How WXPR News works with our partners

WXPR is proud to partner with local and regional news organizations to expand our coverage and share stories from the Northwoods to a greater audience.

We have multiple partnerships with various trusted news sources ranging from local newspapers to NPR. The list is always growing. If you’re a news organization interested in partnering with WXPR, please contact News Director Katie Thoresen at katie@wxpr.org.

WXPR is an affiliate of National Public Radio and Native Voice One which brings our listeners programs like Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and National Native News.

Wisconsin News Collaborative

Launched in 2026, the Wisconsin News Collaborative is a partnership between WXPR, WUWM in Milwaukee, and Wisconsin Public Radio. The WNC was created to expand coverage of the natural resources and climate in Wisconsin. Timely stories are now more accessible to all corners of the state, from the Northwoods to the urban southeastern region.

News stories within the collaborative will be produced separately by each organization and distributed to all three stations to reach individuals across the different markets. All stories will be identified as being from the Wisconsin News Collaborative with each local reporter’s byline and listeners can expect to hear these stories on the air and find them on each organization’s website.

Report for America

In 2026, WXPR was selected for the Report for America program as a host newsroom. A journalist will begin working for WXPR in July 2026 focused on water quality and environmental reporting.

Report for America places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. Their proven partnership model is structured to harness the skills and idealism of an emerging group of journalists plus the creative spirit of local news organizations—like ours.

Report for America is a two-year program (with an option for three) that delivers a wide range of benefits to its corps members. Beyond paying up to half of the journalists’ salaries, it provides ongoing training and mentorship by leading journalists, peer networking, and memberships to select professional organizations.

The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk

Through Report for America, WXPR also joins the Mississippi River Basin Ag and Water Desk, a journalism collaborative covering the nation’s largest watershed.

The WXPR listening area is split between the Mississippi River Basin, Lake Superior Basin, and Lake Michigan-Huron Basin.

The mission of the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk is to enhance the quantity, quality and impact of journalism on agriculture, water and related issues throughout the basin.

Harvest Public Media

WXPR joined Harvest Public Media in 2024. It’s a collaboration of public radio stations across the central U.S., covering agriculture, food and the environment.

Harvest Public Media is a Local Journalism Center, established in 2010 with the support of a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The initiative was intended to strengthen collaboration among Midwest public broadcasting stations.

Local partners

WXPR is a small newsroom with a large coverage area. Our listening area covers eight counties, extending from Lincoln and Langlade Counties north into the U.P. We could not cover all that needs to be covered without local news partnerships.

We share news stories with several local and regional newspapers, radio stations, and TV stations. These include WAOW Television, WSAU, the Vilas County News Review, the Tomahawk Leader, Interlochen Public Radio, and WCMU.

These news shares are essential to ensure WXPR remains a mirror of the Northwoods and a window on the world.