WORT 89.9FM Madison

Forecast from Wednesday 6-3-26 by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Recusal rules for Wisconsin judges could soon get an update, after more than fifteen years of no change and a pair of court elections that broke national spending records. The state Supreme Court is slated to examine a proposal Thursday that would tighten the standards. But some legal groups are urging the justices to study the issue carefully before they adopt any major changes. To find out why, our News Producer Faye Parks sat down with Brittany Carloni, a state government and politics reporter at Wisconsin Watch. Image courtesy: Royal Broil via Flickr.

Six Democrats running for governor made their pitch to working Wisconsinites at a candidate forum Tuesday evening, hosted by a slew of labor unions and advocacy organizations. Image courtesy: Brian Standing / WORT News.

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. Featured image of the cover of Tara Mulder’s book, A Womb of One's Own: Lost Histories of Childbirth in Ancient Rome.

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!

Hundreds of animal rights activists converged on Ridglan Farms in April, the second attempt this spring to break in and seize the beagles being held at the dog breeding and research facility. Ahead of the raid, UW-Madison student organization Animal Advocacy spread flyers across campus to raise awareness about the issue and get the wider community involved. The university is now investigating whether those flyers encouraged participation in criminal activity, a violation of the student organization code of conduct. Jackson Ray, president of Animal Advocacy, told our News Producer Faye Parks that they were exercising their First Amendment rights – and the university has a pattern of targeting on-campus activism that conflicts with their bottom line. Image courtesy: Althea Dotzour / UW-Madison.

The Madison School Board now has less than one month to comply with state law and finalize their updated policy regarding phone usage in schools Image Courtesy: Jae Park / UNSPLASH

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. Featured image: of Christian LGBTQ pride flag with cross hanging in a Metropolitan Community Church via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).

In this week’s episode of Legal Brief, feature contributor Fiona Hatch walks through a Wisconsin Court of Appeals case that had major implications on the battle between the state and federal government for control over regulating Wisconsin’s National Guard.

The Greater Madison Metropolitan Planning Organization is a government agency tasked with designing the region’s long range transportation plan. They’re working on an updated plan, dubbed ‘Pathways to 2050’, that will guide decision-making for almost forty communities across the region and set priorities for federal transportation funding. Kayla Haas, Greater Madison MPO’s marketing and communications specialist, joined our News Producer Faye Parks this afternoon to explain how you can get involved. Image courtesy: The Greater Madison MPO.

This week on “Madison Mixology,” feature contributor Charlie Belawski takes us to the world's first fern bar to learn about the ‘Lemon Drop.’ He’ll describe the cocktail’s many variations – and explain why he believes lemons are the best fruit.

Nurses, community supporters, and Congressman Mark Pocan gathered Thursday at St. Mary’s hospital in Madison to rally in support of unionization. The nurses want better patient care, staffing and retention. Image courtesy: Maria Segura / WORT News.

After last week’s lull to observe Memorial Day, the city of Madison and Dane County are kicking things back into high gear. Brenda Konkel and Rebecca Kemble share an overview of upcoming meetings, in this edition of “Forward Lookout.”

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. Featured image of a algae bloom via Flickr (CC BY 2.0).

June 2nd is the 102nd anniversary of the passage of the Indian Citizenship Act, which declared that all Native Americans in the United States to be citizens, completing a decades-long process of piecemeal granting of citizenship to Native Americans, though it did not immediately grant the right to vote and was opposed by some native groups at the time due to concerns about sovereignty and treaty rights. Harry Richardson has the story. Image shows President Calvin Coolidge posed with Natives, possibly from the Plateau area in the Northwestern United States, near the south lawn of the White House. Image Courtesy: Library of Congress, https://loc.gov/pictures/resource/cph.3c11409/

Forecast from Monday, 6-1-26 by WORT 89.9FM Madison

We’ll have live circus performers on the radio, performing daring acts, all about a sausage, that you have to see –or rather hear – to believe. Members of the Kishka Circus will fill up the studio, in advance of their Kishka show at MYArts.

At 250 years old, America’s democracy seems like a doddering old man. We’ll talk with Northwestern University political science professor Jeffrey Winters about his new book “The Blind Spot: How Oligarchs Dominate Democracies.”

Aired on WORT, 89.9-FM, Madison on 5/19/2026

“The biggest, most costly food safety recall in the history of the United States," is what Pete Hardin is calling the April 2026 recall of powdered milk and buttermilk from California Dairies Inc. Some of the companies that are affected are Ghirardelli Chocolate, Costco’s frozen meatloaf, and Chick-Fil-A’s bread coating. Exports are continuing to Mexico and Asia where some of its being used in infant formula. But there is still a strong demand for dairy proteins and pricing has increased dramatically. The U.S. Department of Agriculture uses the dairy powder as a basis for pricing and with shortages in the market, consumers will be feeling the financial pain once again. Photo by Kristiana Pinne on Unsplash

Employees at MOSA, or the Midwest Organic Services Association, want a union. Management there has aggressively blocked all unionization efforts, despite MOSA’s origins and reputation as a collaborative and democratic organization. Workers are voting now on unionizing with OPEIU Local 39. Labor Radio spoke with several MOSA employees about the organizing efforts.

Data Fraud and Regulatory Flaws Stall Japan’s Nuclear Restart Push by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Safety concerns surrounding US nuclear power revival by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Cleaning Madison's Waters Through Art and Food by WORT 89.9FM Madison

States can tax the ultrarich to tackle America's wealth gap by WORT 89.9FM Madison

OutReach Supports Wisconsin Trans Youth Amongst Legislative Attacks by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Geopolitical Motives underpinning the US Attack on Venezuela by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Voces de la Frontera Organizes Against ICE Aggression by WORT 89.9FM Madison

What does the Foreign Assistance Bill mean for peace? by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Human and Financial Costs of Mass Deportations by WORT 89.9FM Madison

John Quinlan on Activism from Madison to the Twin Cities by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Wisconsin Environmental Health Network Conference Addresses AI Data Centers and Fluoride Safety by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Rally to mark 4th anniversary of Ukraine invasion by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Sierra Club Warns Against Enbridge Reroute and Unchecked Data Center Expansion by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Policy Advocate Calls for Legislative Action to Halt Iran War by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Creative Power highlighted at upcoming showcase by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Aldo Leopold Nature Center Hosts Annual Maple Syrup Fest by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society 2026 overview interview with Stephanie Jutt

This week on Mel 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

Coalition Challenges Wisconsin's Proposed Antisemitism Legal Definition by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Tucker Legerski board interview by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Phil Rhein board interview by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Nancy Ruggeri board interview by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Leeza Foley board interview by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Jan Miyasaki board interview by WORT 89.9FM Madison

George Dreckmann board interview by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Fiona Hatch board interview by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Betty Chewning board interview by WORT 89.9FM Madison

Amy Mondloch board interview by WORT 89.9FM Madison

On today’s show, host Esty Dinur asks listeners to pick up the phone 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.