Madison has struggled dealing with its growing diversity, and the city's television stations and programming have not been immune to that struggle. More often than not, if you are black, Latino, or Asian, you are unlikely to see somebody delivering the news to you who looks like you nor bringing you news about diverse people, events, neighborhoods, and issues that you would like to see.
WISC-TV3 was the first television to recognize that Madison’s demographics have changed and late last year launched its new Madison Magazine TV show which is a product of the food, drink, lifestyle, culture and entertainment magazine for Madison. The show is spearheaded by its host Deana Wright.
“We want to tell the stories in a fresh and a new and a creative way,” Wright tells The Madison Times in an interview at Jade Mountain Cafe on Madison's near east side. “There are just so many stories to tell — whether you're talking about issues or individuals. I feel like I’ve been given the gift of gab and I want to use it in a positive way. I think this new show is a perfect fit.”
The program, which airs on Saturdays at 6:30 p.m., aims to tackle tough and important community issues like the recent Race to Equity report that showed that 54 percent of all Dane County African Americans lived below the poverty line compared to 8.7 percent for whites. But the show also touches on lighter features and topics of the Madison area that deal with lifestyle, culture, entertainment, and food.
“I like learning new things. There are parts of this city that I still haven't seen. We've done a tech crawl, we've gone to excellent restaurants on a walking food tour. I am learning all the time and I like the fact that I can share that with our audience and folks who are like me and who may not be familiar with the place or the event or the issue,” Wright says. “To impart that knowledge is what I love [and] to be able to inform and uplift. I take it back to my radio days. When I go into the studio, it's not just about saying any old thing on the air … I always wanted to inform, entertain, or uplift. There has to be a benefit to the audience.”
Madison has been traditionally slow to catch on to long-standing national television trends embracing diversity, but that is clearly the wave of the future.
“We do see it on a national network level if you look at a show like “Scandal.” A large number of people of color watch that show,” Wright says. “The fact that they put an African American woman in this lead role speaks volumes for the network. On a local level, I don't think we see it as much. And for a city that is diverse as Madison has become, it's necessary. I commend both Channel 3 and Madison Magazine for realizing the importance of creating programming that would reflect the diversity of our community.”
Born in Charleston, S.C., Wright and her family moved to Madison when he was 6 months old where she was raised. Wright left town in 1996 and has worked in big-city radio stations all around the country before returning to Madison a few years ago.
“I lost my job and went from six figures to zero figures; that will do it,” Wright laughs when I asked her what brought her back to Wisconsin. “But I really wanted to take care of my mom and help her deal with health issues. I just wanted to be closer to her.”
Wright has worked in big-city radio stations in Detroit, Philadelphia, Denver, and Los Angeles, where she worked at Stevie Wonder's radio station KJLH.
“It was very cool working for Stevie. I've met and interviewed so many celebrities so I'm not someone who puts somebody on a pedestal, but getting hired by him and his station I have to admit that I was a little in awe,” Wright says. “Stevie Wonder! He's an icon and he's a legend. It turns out that he's very hands-on in terms of his programming of the station. And he's just a great guy. He called the studio many times pretending to be somebody else and me not knowing, I kinda fell for it. He’s a jokester. There were times when he'd bring a limo to the station and take the whole staff out for lunch at a fancy restaurant. He was amazing. He was very giving and very caring.”
Wright's most recent big-city job was at WBLS 107.5 FM in New York City — the number-one media market in the country where her listenership topped 3 million people. She's used to having big audiences so she’s not shy on the air, but television can be a bit different from radio.
“I have done a lot of radio and I hadn't done TV in awhile so the new show has been an experience for me, but I'm really enjoying it. I feel like I am much more comfortable now,” Wright says. “I think that we are a culmination of our life experiences and our upbringing andI feel very comfortable in front of the camera. Working in major market radio, you have to be at the top of your game just to get there. The delivery for TV I find is the same, it's that you’re just being seen delivering.
“I want this to be a show that could air in one of the other cities that I've lived in — New York, L.A., Philadelphia — and still hold its own,” Wright continues. “Certainly, the content would be different, but I want us to set the bar high [here in Madison]. I don't want us to create and produce a show that is a 'local show'…. I want it to look like a major-market show. This is small-market TV, but it doesn't have to look like small-market TV. I try to push myself and we all try to push ourselves to put together the best possible show.”
Wright is the daughter of the late Rev. James C. Wright and Mother Jacqueline Wright, two amazing Madison community and civil rights activists, and they have had a tremendous influence on her. “Growing up with a mom and dad who were very active with civil and human rights — both in terms of what they were doing in the community and saying in the home — it definitely molded me,” Wright says. “I'm very vocal when it comes to issues of race; sometimes to my detriment. I feel like my dad is looking down on me and smiling. I think that in my own little way I'm trying to help in the fight for what's right.”
After living in many large, metropolitan cities throughout the United States, Wright is still getting used to living in Madison.
“It's hard for many people of color to live in Madison. Honestly, if I wasn't from Madison, I doubt that I would stay in Madison because it is a very difficult and challenging place to be — especially for a single black woman,” Wright says. “For me, there's a certain level of comfort because I am from here. But for others, it can be a struggle.
“I don't know if this city really reaches out to people of color. You go to some of these functions and it's the same people at every function and the same people of color. I hope that this [Madison Magazine TV] program is a step in the right direction … if we can inform people on what's going on in their community,” she adds. “Sometimes people just don't know and maybe this TV show is a way of saying, 'Hey! Here's what's happening. Here's what's going on in your city that you chose to live in for the time being.' And maybe they will stay.”
Wright says that people in Madison certainly know about diversity — they know that groups exists and gaps exist and that Madison is a much different city than it was even just 20 years ago. She hopes that her show will help people take that next step to really know about diversity.
“We want the show to be a springboard to further the dialog. We want it to be a purpose-driven show and we want to make people think,” she says. “We're just hoping the city — and specifically the people of color here — embrace the show. If they tune in, they will see a show that is telling stories in a new and fresh and creative way and somebody who is willing to ask great questions. I won't run from the tough questions. Maybe people will answer them and maybe they won't. But I will ask them.”
Wright says that the Madison Magazine TV Show is always open to community feedback. “We're doing the show, but it's a show for the community, of the community, and we're doing it with the community. We want it to be grassroots,” Wright says. “We have a great team here and we all work together to brainstorm and to get good stories, but we want to hear from the people of the community. This is their show. We want to have an impact on the community.”
The Madison Magazine TV Show airs on the first Saturday of the month at 6:30 p.m. on WISC-TV and is rebroadcast throughout the month on TVW (Channel 14).
“It's hard to do everything in a half hour. There's so much more that we want to do,” Wright says. “It would be great if we could expand to an hour show or into something daily or weekly. There are so many stories we want to tell.”
The show currently has two major sponsors —University of Wisconsin and Smart Motors — and they are hoping to get more.
“Our major goal is to increase our airtime to be more than monthly,” Wright says. “We want to be topical and we want to be timely. It's really hard doing a monthly show. Even though our ratings have been good so far, it's really hard to attract the audience and keep them. We certainly have enough content there. There are a wealth of stories in Madison and there are so many different people and things we can highlight. Everybody has a story. There are a lot of issues to tackle.”
