WIZM - La Crosse Talk Interviews

UW-La Crosse football coach Matt Janus joined ahead of their first game this weekend. On the show we discussed replacing one of UW-L’s best receivers in school history, what it’s like when 100 football players show up at a waterpark and trying to get back to the playoffs for a fifth-consecutive season. Janus is 37-11 in his four years as coach, winning at least one playoff game in thre...

A unique show that includes the audience, called Every Brilliant Thing, begins this weekend at the Pump House Regional Arts Center. Colin Thelen, producer with Grey Area Productions and Alexandria Adeline-Chapes, one of two actors that will be on stage, joined in studio to explain the many layers to the play. It’s a comedy, it has aspects to mental health awareness, the audience is all in pl...

La Crosse city council president, Tamra Dickinson joined in studio to discuss the “dueling” proposals to hire a city administrator or operations director. She also talked about the potential collaboration on building an indoor pool, plus the city closing two parks and forcing the farmers market to move — again. Dickinson joined just a few days before the monthly city council meet...

Economist Adam Hoffer joins to discuss new vaping regulations that could clear shelves, and how Wisconsin and Minnesota compare to the rest of the U.S. on gas taxes. Hoffer, director of excise tax policy at the Tax Foundation, explains a new Department of Revenue rule that would make most vaping devices illegal to sell. But will the $1,000 fine be enough — or even enforced? We also look at o...

As Saturday’s 20th Annual Steppin’ Out in Pink nears, Courtney Daniels-Burke stopped in studio to talk about the Gundersen Medical Foundation, the organization behind the event. Daniels-Burke discusses the different fundraisers the foundation oversees and the many programs supported through that funding. Along with Steppin’ — which begins at 9 a.m. Saturday at Riverside Par...

A free lecture series begins Monday in La Crosse called The Search for Meaning, held at Viterbo University. The series is conducted by Endowed Professor of Ethics, Dr. Rick Kyte. We chatted last week on WIZM's La Crosse Talk with Ktye about what the seven-part series will entail. As society relies more upon technological aids to assist with work, education, and daily living, an increasing number o...

School District of La Crosse superintendent, Dr. Aaron Engel, joined to discuss the potential collaboration with the city on an indoor pool and how the city will soon be down to one planetarium — at Central High School. Last week, Engel met with the city about possibly building an indoor pool at the North Side Community Pool site. That pool needs about $1 million in renovations. Logan High h...

Wisconsin state Sen. Brad Pfaff in the WIZM studio this week, discussing a couple of bills he wants to introduce as the Legislature gets back in session after two months off. We also discuss the Tank Creek Bridge rebuild, flooding and the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program stripped from the budget. One of the bills Pfaff (D-Onalaska) discussed was about tariff transparency — essentially show...

Shannon Raney in studio to tell us about the back-to-back parties from the 7 Rivers LGBTQ Connection in La Crosse this weekend, beginning with the La Crosse Pride Pageant on Friday night and Pride in the Park on Saturday.  Raney is in her second year as executive director of 7 Rivers. She breaks down what we can expect from the 11 contestants at Friday’s pageant, which opens up at 6 p.m...

A land conservation program was stripped out of the Wisconsin state budget. Carol Abrahamzon and Charlie Carlin joined to discuss why that’s a problem, the importance of bringing the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program back and the politics surrounding it all. Abrahamzon is the executive director of the Mississippi Valley Conservancy, and Carlin is the director of strategic initiatives at Gat...

Moon Tunes co-founder, Terry Bauer, in studio to help preview the second-last concert of the season that features the UW-La Crosse Screamin' Eagles Marching Band, plus three Elvis Presley acts, ahead of a big competition Saturday.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Broadway icon, singer, and actor Bernadette Peters joined ahead of her visit to La Crosse and performance Saturday at Viterbo. We covered a variety of topics from her longtime animal rescue advocacy through Broadway Barks, to Wisconsin cheese, to navigating a shifting media landscape where even Netflix anime like Kpop Demon Hunters are charting on the Billboard Top 100 with multiple songs. With a...

The RAD is going live. Teddy Eck, co-founder and executive director of the Rivoli Arts District (RAD) , stopped in studio to discuss, not just this weekend’s open house, but also art in La Crosse, in general — from murals to inspiring young artists to what kind of art the city is missing. The RAD, located on Fourth Street, downtown, spans three, newly-renovated floors featuring 30 arti...

Economist, Dr. Adam Hoffer, joins to discuss how states handle EV fees in a few different areas, plus how much it will cost to watch the NFL this season. Hoffer is the director of excise tax policy at the Tax Foundation, and recently published an article breaking down EV fees by state across the country. Hoffer was also a professor who taught sports economics at UW-La Crosse.  States are movi...

A mostly back-to-school La Crosse Talk with UW-L political science professor, Dr. Anthony Chergosky, discussing cellphone and social media bans for children, A.I. use and abuse, plus a recap of Vice President JD Vance’s visit to town.  With UW-L beginning classes this week, Chergosky did talk some about A.I. use in college — and how students need to be literate in its uses but als...

Mac Kiel in studio discussing the La Crosse mayor's city administrator proposal and changing the Arts Board name, plus the state of La Crosse pools and previewing committee week. The mayor last week proposed changing the name of the Arts Board to include culture. He has also talked about putting forth a new proposal for city administrator that would not require a charter ordinance.  With rega...

Western Wisconsin AFL-CIO president Mike Davis, Jr., joins to talk about unions and preview Monday’s Labor Day celebration in La Crosse, which have been going on since 1891.  On the show we discuss Act 10 and minimum wage, before previewing Monday’s event, which begins at 10 a.m. near the corner of Gillette and Kane Streets. After the parade, there are festivities on the north sid...

Sarah Godlewski in studio to talk about her run for lieutenant governor of Wisconsin, her work as the current Secretary of State and former State Treasurer, plus some reaction to JD Vance’s visit to La Crosse promoting the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” Godlewski, a Democrat who launched her campaign last week, outlined what she sees as the role of lieutenant governor, including i...

La Crosse County District Attorney Tim Gruenke joined to discuss the Civilian Review Board getting going, charging 17-year-olds as adults in Wisconsin and an update on the death of 22-year-old Eliotte Heinz. La Crosse County’s Civilian Review Board has been something in the works for a few years now, and Gruenke describes the type of work it will cover. Charging 17 year olds as adults stems...

Rock the Vets happens Sunday, and Dustin Lamb stopped in studio to talk about Year No. 8 of the concert series that helps La Crosse’s Freedom Honor Flight. Admission is $20 for basically eight concerts on two stages. The event kick off at 11:40 a.m. at the Legion Post 417 on French Island. La Crosse’s Freedom Honor Flight recently said increased costs for flights has made fundraising e...

Moon Tunes co-founder Terry Bauer in studio previewing this week’s show, featuring The Canyon Band. Before that, Hans Mayer and Hot Sauce, with Jessie MacDonald open the show. Before we talked about them, however, we did joke around about the good ole days, and recapped last week’s show with the Remainders and Phoenix — 71 years of music in La Crosse. There is handicap parking wi...

Wisconsin state Assembly Rep. Tara Johnson (D-Shelby) in studio discussing priorities Democrats would like to see in the next session, the Bernie Sanders visit to Viroqua and what she thinks so far of the upcoming governor race. We also joked a bit about how the Legislature has been out of session all of July and August and now meets back in Madison for eight entire days in September — and 4...

Jill Schams, president of the La Crosse Education Association (LEA), joined heading into the first full week of school. We discussed how teachers prepare their classrooms — often at their own expense — and touched on the rollout of all-day pre-K in the La Crosse School District. We opened the conversation, though, about how teachers build connections with parents. Then had some fun get...

Adam Murphy joins to discuss Milwaukee’s 1,000-year flood aftermath, the energy demands of A.I. data centers and potential Milwaukee candidates in the Wisconsin governor’s race. Murphy is a Milwaukee resident, small business owner ( Big Bang LLC ) and holds degrees in economics and political science. We began the show by reintroducing him as our regular political commentator (or politi...

Wisconsin state Rep. Steve Doyle (D-Onalaska) in the WIZM studio for La Crosse Talk last week discussing the upcoming governor’s race, rebuilding Tank Creek Bridge and legislation aimed at treating 17-year-olds as minors in the justice system. We began the show with a conversation on how legislators continue their work out of session and how bipartisan cooperation has changed compared to yea...