Meta faces $24 Million Fine for Campaign Finance Violations

by Sandy Flores Ruiz, age 16

A Washington State judge has levied fines against Facebook's parent company in a campaign finance lawsuit brought by the state. Judge Douglas North of King County's Superior Court fined Meta, one of the richest companies in the world, nearly $25 million for repeatedly and willfully breaking the campaign fund disclosure law.

The State of Washington requires businesses to be transparent about their ad sellers. If asked, they must provide the public names and addresses of those who purchase political advertisements, who the advertisements target, how they were paid, and the number of views each political advertisement received. Washington's Fair Campaign procedures were established in 1972 and strengthened by legislative action, and more than 800 infractions have been detected that the corporation has committed.

Meta says the Fair campaign procedures are “unconstitutional because [they] unduly burden political speech” and are “virtually impossible to fully comply with.” The court has replied that Facebook's conduct during this case is pure “arrogance.” [Read More]

Open Meetings Violation Complaint Filed Against Belleville

by Sydney Steidl, age 16

A concerned citizen has accused the Village of Belleville of illegally meeting behind closed doors to consider and approve the sale of the Village’s former library in violation of the State’s Open Meetings Laws. The complaint, filed with the Dane County District Attorney’s office in early August, contained 10 separate allegations of open meetings violations.

The sale of the 6,300-square-foot building to a developer for $20,000 was approved as a result of closed meetings, despite the building being appraised at $210,000 only a year ago. This substantial difference has led many local residents to wonder what happened during the meetings and question the integrity of the deal.

One citizen, Jeff Larson, said he believes that other potential buyers would have offered more favorable terms for the library, and that this sale was not in the public’s best interest. “If the board believes this is such a great deal for the Village and its residents, why did it work so hard to hide information and prevent the public from sharing any input until after the decision was already made?” Larson said. [Read More]

Wisconsin Begins PFAS Testing this Fall

by Sandy Flores Ruíz, age 16

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS, are a family of synthetic chemicals. They are used in everyday household products, such clothes, carpets, nonstick cookware, packaging, and firefighting foam due to their ability to repel water and stains. The PFAS family of approximately 5,000 chemicals are known as “forever chemicals” because they last for a long period of time in the environment and human body. Research suggests that these chemicals can cause various types of cancers, decrease birth weights, damage the immune and reproductive systems, impact hormone regulation, and alter thyroid hormones.

Since 2019, the DNR has been working to develop standards for two of the better known PFAS chemicals, PFOA and PFOS, to determine safe levels of these two chemicals in public water systems. Beginning this fall, Wisconsin communities will be required to test their water to ensure that the PFOA and PFOS do not exceed limits set by the State of Wisconsin. [Read More]

New Study Shows Pay Gap Between Men and Women even After College

by Devika Pal, age 17

Anisa Maredia carried an ambition of pursuing a career in dentistry but witnessed gender discrimination in the field. As a participant in hiring workers, she recalls interviewers inquiring about the marital status of female candidates. Maredia also called out the stark difference in pay salaries between males and females.

A 2015 Wall Street Journal report revealed a noticeable disparity in pay between men and women. Across some 2,000 universities, using 1.7 million graduates, the analysis found that men’s median pay surpassed females by 10%. This study shows that despite having similar credentials, the pay gap begins as soon as new graduates are out of college and are in the hiring process. [Read More]

How the Chicago Defender Newspaper Helped Spark “Great Migration”

by Mariama Bah, age 15

Once known as "The World's Greatest Weekly," the Chicago Defender newspaper has been publishing news and information for nearly 117 years. Providing dependable and important news to the African American people of Chicago, it remains one of the most influential black weekly newspapers in the nation.

The newspaper was launched by Robert S. Abbott in 1905. Inspired by his beliefs in equal job opportunities and social justice, Abbott published the first issue of the Chicago Defender on May 5th, of that year. By 1910 the Defender began to gain popularity and readership. [Read More]

Declining Newspaper Subscriptions Hamper Good Journalism

by Sydney Steidl, age 16

News collecting and reporting has changed a lot in the 21st century. American newspapers laid off at least 45% of newsroom staff between 2008 and 2017. About 1,800 print news outlets shut down between 2004 and 2015. It’s an overlooked crisis in modern American news, one that’s resulted in a massive loss of local news outlets.

The general shift to news distribution through the internet makes information more accessible. But it has also contributed to a downward spiral for journalism.

Over the years, consumers have grown to accept news as a free resource because most online outlets don’t require users to pay before reading an article. This has decreased the value of news in the public’s mind, and it is now considered abnormal to pay for news. Ultimately, this leads to news outlet shutdowns and fired news staff. [Read More]

Study Shows Paxlovid Decreases COVID-19 Related Hospitalizations and Deaths

by Moises Hernandez, age 18

A new study shows that a treatment for COVID-19 significantly reduces hospitalization and death rates. Patients prescribed Paxlovid are about five times less likely to be hospitalized and ten times less likely to die, compared to patients to whom the medication is not prescribed, according to a study published on Epic Research.

In December 2021, Pfizer’s Paxlovid received emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration to be used as a treatment for mild-to-moderate symptoms in those 12 and older at high risk of developing severe symptoms that could lead to hospitalization or death. Factors that could put someone in this category include age, pregnancy, obesity, kidney disease, cancer, and serious heart conditions.

In March 2022, the Biden-Harris Administration launched the “Test to Treat” initiative. Through this, a single location can be the place where someone can be tested for COVID-19, see a healthcare provider, receive a prescription for treatment, and have that prescription filled. [Read More]

Wisconsin School District Rejects Book About Japanese American Internment Camps

by Desteny Alvarez, age 17

On June 13th, Wisconsin’s Muskego-Norway School District rejected the book When The Emperor was Divine from a tenth-grade advanced English class.

Author of the 2002 historical novel, Julie Otsuka, wrote the novel based on her own family’s experiences. It has won the American Literary Association’s Alex Award and the Asian-American Literary Award for bring forth a significant perspective in the story of a Japanese family from Berkeley, California that was sent to an internment camp in Utah’s desert.

A new school board member of this district, Laurie Konteny said that the novel was selected as a “diverse” book. Some members of the Educational Service Committee said that by using the book, it will cause a problem with “balance” because the tenth-grade advanced English class curriculum already had a ten-page excerpt detailing Japanese internment camps during World War II. [Read More]