ON AIR & ONLINE March 2019

Supreme Court Race NPR's Tiny Desk Competition WHYsconsin Studio Rebuild Simply Folk Shindig Win Tickets To David Sedaris

Featured Photo Congratulations to Grace Do You Know Your Supreme Court Candidates? Kim, cello, who won first prize in the 2019 Bolz You rely on WPR for balanced and accurate reporting on events and Young Artist Competition, issues that concern Wisconsin. As Election Day for the Wisconsin and Antonio Wu, piano, Supreme Court race nears on April 2, WPR's Capitol Bureau Chief who took second. They Shawn Johnson has been producing profiles of the candidates. The competed in the Final Supreme Court race is officially nonpartisan. The contenders are two Forte concert at the current Wisconsin Court of Appeals judges, Lisa Neubauer and Brian Overture Center in Hagedorn. Read here for Shawn's sum-up of the recent candidate Madison on March 13. debate. Shawn's reporting will air nationally on "Morning Edition" and See WPT's video intros to "All Things Considered," as well as on The Ideas Network. We'll the finalists here. The continue to report on the race as it draws into its final days. young musicians are pictured with Madison You can read the candidate's own statements as well as get Symphony Orchestra information on where and how to vote at Wisconsinvote.org. Tune in to conductor John DeMain. WPR for results after a winner is announced. Check out our Politics Photo by Amandalynn Podcast too, for a weekly roundup of Wisconsin politics with Shawn, Jones. Capitol Bureau reporter Laurel White, and host John Q. Wilson. Sound Bites Enter NPR's Tiny Desk Concert Competition WisContext Series: Refugee Resettlement Join a nationwide community of In Wisconsin music makers by entering NPR's Wisconsin is home to Tiny Desk Concert competition. thousands of people who NPR's Tiny Desk Concert series arrived as refugees from highlights amazing musicians from several dozen countries. around the world. You've heard Yo- Read WisContext's series Yo Ma, Adele, Chance the Rapper on refugees in the state, and many more outstanding with stories of individuals musicians play intimate sets from and communities, as well NPR music critic Bob Boilen's desk as articles that give at NPR's headquarters in context, overview, and a Washington, D.C. NPR also actively seeks out lesser-known musicians look at the data in the through its annual Tiny Desk Concert competition. Musicians of any multi-faceted issue of genre can send in a video performance of one song between March 12 resettlement. and April 14. Just make sure your video includes a desk! For real.

Three Incredible WPR BEHIND THE SCENES Travel Adventures Don't miss out on three great trips offered through WPR Travel & Adventure! Early-bird registration for our Alaskan land/cruise package ends March 30. Book now to guarantee your spot at the lowest price available. If Italy's history and culture or the wine and cuisine of Argentina and Chile are more your style, find details and deadlines for those incredible WHYsconsin Is Waiting For Your Questions adventures here.

You may have heard something new on our airwaves recently, the "Wisconsin Life" segments called WHYsconsin that are based on Don't Miss It: If Your listener questions. RadioWaves caught up with "Wisconsin Life" Clothes Could Talk producer Maureen McCollum and asked her a couple questions of our Take a first or second own. listen to this great show on fashion and what our RW: Why WHYsconsin? clothes say about us on MM: With WHYsconsin, listeners ask the questions and we answer "To The Best Of Our them! This project provides an opportunity for listeners to directly Knowledge." If Your influence the stories that make it on our airwaves. Since we are Clothes Could Talk" Wisconsin Public Radio, it's really important that we involve the public features TTBOOK's in the stories we tell. newest producer Angelo Bautista interviewing RW: Is Wisconsin a particularly odd place? family members, Steve MM: To me, Wisconsin is wonderful, beautiful, and intriguing. Like Paulson interviewing anywhere else, it's filled with curiosities--the fascinating, the French designer Agnes distinguished, and the odd. B, and more.

The first WHYsconsin piece we did was on the 1980s Wisconsin Public Television show "Storylords." People unfamiliar with the show may find Quick Links its premise odd. Children decked out in glitter gloves had to save the world from an evil wizard by solving reading puzzles. But those who WPR Online grew up with the show loved the shot of nostalgia. They were transported to their childhood classrooms...and in the process, learned Donate Now that their beloved "Storylords" was actually filmed in Menomonie! Wisconsin LIfe WisContext RW: How do you research listener questions? MM: We research the questions like we would any other WPR news NPR Online story. We find experts who can talk about the topic and real people who have opinions about the topic. We recently answered a listener Listen Live to Ideas question, "Why is the badger Wisconsin's state animal?" Southwest Ideas Schedule Wisconsin miners used to be referred to as badgers, so WPR's John K. Wilson found a historian who could talk about mining history. Then he visited a zoo, where a curator taught us about the badger animal. To Listen Live to NPR News round out that story, John attempted to interview the zoo's badger, who & Music was too busy eating an egg. NPR News & Music Schedule RW: Is there a question you wish you'd get in the WHYsconsin mailbag? MM: That would defeat the purpose. I want to know what questions the Be Part of WPR's Online listeners have! I will say that we love finding answers to questions that Community aren't well known. What information is not on the internet? It could be based on things in our everyday lives that we take for granted.

RW: How can listeners get you their questions? MM: Listeners can go to wpr.org/WHYsconsin to submit a question. We'll ask, "What do you wonder about Wisconsin, its people or its culture that you would like WHYsconsin to look into?" If we pick your question, you may hear us answer it in a future Wisconsin Life segment!

Photo by John Q. Wilson/WPR

Studio Rebuild Underway In Madison

This month WPR began a much- needed upgrade to our broadcasting studios (pictured here in disarray) at our headquarters in Madison. This is part of a multi-year effort to modernize our equipment. The result will mean better service for listeners around the state. It will also provide our reporters, producers and engineers more options for recording and delivering content.

The work currently underway - moving from copper wire analog to digital audio - is the most significant upgrade we've made in decades, and so you may have noticed some technical difficulties on our airwaves and web stream recently. We apologize for any inconvenience and we are working to minimize future disruption.

You can track the project and find updates on known technical issues over coming weeks and months at wpr.org/rebuild. We expect this first phase of the project to be completed this summer. We're excited to share the improvements with you and, again, apologize for any disruptions you may be experiencing.

If you continue to have problems hearing WPR, you can reach our Audience Services Department at 1-800-747-7444 or email [email protected].

AROUND WISCONSIN

A Special Night With Two Grammy-Nominated Artists

Come celebrate the 40th anniversary of "Simply Folk" with a fabulous Simply Folk Shindig June 7 in Madison. Don't miss this chance to see two of contemporary folk music's most lauded musicians, Dom Flemons and Mary Gauthier. Both Flemons and Gauthier have been frequent guests on NPR, including NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts, "Fresh Air" with Terry Gross and "World Cafe." Their recorded works have been praised by the New York Times, Rolling Stone, Billboard and the Americana Music Association.

Flemons co-founded the Carolina Chocolate Drops. An accomplished multi-instrumentalist, his Grammy-nominated album "Black Cowboys" celebrates little-known songs of the American West. Gauthier's 2018 "Rifles and Rosary Beads" was also nominated for a Grammy for Best Folk Album. In it Gauthier weaves stories of war veterans into heartbreaking songs. Madison favorite Cris Plata and Extra Hot opens.

Tickets are general admission, with a very limited number of reserved- seat VIP tickets available. Go to WPR.org/Presents to get your tickets today.

Win Tickets To See David Sedaris In Green Bay

David Sedaris is a New York Times bestselling author and NPR contributor, beloved for his personal essays and short stories. With sardonic wit and incisive social critiques, Sedaris has become one of America's preeminent humor writers. You may know him from his annual reading of "Santaland Diaries," an NPR holiday tradition since 1992. Sedaris will share new work, answer audience questions, and sign his hilarious new book Calypso at the Weidner Center in Green Bay on April 29.

For a chance to win tickets to join Sedaris Monday, April 29, at 7:30 p.m. at The Weidner Center in Green Bay, click here to send an email. Entries must be submitted by March 31 at noon. More information about the evening is available here.

Only one entry per person. WPR, WPT and ECB employees and their families are not eligible to win.

Copyright © 2018. All Rights Reserved.