MADISON, Wis. — Civic Media today announced a new initiative with Ben Wikler called This Is Wisconsin: a series that travels the state to tell the stories of working Wisconsinites—how far families have to drive for a doctor’s appointment when the local hospital closes, the rising cost of brats and beer (still worth it!), the delicious snacks and painful gas prices at Kwik Trip—with humor, edge, and an unapologetic love of the place. The project launches today with a debut video, a first look at the stories This Is Wisconsin will tell.
The project arrives at a moment when two things are collapsing at once. Local news is hollowing out, leaving rural counties as news deserts. And political media has nationalized and turned performative, drifting further from the actual lives of the people it claims to cover. The result is that the conditions of everyday Wisconsin life—and the impact on people’s lives of national political decisions—rarely make it into the conversation except as props in someone else’s argument. This Is Wisconsin moves the lens from Washington press conferences to Wisconsin communities, and treats how people actually live as the point, not the backdrop.
“This is exactly what Civic Media was built for: local, honest, and rooted in what people here actually care about,” said Sage Weil, Civic Media CEO. “Ben gets that you reach people by respecting them and lifting up their voices, and he radiates enthusiasm for this state no matter who folks vote for. The way we cover things is simple: not by team colors, but by asking who’s really calling the shots, who benefits, and who gets left out—and how that plays out locally, in real life.”
“If you care about your community and your state, but feel like most political coverage is about things far away from your life, This Is Wisconsin is for you,” said Ben Wikler. “I’m thrilled to join Civic Media and its civic mission, and to tell stories that celebrate what we love about our state, highlight how people can make it even better, and focus on the impact of politics and policy on people’s real lives.”
The work will show up where Wisconsinites already are: short-form video on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube featuring Ben in conversation with individual Wisconsinites; longer documentary-style features going deep on a single community or issue; appearances across Civic Media’s statewide network of stations; first-person dispatches from the road; collaborations with other Wisconsin creators and communicators; and interactive tools like a feature showing what tariffs actually mean for your county. It’s an ensemble effort, produced alongside Civic Media’s local hosts, reporters, and community contributors. The people who know their towns better than any visitor can.
This Is Wisconsin has a point of view: it’s on the side of working Wisconsinites, honest public conversation, and communities that work for everyone in them. It doesn’t cover politics by team colors — it asks who’s really calling the shots, who benefits, and who gets left out, and follows that wherever it leads.
For the latest from This Is Wisconsin, visit thisiswisconsin.com
About Civic Media
Civic Media is a Wisconsin-based public benefit corporation operating a network of hometown radio stations and digital platforms across the state. We were founded to help fill the gap left by the decline of local media by providing trusted local news, real conversations, and coverage of the issues that shape everyday life in the communities we serve. We believe local media plays a vital role in the practice of democracy. Our programming focuses on local, regional, and state issues, with the goal of helping audiences better understand their communities, engage with the world around them, and participate more fully in civic life.
