Wisconsin’s economy, environment and fight over data centers

Politics

Wisconsin’s economy, environment and fight over data centers

Development of data centers has become a major community issue across Wisconsin, with proponents pointing to supply chain jobs and the tax base while opponents point to energy use and local control.

August 27, 2026

A comic strip-style iillustration shows a person sitting in a couch looking at the smart phone with the TikTok word mark on its back that is emanating thought bubbles showing illustrations of a hamburger and house marked with $$$ as well as the words Avg. Green Bay Rent $4K!! and Wisconsin Gas Prices Over $7/Gallon! with a potted snake plant to the side and a framed image of Lambeau Field on a wall in the background.
A comic strip-style iillustration shows a person sitting in a couch looking at the smart phone with the TikTok word mark on its back that is emanating thought bubbles showing illustrations of a hamburger and house marked with $$$ as well as the words Avg. Green Bay Rent $4K!! and Wisconsin Gas Prices Over $7/Gallon! with a potted snake plant to the side and a framed image of Lambeau Field on a wall in the background.

Politics

Inside the TikTok campaign insisting Green Bay is ‘more expensive’ than New York City

A series of more than 100 videos published to TikTok that make claims about the cost of living in Green Bay in 2026 fit a pattern of influences getting paid to create and post content about political topics, often without disclosures about the funding source.

August 27, 2026

A row of law enforcement officers wearing helmets with face shields and holding transparent riot shields with the words State Patrol across their center span stands and faces multiple people, with a building with glass-block windows in the background.
A row of law enforcement officers wearing helmets with face shields and holding transparent riot shields with the words State Patrol across their center span stands and faces multiple people, with a building with glass-block windows in the background.

Courts

Wisconsin police agencies track use of force, but the numbers are hard to compare

State law requires law enforcement agencies in Wisconsin to report serious uses of force by officers, but inconsistent standards makes comparisons among departments in different places difficult to track.

August 26, 2026

Mail-in voting, commutations and crime, politics of tariffs
Mail-in voting, commutations and crime, politics of tariffs

Inside Wisconsin Politics

Mail-in voting, commutations and crime, politics of tariffs

The Trump administration proceeds with mail-in voting limits, the Commutations Advisory Board meets and tariffs reemerge as an issue — Inside Wisconsin Politics considers impacts on the 2026 vote.

August 25, 2026

Elon Musk and Ekaterina Diestler stand and hold two ends of an oversized paper check with the words America PAC, pay to the order of Ekaterina Diestler and $1,000,000, with an illuminated screen in the background.
Elon Musk and Ekaterina Diestler stand and hold two ends of an oversized paper check with the words America PAC, pay to the order of Ekaterina Diestler and $1,000,000, with an illuminated screen in the background.

Courts

La Crosse County DA declines to pursue election bribery charges against Musk

La Crosse County District Attorney Tim Gruenke, who was appointed as a special prosecutor, says he will not file election bribery charges against billionaire Elon Musk even though the Wisconsin Elections Commission said the billionaire likely broke state law.

August 25, 2026

Dr. Ryan Westergaard on a push to split up the MMR vaccine
Dr. Ryan Westergaard on a push to split up the MMR vaccine

Health

Dr. Ryan Westergaard on a push to split up the MMR vaccine

Wisconsin Department of Health Services state epidemiologist Dr. Ryan Westergaard discusses an executive order by President Donald Trump that calls to separate the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.

August 24, 2026

Frederica Freyberg and Ryan Westergaard sit facing each other on the Here & Now set.
Frederica Freyberg and Ryan Westergaard sit facing each other on the Here & Now set.

Politics

‘Here & Now’ Highlights: Dr. Ryan Westergaard, J. Michael Collins

Here's what guests on the Aug. 21, 2026 episode said about a measles outbreak in southwest Wisconsin and student loan defaults.

August 24, 2026

A still image shows a flock camera secured to a black pole with an American flag waving behind it.
A still image shows a flock camera secured to a black pole with an American flag waving behind it.

Politics

The rise of and opposition to Flock cameras in Wisconsin

Widespread use of automated license plate readers by law enforcement agencies around the state has provoked a vocal surge of opposition at the local level to the use of these surveillance cameras.

August 21, 2026

A still image shows Dr. Ryan Westergaard seated at the 'Here & Now' set featuring wood paneling, with a graphic at bottom reading 'Ryan Westergaard, M.D.' and 'Wisconsin Dept. of Health Services.'
A still image shows Dr. Ryan Westergaard seated at the 'Here & Now' set featuring wood paneling, with a graphic at bottom reading 'Ryan Westergaard, M.D.' and 'Wisconsin Dept. of Health Services.'

Health

Dr. Ryan Westergaard on measles cases in southwest Wisconsin

Wisconsin Department of Health Services state epidemiologist Dr. Ryan Westergaard describes a measles outbreak in southwest areas of the state and the impacts of falling childhood vaccination rates.

August 21, 2026 • Southwest Region

A still image shows J. Michael Collins seated at the 'Here & Now' set featuring wood paneling, with a graphic at bottom reading 'J. Michael Collins' and 'UW La Follette School of Public Affairs.'
A still image shows J. Michael Collins seated at the 'Here & Now' set featuring wood paneling, with a graphic at bottom reading 'J. Michael Collins' and 'UW La Follette School of Public Affairs.'

Economy

J. Michael Collins on student loan defaults and the economy

UW-Madison La Follette School of Public Affairs professor J. Michael Collins discusses the rising number of student loan borrowers who are in default and what it indicates about the overall economy.

August 21, 2026