365 Amplified

Madison Common Council members have used a Signal group chat with disappearing messages for more than a year. Rob explains why that raises open meetings and open records questions. Also this week: a Latino pickleball night at Dill Dinkers, Madison's first new library branch in 26 years, nurses at SSM Health Dean voting to unionize, and a look ahead to the ninth annual 365 Leadership Summit. Then Rob talks with Kaleem Caire, the newest candidate for Madison mayor, about property taxes, housing costs, policing, body-worn cameras, and his first 30 days in office.

Rob Chappell, Stephanie Diaz de Leon and Omar Waheed dig into a busy week in Madison policing: Chief John Patterson's new "service excellence and outreach" division, the Madison Community Foundation grant putting body-worn cameras on every officer next year, and the city's ongoing refusal to release police video. Omar recaps the Isthmus panel on AI and journalism and shares Aaron Perry's plan to take his barbershop health clinics on a 200-shop tour through the stroke and diabetes belt. Then mayoral candidate April Kigeya joins to talk housing, transportation, mental health, policing, and why she thinks Madison needs a new leader.

Today's episode is sponsored by Wisconsin Chamber Orchesta and its upcoming performance, Transcendence.

Big things are happening in Madison's art scene! Today, the team gives an update on a proposal to turn the 100-year-old Breese Stevens Field into a state-of-the-art concert venue, a Latina-focused art gallery, a Latino-focused book publisher, and a new locally produced movie that got a lot of buzz at its premier this summer. You can see it for free at a Central Library screening next weekend, and writer/director Rafael Ragland stops by the studio to talk about that movie, his history as a filmmaker and a big project to educate the next generation of movie makers.

Check out the trailer for "Where Scriptures Breathe" here.

April Kigeya becomes the latest candidate to enter Madison's mayoral race, joining a growing field ahead of the spring election. Rob breaks down the ongoing fallout from a Madison police officer's restraining order against Independent Police Monitor Aracely Glass, plus new city council moves to review years of police oversight recommendations. Then, a change of pace: Rob shares the story of Braylin Calhoun, a basketball phenom from a tiny Upper Peninsula town turning heads in the national prep scene who's recently relocated to Milwaukee. Omar spotlights Sultan Ahmed's new cookbook, "Zamin," which reimagines Pakistani cuisine with Wisconsin-sourced ingredients, and previews "Ugly Little Monkeys," a documentary on a youth mariachi group screening in Madison and Oshkosh. Plus: emotional support snacks, and a ruling on candy corn.

State Rep Shelia Stubbs is advocating legislation to require body-worn cameras in all police departments. Will that actually increase transparency? We are skeptical. On the show today, Rob and Omar dig into that, including specific reasons for skepticism. Then, we touch on a new effort to unionize yet another group of nurses, and Omar recaps his visit to the Milwaukee Black Historical Society's exhibit on racist memorobilia. Finally, former Alder Brian Benford stops by the studio to discuss his mayoral bid, truth & reconciliation, and the power of possibility.

This week, the 365 Amplified crew breaks down a suddenly crowded Madison mayoral race — Syed Abbas, Brian Benford, and Kaleem Caire all jumping in against incumbent Satya Rhodes-Conway. They dig into this week's contentious council Q&A on the Baldwin Street encampment clearing, the mayor's much-criticized answer for why she never visited the site, and lingering transparency fights with MPD and the Dane County Sheriff's Office over the Cortez shooting and a Sun Prairie traffic stop. Plus: an update on Luis Macias's return to K-12 education. Then, Common Council Vice President Carmella Glenn joins to give her unfiltered take on Monday's Q&A, the stalled 2020 ad hoc committee recommendations, and why she thinks city leadership still isn't giving Madisonians straight answers.

Click here for the special Madison365 discount on Forward Madison tickets.

Stephanie, Omar, Abby, and Rob dig into the ongoing standoff over evidence-sharing in the Corey Ruiz shooting investigation — breaking down City Attorney Michael Haas's 11-page memo on why police records can't go to the Office of Independent Monitor yet, and why we aren't entirely buying the reasoning. Plus: an upcoming Common Council Q&A on the cleared memorial site, a visit to new Filipino food truck Las Islas Filipinas, free breakfast and lunch coming to 19 MMSD schools, and an impromptu debate on charter schools' role (and limits) in Madison. Then a crossover treat: Rob and Ethan's 608 Soccer Show interview with Forward Madison PA announcer Christopher Pennant on pronunciation prep, his "Lord of the Rings" bit and what he brings to the job from his training as a journalist. Don't miss the Sept. 12 Madison365 Night at Forward Madison ticket deal, and stick around for the window-vs-aisle roundtable debate.

Get your Forward Madison tickets here!

The crew breaks down a chaotic primary election night and what the results mean. Then, a disturbing story out of Sun Prairie: a Dane County sheriff's deputy followed a 19-year-old Black woman for six and a half miles before handcuffing her dad and throwing her to the ground. Plus, SSM Health's latest attempt to delay its nurses' union, Halal Restaurant Week's expansion to Madison, and a lightning round on the crew's most irrational competitive streaks.

This week, the team breaks down a chaotic week on Madison's east side: the city's clearing of the Williamson and Baldwin Street encampment that had formed after police killed Corey Ruiz, the violent altercation between independent police monitor Aeiramique Glass and Madison Police, and the ongoing fight over whether the Office of the Independent Monitor will get the evidence it needs. Common Council Vice President Carmella Glenn joins to describe what she witnessed firsthand, why she calls the police response "unsafe," and why she's backing a resolution tying city spending on the response to funding for police oversight. Plus: Black Restaurant Week returnsnext week, the Madison Public Market profiles continue, and the crew plays a round of "what were you sure you'd be good at?"

The crew packs a full room this week: nine days after Madison police killed Corey Ruiz, Rob breaks down the standoff between the Office of the Independent Monitor , Madison Police and the state DCI over evidence access. Plus, we have updates on the La Crosse homicide inquest and Charles Myadze's latest trial delay. The Francesca Hong-led governor's race gets a deep dive on electability, race, and the most recent Marquette poll. Plus: Stoughton kills its Flock camera contract, the CARES team's five-year mental-health-response numbers, an algae-eating boat on Lake Monona, a new mural at Lighthouse Christian School, and Rob's on-site interview with Madison Public Market CEO Keisha Harrison on opening day.