White Supremacy At The Bloomington Farmers’ Market:
Bloomington, Indiana is a liberal college town in the middle of a very conservative state. The town prides itself on diversity and inclusion.
The city’s farmers’ market has a long history of community and safety. During the summer it attracts more than 100 vendors and tens of thousands of customers.
After one vendor’s connections to a white supremacy group came to light, it set off shockwaves through the community. Protests and counterprotests erupted until the market ultimately had to be shut down because of safety concerns. The city hired extra security, hosted panel discussions about the First Amendment and finally hired a mediator to help resolve the tensions.
Bloomington Farmers' Market Controversy: What's Happened So Far
WFIU editors Bob Zaltsberg and Sara Wittmeyer provide live anchored coverage of the mayor’s announcement to shut down the city’s farmers’ market.
Five Takeaways From Bloomington Mayor Hamilton's Farmers' Market Address
Former US Sen. Richard Lugar, Foreign Policy Expert, Dies
Former Indiana Sen. Richard Lugar, a Republican foreign policy sage known for leading efforts to help the former Soviet states dismantle and secure much of their nuclear arsenal died April 28.
Our team quickly reacted to the breaking news. Our initial reports featured archived interviews with Lugar and reaction from his colleagues. The following day we did a live statewide call in on his legacy. Our coverage continued through his memorial and funeral.
Former Colleagues, Friends Remember Richard Lugar
Teacher Pay
Nearly half of Indiana’s school districts closed as thousands of educators protested at the statehouse demanding better pay. Indiana ranks 36th for teacher pay. We previewed the rally, covered it across platforms and then reported on the impact the rally had.
Thousands Of Teachers Rally At The Statehouse At 'Red For Ed' Action Day
Red For Ed: How Teacher Action Unfolded At The Statehouse And What Comes Next
Bloomington Mother Fighting For Son's Release From Venezuelan Prison
Todd Leininger traveled to Venezuela in 2014 with his wife to visit family.
Accounts of the incident differ, but there was an altercation and Todd was charged with attempted homicide and concealment of a firearm. He served his sentence but then the government wouldn’t release him. We followed the case through the years and when his release date came and went this year we started digging to find out why Leininger was being held hostage. Included is a more in-depth piece on the situation and a newscast spot.
Bloomington Mother Fighting For Son's Release From Venezuelan Prison
Sen. Young Asks Secretary Of State About Bloomington Man Detained In Venezuela
Bloomington Man Released From Venezuelan Prison
Climate Change
Climate change is an issue we cover in some fashion at least once a week. We did much more comprehensive coverage this year including team coverage of the 2019 climate strike – the first in March, then another in November. We also did a call out to listeners to learn what they did to reduce climate change. We choose five of the best answers and produced a week-long series.
Bloomington, IU Students Walk Out Of School As Part Of Climate Strike
City Officials: We're Working To Combat Climate Change, Too
Indiana Teachers Struggle To Find Credible Materials On Climate Change
City Limits: Bloomington
City Limits is a people powered project. Our audience submits questions about the community and then can participate in the process as we do the reporting to find the answer. This project is our answer to the decline of the local newspaper. Gatehouse bought the family-owned paper this year and the layoffs started immediately. Our response was creating new positions and expanding our Bloomington coverage. In addition to audio and digital some of these stories also have video components.
- Healthcare
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As healthcare costs skyrocket this two-part City Limits investigation looks at who owns the largest health system in Indiana and why board members of the nonprofit are taking home big paychecks.
Who Owns IU Health? Officials Say, No OneSome IU Health Board Members Get $40K For 6 Hours Of Work A Week
- Bloomington Housing Shortage
The City is rewriting its development rules in part to address the lack of housing and affordability. Bloomington is the most expensive city in the state because the student population increases demand and that drives up costs. Included is part one of a series we did on affordable housing.
What's Bloomington Doing To Address Affordable Housing?
Housing Costs Force Median Wage Earners To Look Outside Bloomington
South Bend Mayor Runs For President
In April, South Bend, Indiana mayor Pete Buttigieg officially declared his run for President. We carried Mayor Pete’s announcement live. Our coverage has also included spots in newscasts, features on his impact in South Bend, and Q and A’s with political experts.
Can Buttigieg Keep Up Momentum In Presidential Race?
Car Loans
Seven million Americans are more than 90 days behind on their car loans. Delinquency rates are nearing their peak from the great recession. Reporter Tyler Lake worked on an investigation that revealed buy-here-pay-here lots aggressively market to customers with poor credit.
Millions Of Americans Could Lose Their Cars As Delinquency Rates Rise
Jail Overcrowding
Nearly every Indiana county has a problem with overcrowded jails, but how did we get here and what is the long term solution? In this two part series we look at whether lawmakers can legislate Indiana out of the incarceration crisis.
Statehouse Proposals Aim To Alleviate Jail Overcrowding
Jail Overcrowding Exacerbates Problems For Those With Mental Illnesses
South Bend Police Shooting:
Race relations have been an issue in Pete Buttigieg’s town of South Bend throughout his tenure there as mayor. Shortly after announcing his bid for President, a police shooting thrust South Bend’s racial tensions into the national spotlight, and sparked concerns about whether Buttigieg could attract black voters.
Our coverage included initial reports of the shooting, interviews with the victim’s family, community forums and Buttigieg’s response.
South Bend Police Shooting Sparks Investigation
Rural Life
It was a hard year for Hoosier farmers. It was one of the wettest years in recent years and many farmers weren’t able to plant their fields. Those who were, suffered from the impact of the trade war with China. Our rural affairs reporter approached this topic in dozens of ways. This story looks at how farmers’ political views are affected by the trade war.
Amid Tariff War With China, Farmers Remain Committed To Trump, GOP
And this feature story looks at how solar is tempting some farmers to quit planting crops in favor of installing solar panels.
From Corn To Solar: For Some Farmers, There's 'More Money In Producing Electrons'
June 11, 2019 Morning Newscast
A live morning newscast from June 11, 2019 that shows our commitment to covering a variety of stories across the state. Our newscasts contain a variety of local, state and regional news.
DIGITAL CONTENT
Daily Coverage:
- UPDATE: Power Restored To IU Buildings After Friday Morning Outage
A Third Of Indiana's Corn Crop Is Unplanted: That's Better Than Expected - Thousands Of Teachers Rally At The Statehouse At 'Red For Ed' Action Day
- ILEARN Results Are Public. So How Much Lower Were Those Scores?
- Teachers Press For Solutions To Better Pay As Many Question Their Future In The Classroom
- Stakeholders: DCS Progress Since Independent Report Isn't Far Enough, Fast Enough
- 2018 High School Graduation Rates Nearly Identical To 2017
- Church Moves Into School Closed Due To East Chicago Lead, Arsenic Contamination
- Relief And Re-evaluation: How The Latest Round Of School Referenda Played Out
- Bloomington, IU Students Walk Out Of School As Part Of Climate Strike
Continuing Coverage:
House Party Shooting
- One Arrest Made In Sunday Morning Bloomington Shooting, One Suspect Still At Large
- Police: Victims Of Weekend Shooting In Critical But Stable Condition
- IUPD Defends Lack Of Notification About Weekend Shooting
- Bloomington Shooting Suspect's Bond Revoked, IU Boots Tenants Of House Party Venue
Dongwook Ko Stabbing
- Suspect Arrested After Person With Knife Reported At IU
- 17-Year-Old Charged With Attempted Murder Following Stabbing On IU Campus
- No Contact Order Issued In IU Stabbing Case
- Judge Denies Bail Reduction Request For Dongwook Ko
- Letters In Ko Case Detail Impact Of Alleged Stabbing
- Ko Released On Bond, Attorney Files Notice Of Defense Of Mental Disease
White Supremacy At Bloomington Farmers' Market
- Bloomington Farmers’ Market Controversy: What’s Happened So Far
- Farmers' Market Reopens, Business As Usual For Some
- Video: IU Professor Arrested After Demonstration At Farmers' Market
- Five Takeaways From Bloomington Mayor Hamilton's Farmers' Market Address
Long-term Projects:
- Survey: Indiana Approaches Forestry Like Other Professionals In North America
- The Story Behind An Indiana Original: Pizza King
- State Money To Clean Up Gasoline Leaks In Indiana Is At Risk: Here's Why
- Flooding From Climate Change Will Put Uninsured Hoosiers At Risk
- What Restaurants Opened And Closed In Bloomington In 2018
- How Does Tax-Exempt IU Contribute To Bloomington?
Explainers:
- Weekly Statehouse Update: Abortion Regulation, Clearer Voice For Foster Parents
- Warm Water And Cold Beer: Inside Indiana's Weird Liquor Store Laws
- Five Things You Need To Know Ahead Of This Weekend's Reopened Farmers' Market
- What You Need To Know About The Gathering Of The Juggalos In Southern Indiana This Year
- What Is An Identitarian? We Talked To An Extremism Researcher To Find Out
