(upbeat music)
- Hello and welcome to In Wisconsin.
I'm Patty Low.
Each week we bring you stories about the people,
places and issues in our state.
This week as we wrap up the campaign season,
here from folks wanting to know how candidate policies
will affect jobs and agriculture in Wisconsin.
Find out how young and younger people
are getting involved in this year's political process.
And the horror, oh the horror, take a trip back in time
with some of the state's spookiest TV personalities.
Stay with us for all this and more in Wisconsin.
- Major funding for In Wisconsin is provided
by the people of Alliance Energy,
who bring safe, reliable and environmentally friendly
energy to keep homes, neighborhoods,
and life in Wisconsin running smoothly.
Alliance Energy, offering energy saving ideas on the web.
- President George W.
Bush and his challenger, Senator John Kerry, have
been crisscrossing Wisconsin this week in a frenzied last
minute effort to get the vote.
President hitting the southwestern part of the state.
John Kerry staging a giant rally in Madison
with the boss Bruce Springsteen.
The Badger State is getting unprecedented attention
because the presidential candidates have decided
the election could come down to a handful of states,
including Wisconsin.
So the candidates are coming here in person
and spending millions on campaign commercials
here in our state.
As Frederick the Freiburg reports,
it's an advertising onslaught, the likes of which have
never been seen before.
And it's all being tracked in a little basement room
on the UW-Madison campus.
- The fall election has snapped into sharp focus
in Wisconsin with just days to go.
And you can't settle into watch your local evening news
without seeing wall-to-wall presidential
campaign commercials.
- Listen to George Bush.
- You ever see anything like this?
- No, no.
- Because combined, the presidential campaigns
have reportedly spent more than $5 million
advertising on Wisconsin TV stations
in the first two weeks of October alone,
more than 32 million since March,
and their poised to shell out $40 million more dollars
in the final days in nine battleground states,
including Wisconsin.
Now all of that has students in the basement
of Ingram Hall on the UW-Madison campus,
pulling all nighters to keep up.
- Now we work, you know, four, five in the morning,
sometimes we have college students coming in.
- About 100 students work in the center
for the study of politics, which includes the
Wisconsin News Lab and the Wisconsin
Advertising Project.
Political Science Professor Ken Goldstein
directs research at the center.
His ad project students track the number
and nature of political commercials.
New technology allows daily tracking of political spots,
offering a real-time window into campaign war rooms
and new academic and public access to campaign strategy.
- We get a story board with screen captures
as well as the text of the audio.
- The biggest news this year, the historically large amount
of spending on advertising in a small number of states.
- It's gonna be well over half a billion dollars
just in the presidential race, probably more.
We'll end up seeing between 750 and 800,000 spots
aired in the presidential race.
And what's really interesting is those spots have been focused.
Almost 90%, 87% of the ads, almost 9 out of 10 ads aired
in the presidential race over the last four
weeks have been aired in only 44 media markets,
which comprise only 25% of the country.
- The candidates have aired nearly 28,000 spots
in Wisconsin since Labor Day, and we're only growing in
importance in the final stretch.
- Wisconsin is at the very, very top level
of competitive states.
There's some scenarios out there where President Bush
loses Ohio, but can still win the presidency
if he's able to win a Wisconsin and an Iowa.
So we're gonna get tremendous amount of attention
and advertising, tremendous amounts of visits here.
- Goldstein says in the final days,
we should also watch for the cream
of the commercial crop.
- Cuts so deep they would have weakened America's defenses.
- For instance, he says this Bush ad titled
"Wolves" was actually ready in March,
but held until now.
He says another Bush ad with the president speaking
directly to the voters is ready to roll.
No word he says on the best and show ad carry plans
to deliver, but this is a new pro-carriage
from Operation Truth showing a wounded soldier
home from Iraq.
- They told us that we'd win the war and be home soon,
but we're still there.
So when people ask me where my arm went,
I try to find the words, but they're not there.
- People will complain and say, "I wish the election was over,"
and I don't want to see any more ads,
but you talk to people in California, New York, and Texas,
and they're not seeing any of the campaign.
And so we have a chance to see the candidates many times.
It's really amazing how many times we've seen the candidates
visit Wisconsin, and it's not only good if you own
a Wisconsin television station.
I think it's good for Wisconsin voters
to have all this information.
- Wisconsin's unemployment rate edged up in September
from 4.8% to an even five, but the pain is
not shared evenly.
Madison's unemployment rate is below the state's average.
Racine, on the other hand, has the highest unemployment rate
of any city in the state.
Racine's unemployment rate in September was 10.3%.
Racine County's figure was 6%, better, but still above
the state's average.
Next Tuesday's presidential vote will hinge in part
on the state of the economy.
Both the Caribbean Bush campaigns have been in Racine,
trying to get the voters attention.
Art Hackett reports.
- Now, let me tell you what'd be good for our economy,
would be good for our economy as the outsourced George Bush.
That's what would be good for our economy.
- Democratic Vice Presidential candidate, John Edwards,
made his second trip to Racine in his many months
on Monday.
- We know what needs to be done.
We need to get rid of tax cuts for American company
sending jobs overseas.
We should give tax cuts to American companies
that'll keep jobs right here in the United States of America.
- Racine is a factory town, a place where candidates have
in the past gone to great lengths
to show their sympathy for working folk.
In 1988, the young Al Gore wielded a shovel
at Racine's steel castings.
He drove a forklift shortly before being driven
out of the race for the Democratic nomination.
- If John Edwards wanted to follow
an Al Gore's footsteps today, he couldn't.
The plant Al Gore visited Racine's steel castings
is currently being shredded.
- There's probably 20, 25 good major companies
over the last 25 years at really despair,
but really recently in the last five years,
it's unbelievable.
Kevin Muskovsky is vice president
of United Auto Workers' Local 180.
His local represents workers at the case tractor plant.
Most of that plant, too, is being demolished.
- As early as 1998, we've had 1500 people working
hourly union members, we're now down to 355.
- The union hall is surrounded by Carrie Edwards yard signs.
Muskovsky says he had no problem figuring out who to vote for.
But nearby in the neighborhood called Rubberville,
guess what sort of company's workers used to live there,
we found Lori Ammon.
- Not sure I like either of them,
and I'm real tired of having to choose
between the lesser of two evils.
- Ammon and her husband both work in retailing.
She's a self-described former burned out social worker.
She voted for Gore in 2000, but took time last month to
go listen to president Bush.
- And right here in Wisconsin, your unemployment rate is 4.8%.
This economy is strong, it's getting stronger,
and we're not turning back.
- You know, at the rally, Bush said something
about creating jobs, and I couldn't believe it.
I thought that takes a lot of guts to come to a place
with such high unemployment, and talk about how
you've created jobs.
We continue to lose companies.
- But thus far, John Kerry hasn't made the sale either.
Honor kitchen table is the most recent batch of brochures
from organizations supporting the candidates.
- This one is all about how George Bush has
short-changed homeland security, and a couple of
questions I run into is, you know, throughout this,
they talk about John Kerry has a plan.
It's in italics, it's big, and they talk about track
and stock terrorists, he has a plan, protect
our board, he has a plan, help first responders, he
has a plan, what's the plan?
- Even the business community isn't unanimous enough
to endorse anyone.
Roger Karen, president of Racine Manufactures and Commerce,
guesses his membership is split 60, 40 in Bush's favor.
In spite of Racine's high unemployment rate,
Bush's claims of an improving economy
were not laughed off.
- We're excited in Racine right now
because I think we're gonna start working on
that unemployment rate, and I don't know how much
of national politics can help us with that.
We need to do that ourselves.
- Karen sees the demolition crews as a positive sign,
the plant where Jacobson built lawnmores and snowblowers
as soon to be redeveloped for a new industry.
- Virtually no expansion room existed in the city of Racine.
- In the midst of fallen plants, then to fall on soldiers,
some have made up their minds.
Others have not.
- I just feel like neither of them are giving me
what they're gonna do.
So I don't know, I don't know who I'm gonna vote for,
and I think that's, it's horrible.
I've never been this close to an election
and not have made my decision.
- Jobs and the economy are a huge factor in
this year's election, and in Wisconsin, the
agriculture industry is a large part of that.
This week in our continuing "Wherein
Wisconsin Issues" series, producer Liz Karner
reports on federal policies that could affect state farmers.
She travels to the southwest corner of our state
to talk with a beef farmer who also works
as the Grant County Dairy and Livestock Extension agent.
- We're in the driffless region of Wisconsin,
down the southwest corner, just north of Puritichinoways.
We got somewhere around 50 beef cows.
It used to be a dairy farm.
We used to milk 90 to 100 cows and came time
from my dad to retire, and I chose to go into extension work,
but we wanted to keep the farm, and so we transitioned
over into beef.
- There's no question that one of the number one issues
facing farmers everywhere is health insurance,
and health care costs is a huge issue for everybody, really,
but it really affects farmers because they don't have
any organized group type insurance,
so they're gonna be paying very, very high rates.
They also work in a fairly risky career.
When we made the decision to lead dairying,
that certainly was a factor.
Paying for health insurance eats up a lot of profit
for a lot of business, small businesses, not just farmers,
but small businesses up and down Main Street.
So that's an issue that they're gonna look to Washington
for some relief.
(growling)
Probably the number one issue for beef farmers
in Wisconsin is the whole BSE or Mad Cal problem.
The Canadian border is still closed.
We're not able to export meat to Japan.
Those are issues that concern me that will have to be resolved
on the national level.
Another issue for both beef producers and hog producers
is the pack of ownership of animals.
Some people feel very, very strongly,
that should not be allowed, and there has been legislation
proposed to deal with that.
There's certainly a lot of controversy
about the importation of milk protein concentrates.
I think that's something that Congress will be taking
a look at over the next year or two.
It's an issue that needs to be looked at.
Just today, actually, I read that the extension
of the milk income loss contract payments
did not, or was not acted on in the house.
That's a program that's been in place for a couple of years now.
And it's been a welcome addition to farmers cash flow,
not so much this year because prices have been high,
but a year ago, when prices were quite low,
it certainly helped out.
So that program will go away within the next year.
And certainly, there'll be some farmers
that will be very upset about that.
There is a real wide variety of opinion
on all of these issues, and none of them are cut and dried.
But those are issues that will be worked on
on the national level, and we'll have an impact
out here in the country.
- You can find out where the candidates stand on issues
like agriculture by going to WisconsinVote.org,
our online election year resource.
Once there, you'll find links to the candidate's
campaign websites.
Again, the address is WisconsinVote.org.
One segment of voters heavily targeted by candidates
is young adults.
This next report is produced by the college students I teach
at the UW-Madison Department of Life Sciences Communication.
The students set out to investigate the ways
candidates are trying to reach young voters.
? So, so, so, so, so ?
- In an election where every vote counts,
young and first-time voters rock George W.
Bush or John Kerry into
the White House.
- I'm going to be voting for John Kerry.
- George Bush.
- I'm not sure.
- I am not entirely sure.
- I really sure, yeah.
- I'm on the side of it.
- In the 2000 presidential election,
only 51% of the eligible voters nationwide
actually cast their ballots.
President Bush won by just five electoral votes.
Only 32% of people 18 to 24 voted.
- Most polls show that there were about 18% of people
who eventually voted, who didn't decide
until the last two weeks of the campaign.
Five percent of folks decide on the very last day,
and most polls are showing that it's at least
at large this time around.
- Some undecided voters say that they haven't made up
their minds yet because the candidates are too similar
or not appealing enough.
Others say they feel they don't have enough information
to make their choice.
Many looked to the median pop culture to help them choose.
- I know there are a bunch of websites.
Like MTV has a commercial every five seconds,
and here in Madison, like right when you walk
through library and all, there are always people
handing information out about voting.
- The music channel MTV hopes to get 20 million young adults
pumped to vote this year.
(cars honking)
Rock the vote is a grassroots campaign
aimed at the 18 to 24 year olds.
MTV wants to make so much noise that candidates can't
afford not to hear them.
- The media is definitely the most influential.
I mean, the candidates have sort of given me a reason
to go out and vote, but you know, MTV has choose or lose
in a bunch of different programs that really motivate
people to go out and vote this election, and the
internet is a huge resource.
- Where older voters might respond to yard signs
and more conventional appeals, young voters are more likely
to surf the political cyber turf,
and many say the youth vote could be the deciding factor.
- Part of the reason Kyle soon gets ignored
by candidates is that they are one of the lowest voting
demographics, right, that third, roughly 36%
of college students' last election voted, well,
if college students turn out in droves this year,
candidates are not gonna take you lightly in 2008, right?
If students just make it clear that they are gonna have a say
and they're gonna take the time to do it,
they'll get more attention from candidates,
President, on down.
- Local organizations are working to ensure
that young voters will not be ignored.
- The New Voters Project is working to make
political leaders pay attention to young voters.
Every vote counts, exercising our vote,
making our voice heard, this election is gonna help
to force the political leaders to speak to us
and to change that dynamic of political leaders
only speaking to older voters.
- Everyone remembers the last election
where just 5,000 votes separated the presidential candidates
in Wisconsin.
With another tight election, young voters
could make all the difference.
- Voting allows each citizen's voice to be heard.
- It is everyone's duty.
- Take a stand.
- It's your right.
Why not take a stand?
- That's our generation.
You wanna make a change, go do something about it.
Go vote November 2nd.
- As you just heard, young voters are an important sector
for the candidates in the upcoming election.
But getting young people involved in the process
doesn't happen overnight.
That's where a program sponsored by the Madison Children's
Museum comes in.
As Frederica Freiberg reports, a campaign camp at the
museum sparked kids' political imaginations.
- Talk about your youth vote.
These children are middle school and younger.
Here during a campaign camp at the Madison Children's
Museum, they take part in a mock town hall forum
with Madison's man.
- Let's ask you the big question.
How many of you think George Bush is going to win?
What are you really?
How many think John Care is going to win?
- My kind of kids, all right.
- Procosis punditry from kids way shy of voting age.
Still, these young people are drawn to democracy.
- I really like politics and I've just heard a lot
about the upcoming election.
- And so, nine-year-old Catherine signed up
for campaign camp.
The day long camp is part of an election year exhibit.
In it, museum visitors are invited to vote
for one of two imaginary candidates.
They cast their ballots in a real voting booth
purchased from Florida on eBay.
The candidates in the running, pinwall and dream machine,
posters and banners and candidate platform papers
line the wall.
And to cap it off, the campers pitch in
to produce campaign commercials for the candidates.
- And they have to have ideas and that you have to have
the right motion and stuff and the right music.
Otherwise, people are going to go with other things.
- It's fun for all ages.
- Campers learn about how to make campaign
spots from experts.
- I want to hear you as if I'm behind the fire exasoon.
- They begin their lesson by watching classic commercials
from elections pass.
(chanting)
- 8887M6554321.
- Like the LBJ ad combining a little girl
and a mushroom cloud.
So what do they learn about capturing voters?
- They respond a lot to fear.
- One of the kid-produced commercials trades on fear
of the dangers of the imaginary candidate dream machine.
- It's never been tested.
(car engine)
- How do we know that it's safe?
- It's really fun just to do these things.
- The idea behind this whole democracy offered at the
museum is that we need to start getting kids plugged in
and engage with this material and these ideas long before
they are pre-voting age.
- One woman visiting the museum says she was just explaining
to her granddaughter about how it all worked.
- And the six year old found the polling place exhibit.
- People 18 years and older can vote and how important that was.
And then she says, "Grandma, I can vote."
- Though 12 years too young to cast a legal ballot,
this little one and hundreds of others are already learning
about the mechanics and messages involved in real life voting.
- So what we're hoping is that they just develop positive
associations with civic participation in general.
And by engaging in the Children's Museum
exhibit election and efforts like this campaign
camp, we just hope to, again, build and kind of spread as
much of that positive feeling about civic
participation as we can.
- This is where the ketchup comes in.
- Yeah.
- According to the Children's Museum, at last count,
the race between the candidates, pinwall and dream machine
was too close to call.
You can still head to the museum to cast your
vote until October 31st.
The winner of that race will be announced on November 7th.
(upbeat music)
Some would say this election season has
been frightening enough.
But if you need to add to your fear factor,
Halloween is right around the corner.
In our final story this week, we switched gears from
politics to the paranormal.
And producer Joanne Garrett takes us down
a haunted memory lane.
It's a trip down the spooky side of memory lane.
A small salute to those hosts of horror that graced the airwaves
of after hours Wisconsin from the late 50s through the 80s,
introducing horror films.
- Tonight we have a tack of the 50-foot woman.
- Dr.
Kedavarino and to loose no-neck in Milwaukee,
met the dead and misty brew in Green Bay.
- This is one creature feature you won't want to miss.
- Black seven, I could do it.
- Mr.
Mephister and the voice in the box on Lenny's
in front of Madison.
- I can't finish the game without it.
- We have no now.
- The host came about because there was a practical need.
- Dignitling of Milwaukee has chronicle their art and antics.
He calls himself Wisconsin's horror hostorian.
- When you didn't have videotape in the show's were live,
he had needed someone to do the segues and
reconmerschels between reels.
So they needed people to host these film shows,
to do the segues and the very practical elements of
associate in the television.
- This guy was the first Bob Hirsch, Milwaukee, 1958.
- He called him the advisor, and ran it for two nights a week,
Friday at Saturday night, shock and double shock.
- It was instant fame.
- He could not go out.
He would go to the movies and they'd have to sneak him
in after the film started.
Because if he was recognized, it would be a riot.
They were getting a thousand requests per week for
these little membership cards in their horror club.
- Horror was hot.
- I think the appeal from the standpoint of the viewers
was that the shows were on late at night.
They could get away with things, they may not get
away with during prime time.
- All that kind of weird stuff that's perfect
if you're an 11-year-old and looking toward that
rebellious stage of your life.
- It was a time slot where they could poke some fun.
- No, but what should I explicitly say?
I suggest you write the context.
- What?
What was that?
- And take some chances.
Sets were destroyed, regularly.
- We need a window there, no shops about it.
- And smoking was allowed.
- I'm going to turn that, you're sitting a fire in here.
- I better stoke that a little bit.
- Stoke it, wait a minute.
- You were supposed to fix this thing.
- I got it.
- No, I don't have it.
- I'm making a lot of smoke.
- It's a flavor with his taste for human flesh
and whole herds of cows.
Let's hope he hasn't heard of Wisconsin.
- And they had sidekicks.
Consider Dr.
Kadevarino's. - His sidekick was Egor.
Egor was headless.
And he was played by members of the floor crew who got,
wouldn't pay him a talent fee, in their check over
time every week.
They couldn't say anything.
That way they didn't have to qualify for a talent fee.
- Tucked away.
In these late night time slides, was an enormous
amount of talent.
- It was a tremendously creative period for the
people playing the characters and working on the shows.
And it's an atmosphere that doesn't exist in
commercial television anymore.
- I can certainly do it with little more
artistic ability, eh?
Shada, I can go out to the movie if you don't like it.
- Can I go out to the movie?
- You can find more fun facts about your favorite horror hosts
by checking out our website.
The address is www.wrg/inwisconsin.
Once there, you'll find information about all of our
stories in this week's episode.
We leave you tonight with another look back at Mr.
Mepisto and the Voice in the Box.
Have a happy and safe Halloween this weekend.
And remember, Tuesday is Election Day.
For Inwisconsin, I'm Daddy Lo.
See you next week.
- I just about got this done and then I think, uh, I got
what's an eight lettered word, an eight lettered
word down for fool.
- Creepy.
- Creepy doesn't fit.
- How about Mepisto?
- Mepisto.
You pee.
Hey, that fits.
- Yeah, that does.
- Fool.
- Yeah.
- Fool.
- Kind of a stupid crossword, is it?
Are we done now?
Can I say goodnight?
[music]
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