For Brown County Circuit Court Judge Marc Hammer, it’s freedom of information, and it was the topic of discussion at a Philosopher’s Cafe event co-hosted by the Mauthe Center and the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay a few weeks ago.
Hammer, who also teaches constitutional law at UWGB, led the conversation. I was one of about 25 people total and one of three working journalists in attendance (shoutout to Jesse Lin of the Green Bay Press Gazette and Andrew Kennard of the Wisconsin Examiner).
We covered a lot of ground:
Historical attempts to limit information.
Who is “the press”?
Retractions vs. corrections.
Fact-checking.
Bias in media.
Public broadcasting funding.
Defamation.
Local news.
Social media sites like Facebook and TikTok.
The hyperpolarized times we’re living in.
I jumped in when retractions came up. Throughout the rest of the conversation, Lin, Kennard and I answered questions from community members about our jobs and explained how we do our work.
One thing I appreciate about events at the Mauthe Center is how respectful and civil the discussion is. People hold different opinions. They listen to each other. They ask thoughtful follow-up questions. They attend these events, from what I saw, to learn something new.
I did, too. And it was clear to me that community members want to learn more about newsgathering and reporting.
What do you want to know about journalism?
Should I write about our rigorous fact-checking process?
Do you want to know how Wisconsin Watch reporters and editors decide to pursue stories?
Hi, Wisconsin! Health reporter Addie Costello here.
I spent last Saturday with around 80 attendees of a senior breakfast in Merrill, and it was one of my best-spent weekends so far in 2026.
Northwoods residents packed a banquet hall to eat, talk with neighbors and list the biggest issues they face as older adults.
The Senior Empowerment Project, an organizing group focused on issues impacting older people in rural areas and small towns, organized the event and asked me to give a short presentation about my reporting on long-term care issues. The most exciting part? Once I finished talking, a microphone was passed from table to table as older adults shared the questions and issues they think about the most.
Where can they get transportation on the weekends? How can older adults afford to stay in their homes as property taxes increase? Where can they get nutritious food?
Wall decor is shown at the Northwoods Senior Breakfast at the Eagles Club in Merrill, Wis., March 28, 2026. (Addie Costello / Wisconsin Watch)
I left the event with a long list of questions I plan to answer in a new project. We’re calling it Q&Aging, a series of short stories where I interview experts to answer your questions about getting older in Wisconsin — whether about health care, housing or what comes next.
I reported this as part of our collaboration with several Multi-Media Channels, which cover swaths of northeast and central Wisconsin. Find the full Dignity in Care project here.
Wisconsin Watch was founded 17 years ago to fill a gap in statewide investigative reporting as newsrooms cut back on that work. Since then, those gaps have only widened — especially in local communities. That’s led us to expand: joining forces with Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service and now launching our northeast Wisconsin bureau, because the region deserves strong, independent journalism and a newsroom that listens as much as it reports.
This is home.
I started as Wisconsin Watch’s northeast Wisconsin editor in August, joining Jessica Adams, director of partnerships for northeast Wisconsin, and Miranda Dunlap, our northeast Wisconsin pathways to success reporter. Since then, I’ve had the chance to reacquaint myself with my native Door County and the surrounding region.
From big cities like Appleton and Green Bay to small rural communities, people are asking for clearer information about the systems that affect daily life, along with coverage that connects problems to action. We know that because northeast Wisconsin residents have said so in listening sessions and conversations across the region.
Mental health access, housing and homelessness continue to rise to the top, alongside confusion about how local government works and how residents can get involved. Many residents have asked for reporting that explains budgets, decision-making and available programs in plain terms, while also reflecting the experiences of communities that are often overlooked.
There is also strong interest in news that builds connection, corrects misinformation and highlights both accountability and everyday efforts that make a difference.
That’s what we aim to deliver through Northeast News — a newsletter shaped by and for the people who live here. Launched this week, it’s the first product of our regional bureau, built around community connection, accountability and public participation.
Delivered every other week to start, subscribers will get more than headlines. They will receive reporting that explains how local decisions affect daily life, investigates powerful institutions, and highlights the people and ideas moving this region forward. Subscribers also get a direct line to the newsroom — to share questions, tips and story ideas that help guide the work.
More than 110 northeast Wisconsin residents helped name the newsletter. Northeast News prevailed over options that included The NEWsletter, NEWsflash, Northeast Dispatch and NEW Notes.
Residents submitted creative write-ins, too — from The Weekly Cheddar to Northeastern Exposure.
While digging out from the snow, we’ve also been marking Sunshine Week — an annual reminder that access to public records and meetings isn’t a luxury or abstract concept. It determines whether the public knows what the government is doing with tax dollars and public trust.
That’s why we published a pair of stories around those themes this week. One, from Tom Kertscher, shows how nondisclosure agreements tied to data center developments limit what communities can learn about projects in their own backyards. The other, from our partners at The Badger Project, examines a long-standing loophole that allows Wisconsin lawmakers to delete records that would otherwise belong to the public.
At the same time, we asked our team to look inward — reflecting on stories we could not have reported without the sunshine laws that quietly power our newsroom every day.
Here are a few recent examples.
Ed Werner, a resident of the Birch Terrace Manufactured Home Community, walks past a manufactured home that is for sale, June 21, 2025, in Menomonie, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Public records — including state licensing files, inspection records and regulatory complaints — allowed Addie Costello to document Wisconsin’s failure to enforce basic protections for manufactured home owners as private equity firms buy up parks to maximize profits. The story, part of our Forgotten homes series on the promises and perils of manufactured housing as an affordable path to ownership, amplified tenant concerns. It also preceded legislation to limit rent increases, require annual state inspections and make it easier for residents to purchase communities through cooperatives.
A photo illustration shows a letter Ben Kingsley wrote to Warden Clinton Bryant about the lack of jobs for people incarcerated at Winnebago Correctional Center. Kingsley contacted Wisconsin Watch with his concerns, and reporter Natalie Yahr investigated. (Photo illustration by Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
The Wisconsin Department of Corrections provided little meaningful data to Natalie Yahr about its work-release program — a gap that became part of the story. Officials said they do not tally counts of how many people participate. To provide context, Yahr obtained public records from other states, offering points of comparison. The reporting highlights how limited transparency makes it difficult to evaluate a program that can help incarcerated people build resumes, pay court costs and prepare for release — while helping employers fill jobs.
A beaver swims across a pond in Alma Center, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
This story was strengthened due to persistence. Bennet Goldstein filed records requests across all 10 Mississippi River Basin “stem states,” plus Oklahoma and Michigan, to understand how agencies manage beavers. He also pressed the U.S. Department of Agriculture for documents it initially withheld — records released only after our attorney signaled a willingness to challenge the denial. The reporting produced a fuller picture of how policy decisions ripple across ecosystems and communities, and it is helping shape debate over flood mitigation and climate resilience. It also found Wisconsin stands out for the number of beavers and dams removed, the millions spent and how officials justify the approach.
The Milwaukee County District Attorney Office’s system for tracking law enforcement officers deemed to have credibility issues is inconsistent and incomplete and relies, in part, on police agencies to report integrity violations, an investigation by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, TMJ4 News and Wisconsin Watch found. (Andrew Mulhearn for Wisconsin Watch)
Our collaboration with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and TMJ4 News relies on records many jurisdictions resist releasing, if they store them at all: “Brady lists” of officers with credibility issues who might need to testify in court. After pressure from news organizations, the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office released its list in late 2024, enabling a series of stories examining who is included — and who is not.
That reporting has revealed significant gaps, which TMJ4 and the Journal Sentinel are continuing to explore. Officers accused of falsifying reports, contradicting body camera footage or costing taxpayers millions in misconduct lawsuits are absent from the list, raising questions about how prosecutors define credibility. The disclosures have fueled public debate, prompted additions and removals from the list and spurred deeper scrutiny of best practices — and whether Milwaukee County meets them.
Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.
Wisconsin has thousands of assisted living providers. Some are small houses; others are more like apartment complexes. Some take Medicaid, while others require residents to pay out of pocket. It’s a lot to sort through, especially when someone needs care fast.
Searching “assisted living” on Google pulls up several pages of facilities, many listed under a prominent “sponsored results” section.
Mixed in with actual providers are referral companies that promise a way to compare options. Long-term care referral companies don’t typically charge families for their services. Instead, they often receive money from facilities they recommend.
Wisconsin lawmakers in May proposed legislation to make any financial relationships between a referral agency and an assisted living facility clearer.
Supporters of the bill said disclosure requirements could help families make more informed decisions. Opposing the bill, referral companies argue that they are already transparent and that proposed guardrails would prevent them from helping more families.
The bill failed to pass before the Assembly adjourned last month. But the debate left me wondering: Where should someone start the search for care?
Aging and disability resource centers
Aging and disability resource centers (ADRCs) can provide objective provider lists for free, alongside information about services and payment options, said Janet Zander, the advocacy and public policy coordinator with the Greater Wisconsin Agency on Aging Resources, Inc.
ADRCs cannot recommend one facility over another, Zander said. But they can suggest what to look for during a tour. Zander also recommends looking at a facility’s Wisconsin Division of Quality Assurance surveys.
They can also help people identify what kind of care makes the most sense and explore aging at home, said Sara Tribe Clark, the director of the Eldercare Locator, which offers local resources for older adults, people with disabilities and caregivers.
If you work with a referral agency, ask questions
Tribe Clark recommends asking:
Do you receive compensation from the providers you recommend?
Are your referrals limited to certain facilities?
How do you determine which providers to suggest? What is the criteria for inclusion/exclusion?
Are there providers in my area that you do not represent?
We want to answer your questions
Getting answers to my own questions is a perk of being a reporter. But I haven’t yet navigated Wisconsin’s aging and disability resources for myself or a loved one. I know I’m missing important questions, so please send me yours, alongside your perspectives.
What has been confusing or frustrating about finding care?
What do you wish you’d known sooner?
What made the process easier?
Even after more than two years reporting on long-term care in Wisconsin, I won’t have all the answers. But I will find experts who do. Email me at acostello@wisconsinwatch.org or call 608-616-5239.
Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.
But some positive news is emerging in Wisconsin: State legislation is advancing that would make it harder to use the courts to silence people speaking on matters of public concern — whether they’re journalists or private citizens — by draining their time and resources.
About 14 months ago, I wrote about how Wisconsin is particularly vulnerable to these kinds of lawsuits, one of just 11 states without legislation to shield residents from them. Our friends at the Wausau Pilot & Review felt the consequences firsthand, spending $200,000 to defend themselves against a since-dismissed defamation lawsuit.
There was little momentum for anti-SLAPP legislation when I wrote the column. But that has since changed.
Lawmakers last year introduced bills that would create a clearer process for quickly dismissing SLAPP suits and require defendants’ legal fees to be paid by plaintiffs who bring meritless claims: AB 701/SB 666, introduced by Republican Reps. Jim Piwowarczyk and Sen. Eric Wimberger, with a suite of co-sponsors, including Democratic Reps. Sylvia Ortiz-Velez and Randy Udell.
The Assembly passed AB 701 last month with unanimous consent — a rare show of bipartisan agreement. The legislation still requires Senate passage before reaching Gov. Tony Evers’ desk.
If it makes it to the finish line before the Senate wraps up for the year, its impact would extend well beyond newsrooms. Everyday people face SLAPP risks, too. People in other states have been sued for leaving negative reviews online.
As a fiercely independent newsroom, Wisconsin Watch doesn’t typically opine on specific policies; we assemble information on matters of public concern so residents can form their own views through their own value systems. But free expression is fundamental to what we do — and fundamental to a functioning democracy.
That’s why Wisconsin Watch is joining other newsrooms and free speech advocates in urging the Senate to enact protections against frivolous lawsuits.
Have thoughts about this legislation or this moment for free speech in Wisconsin and the U.S.? I’d love to hear from you. Reach me at jmalewitz@wisconsinwatch.org.
Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.
Wisconsin Watch has a new partner in the fight for facts.
Ahead of another pivotal election year, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Wisconsin Watch are teaming up to produce more Fact Briefs, 150-word answers to yes/no questions based on claims made in the infosphere.
Wisconsin Watch has partnered with Gigafact since 2022 to produce more than 600 bite-sized fact checks. We’re part of a network of 18 nonprofit newsrooms across the country working to equip the public with accurate information to inform civic discussion.
The Journal Sentinel, part of the USA Today Network and the largest newsroom in Wisconsin, was an early adopter of PolitiFact, the Pulitzer Prize-winning fact-checking nonprofit founded in 2007.
As Journal Sentinel Editor Greg Borowski writes in a column today at jsonline.com, the switch to Fact Briefs will appeal to readers seeking accurate information quickly and with a clearer true-or-false format, rather than PolitiFact’s six-tiered “score card” for assessing whether a claimant is telling the truth. Fact Briefs focus less on the claimant, and more on the claim itself.
“This partnership will increase the number of Wisconsin-focused items and allow us to present them more quickly and in ways we think readers most want to get them,” Borowski writes.
The facts matter, even more so in a world where politicians and media influencers seem to habitually get away with bending, breaking or simply disregarding the truth. Fighting for the facts isn’t about picking a political side or committing to a particular worldview, it’s about nurturing a shared reality that forms the basis of a free and civilized society.
That’s why the courts, teachers, scientists, the folks managing your investment accounts and even the refs checking the instant replay cameras take the facts so seriously. Why should our political discourse be any different?
We’re excited to grow our capacity to keep the public informed, but we continue to need the public’s support. Whether this new partnership will continue after the November election will depend on support from Wisconsin Watch donors. Click here to find out more about how you can support the fight for facts.
Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.
As Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers gave his final State of the State address at the Capitol on Tuesday, I was struck by how many of the people I’ve met or covered over the past nearly six months were all in the same room.
Evers, who is not seeking reelection this year, entered the Assembly chambers shortly after 7 p.m. and spoke of his accomplishments over the past seven years with longtime Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, and Senate President Mary Felzkowski, R-Tomahawk, seated right behind him. All seven members of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, who have frequently been deciding factors in conflicts between Evers and Republican lawmakers, were in the audience. Statewide elected officials, including Attorney General Josh Kaul and Superintendent of Public Instruction Jill Underly, were there. Both Democratic and Republican representatives and senators sat underneath the glass skylight to listen to Evers.
In his hour-long speech, Evers called on the Republican Legislature to take bipartisan action on issues such as tax cuts, special education school funding and corrections reform before lawmakers leave Madison and turn to the campaign trail for elections later this year. He also announced plans to call a special session for lawmakers to address a constitutional amendment to ban partisan gerrymandering. Republicans criticized Evers’ remarks as a partisan speech.
The governor’s address Tuesday night came as Wisconsin stands on the precipice of significant change. A new governor will be elected later this year. New legislative maps and Democratic gains in 2024 set up real competition for control of the Legislature.
It’s been almost six months since I began my role as the state government and politics reporter at Wisconsin Watch. I returned to Wisconsin, where I was born and raised, in September after starting my journalism career reporting in Florida and Indiana.
These initial months at Wisconsin Watch have been an exciting whirlwind as I’ve immersed myself into the debates and issues facing our state. Eight years away left me with much to catch up on.
I’ve had a lot of coffee — maybe too much — as I’ve met people inside and outside of the Capitol who can help me understand the deeper issues beyond press releases and social media posts. I’ve attended many committee meetings, hearings and press conferences. I’ve made phone calls and sent text messages when I needed explanations about the recent state budget or legislative procedures. I’ve stopped by a host of Assembly and Senate offices to introduce myself, ask questions and learn what lawmakers are working on.
And if you read all the way through Forward, Wisconsin Watch’s free weekly politics newsletter, you will know I love diving into our state’s history and seeing what it can teach us about what is happening in Wisconsin today.
Wisconsin Watch statehouse reporter Brittany Carloni takes notes as Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers delivers his final State of the State address at the Wisconsin State Capitol on Feb. 17, 2026, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
My curiosity and my past reporting experiences in other states have driven my work so far. In November, I looked into why Republican lawmakers sent bills to the governor’s desk that Evers would never sign. When WisconsinEye, the public affairs network, went dark for weeks between December and January, I looked beyond our borders to understand how neighboring states film legislative proceedings. As voters face another Wisconsin Supreme Court election, I asked the candidates about their past rulings and how they reflect how each candidate would serve on the court.
I’ve largely found people willing to share their perspectives and point me in the direction of others who can provide the information to explain complicated topics. I’ve particularly enjoyed the times I’ve heard “Welcome home,” as I’ve shared what brought me back to Wisconsin.
Evers’ address and the last year in the governor’s office signal an end to one chapter of Wisconsin’s history. I feel like I am just getting started. If you have tips, ideas, questions or feedback, email me at bcarloni@wisconsinwatch.org.
Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.
When I went to the Literacy Network’s offices for an interview about the federal government freezing funding for adult education, I didn’t expect to find myself talking to a medical specialist.
Anna Mykhailova enrolled in English classes at the Madison nonprofit after fleeing Ukraine in 2022. She later joined the organization’s student advisory board, which is how she ended up at the interview.
I asked what kind of work she’d done in Ukraine. Her answer startled me so much that my mind went blank.
“Cardiologist … That’s a heart doctor, right?” I asked.
“Yes,” Anna said, and went on to explain that she now works as a cardiac sonographer at a Madison hospital. At 42, she told me she’s studying for licensing exams to restart her medical career in the United States and making plans to spend three years as a medical resident all over again.
Her husband Sasha, 52, an accomplished anesthesiologist and perfusionist, is in a similar boat, she told me. He decided to go back to school, enrolling in the medical perfusion graduate program at Milwaukee School of Engineering to study the profession he practiced for more than 20 years in Ukraine.
Before I met Anna, I knew a bit about the challenges facing immigrant medical professionals. In a previous life, I worked in student support services at a community college in New Orleans, where I often met with immigrant students who wanted to practice the professions they’d trained for back home. As a journalist, I reported on the fact that most foreign-trained dentists have to repeat dental school if they want to practice in Wisconsin, even as many parts of the state are deemed “deserts” of dental care.
Anna and Sasha seemed like poster children for this conundrum: How can a state create rules that protect patients and ensure quality care without creating obstacles that can seem insurmountable to foreign-trained professionals?
I asked Anna if she’d be willing to talk with me more about her experience. She agreed. Six months later, we published that story, complete with stunning portraits my colleague Joe Timmerman captured on his 1950s film camera. Newspapers and news websites across the state ran it. The American Society of Anesthesiologists put it in their newsletter.
Anna couldn’t believe it.
“I honestly didn’t expect that people would notice our story, so hearing that it’s resonating with readers is incredibly touching,” Anna told us in a text message.
Journalists like to talk about “impact,” the things that change because of our stories. I don’t know if this story will change any policies — or if it should. But the fact that Anna and Sasha discovered that their fellow Wisconsinites cared about what they’ve been through? That’s impact, too.
Wisconsin Watch, one of the nation’s most successful nonprofit news organizations, will come under new leadership March 2 when Andy Pennington succeeds retiring CEO George Stanley.
Pennington has been regional president for Adams Multimedia, overseeing 10 Wisconsin news outlets and 150 employees. Prior to this, he was president and director of strategy for the Anchorage Daily News. In 2018, a new owner bought the bankrupt Daily News and recruited Pennington to build a thriving, sustainable digital-first news enterprise.
In 2020, the Anchorage Daily News won the Pulitzer Prize Gold Medal for Public Service for its investigation into lawlessness ravaging Alaskan communities. Its longtime editor, David Hulen, said Pennington was a huge supporter of the newsroom’s mission, which was all about public service to the people of Alaska.
Andy Pennington will become Wisconsin Watch CEO on March 2
Wisconsin Watch Board Chair, Kathy Bissen, says “Andy has exceptional expertise on the business side of journalism, combined with a passion for the critical value of local public service journalism. The Board is enthusiastic about Andy’s ability to continue growing Wisconsin Watch’s impact statewide.”
A native of Wisconsin, Pennington decided after seven years in Anchorage to return home, where he has overseen print and digital publications for the Janesville Gazette, Beloit Daily News, Watertown Daily Times, Daily Jefferson County Union, the Hometown Group, Antigo Daily Journal and Marinette Eagle Herald.
In all, he has spent more than 20 years leading local news organizations and building revenue models that support strong independent journalism.
“I am excited about leading Wisconsin Watch,” Pennington said. “The work aligns closely with my experience and what I care about most: expanding access to trusted information, strengthening local journalism across Wisconsin communities, building sustainable financial models, and supporting talented journalists and staff.”
Pennington has a passion, Stanley said, for collaboration, community engagement and serving the most important needs of readers, all of which make him a great fit for leading a statewide news organization with the public service mission of “using journalism to make the communities of Wisconsin strong, informed and connected.”
“Andy has the right blend of knowledge, creativity, enthusiasm and appreciation for our mission that’s needed in the next leader of Wisconsin Watch,” Stanley said. “We’re building on a strong record of partnering with others and sharing important, impactful reporting, work begun by Dee and Andy Hall.”
The Halls launched Wisconsin Watch in 2009 as the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism to produce important, labor-intensive investigative reports that had declined in Wisconsin and nationwide as the business model that long supported local news collapsed and newsrooms shrank. Wisconsin Watch continues to produce impactful special reports while expanding in recent years to fill growing local news voids across the state.
George Stanley joined Wisconsin Watch in 2023 after the founders retired. Under Stanley, Wisconsin Watch made great strides in its mission to use journalism to make Wisconsin communities strong, informed and connected.
Outgoing Wisconsin Watch CEO George Stanley. (Brad Horn for Wisconsin Watch)
Prior to coming to Wisconsin Watch, Stanley led the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel newsroom as managing editor and editor from 1997 until his retirement from that position in January 2023. Over that time, the Journal Sentinel received virtually every major national journalism honor, including 10 Pulitzer Prize finalists.
“George is nationally recognized for his journalism and leadership expertise,” says Bissen. “I can’t imagine anyone who could have stepped in and built upon the founding work of Andy and Dee as successfully as George. To retire knowing that you made such an important impact statewide is amazing.”
Wisconsin Watch, a 501(c)(3) organization, is supported by its members and Wisconsin philanthropies including the Joseph and Vera Zilber Family Foundation, the Ascendium Education Group, the Kingsbury Family Fund, the Greater Milwaukee and Greater Green Bay Community Foundations, the Journal Foundation, The Brico Fund and Bader Philanthropies. It is also supported nationally by the American Journalism Project, Emerson Collective, the Joyce Foundation, Arnold Ventures, the Ford Foundation, the Reva and David Logan Foundation and the Jampart Charitable Trust, among others.
Tamee Thom, emergency communications center director, Chippewa County.
Goodchild and her team went from 20 vacancies in 2023 to just two in July 2025, according to Miranda’s reporting. We’ll ask Goodchild to share what steps Waukesha County took to make that happen, the challenges officials faced along the way and how things are going now.
Baneck and Baus represent colleges where students train to become emergency telecommunicators. We’ll ask them what the training looks like, how they market their programs and more.
Thom spent 21 years as a 911 dispatcher and has been leading Chippewa County’s emergency communications center for six years. We’ll ask her about the pros and cons of being a dispatcher and how the job has changed over the past two decades.
A vast majority of the roughly 1,000 immigrants arrested by ICE in Wisconsin between January and October of last year had prior criminal convictions or pending criminal charges. But arrests in Wisconsin of immigrants with no criminal history were ticking upward. Roughly 17% had no prior criminal convictions or pending charges. Roughly half of those without criminal histories were arrested at DHS’ downtown Milwaukee office, often while checking in on the status of their immigration cases.
DHS’s claims about arrestees’ criminal histories do not always match court records. Among the two dozen immigrants arrested in Manitowoc last October — the largest ICE raid in Wisconsin since Trump took office — was Abraham Maldonado Almanza, a dairy worker from Mexico. DHS claimed he had a prior conviction for identity theft, but court records in Wisconsin and Iowa, where Maldonado Almanza lived before moving to Manitowoc, show nothing to corroborate the claim. DHS also claimed that the Manitowoc operation netted a Honduran national charged with sexual assault of a child, but that man, Hilario Moreno Portillo, had been in ICE custody for months at the time of the Manitowoc arrests, court records showed.
Even without enforcement surges like those in Illinois and Minnesota, the Trump administration’s immigration policy overhauls are reshaping Wisconsin. We recently documented the consequences for two immigrant workers in key sectors of the state’s economy: a Mexican engineer at an aluminum foundry in Manitowoc and a Nicaraguan herdsman who lacks legal status while working on a dairy farm near Madison. Their employers, who rely on immigrant labor to expand or maintain their operations, are also feeling the pinch, as will consumers if farmers’ and manufacturers’ hiring woes drive up prices.
You can find more of our immigration coverage here.
As we continue reporting on the White House’s immigration crackdown, we want to hear from you. What questions would you like us to answer? What are we missing? Where should we look next?
Wisconsin Watch welcomes submissions of commentary pieces on issues important to Wisconsin for potential publication.
We aim to produce journalism that helps residents navigate their lives, be seen and heard, hold power to account and come together in community and civic life. We’re looking for commentary from a diversity of voices and perspectives toward those goals. Submissions could take a variety of forms, whether a response to Wisconsin Watch reporting, an idea for solving a community challenge, a perspective you feel is missing from a public debate — or even a reflection on how you’re finding hope and community.
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Guest commentaries reflect the views of their authors and are independent of the nonpartisan, in-depth reporting produced by Wisconsin Watch’s newsroom staff.
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We prefer that submissions run no more than 750 words and encourage clear, concise writing.
We want to hear from:
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People who are affected by issues of public concern.
Subject matter experts who can offer context about important issues and explain how systems work.
Please include:
Concrete solutions to problems, supported by facts (such as estimated costs and proposed revenue sources), success in other places and scientific research.
An honest assessment of the challenges faced in dealing with an issue.
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We reserve the right to edit submissions for grammar, clarity, brevity, and legal or factual concerns. We may suggest edits to improve accessibility but will not alter the views expressed by the author. We may also request additional information for fact-checking purposes and reserve the right to decline publication.
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Please email submissions to opinion@wisconsinwatch.org. We prefer that commentaries be included in the body of the email rather than as attachments. Include a one- or two-sentence bio with your organization, city of residence and any relevant background. Feel free to reach out with questions or to propose an idea for feedback.
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More than a decade ago, I covered the opening of a tuition-free charter school aimed at growing the Fox Cities’ advanced manufacturing workforce.
Students are still enrolling at Appleton Technical Academy, getting hands-on experience, accessing paid apprenticeships and completing courses for college credit.
So I wondered: How is the school really doing? Has it met the goals education and industry leaders set?
I pitched the idea to reporter Miranda Dunlap, and she dug in.
Her reporting shows mixed results, and it’s a strong example of the type of solutions journalism we prioritize at Wisconsin Watch.
Solutions journalism is just what it sounds like: rigorous, evidence-based reporting on responses to problems.
Every solutions journalism story reports on four elements:
The response to the problem.
Evidence on how the response is (or isn’t) working.
Insights.
And limitations.
ATECH was created to address a shortage of advanced manufacturing employees in the Fox Cities.
The response from local industry and education leaders was to create a public charter school housed inside Appleton West that would not only introduce students to these careers, but also jump-start their journey to a certification or degree in the field. The story examines how the school got started, the application process and the four areas students can choose to study.
Nuance comes in with the evidence. Data or anecdotes fit the bill. Miranda’s story includes comments from ATECH students about why they chose to enroll. Their thoughts illustrate the need for the school.
However, the industry leader who helped found the school told Miranda ATECH didn’t become the employee pipeline he hoped. His business is no longer closely tied to the school.
The limitations of ATECH vary. The cost to run the school is one challenge. It takes a lot of metal to teach students how to weld, for example. School leaders look for donations from businesses to help with supplies and equipment.
They also mentioned a stigma that the broader public has against technical education.
Insights tend to be the trickiest pillar. I try to answer this question when I look for insights: What nuggets of information would be important to know if I were trying to implement this response in my community?
For ATECH it’s the need for industry mentors. The school needs those connections not only for students to meet professionals working in the field, but also to teach ATECH educators how to use the latest technology.
Miranda also includes context about the push for more career and technical education training, as well as how these efforts are funded at the state and federal levels.
I hope you read her story to get a full, unvarnished look at how ATECH is doing.
As the year winds down, we’re reflecting on the work we produced in 2025, including what we learned and who we met along the way — from ‘just plain old Larry’ Jones to Darnell Price.
In that spirit, we asked each of our reporters to pick their favorite story written by a colleague (Secret Santa style!). We’ve rounded up their picks below. While this isn’t a comprehensive summary of our work from an eventful year, it illustrates our broader effort to make Wisconsin’s communities stronger, more informed and connected through our journalism.
Earl Lowrie has struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts throughout his life. He sees a therapist he found after calling the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) hotline and getting connected to the organization’s Chippewa Valley local affiliate in Wisconsin. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), older adults account for one in five of all deaths by suicide in Wisconsin. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Suicide is a leading cause of death in the U.S., and experts agree that it can be prevented — in part, by talking about it. But when we talk about this public health crisis, how many of us think about people over age 65? This story by Wisconsin Watch intern Sreejita Patra, packed with statistics and human details, explains why we should. Sreejita talked to a variety of experts, including people who’ve attempted suicide themselves, to understand why older people are at higher risk and what efforts are underway to protect them.
Naming an animal and later slaughtering it necessitates learning how to grieve, says farmer Jess D’Souza. She is shown feeding pigs on harvest day at Wonderfarm in Klevenville, Wis., April 29, 2025. (Patricio Crooker for Wisconsin Watch)
Amid the flurry of federal funding cuts this year, Bennet Goldstein invited readers to slow down for a few minutes to walk in the shoes of Jess D’Souza, a pig farmer in Dane County. D’Souza was on track to finally break a profit this year. Then the Trump administration slashed the program that boosted her pork sales.
Goldstein’s writing places you on the farm and inside D’Souza’s mind as she ruminates on what the decision means for her business — and her dreams. The package included a behind-the-scenes video, produced in collaboration with Joe Timmerman, with animal sounds to boot. I came away with something that the best kind of journalism gives: empathy for someone who lives a wildly different lifestyle than I, and a clear understanding of why the issue at hand matters to real people.
A Southwest Wisconsin Technical College agribusiness management student fills the compartments of a planter with soybean seeds at the college’s farm on May 7, 2025. Students planted about 10 soybean varieties and will use new technology to compare the yields, part of the college’s increasing emphasis on precision agriculture. (All photos by Patricio Crooker for Wisconsin Watch)
I have loved seeing Wisconsin Watch’s new pathways to success reporters cover our webpage with solutions-focused stories this year. One of Natalie Yahr’s first stories about a local community college sticks out as one of my favorites. The underdog story highlights Southwest Wisconsin Technical College’s journey from nearly losing accreditation to winning an award known as the “Oscars of great community colleges.” It’s powerful to read about Wisconsinites finding solutions for their communities.
Blue hour illuminates the sky over Green Bay as volunteers search for people experiencing homelessness during the summer point-in-time count at 4:31 a.m. on July 24, 2025, in the town of Scott, Wis. (Photos by Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
In Joe Timmerman’s story with Janelle Mella about Brown County volunteers counting the homeless in the middle of the night, the writing and photos showed me a place I didn’t know existed. The images and quotes from the volunteers and the people they counted put me on the scene. I appreciate Joe’s conscientiousness in approaching stories. He seems to keep the people he’s photographing or writing about foremost in his mind, and it shows in the work he produces.
Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers displays a two-year budget that he signed July 5, 2023, in Madison, Wis. Evers used his partial veto power to remove tax cuts for the state’s wealthiest taxpayers and protect 180 diversity, equity and inclusion jobs Republicans wanted to cut at the University of Wisconsin. (Drake White-Bergey / Wisconsin Watch)
This story was a great example of a Wisconsin Watch forté: identifying a persistent, unanswered community question, then taking pains to locate a satisfactory explanation. Brittany Carloni interviewed reams of sources to help readers understand the seemingly intractable and futile operations of the Legislature: All too often, politicians spend their time pandering to their bases during an election year with symbolic bills rather than engaging in actual governance. We hear from experts rather than the usual talking heads and spokespeople. Brittany raises a broader question that synthesizes larger themes only revealed when the writer takes the long view, getting beyond the daily drip of news headlines.
Jimmy Novy, 77, hangs onto a canopy to hold himself up July 29, 2025, in Hillsboro, Wis. Novy is one of 312 permanently and totally disabled individuals in Wisconsin and has been collecting worker’s comp checks from the state since his injury in his late 20s. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
I work pretty regularly with Tom Kertscher and his reporting, especially on his fact briefs, so I might be a little biased. He’s a fact-checking powerhouse, and one of my favorite stories of his leans into those strengths. It focuses on Wisconsin’s permanently disabled workers who haven’t received a raise in worker’s compensation in nine years. I also had the privilege of creating a companion video for it, so it’s near and dear to me.
It’s an underreported issue affecting people who are often overlooked. Tom does a great job weaving together the voices at the heart of this story while explaining laws with very real consequences for them.
The story opens with a vignette of Jimmy Novy, who, at the time of the interview, had just $8 in his checking account to last him through the month. Novy was exposed to toxic levels of manganese while working at a battery factory in Wonewoc during the Vietnam War, leaving him with neurological issues that severely affect his ability to walk. While permanently disabled workers like Novy stretch every dollar, Wisconsin employers have been saving hundreds of millions of dollars each year in worker’s compensation insurance premiums.
This story lays out the facts clearly despite the issue being complicated. Tom explains the stagnation in worker’s compensation — why it’s happening and what might come next for the people living with its consequences.
Monty Lilford works in the fabrication shop at B&B Agri Sales in Buffalo County, Wis., on Oct. 6, 2025. (Paul Kiefer / Wisconsin Watch)
Paul Kiefer joined the newsroom earlier this year at a time when immigration reporting felt about as important as ever. His dogged approach to find local, human-centered stories addressing the national topic of immigration hasn’t ceased to impress. In this story, Paul reported on sides of the H-2A work visa program, revealing the struggles that both workers and farmers face through it, that I had never considered before. Beyond Paul’s rich understanding of immigration processes, ability to unravel complex laws and personability that allows him to find strong sources, the enlightening data visualization and powerful photography he used to help tell the story were the cherries on top.
EnergySolutions and WEC Energy Group want to build a new nuclear plant on the site of the Kewaunee Power Station. The facility closed in 2013 and has since been decommissioned. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Miranda Dunlap is a gifted reporter who builds deep relationships with the people she interviews. When she investigates the possibility of reviving the shuttered Kewaunee Power Station, she doesn’t stop at the fences. Instead, she listens to residents of surrounding communities and amplifies their perspectives that might otherwise go unheard. Her journalism reflects the very spirit and mission of Wisconsin Watch.
A pair of beavers swims across a pond on the property of Jim Hoffman, CEO of Hoffman Construction, as the sun sets on Oct. 25, 2024, in Alma Center, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
There’s a moment in this video produced by Trisha Young that nearly swerves into the genre of Fred Armisen and Bill Hader’s mockumentary called “Documentary Now.” Asked from a distance whether his family still lives in the area, Jim Hoffman responds by asking “beaver?” He might have misheard the question, or he might be asking for clarification. Did Bennet Goldstein, the question-asker, mean his beaver family or his human family?
I think our writing — and video editing, in this case — should have personality, even surrealism whenever possible. The world is surreal, and readers might appreciate a recognition of the topsy-turvy ways of the world from journalists who are supposed to document life accurately.
Trisha, possibly because she is exceedingly well-read and possibly because she is such a Wisconsinite, is unusually capable of incorporating personality into her work. This video embraces the seemingly absurd — portage routes for beavers — without an aggressive wink-wink-nudge-nudge. It’s a tour de force. Bravo, and merry Christmas.
As a policy and history nerd, I particularly enjoyed Hongyu Liu’s reporting on the withering impact of Wisconsin’s homestead property tax credit and how little it has changed over the years to help those who need it. I’ve become a big fan of how Hongyu uses data to visualize and break down challenging topics, which he does several times in this story including showing how the eligibility levels to receive homestead credits have largely remained stagnant while inflation has skyrocketed. Hongyu’s reporting also explains both the early and recent history of the homestead credit and features real people in Wisconsin who are impacted by receiving smaller dollar amounts at a time when individuals across the country are worried about affordability. It’s a smart story and the kind of work I like to bring up in conversations at the Capitol.
Tracy Germait, right, who has been waiting more than two years for a public defender, laughs with her daughter, Isis, 11, after leading a Cocaine Anonymous meeting Aug. 12, 2025, at MannaFest Church in Green Bay, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Margaret Shreiner is who I want to be when I grow up, and she’s only a grade my senior. After her brilliant story on Wisconsin’s public defender shortage was published in September — centering around Wisconsin mother Tracy Germait and her struggle to find legal representation for years after being charged on felony drug charges — a criminal justice attorney took on Germait’s case within days. Through months of thoughtful, diligent reporting, Maggie has effected real, tangible change for a Wisconsinite disadvantaged by the problems within our government. I couldn’t be more proud of her!
Ed Werner, a resident of the Birch Terrace Manufactured Home Community, walks past a manufactured home that is for sale, June 21, 2025, in Menomonie, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Addie Costello’s persistence as a reporter and compassion for others shine through in this Wisconsin manufactured housing series. Her ability to take a tip and turn it into a thorough investigation demonstrates her talent as a journalist. Addie dedicated so much time and effort into listening to sources, pulling state records and filling in gaps when telling this story, but her attention to detail makes the result appear seamless. Her reporting not only exposes the ongoing issue but provides solutions and resources to individuals impacted, again showing the care that she brings to her work and those who may be affected. The companion piece on Addie’s takeaways from this series highlights her devotion to the stories she pursues and illustrates the time she dedicates to listening to her sources. The entire manufactured housing series is a must read.
— Margaret Shreiner
Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.
Reflecting on 2025, it was a year of visual firsts in our newsroom. It was my first full year working as Wisconsin Watch’s staff photojournalist, a new position at Wisconsin Watch supported by Report for America. It was also the first full year Wisconsin Watch worked with Catchlight, a visual-first nonprofit that leverages the power of visual storytelling to inform, connect and transform communities. That partnership brought a familiar face back to the newsroom: Coburn Dukehart, Wisconsin Watch’s former associate director, who is now our contract photo editor through Catchlight Local.
This was also the year when Wisconsin Watch set out to publish a new story every day — a major shift for the 16-year-old newsroom that had previously focused on more time-intensive investigative stories. That change — and our growth as a newsroom — meant more reporters were filing photo requests each week. As a result, we published far more original photography compared to past years.
Our visuals transported readers to many places, from underneath the Capitol’s granite dome to inside the homes of residents across Wisconsin. They illustrated that our storytelling isn’t limited to words. Far from it.
Our photojournalism shows the mosaic of people and communities that make up our state and helps to convey their emotional reactions to the circumstances of their lives. That’s true whether it’s a sense of optimism while traveling on Amtrak; uncertainty while preparing to move out of a recovery home; joy while pursuing a new career; or togetherness and resolve in the face of federal budget cuts.
We approach each story with compassion and present stories with the hope that these images make our communities feel more connected. We’re going to keep at it in 2026. Until then, here are our favorite Wisconsin images from 2025.
Phillip Loan, 27, of Atlanta, looks out the window Jan. 6, 2025, while riding the Amtrak Hiawatha service from Chicago Union Station to the Milwaukee Intermodal Station. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Snow falls on the Wisconsin State Capitol before the State of the State address Jan. 22, 2025, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice-elect Susan Crawford celebrates her win against Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Brad Schimel in the spring election April 1, 2025, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch) Tracy Germait, right, who has been waiting more than two years for a public defender, laughs with her daughter, Isis, 11, after leading a Cocaine Anonymous meeting Aug. 12, 2025, at MannaFest Church in Green Bay, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Laurie Doxtator poses for a portrait Sept. 30, 2025, at the Recovery Nest, part of the Oneida Comprehensive Health Division, in Green Bay, Wis. Doxtator, an Oneida Nation citizen, visits the Recovery Nest a few times a week to meet with her recovery coach and engage in its programming. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Laurie Doxtator, a resident at Amanda’s House, poses for a portrait with her newest tattoo Aug. 13, 2025, in Green Bay, Wis. Doxtator and six other women living at Amanda’s House got matching tattoos of the hummingbird design, which is based on the logo of the Recovery Nest. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
A transgender teenager had to announce his previous name, or deadname, in the newspaper when he legally changed his name under Wisconsin law. He is trying to retroactively seal those records because of concerns related to the political climate. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Earl Lowrie, 66, in his garage, June 21, 2025, in Cameron, Wis. “You wouldn’t know what light was if you hadn’t found darkness,” Lowrie said. Lowrie, who has struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts throughout his life, sees a therapist weekly that he found after calling the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) hotline and getting connected to the organization’s Chippewa Valley local affiliate in Wisconsin. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Deloise L. braids the hair of her daughter Da’Netta during Camp Reunite at Taycheedah Correctional Institution. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Alba Prado, left, an inmate, embraces her son, Avery, 8, during Camp Reunite at Taycheedah Correctional Institution, a maximum- and medium-security women’s prison, June 24, 2025, in Fond du Lac, Wis. Camp Reunite is a weeklong, trauma-informed summer camp for youth aged eight to 17 who have a parent incarcerated in the Wisconsin correctional system. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)Madelyn Rybak, a 17-year-old senior at Pulaski High School, works on the summer edition of the Pulaski News on Aug. 12, 2025, in Pulaski, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)Anna Mykhailova and Sasha Druzhyna’s 10-year-old daughter Varya plays on her mother’s smartphone at their home, Oct. 25, 2025, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)An 11-year-old child holds her great-cousin on her lap at their current apartment Oct. 22, 2025, in Prairie du Chien, Wis. Her family is one of 10 families chosen to live in newly built, manufactured Habitat for Humanity homes in Hillsboro, Wis. (Trisha Young / Wisconsin Watch)Instructor Robin Eichhorst, left, shares a laugh with student Nikky K. in the dental lab at Fox Valley Technical College on Oct. 1, 2025. (Kara Counard for Wisconsin Watch)Jimmy Novy, 77, hangs onto a canopy to hold himself up July 29, 2025, in Hillsboro, Wis. Novy is one of 312 permanently and totally disabled individuals in Wisconsin and has been collecting worker’s comp checks from the state since his injury in his late 20s. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Sandy Hahn, housing manager at Community Action Coalition for South Central Wisconsin, talks to someone sleeping in a car during the annual point-in-time (PIT) count on Jan. 22, 2025, in the parking lot behind the Pine Cone Travel Plaza in Johnson Creek, Wis. Hahn and Britanie Peaslee, community resource liaison at Rainbow Community Care, found a handful of people sleeping in their cars in the Pine Cone Travel Plaza parking lot, including a mother with a young child in one car. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Larry Jones, 85, shown in his home in Milwaukee on March 21, 2025, attended a Wisconsin Assembly hearing with the intention of supporting a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors but changed his mind after hearing testimony from trans youth. The moment, captured on video by WisconsinEye, was celebrated by those in attendance and shared widely online. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Camp Randall Stadium is shown on June 4, 2025, in this photo illustration. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Jess D’Souza, who raises Gloucestershire Old Spots pigs at Wonderfarm in Klevenville, Wis., looks out the window of her home on April 8, 2025. She doubled the size of her pig herd last year, believing the federal government would honor a $5.5 million grant it awarded to Wisconsin. But it didn’t. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Jess D’Souza, owner of Wonderfarm in Klevenville, Wis., retrieves a bale of hay for one of her “mama pigs” during morning chores, April 8, 2025. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Laura Mortimore, owner of Orange Cat Community Farm in Lyndon Station, Wis., chats with Dustin Ladd, Juneau County land and water conservation administrator, while walking across the property on Aug. 27, 2025. She is one of several area farmers participating in a Juneau County food purchase and distribution program that offers free, fresh produce and meat to residents in need. (Bennet Goldstein / Wisconsin Watch)Michelle Mehn, from left, Toby and Elizabeth Kohnle work behind the desk at Tisch Mills Farm Center on Sept. 16, 2025, in Tisch Mills, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)Devin Remiker was elected the next chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin at the party’s annual convention in Lake Delton on June 14, 2025. (Patricio Crooker for Wisconsin Watch)Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, talks on the phone after legislators delayed what was supposed to be the final day of the Joint Finance Committee budget votes June 27, 2025, at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wis. The Joint Finance Committee meeting didn’t kick off until after 10 p.m. and left several topics unresolved. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)The sun sets as construction continues at Microsoft’s data center project Nov. 13, 2025, in Mount Pleasant, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Wisconsin Watch, a nonprofit news organization that uses journalism to make communities strong, informed and connected, is seeking a Pathways to Success Reporter focused on southeast Wisconsin. This reporter will explore what’s needed for residents to build thriving careers in the future economy — and what’s standing in the way. That includes expanding coverage of postsecondary education and workforce training, focusing on how education and economic trends impact people’s lives. The role centers on solution-oriented journalism that serves the public, strengthens community life, and holds those in power accountable.
This Milwaukee-based reporter will join a four-person pathways-focused team that includes an editor, Madison-based statewide reporter and northeast Wisconsin reporter in Green Bay.
About Wisconsin Watch and Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Founded in 2009, Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit news organization dedicated to producing nonpartisan journalism that makes the communities of Wisconsin strong, informed and connected. We believe that access to local representative news is critical to a healthy democracy and to finding solutions to the most pressing problems of everyday life. Under the Wisconsin Watch umbrella, we have three independent news divisions, a statewide investigative newsroom, a regional collaboration in Northeast Wisconsin called the NEW News Lab, and the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service (NNS). All three divisions maintain their unique reporting areas and together are positioned to grow and serve our communities with greater efficiency and impact.
About this position
The ideal candidate will have at least 2 years of experience researching, reporting, and writing original published new stories, bring a public service mindset and a demonstrated commitment to nonpartisan journalism ethics, including a commitment to abide by Wisconsin Watch’s ethics policies, and have experience working collaboratively to report stories that explore solutions to challenges residents face.
Location: The reporter will be based in Milwaukee. They will have space to work in the Milwaukee NNS newsroom (NNS is a division of Wisconsin Watch).
Salary and benefits: The salary range is $45,500-$64,500. Final offer amounts will carefully consider multiple factors, and higher compensation may be available for someone with advanced skills and/or experience. Wisconsin Watch offers competitive benefits, including generous vacation (five weeks), a retirement fund contribution, paid sick days, paid family and caregiver leave, subsidized medical and dental premiums, vision coverage, and more.
To apply: Please submit a PDF of your resume, work samples and answer some brief questions in this application form. If you’d like to chat about the job before applying, contact Northeast Wisconsin/Pathways Editor Jennifer Zettel-Vandenhouten at jzvandenhouten@wisconsinwatch.org.
Deadline: Applications will be accepted until the position is filled. Apply by Jan. 9, 2026 for best consideration.
Wisconsin Watch is dedicated to improving our newsroom by better reflecting the people we cover. We are committed to fostering an equitable workplace that reflects, understands, and listens to the people we serve. We are an equal-opportunity employer and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, or any other status protected under applicable law.
It’s hard to believe how much Wisconsin Watch has evolved since I joined in 2019, initially as investigations editor. We had just seven full-time staff members and a cycle of fellows and interns who powered most of our journalism. Weeks and even months would pass between publication of our investigative and explanatory stories as we pursued our mission of increasing the quality and quantity of investigative reporting in Wisconsin.
Six years later, we’re a far different, much bigger organization. We have about 30 editorial and business staff across multiple newsrooms, and we’re responding to community needs in real time through a more frequent mix of stories. Although investigative journalism remains our strength, our broadened mission is to use journalism to make Wisconsin communities strong, informed and connected.
So it’s worth a reminder of all the places where you can find our free reporting every day:
On the air, whether it’s through our partnerships with WPR, Civic Media or other broadcasters.
In print! We still share our work for free with newspapers across the state and country. If you’re in Madison this month, check out the latest issue of Isthmus to see the first in our three-part series on how spending on Supreme Court elections shattered national records.
What’s your favorite way to interact with us? And where else would you like to see us? We’d love to hear from you as we consider where to grow next. You can reach me at jmalewitz@wisconsinwatch.org.
Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.
This week, we are reflecting on what we’re thankful for. One of the things we’re thankful for is you – our readers and supporters. Some of you have sent us tips, others have given us constructive feedback on our reporting, and many of you have helped us reach more people by sharing our reporting with your friends, family and neighbors.
In the spirit of gratitude and giving, we want to sharefive stories that remind us of the power of community and how ordinary people can spark extraordinary impact.We hope you enjoy reading them as much as we enjoyed reporting them.
From left, Joe Roppe, his wife Nancy Roppe and Alva Clymer — all of Portage County — meet with fellow advocates of county-owned nursing homes to prepare for a meeting with state officials, Jan. 9, 2025, at the Hilton Madison Monona Terrace in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Portage, Sauk, St. Croix and Lincoln counties – Public nursing homes tend to be better staffed, have higher quality of care and draw fewer complaints than facilities owned by for-profits and nonprofits. As counties across Wisconsin look to sell off their nursing homes, grassroots campaigns are working to keep the homes in public hands – and some of them appear to be succeeding.
Madelyn Rybak, a 17-year-old senior at Pulaski High School, works on the summer edition of the Pulaski News on Aug. 12, 2025, in Pulaski, Wis. Students have run the Pulaski News for more than 80 years. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Brown, Oconto and Shawano counties – For more than eight decades, Pulaski High School’s student newspaper has been the community’s newspaper of record, as the only news outlet consistently covering the rural village. Along the way, the paper has secured a level of community buy-in that might feel foreign to some news organizations today, as trust in news declines.
Larry Jones, 85, shown in his home in Milwaukee on March 21, 2025, attended a Wisconsin Assembly hearing with the intention of supporting a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors but changed his mind after hearing testimony from trans youth. The moment, captured on video by WisconsinEye, was celebrated by those in attendance and shared widely online. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Milwaukee and Dane counties – When Larry Jones arrived at the Wisconsin State Capitol on March 12, he didn’t know what he was getting into — let alone that he would be a viral internet sensation the next day. The 85-year-old self-described conservative had been invited by his grandson to a public hearing on a Republican-authored bill that would ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth in the state. While he was there, he changed his mind.
Andrew Garr, left, and Lynn McLaughlin guide the conversation during an emotional CPR training on Oct. 28, 2025, at the Oshkosh Food Co-op community room in Oshkosh, Wis. During the session, attendees learned how to effectively listen to and assist people who are struggling. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Brown and Outagamie counties – In downtown Appleton, a “community living room” aims to give northeast Wisconsinites ways to deeply connect with one another — and a free community space to do so — in hopes they can combat the social isolation many feel today. It also hosts “emotional CPR training” or ECPR to train professionals and community members in how to assist someone in crisis or emotional distress.
Marc Manley, a member of Yahara House for 30 years, waits for the bus after spending the day at the clubhouse, March 14, 2025, in Madison, Wis. (Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch)
Dane County – Yahara House, part of the nonprofit Journey Mental Health Center, is a community mental health program focused on building relationships and job opportunities. It is one of just seven clubhouses in the state and just three with international accreditation. Experts and advocates say the clubhouse model reduces hospitalizations and boosts employment in adults with serious mental illnesses.
Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.
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