Wisconsin’s status as an open government hot spot is reflected in the National Freedom of Information Coalition’s decision to host its annual conference here this month. The 2012 FOI Summit, also held in collaboration with the Society of Professional Journalists, will be held at the Madison Concourse Hotel and Governor’s Club in downtown Madison on May 11 and 12.

A team of three journalism grad students from University of Wisconsin-Madison — two of them current or soon-to-be interns at the Center — won Tableau’s national Student Data Challenge.

This document, prepared for a workshop at the UW Center for Journalism Ethics conference, “Ethics and Elections: Money, Media and Politics in 2012,” presents an overview of some of the sources available to reporters and others for tracking the role of money in politics.
Web resources for campaign finance data

Government Accountability Board (http://gab.wi.gov), Campaign Finance Information [...]

The Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism received four awards from the Milwaukee Press Club’s annual Awards for Excellence in Wisconsin Journalism, which were announced today.

We will learn whether each award is gold, silver or bronze at the awards dinner on May 18.

Dick Wheeler, whose career was dedicated, first and foremost, to the Public’s Right to Know, died of a heart attack Nov. 11, as he was preparing for work. On April 25 he will be honored posthumously in Madison with the Distinguished Wisconsin Watchdog Award, presented by the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism and the Madison professional chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

Editor’s note
Since late January, visual journalist and Center intern Lukas Keapproth has been tracking the Occupy movement’s activity within Wisconsin. He visited Madison’s camp over and over, and he returned with an unusually intimate portrait of what is believed to be the last encampment in the state. Read the story and see the slideshow here: [...]

Update at 4:20 p.m. March 22: We received so many applications from qualified students that we hired three instead of two. We look forward to sharing the report with you in April.
We’re seeking two UW-Madison journalism students for immediate involvement in a project examining state government issues.
The students will be paid $10 an hour, with [...]

The Wisconsin Judicial Commission today filed a complaint against state Supreme Court Justice David Prosser over an incident last June in which he placed his hands around the neck of a fellow justice. It asked that “appropriate discipline be imposed.” But Prosser declared his innocence.