Meatpacking politics; bot frenzy; wild rice and climate; high lake levels; threats in Hudson
Of note: This week we highlight ProPublica’s glimpse at the meat industry’s influence on Washington during the pandemic.
Reporters Michael Grabell and Bernice Yeung obtained emails showing that a meat industry trade group may have shaped President Donald Trump’s controversial executive order to keep plants open as the coronavirus sickened and killed workers.
The trade group’s draft order “bears striking similarities” to the one Trump signed in late April to continue supplying food to consumers, Grabell and Yeung report.
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Emails show the meatpacking industry drafted an executive order to keep plants open
ProPublica — September 14, 2020
Emails obtained by ProPublica show that the meat industry may have had a hand in its own White House rescue: The meat industry’s trade group drafted an executive order that bears striking similarities to the one President Donald Trump signed.
More than 350,000 accounts tweeted after Kenosha violence. Experts say bots were likely among them.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel — September 14, 2020
A Journal Sentinel analysis of more than 1 million public tweets and Facebook posts mentioning words such as “Kenosha,” “Rittenhouse,” or “Blake” found a frenzy of social media activity since Aug. 25, the night prosecutors say Kyle Rittenhouse shot and killed two protesters. By Aug. 26, users were posting more than 10,000 tweets per hour on those topics — nearly three posts per second.
Under threat from high water, Great Lakes cities, property owners strive to become more resilient
WPR — September 15, 2020
Record-setting water levels on the Great Lakes have caused erosion and flooding that have cost shoreline communities an estimated $500 million in damage. Many lakefront landowners and local governments are examining ways to make their properties more resilient.
Wisconsin wild rice is unique in the world, but some worry about effects of climate change
Green Bay Press-Gazette — September 15, 2020
Wild rice harvest season runs through mid-September in northern Wisconsin, and while many tribal and non-tribal people are enjoying their annual pilgrimages to their favorite rice wetlands, others are concerned about the effects of climate change on this unique crop.
Diversity discussion In Hudson moves forward despite online threat to ‘bring your AR-15s’
WPR — September 15, 2020
Speakers at a listening session about diversity and law enforcement called for community change Monday evening in Hudson after a commenter on the St. Croix County Republican Party’s Facebook page publicly advised people to “bring your AR-15s and get rid of these communist Punk a—s.”
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