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WORT Local News

WORT Local News presents alternative viewpoints in its news – both in the sources it uses and the stories it covers. Newscasts include local and state news, weather, and regular features. It aims to give underrepresented people a voice.

Resources Available For Homeless Individuals During Polar Vortex

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For most people, the ultra low temperatures this week are an inconvenience. Walking to the car or waiting at the bus stop can go from uncomfortable to painful. But for people without housing this week, these temperatures are downright life threatening. Producer Nina Kravinsky caught up with Friends of the State Street Family spokesperson Jeff […]

Climate Change – Then and Now

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It’s easy to believe that climate change is a relatively recent phenomena, that is, recent as far as the start of the Industrial Revolution about 150 years ago. But changes in Earth’s climate have occurred before, even millions of years ago. After all, no matter how the carbon accumulates in the atmosphere, the Greenhouse Effect […]

Muriel Simms’ deeply interwoven oral histories

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If you want to understand the role that race has played in Madison’s past and present, Settlin’: Stories Of Madison’s Early African American Families is an essential read. Its author, educator and Edgewood College faculty member Muriel Simms, began interviewing people for the book in the early 2000s, focusing on people who descended from African […]

New Reporting Shows Inequality of Cash Bail

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“Innocent until proven guilty” is one of the main tenets of the country’s justice system. But that’s not the experience some Americans say they have after they’ve been arrested. A new story from the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism looks into cash bail in the state, and what happens to the people who can’t afford […]

Madison’s mayoral challengers on the arts

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On this episode we’re bringing you a live conversation with most of the people running to be the next mayor of Madison. The event was called “Madison’s Arts Future: A Mayoral Candidate Forum on the Arts, Culture and Creativity,” and it took place this past Wednesday, January 16, at the Barrymore Theatre on Madison’s east […]