monday 8 O’Clock Buzz on June 15, 2026. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Purchase With Purpose Offers Tips for Avoiding Big Tech appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · “Edward IV” Brings Elizabethan Drama to the Playground Sarah Z. Johnson (photo courtesy Linked In) Kia Karlen (photo courtesy Madison Children’s Museum) For every kid who's ever run around a playground pretending to be a pirate getting in swordfights, Madison Shakespeare Company and Madison Children's Museum have the play for you.  This month, MSC will mount a production of “Edward IV” by Elizabethan playwright Thomas Heywood, performing on the Madison Children's Museum's elaborate wonderground playground.  Kia Karlen, co-CEO of the Madison Children's Museum and Sarah Z. Johnson from Madison Shakespeare Company joined Monday Buzz host on June 15, 2026. Featured image: Wonderground playground (photo courtesy Madison Children’s Museum). Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post “Edward IV” Brings Elizabethan Drama to the Playground appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: Pants has a puppy [and some unfortunate dreams];  Mulitple studio visitors and a presentation from “Cosmic Carl”; Hegseth blocks some promotions of women and minorities; An existential threat to wind power;  “A very special baby”; Residual algae in reflecting pool;  And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy Anna Kumpan on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post A Beagle With Every Pledge? appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Donald Trump continues to boast that he will bring about the fall of Cuba, and Marco Rubio continues to assert that Cuba poses a national security threat. On today's show, host Esty Dinur is in conversation with Marc Becker about the latest signs of US aggression toward Cuba.  Becker says that Trump is “turning the screws” on Cuba via more blockades on petroleum and more sanctions on select members of the Cuban government. This leads pundits to say that a US military attack on Cuba is inevitable, but Becker says the conclusion is not inevitable. On the ground, the US blockades are causing diesel fuel shortages leading to lack of sanitation services. There's also mass hunger and energy shortages and the infant mortality rate is rising. This is all adding up to a crisis point.  They also discuss tourism apartheid, humanitarian flotillas, and China's increasing influence in Cuba. Becker says that the crisis raises a fundamental question: how much of the revolutionary aspirations do Cubans give up for the revolution to survive? And if you've given up everything that the revolution promised, do you give up on it? Marc Becker is professor of history at Truman State University. He studies the Latin American left with a particular interest in race, class, and gender within popular movements in the South American Andes. Among other works, he is the author of Contemporary Latin American Revolutions (Rowman and Littlefield, 2022); The CIA in Ecuador (Duke University Press, 2020); The FBI in Latin America: The Ecuador Files (Duke University Press, 2017); and Indians and Leftists in the Making of Ecuador’s Modern Indigenous Movements (Duke University Press, 2008. He has served on the executive committees and has been web editor of the Peace History Society (PHS) and Historians for Peace and Democracy (H-Pad). Becker is currently working on a project on Philip Agee and the CIA in Ecuador in the early 1960s. Featured image of a map of the 1962 US blockade of Cuba via Wikimedia Commons. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post The Crisis in Cuba Jeopardizes Revolutionary Aspirations appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Chef Patrick O'Halloran has been cooking for Madison for decades, and his latest business, The Deliciouser, blends spices, classes, and global cuisine. O'Halloran was just named Madison Magazine's Chef of the Year, and executive producer Hayley Sperling chats with him  about how the spice lab and the restaurant go hand in hand. Plus, Emily Tucker, host of WORT-FM's Stuff Yer Face, explains what is in a cookie salad and why sweet “salads” have a chokehold on Midwest culture. 

Today is the first day of the largest FIFA World Cup in history. And this weekend, the UFC is staging a cage match on the White House lawn to celebrate President Trump's birthday. Guest host Norman Stockwell takes a close look at these two events with sports writers Dave Zirin and Adam Szetela.  Zirin's latest article for The Progressive chronicles Donald Trump's influence on the World Cup tournament. He argues that the World Cup is no stranger to authoritarian governments, from Russia to Qatar and that Trump is using the event to stage his own authoritarianism. From travel advisories, Trump's threats against Iranian players, $5700 tickets, and the climate of ICE abductions, Zirin says that this World Cup is a “joyless” one. Szetela discusses how Donald Trump championed the UFC in the early 2000s such that now the sport has become synonymous with right-wing politics. One of the things that makes the UFC different from other sports leagues is that the fighters aren't unionized, meaning that many UFC athletes make as little as $3000 a match. Though it might be tempting to say that mixed martial arts appeal exclusively to the raw and ruthless violence of the MAGA crowd, Szetela says that the sport has a wider popularity. Zirin and Szetela also discuss their latest book projects.  Adam Szetela earned his Ph.D. in English from the Department of Literatures at Cornell University. Before that, he was a visiting fellow in the Department of History at Harvard University. He is the author of That Book Is Dangerous! (MIT Press) and writes for The Washington Post, The Guardian, Newsweek, and other publications. Dave Zirin writes about sports for The Nation and The Progressive and hosts the Edge of Sports podcast and “Edge of Sports with Dave Zirin” on The Real News. He is the author of The Kaepernick Effect: Taking a Knee, Changing the World and the forthcoming The People’s Historian: The Outsized Life of Howard Zinn. Featured image of an MMA cage via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Blood Sports on the White House Lawn appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · The Line Between Recreation and Medication is Finer than You Think Today Professor Nicholas Powers joins Ali Muldrow in a conversation about his new book, Black Psychedelic Revolution. Psychedelics such as LSD and ketamine are beginning to gain popularity as increasing evidence supports promising treatments of psychological conditions, trauma, and changing one's autobiographical narrative. They also heard from callers who shared transformational personal experiences while using psychedelics. What is the difference between recreation and medication? Powers suggests that the line may be finer than you think. The idea is that recreational activities like art, poetry, or even psychedelic drugs can be healing. Powers also noted that the most safe way to have a psychological experience is in a controlled and safe environment with a guide. If a person is in a state of trauma or depression, the chemicals from these drugs might lead to a further inability to cope once the trip is over, and that is when these drugs can become addictive. However, Powers emphasized that it's the prior state of trauma that creates the addiction rather than the drug itself. Powers said that the way these psychedelic drugs work is by inhibiting the ego, which leads to questioning core beliefs and the stories you were told about your life. This is why after a psychedelic trip, people often change their previously held beliefs. It is also why people tend to change their beliefs the most during college. During the transition period between being reliant on your parents and becoming an independent adult, young people question the stories that they were told. Powers encourages this kind of discussion in his college classrooms and asks his students to try to find the truth in their experiences. Additionally, there is a surge in the glamorization of drugs and removing the stigma associated with them. Drugs such as ritalin or adderall are given to children at younger ages reducing the stigma for using drugs to treat mental health, but there is still a sense that they are necessary. Powers says there is a delicate balance between maintaining a healthy skepticism about the medical industry without denying its benefits entirely. He encourages people to always think about who is profiting, whether from criminalizing marijuana or giving ritalin to four year olds. The discussion ended with the positive experiences that can come from having a controlled psychedelic experience. Some examples included helping alcohol addiction, understanding the core reasons why a marriage ended, finding peace and answers within the counterculture of the 1960s, and becoming a more compassionate person.  Nicholas Powers is an Associate Professor of English at SUNY Old Westbury. Powers has presented talks and reports from the Psychedelic Renaissance since 2017. He has written for numerous psychedelic publications from Lucid News to Double Blind. Alongside published articles, he has given talks at Naropa University and Chacruna. Powers has published three books with Upset Press. The first is a book of poetry, the second a mix of reportage from disaster zones, protests, and Burning Man. The third is a political vampire novel. He regularly attends Wild Seeds Writers Retreat and Cave Canem Black poetry workshops. Powers lives in Brooklyn with his son. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post The Line Between Recreation and Medication is Finer than You Think appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Today on the Tuesday 8:00 Buzz with Tara Wilhelmi, remembering community leader, father, “every child's uncle,” and regular Tuesday Buzz guest Michael Johnson with words from hosts, guests, community friends, and listeners.  Michael died unexpected on Sunday, June 7th at age 50. More about his life and legacy from Robert Chappell at Madison365 and from former WORT News Director Chali Pittman in Isthmus. A few from the recent archives of Michael on the Tuesday Buzz: Promoting the Positivity in the Community  Are You in It for the Money, or in It for Community? Giving Everything of Yourself Supporting our Kids Futures! And more from the full archives: https://www.wortfm.org/tag/michael-johnson/ Music from today's show: https://spinitron.com/WORT/pl/22552864/Tuesday-8-O-Clock-Buzz  Listen in Madison at 89.9FM or online anywhere at wortfm.org.  Support your community radio with a donation online at wortfm.org! Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post The Seeds You Sow – Remembering Michael Johnson appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · We Need Nutrition Security, Not Just Food Security Today host Douglas Haynes is joined by Kris Tazelaa of Second Harvest Food Bank, and Melissa Bublitz professor of human ecology at UW Madison. Second Harvest Food Bank of Southern Wisconsin distributes 26 million pounds of food to over 300 partners and programs, including local food pantries, mobile food pantries, youth programs, and many more.  The language around access to food centers on “food insecurity,” but the conversation often omits the need for healthy food. Bublitz highlights the importance of nutrition security, an effort to provide communities with not just food to survive, but the food necessary to thrive. One of the ways Second Harvest is addressing nutrition security is by partnering with local farmers to provide fresh, local and nutritious food. The majority of the 16 counties that Second Harvest serves are rural, so Second Harvest Food Bank buys excess food from farmers to make sure the local producers also have the support they need. The fresh food is often distributed the very next day. For a lot of families, there is a patchwork of sources necessary to get the food they need. Rather than going to the grocery store for everything, they rely on state programs, local food pantries, and FoodShare (SNAP) benefits. Although SNAP is a critical lifeline for many people, it is intended to be supplemental, and has not kept up with the rate of inflation. The program is not enough to provide everything, but Bublitz and Tazelaa said it is still the most efficient way to address food insecurity while also improving the local economy. For every SNAP dollar spent, $1.60 is created in the local community.   There are myriad sources of mental and physical stress on families without food security. There is still a stigma attached to swiping the green SNAP card at the grocery store and shopping at local food pantries. Many people in small communities travel 20-30 miles away to avoid being recognized by neighbors at their local pantries. There is the added stress of government paperwork and figuring out eligibility for food programs. Bublitz and Tazelaa reference feeling “hangry,” emphasizing the importance of being fed to increase your quality of life and reach your highest potential, and how nutritious food will make a world of difference. Kris Tazelaa is a Wisconsin native who has been with Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin for nearly 15 years, currently serving as the organization’s Media and Public Relations Manager. Melissa G. Bublitz, Ph.D. is the Liz Kramer Professor of Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the School of Human Ecology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research focuses on understanding and influencing consumer behavior to promote the well-being of individuals and families as well as in the communities where they live and work. Her research studies food and nutrition access, social entrepreneurship, sustainability,  and public policy to increase consumer well-being. Utilizing qualitative and participatory research methods, her research is characterized by a strong commitment to creating real-world impact and is often conducted in partnership with social impact organizations. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post We Need Nutrition Security, Not Just Food Security appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · Finding Home on Highway 14: Episode Eight Nicole Gruter (photo courtesy Nicole Gruter) Once a month, we check in with the Monday Buzz's roving reporter Nicole Gruter.  Nicole's been tracing the route of historic U.S. Highway 14, one of the first U.S. Highways originally built in the 1920s.  On June 8, 2026, Nicole talked to Monday Buzz host Brian Standing about her visit to Tracy, Minnesota, population 2,079. (All photos by Nicole Gruter) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Finding Home on Highway 14: Episode Eight appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

 WORT 89.9FM Madison · In our modern society, we take the ability to reach into our pocket and instantly contact anyone in the world for granted.  But all those text messages, e-mails, social media posts and voice calls depend on a centralized, private network of cellular communication towers.  What would you do if that network ever goes down?  The Four Lakes Amateur Radio Club has been working on a project called MeshCore that provides a resilient, decentralized alternative texting technology that works over the public radio spectrum.  Jeff Fritsche, the 2026 Field Day Coordinator for Four Lakes Amateur Radio Club, and Chris Eade, one of the leads for the MeshCore project, joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on June 8, 2026. Pine Bluff MeshCore Repeater, linking western Dane County with Madison(Photo courtesy w9jz.org) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post MeshCore Offers Resilient Decentralized Communication appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · Trump’s Billion-Dollar Slush Fund Could Reappear Brendan Ballou(Photo courtesy Public Integrity Project) On June 1, Politico reported that, according to two anonymous White House sources, President Trump has backed down from a proposed 1.8 billion-dollar so-called “Anti-Weaponization” fund. Later that day, the Justice Department announced that it would abide by a court order halting the project. The fund – dubbed a “slush fund” by critics – would have paid for settlements in federal cases brought by the Justice Department under the Biden Administration.  The proposal drew sharp criticism, including from Republicans in Congress.  Among the potential recipients were people charged under federal law for the January 6, 2021 Capitol riots.  Brendan Ballou is the Chief Executive Officer of the Public Integrity Project, which brought a lawsuit against the Trump Administration on behalf of District of Columbia Police Officers Harry Dunn and Daniel Hodges.  Brendan Ballou joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on June 8, 2026. Featured image: Seal of the U.S. Department of Justice (U.S. Government, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Trump’s Billion-Dollar Slush Fund Could Reappear appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: Pledge drive show on Esty's Birthday; Professional headphone detangler sought; Esty, ‘Pants and Mel's ages revealed!; Return of the screw worm; Studying Mars' atmosphere [or lack thereof]; Andrew Jackson and banks; And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy Dmitry Dreyer  on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Friday Afternoon Gummies appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

On today's pledge drive edition of A Public Affair, host Esty Dinur is in conversation with former host, Zoltán Grossman about grassroots resistance to creeping dictatorship in the US and the resilience of Indigenous communities around the world. They dedicate the program to the memory of Dr. Al Geddicks, who Grossman calls “the quintessential scholar-activist.” He was the driving force behind the anti-mining movement and author of Resource Rebels.  They discuss where Grossman finds hope, including in the backlash against ICE raids and detention centers. He says that there is a growing break in the longstanding bipartisan consensus for military and intelligence spending, even though the Senate passed the ~$70 billion budget reconciliation package for immigration enforcement. He calls this “anti-weaponization” fund another form of “internal repression” that will fund paramilitary militias.  Grossman is also optimistic about ecological and Indigenous resilience in Western Washington where he lives and teaches. He describes the wins for resource co-management and resistance to US military interventions, and why these actions seem more possible in Washington than they do in Wisconsin. They also discuss Palestine, Grossman's Hungarian lineage, and the fall of Viktor Orbán. Note: This pledge drive interview was edited to remove parts of the show dedicated to station fundraising. We thank our listeners for their generous support. Zoltán Grossman has since 2005 been a Professor in Geography and Native American ​ Indigenous Studies at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, and previously taught at UW-Eau Claire.  He earned his Ph.D. in Geography and Graduate Minor in American Indian Studies at UW-Madison in 2002. He is a longtime antiwar, antiracist, and environmental organizer, and was a co-founder of the Midwest Treaty Network in Wisconsin.  He is a past co-chair of the Indigenous Peoples Specialty Group of the American Association of Geographers. He was co-editor of Asserting Native Resilience: Pacific Rim Indigenous Nations Face the Climate Crisis (Oregon State University Press, 2012). He is author of Unlikely Alliances: Native Nations and White Communities Join to Defend Rural Lands (University of Washington Press, 2017). Featured image if the removed Glines Canyon Dam in Washington via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).  Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Grassroots Organizing Works with Zoltán Grossman appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

From the first Piggly Wiggly to automated self-checkout machines, the supermarket is a microcosm of modern food systems, labor, and the idea of convenience. On today's pledge drive edition of A Public Affair, host Bert Zipperer speaks with Ann Larson about her book, Cleanup on Aisle Five: Essential Work, Poverty Wages, and the View from Behind the Supermarket Register. Larson got a job at a supermarket at the outset of the COVID pandemic after spending a few years on the margins of the professional class in New York City. She worked for over a year at a grocery store before leaving and writing her book. Her main takeaway from that experience is that there is no such thing as unskilled labor. Supermarket cashiers, like herself, need patience, technical and communication skills, product knowledge, and more. They're also likely to develop repetitive stress and muscular-skeletal disorders, workplace injuries that increasingly go un-investigated due to cuts to OSHA. The second lesson of Larson's book is that all laborers have dignity. When workers–like cashiers–are underpaid, they become devalued. In our culture, status is tied to pay, but Larson wants to bust the myth that so-called “low-skilled” workers deserve low pay. She says that unfortunately we seemed to have quickly forgotten the lessons about essential work that the pandemic taught us.  From her time cashiering, Larson saw the supermarket function as a community space where people could escape from the heat or cold, for example. But it's also a place of precarious labor. On top of that, the shift to self-checkout machines in the name of “convenience” shifted labor from their employees to their customers. They also discuss the issue of Piggly Wiggly, the lack of unionization among retail workers, and the need to enforce anti-trust laws.  Note: This pledge drive interview was edited to remove parts of the show dedicated to station fundraising. We thank our listeners for their generous support. Ann Larson's writing on education, debt, and low-wage work has appeared in The New Republic, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Fast Company, and The Nation, among other publications. She is coauthor of Can't Pay Won't Pay: The Case for Economic Disobedience and Debt Abolition and is a fellow with the Economic Hardship Reporting Project. She lives in Salt Lake City, UT. Featured image of the cover of Cleanup on Aisle Five: Essential Work, Poverty Wages, and the View from Behind the Supermarket Register. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post There's No Such Thing As Unskilled Labor appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

On today's pledge drive edition of A Public Affair, host Ali Muldrow is in conversation with scholar Tara Mulder about her new book, A Womb of One’s Own: Lost Histories of Childbirth in Ancient Rome. Mulder tells the story of birth from pre-conception to post-partum based around women's stories of trying to get pregnant, of being pregnant, of terminating pregnancies, and beyond. Her book is an alternative history of Rome–which is typically centered around war, death, and sex–through childbirth. Mulder combed through primary texts for pieces of birthing stories and investigated funerary inscriptions, medical tools, and magical amulets to form a composite story of birth in ancient Rome. She found that abortion isn't a modern phenomena but a part of the reproductive experience common in the ancient world. Yet it was during this period that the narrative that women are wicked or vain for having an abortion emerged, and the same language that is deployed today. Prior to this point, pregnancy was seen as healthful and the domain of women, and afterward pregnancy was medicalized under the purview of men.  Though at the population level, birth has gotten better since ancient times, it would be wrong to attribute that progress to tools. Instead, improvements in medical care non-specific to childbirth have revolutionized healthcare broadly, from germ theory to the regular use of antiseptics. And still, Milwaukee has one of the worst maternal and infant mortality rates in the world. They also talk about the role of capitalism and private equity in determining how hospitals treat pregnancies and the safety of homebirths and midwifery. Note: This pledge drive interview was edited to remove parts of the show dedicated to station fundraising. We thank our listeners for their generous support. Tara Mulder is Assistant Professor of Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies with affiliation in Gender and Women’s Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. As the daughter of a homebirth midwife, she has assisted in more than two dozen births. Featured image of the cover of Tara Mulder's book, A Womb of One’s Own: Lost Histories of Childbirth in Ancient Rome. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post The Story of the Roman Empire through Childbirth appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Today on the Too Turnt Up Tuesday 8:00 Buzz with Tara Wilhelmi featuring Jackie Brodean, in the first half, Kristie GoForth, Executive Director of Bikes for Kids Wisconsin joins us to talk about their new “Meals on 2 Wheels” program bringing food to those who need it from the River Food Pantry on electric cargo bikes;  In the second half, DJs Lotus G, Ree Maniac, DUDE Da Definition, and chanteuse Chakari Daezhare join to tell their stories and talk about this next Monday's 608 Day at Penn Park and the importance of community! More information on Bikes For Kids Wisconsin and volunteer opportunities or to get a bike, visit their website https://bikesforkidswi.org/ or stop in at their shop at 354 Coyier Lane on the South Side.  To get food assistance delivered by car or bike, visit River Food Pantry at 3301 Packers Ave on the North side or contact them via https://www.riverfoodpantry.org/. More information on 608 Day coming up noon-8 on Monday, June 8th in Penn Park on the Facebook event https://www.facebook.com/events/999270165780642/ and the EOTO Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/EOTOCulturallyRooted/  More on Chakari's upcoming Jamboree on August 28th at High Noon Saloon: https://high-noon.com/event/thee-chakari-daezhare-jamboree/ Check in with Urban League at https://ulgm.org/calendar/ and https://ulgmhub.org/calendar/  for info on resume and job seeking workshops, banking workshops, home ownership clinics, information on Expungement, childcare assistance, fatherhood support, healthcare administration, food safety and trades training, and more! Music from today's show: https://spinitron.com/WORT/pl/22519272/Tuesday-8-O-Clock-Buzz  Listen in Madison at 89.9FM or online anywhere at wortfm.org.  Support your community radio with a donation online at wortfm.org! Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post We Welcome Ya'll appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

On today's pledge drive edition of A Public Affair, host Dana Pellebon is in conversation with Rev. Staci Marrese-Wheeler and Rev. Tim Schaefer about the phenomena of white Christian nationalism and how their congregations are choosing to follow a table-flipping Jesus. Rev. Schaefer is part of a coalition of clergy in Wisconsin working against Christian nationalism. He says that this political ideology gets framed in theological terms by a small group of people who interpret scripture in a narrow way in order to uphold their power and control. Rooted in white supremacy, Christian nationalism threatens democratic norms and threatens churches because it doesn't allow for pluralism in either space, says Schaefer. Rev. Marrese-Wheeler says that this ideology is rooted in fear and a scarcity mindset, but she follows Christian teachings of abundance. She pastors a small, progressive congregation where people have been exposed to justice-framed understandings of the Gospel. “Patriarchy is baked into church DNA,” says Marrese-Wheeler, though there have been denominations that ordain female clergy. Schaefer says that he brings feminist, womanist, and queer theologies into his sermons, following the model of a social-justice, table-flipping Jesus.  “More and more, faithful people are being asked to create more power and more wealth for people who don't follow Jesus,” says Marrese-Wheeler. Instead, she looks to Christian traditions in Central America and Africa that preach community instead of individualism. Note: This pledge drive interview was edited to remove parts of the show dedicated to station fundraising. We thank our listeners for their generous support. Rev. Staci Marrese-Wheeler (She/Her) is Pastor at Common Grace. Staci is an ordained pastor of the Moravian Church of North America. Staci has an undergraduate degree in Education and a Masters of Divinity from Moravian Theological Seminary in Bethlehem, PA. She has served on the eastside of Madison for 17 of her 33 years in ministry. Staci’s role at Common Grace is  called “Community Development Pastor.” She also serves as Co-Director of the Eastmorland Community Center on the east side of Madison. Rev. Tim Schaefer has served as pastor of First Baptist Church since November 2020. Prior to relocating to Wisconsin, he served as Minister to Youth at Royal Lane Baptist Church in Dallas, TX, where he was ordained in early 2019. Tim holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Boston University and a Master of Divinity degree, as well as, a degree certificate in Gender and Sexual Justice from Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University. In addition to his pastoral role, Tim co-founded and continues to co-lead the Wisconsin Coalition for Religious Freedom, a broad collective of Wisconsinites dedicated to disrupting the rise of white Christian nationalism in our state. Featured image: of Christian LGBTQ pride flag with cross hanging in a Metropolitan Community Church via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).  Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Following a Social-Justice, Table-Flipping Jesus appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

The Yahara Lakes define this region where people flock to the water year-round for recreation. But algae blooms, Madison's continued growth, and the warming planet are changing the makeup of our waterways. On today's pledge drive edition of A Public Affair, Douglas Haynes is in conversation with James Tye of Clean Lakes Alliance and Jake Vander Zanden of the Center for Limnology about the 2025 State of the Lakes report, the annual checkup of the Yahara watershed. The central issue facing the Yahara lakes is phosphorus. A single pound of phosphorus can lead to 500 pounds of algae, leading local groups to double their efforts to remove phosphorus from the waterways. The issue of phosphorus is compounded by other factors like microplastics and climate change. The Center for Limnology also tracks chlorophyll, water clarity, zooplankton, and animal and fish populations, including the invasive spiny water flea. This is the 15th year of the State of the Lakes report, and Tye says that next year they will include information on the number of acres of cover crops, rain gardens, and green roofs in order to show how what we do on land is connected to the health of our waters.  Note: This pledge drive interview was edited to remove parts of the show dedicated to station fundraising. We thank our listeners for their generous support. James Tye is the Founder and Executive Director of Clean Lakes Alliance. His connection to the lakes runs deep, as he grew up swimming, waterskiing, and sailing on Lake Mendota. As a lifelong Madison resident, he has seen many changes in the Yahara lakes over the years, and is excited to have the opportunity to work on their behalf. Jake Vander Zanden is professor of Integrative Biology and Director of the Center for Limnology at UW-Madison. His research focuses on the threats to healthy lake ecosystems. He works on Wisconsin lakes, as well as lakes and rivers around the world. Jake has trained scores of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers in his 25 years at UW-Madison. Featured image of a algae bloom via Flickr (CC BY 2.0). Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Phosphorus, That's What's in the Lakes appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

 WORT 89.9FM Madison · “The Blind Spot: How Oligarchies Dominate Democracies” Jeffrey Winters (photo courtesy Jeffrey Winters) As the United States of America prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, its allegedly democratic government is showing its age.   How did we get from “all men are created equal and endowed with inalienable rights” and “a government that derives its powers from the consent of the governed” to a modern society where the richest 50% of the population owns 97% of the nation's wealth?  Well, according to Northwestern University Political Science professor Jeffrey Winters, that's not a bug in the system, it's a feature.  His new book, “The Blind Spot: How Oligarchs Dominate Democracies,” is out now from Scribner.  Jeffrey Winters joined Monday 8 O’Clock Buzz host on Monday, June 1, 2026. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post “The Blind Spot: How Oligarchs Dominate Democracies” appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

 WORT 89.9FM Madison · Return of the “Kishka Circus” Caitlin Loughran (left), Nicole Lane Star (center) and Sarah Louise Raillard (right) in the WORT studios.(Photo by Nicholas Wootton) Walt Solek, the renowned “Clown Prince of Polka,” recorded his epic heist song “Who Stole the Kishka,” in the 1950s.  Since then, the tune has become a staple in any self-respecting polka band's repertoire.  And more recently, that song about a stolen “round and firm and fully packed” Polish sausage has become the inspiration for, of all things, a circus act.  On June 13 and June 14,  Madison Youth Arts (or MYArts) hosts a revival of “Kishka” by the Kishka Circus.  On June 1, 2026, a trio of circus acrobats, including Sarah-Louise Raillard, Caitlin Loughran and Nicole Lane Star crammed into the WORT studios to give listeners an advance taste of the show. Caitlin Loughran demonstrates a handstand.(Photo by Nicholas Wootton) Sarah Louise Raillard juggles rings in WORT’s middle studio.(Photo by Nicholas Wootton) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Return of the “Kishka Circus” appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: Memories of school days; The new feudalism; A running list of cat names; Corporations can vote in Delaware??; Cash for moms-to-be improves outcomes; Thanksgiving on steroids in Antarctica; Mosquitos learning to like insect repellant; Pigeon navigation; Bratfest results; And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy Loan on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Doin' the Cat Thing appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

On today's show, host Esty Dinur asks listeners to pick up their phones and share their thoughts on local and global issues. We hear from folks who are staying aware and vigilant about international news, finding hope and comfort in making your own food, the Democratic primary for governor, and the value of collective self-determination.  Featured image of a bright blue phone via Pexels. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Open Line with Esty Dinur appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

On today's show, host Bert Zipperer is in conversation with Elie Mystal, The Nation's justice correspondent and columnist, about the Supreme Court's recent decision in Louisiana v. Callais that gutted the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Mystal says the “most important legislation in US history” that ended 100 years of apartheid is now “effectively dead.” The Voting Rights Act didn't deliver a post-racial utopia, but it was “the start of the American experiment” for Black people, says Mystal. And it has been successful at increasing Black representation in government: before 1965 there were 4 Black members of Congress and that number grew to 9 in 1969 and 67 today. But a certain cadre of white people don't support this, including Chief Justice John Roberts, who argued against the 1982 voting rights expansion that defined racism by a law's effects not intent. The ruling in Louisiana v. Callais rolls it all back, requiring lawyers to prove intentional discrimination, something that is near impossible to do. Mystal calls the gerrymandering in Louisiana “surgical discrimination” because white democratic neighborhoods were not gerrymandered, but Black democratic neighborhoods were. They also discuss how blue states are trying to “fight fire with fire,” how the Trump administration wants to destroy federalism, how the Callais decision could affect the midterm elections, and how to fix democracy with more democracy. Elie Mystal is The Nation's justice correspondent and a columnist. He is also an Alfred Knobler Fellow at the Type Media Center. He is the author of two books: the New York Times bestseller Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy's Guide to the Constitution and Bad Law: Ten Popular Laws That Are Ruining America, both published by The New Press. He also writes the newsletter “Elie v. U.S.” Featured image of the signing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 via Wikimedia Commons. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post The Voting Rights Act is “Effectively Dead” appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Today on the Too Turnt Up Tuesday 8:00 Buzz with Tara Wilhelmi, it's officially looking like summer time!   Talking about 608 Day coming up in a few weeks in Penn Park and other events we're looking forward to; in the second half, Antoine drops in on his day off after a big weekend and Jackie “Brodean” Morris calls in to recap the wildly successful 10th anniversary poetry and comedy jam, and more going on around town! More information on 608 Day coming up noon-8 on June 8th in Penn Park on the Facebook event https://www.facebook.com/events/999270165780642/ and the EOTO Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/EOTOCulturallyRooted/  Check in with Urban League at https://ulgm.org/calendar/ and https://ulgmhub.org/calendar/  for info on resume and job seeking workshops, banking workshops, home ownership clinics (new sessions starting soon), information on Expungement, childcare assistance, fatherhood support, healthcare administration, food safety and trades training, and more! Music from today's show: https://spinitron.com/WORT/pl/22485431/Tuesday-8-O-Clock-Buzz  Listen in Madison at 89.9FM or online anywhere at wortfm.org.  Support your community radio with a donation online at wortfm.org! Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post No Gatekeeping Around Here appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

 WORT 89.9FM Madison · Arts Lit Lab Hosts SynthFest Madison From the days of the punch card-driven, vacuum tube powered RCA Mark II in the 1950s to the various creations of Robert Moog, to modern software-driven MIDIs, the electronic synthesizer has revolutionized music creation.  To celebrate nearly three quarters of a century of electronic music, the Arts and Literature Laboratory hosts SynthFest Madison on Saturday May 30.  Visitors can hear a concert with various synth master performers, explore the synth gallery of various synths and even build their own synth that they can take home.  Tim Russell is the Music Director for the University of Wisconsin's Dance Department, he's the founder of Milwaukee's music and dance improvisational series Hyperlocal MKE and has studied with improvisational greats like Roscoe Mitchell.  He joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing in the WORT studios with a curious contraption. Tim Russell demonstrates his Don Buchla synthesizer with Buzz host Brian Standing in the WORT Studios. (Photo by Nicholas Wootton) Tim Russell in the WORT Studios. (Photo by Nicholas Wootton) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Arts Lit Lab Hosts SynthFest Madison appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · Vets for Peace’s Susan Schnall Wants No More Memorial Days Susan Schnall (Photo courtesy Veterans for Peace) Across the country, for the 158th national Memorial Day, speakers will talk about the valor and sacrifice of fallen soldiers.  The activist organization Veterans for Peace, however, has a simple message: stop the wars, stop killing people, and maybe we won't need a Memorial Day in the future.  Susan Schnall was a U.S. Navy Nurse who opposed the Vietnam War.  In 1968, Schnall rented a small plane and dropped anti-war flyers on five U.S. military bases near San Francisco.  After her court-martial and discharge from the Navy, Schnall continued her peace activism.  Schnall is now the President of Veterans for Peace.  Schnall will speak at Madison's Masonic Hall on Memorial Day, part of the Clarence Kalin Chapter of Vets for Peace Memorial Day commemoration.  Susan Schnall joined the Monday Buzz on Monday, May 25, 2026. Billboard erected by Veterans for Peace near military bases around the country. (Image courtesy Veterans for Peace) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Vets for Peace’s Susan Schnall Speaks Out Against War on Memoria... appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · Feds Blocked From Wisconsin Voter Data Alex Shur (photo by Nicholas Wootton) U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson dealt the Trump Administration a severe blow with a May 21 ruling blocking the U.S. Department of Justice from obtaining unredacted Wisconsin voter data.  Of the 30 lawsuits the Trump Administration has brought against states refusing to hand over detailed voter information, eight have now been dismissed by federal courts.  Alexander Schur is the Wisconsin reporter for Votebeat, and he joined the Monday Buzz on May 25, 2026. Featured image: An election worker processes absentee ballots in Milwaukee. A judge in May 2026 rejected the U.S. Justice Department’s lawsuit to obtain Wisconsin’s unredacted voter rolls. (Photo by Laura McDermott for Votebeat). Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Feds Blocked from Wisconsin Voter Data appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: Floyd comes back from assignment to fill in for SmartyPants who's checking out the stars at Harvard; Who doesn't go to their son's wedding?; Looking for “medium-size Walter”; Firing top infectious disease officials in time for Hantavirus; Coming soon: The Bay of Piggy fiasco; And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy Biblioteca Valenciana Nicolau Primitiu on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Apparently We Have a Lot of Blimps appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Today on the Too Turnt Up Tuesday 8:00 Buzz with Tara Wilhelmi and Antoine McNeail, it's Antoine's birthday!  Talking about life and living in Madison, what's coming up over the summer and putting on events around town! Don't miss the 10th anniversary Poetry and Comedy Jam and Antoine's birthday party coming up this Saturday (May 23, 2026) at 7:00 at The Hub! More information and ticket info on https://www.facebook.com/ComedyAndPoetryJam/  More information on 608 Day coming up June 8th on the EOTO Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/EOTOCulturallyRooted/  Check in with Urban League at https://ulgm.org/calendar/ and https://ulgmhub.org/calendar/  for info on resume and job seeking workshops, banking workshops, home ownership clinics (new sessions starting soon), information on Expungement, childcare assistance, fatherhood support, healthcare administration, food safety and trades training, and more! Music from today's show: https://spinitron.com/WORT/pl/22451604/Tuesday-8-O-Clock-Buzz  Listen in Madison at 89.9FM or online anywhere at wortfm.org.  Support your community radio with a donation online at wortfm.org! Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Forgetting Your Punchline appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · Childrens Museum Celebrates Asian / Pacific Islander Heritage Month May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and the Madison Children's Museum is throwing one hell of a party to celebrate.  On Thursday, May 21, the Museum will feature dancing, food, storytelling and artwork from Chinese, Korean, Japanese and Hmong cultures.  Junko Yamauchi, an Early Learning Program Specialist with the Madison Children's Museum and Charlotte Cummins, MCM's Director of Education and Community Partnerships joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on May 18, 2026. Charlotte Cummins(Photo courtesy Madison Children’s Museum) Junko Yamauchi and Brian Standing in the WORT studios. (Photo by Junko Yamauchi) Featured image: Lion dance (photo courtesy Madison Children’s Museum) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Children’s Museum Celebrates Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage... appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · Feds Remove Protections for Boundary Waters, Roadless Areas Jamie Ervin (photo courtesy Outdoor Alliance) On April 16, the U.S. Senate voted 50-49 to approve House Joint Resolution 140, stripping federal protections against metal mining in the watershed of the U.S. Forest Service's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park. The vote fell mostly along party lines, with all Democrats voting against the resolution.  Republican Thom Tillis of North Carolina crossed the aisle to vote against the measure, while Missouri Republican Josh Hawley did not vote.  The move comes in response to a proposed copper sulfide mine to be operated by Chilean-based Twin Metals.  Permitting for the mine now falls to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.  Meanwhile, on April 21, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers wrote to Brooke Rollins, secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture to oppose the U.S. Forest Service's proposed rescission of the 2001 Roadless Rule, which includes wilderness protections for some 70,000 acres of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in Northern Wisconsin.  Jamie Ervin is the Senior Policy Manager of the Outdoor Alliance, a coalition of outdoor recreation and conservation groups, and he joined the Monday Buzz on May 18, 2026. Featured image: Section Twelve Lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Superior National Forest. (Photo by Daniel Ziegler, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Feds Remove Protections for Boundary Waters, Roadless Areas appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

WORT 89.9FM Madison · SCOTUS Unleashes Gerrymandering Arms Race David Canon (Photo courtesy University of Wisconsin-Madison) After the defeat of the Confederacy in the U.S. Civil War, Congress proposed and the states ratified the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments to the U.S. Constitution to end slavery, ensure citizenship to anyone born in the United States, ensure equal protection and protect voting rights for racial minorities and former slaves.  Over the next 100 years, enforcement of the amendments was haphazard at best, with the U.S. Supreme Court repeatedly knocking down Congressional attempts to regulate against racially discriminatory Jim Crow laws.  In 1965, after tireless advocacy and protest from Civil Rights leaders, Congress passed the Voting Rights Act.  On signing the act, President Lyndon Baines Johnson declared it “a triumph for freedom as great as any victory on the battlefield.”  On April 29, in a decision reminiscent of the court's long discredited Reconstruction era rulings, the Roberts-led U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling in Louisiana v. Callais that gutted the last remaining provisions of the Voting Rights Act.  The ruling has touched off an arms race of gerrymandering efforts by States in anticipation of the 2026 midterm elections.  David Canon is a professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin's La Follette School of Public Affairs, who has specialized in legislative redistricting and representation.  David Canon joined the Monday Buzz on May 18, 2026. Featured image: Map of Louisiana 6th Congressional District overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in Louisiana v. Callais. (Image by Twotwofourtysix, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post SCOTUS Unleashes Gerrymandering Arms Race appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: Smarty Pants' visit to the British Museum and the “dear leader's” visit to China; Multiple data centers being considered in Alliant Energy territory; 1890's now referred to as the “First Gilded Age”; Absurd hantavirus conspiracy theories; And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy Rapha Wilde on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Why Mosquitos Prefer SmartyPants appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Right there in the river city, Watertown, Wisconsin.  In one of the most audacious decisions by a local school board since the enlightened members of the River City school board tried to prevent the spread of pool playing in their community, the Watertown Board voted to protect their vulnerable high school students from political indoctrination by a lyricless song.  Despite the protestations of the young musicians who've been practicing for months, and many parents who were supporting the students, the Board decided they knew what was be best for the corruptible youth of their fair city.  The 8 O'Clock Buzz explores the school board decision with the assistance of a former Watertown alumnus.  The Mother of a Revolution lives on! Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Ya Got Trouble appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: The latest on “Don Snore-leone”; Problems with Canvas educational software; Mel is back on his bike!; Chief Justice Roberts laments correct public perception; War crimes prosecution as a growth industry; $850 Million tax dollars to cancel wind power projects;  Cheetah poplation increases in Iran; And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy OGenius Aficionados on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Back in the Saddle Again! appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: Toxic fumes in Hegseth's hair gel?; Another Fox “personality” for the cabinet; A return to Jim Crow; Putin dials back internet access for Russians; A long dry summer on the way for the Southwest; Standardized testing glitch in NY; From ticks to Nixon; And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy Sergi Viladesau on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Counting Explosions appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: Is Mr. SmartyPants your favorite “butter and egg man”?; A.I. “hallucinations” in legal briefs; Should tree-huggers “take it to the next level”?; Report on Covid vaccine effectiveness is suppressed; Tales of Kash Patel [AKA J. Edgar Boozer]; Big game hunter discovers Karma; Record high corporate profits & record low consumer confidence; And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy BUDDHI Kumar SHRESTHA on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Use Your Brain, Human! appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: Smarty Pants [The Great Prognosticator] returns!; Sprinkling the fairy dust over war crimes; The Strait of Vermouth??; Boebert declines to meet “King George”; Voter fraud in Colorado; GOP votes to despoil Boundary Waters; And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy Inside Weather on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Davenport Braces Itself appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

This week on Mel & Floyd: It's the annual film festival show with Mel, Luther and guests; Attendance is up; Public access TV in NYC; A prepared statement from Four Star; The importance of home movies & photos; The Last Critic; And other random topics; Notice something missing?  For the complete Mel and Floyd Experience, buy the CD “The Very Best of James Brown” and play it on your Hi-Fi while listening to this podcast!  Or listen live at 89.9 FM or wortfm.org/listen-live/ every Friday from 1 to 2 PM Central Time. Photo courtesy Bruno Guerrero on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereThe post Madison Still Has a Video Rental Store? appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.