8 O'Clock Buzz

In 1949, University of Wisconsin ecologist, professor and naturalist Aldo Leopold published A Sand County Almanac, a meditation on seasonal changes at his Baraboo farm.  The work became an influential classic of naturalist literature, and articulated Leopold’s philosophy of the Land Ethic. In one chapter of A Sand County Almanac, Leopold offers a “marshland elegy” meditating on declining Whooping Crane populations and rueing the loss of wetlands across Wisconsin.  Puppeteer and musician Julia Blair found Leopold’s elegy so moving, that she created “The Lonely Marsh,” an interactive theatrical work designed to bring Leopold’s conservation message to children.  Julia Blair joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on September 14, 2026.

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On November 5, 2025, the Madison Police Civilian Oversight Board announced that they had hired Aeriamique Glass as the city’s Independent Police Monitor.  For the first seven months, Glass’s tenure was relatively quiet.  That all changed starting in June of 2026, when Glass released a report on Richard L. Johnson, who had died in police custody.  The report contradicted findings of the Dane County Medical Examiner and the Department of Criminal Investigation and found that Johnson had died as a result of the force used when police restrained him.  Then on July 22, Madison Police Officer Kiel Battinger-Pederson shot Corey Ruiz three times in the head, killing Ruiz on the spot.  Mass protests and an occupation of the Baldwin and Williamson Street Intersection ensued.  While officers were forcibly removing protestors on August 4, Aeriamique Glass was injured when she was grabbed by an officer at the scene.  Legal actions continue to swirl regarding that particular incident. Meanwhile, the Madison Common Council voted to deny emergency funding to the Office of the Independent Police Monitor related to their ongoing investigation of Ruiz’s death.  With all that going on, what’s next for the Independent Monitor and how will that office work going forward?  Madison Independent Police Monitor Aeriamique Glass joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on September 14, 2026.

The post Madison Independent Police Monitor Speaks Out appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Just one vote away from passing a discharge petition on the American Dream and Promise Act, Maria Mitri, Migration and Policy Administrative Associate at the Friends Committee on National Legislation, talks about this bipartisan act and how it could provide a path for citizenship for DACA and Temporary Protections Status refugees in the U.S.

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On hand to talk about their community service activities with Jan Miyasaki for Wednesday’s 8 O’clock Buzz were three of the 2026 Community Shares of Wisconsin Changemaker Award winners: Sandra Rivera, nominated by Nuestro Mundo, Inc., Winner of the Sally Sunde Family Advocate Award; Mikayla Sandin, nominated by RCC Sexual Violence Resource Center, Winner of the Linda Sundberg Civil Rights Defender Award; and Monique Minkens, nominated by End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin, Winner of the Liesl Blockstein Community Leadership Award. They, and others, will be celebrated at the annual CSW Changemakers award ceremony at the East Side Club on Thursday, September 17th.

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Today on the Too Turnt Up Tuesday 8:00 Buzz with Tara Wilhelmi featuring Jackie Brodean, another packed day!  Filmmaker Rafael Raglan joins us to tell his story and talk about his latest project, Where Scriptures Breathe, showing September 26th at Madison Central Library.  Intermixed around and in between, Greg Hampton joins to talk about taking care of kids and his new business, Hampton Boats; Tyrone Austin of TY Cooks talks food; and Gabriel Taylor from Cafe CODA joins to talk about the upcoming CODA Fest and keep us up to date on everything else happening there!

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Listen in Madison at 89.9FM or online anywhere at wortfm.org.  Support your community radio with a donation online at wortfm.org!

The post I Didn’t Have Money, But I Had Ideas appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

From the country’s first worker’s compensation law in 1911, to the founding of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees in 1932, to a variety of strikes in the 1970s, Madison Wisconsin has a long history of labor organizing and struggles.  On September 12, the Wisconsin Historical Society will offer a walking tour of downtown Madison to highlight some of the important events in labor history.  Jennifer Pederson is the Public Programs Manager for the Wisconsin Historical Society, and is the leader of the tour.  She joined the Monday Buzz on Labor Day, September 7, 2026.

Featured image courtesy Wisconsin Historical Society

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People come to the United States from other countries for the same reasons anyone moves anywhere: for job opportunities, for a chance to better one’s life, to escape intolerable or unsafe conditions at home.  As the United States government becomes increasingly hostile to migrants – at least migrants who aren’t millionaires – how is that affecting the people who recently came to the U.S. in search of a better life.  Harvard University Associate Professor of Education Gabrielle Oliveira spent several years talking with recent immigrants to the U.S. about their dreams, hopes and fears.  The result is her 2025 book, “Now We Are Here: Family Migration, Children’s Education and Dreams for a Better Life,” out now from Stanford University Press.  Gabrielle Oliveira joined the Monday Buzz on September 7, 2026.

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In Wisconsin, if you steal $3000 from the cash register at a local Walmart, you can expect the police will get a warrant for your arrest, look for you, and make you stand trial in criminal court.  If convicted, you could be looking at a felony charge, with prison time and fines up to $10,000.  If you’re an employer and you steal $3000 in wages from your employees, you’re unlikely to get caught, you’ll face only a civil charge and at worst, you’ll have to pay back the wages, with no penalties or interest.  That inequity has Worker Justice Wisconsin fired up, and they’ve started a campaign to change Wisconsin’s Wage Theft law.  Robert Christl is the Worker Center Program Director for Worker Justice Wisconsin, and he joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on Labor Day, September 7, 2026.

The post Let’s Make Wage Theft a Crime appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.

Community Shares of Wisconsin (CSW) celebrates its 2026 Change Maker Awards on September 17th from 5-8pm at the East Side Club. Joining Jan on the Wednesday 8 O’clock Buzz was Steve Starkey, awarded the “Lifetime Achievement Award” for his forty-five years of dedication in various roles supporting the LGBTQ+ community and community activities. Also on hand were Stacy Harbaugh, Communications Director at River Alliance of Wisconsin, Peg Schaeffer from the Midwest Environmental Advocates, and Kerry Schumann from Wisconsin Conservation Voices, whose organizations were awarded the “CSW Collaboration Award” for their efforts in cleaning up PFAS chemicals in the environment.

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Today on the Too Turnt Up Tuesday 8:00 Buzz with Tara Wilhelmi featuring Jackie Brodean and LaVerne Buchanan, a room full of guests fiill us in on their stories and what’s going on: Stay Fresh Entertainment talks about events and business, Drew Greens stops by to talk about his D’GEMC clothing line and connecting people together, Gicasso “Gino” Robin joins to talk about his cakes and event production, and finally Derek Brown joins to talk food and his cart, Taste of America.

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Music from today’s show: https://spinitron.com/WORT/pl/22954983/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!

The post Just Going to Get Greater From Here appeared first on WORT-FM 89.9.