You know the voices, and you know the stories. But behind every story on WGLT is a person who calls this community home just like you do.
The Meet the Newsroom series pulls back the curtain to introduce you to the team that makes WGLT possible. The series continues with deputy news director Lauren Warnecke.
"I think it was maybe Don Lemon, after he just got arrested for doing journalism, I believe it was him who said—so I'm borrowing this—he said, ‘Journalism is really the only profession that's enshrined in the Constitution and protected by the Constitution,'" Warnecke said. "So I think it's really not an exaggeration to say that the fact that we've had quality journalism in Bloomington-Normal for a long time, and that's not just including WGLT, is a big part of what makes this community awesome."
WGLT: Your job title here is deputy news director. What does that mean? And what do you do every day?
Lauren: Deputy news director, I guess, means a little bit of everything as far as newsrooms go. Primarily, I'm a reporter. I also assist the news director. He does most of the assigning of stories, but I fill in when he's away. So I help manage the schedule on-air and online. I work with correspondents and students. I'm also the primary digital editor for our web content. So, every day is different and beautiful.
Why do you work in journalism? And what do you like about it?
Lauren: Journalism is kind of a third act for me. This is my third profession, and I think third time's the charm, right? So it's really an intentional choice for me. I spend most of my days getting to talk to really interesting people and learning new and interesting things. So it doesn't really get better than that for me.
I was listening to an interview, I'm gonna mess up who it was that said this. I think it was maybe Don Lemon, after he just got arrested for doing journalism. I believe it was him who said—so I'm borrowing this—he said, ‘Journalism is really the only profession that's enshrined in the Constitution and protected by the Constitution.’ So I think it's really not an exaggeration to say that the fact that we've had quality journalism in Bloomington-Normal for a long time, and that's not just WGLT, is a big part of what makes this community awesome.
Is there a specific interaction with a listener or reader that reminded you why public media matters?
Lauren: I think we're lucky in Bloomington-Normal that it's, like, big and small. So you can kind of run into people in the community that know you, and I've had several interactions where people have expressed a lot of support for what we do and a lot of concern. Like when our federal funding got cut. Literally, I was at the doctor's office getting my physical, and my doctor was like, ‘Are you guys okay? Are you gonna make it?’ And just that kind of care really mattered to me. It pointed out how valuable we are, and that people would miss us if we weren't here.
If you could force everyone in Bloomington-Normal to listen to or read just one story that we've produced in this last year? Which one would it be? And why?
Lauren: I think in 2026 so far, I would urge people to read my interview with Juan and Alvaro Bello. They're immigrants to Bloomington-Normal, originally from Venezuela, and they're now U.S. citizens. They've made their lives here, but they have family still in Venezuela, and we talked to them a couple of days after the Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was extradited to New York. They had a lot of mixtures of emotions, both concern for their family and also a lot of joy. Juan was someone who lived in Venezuela during a large period of uprising when they tried to overthrow the Maduro regime. Both men said seeing him in handcuffs was something that gave them a lot of joy. Juan told me that his only dream is that there's enough stabilization in the country that he's able to see his parents before they die. They're in their nineties.
So it was really important, I think, for our listeners to feel connected to people with a connection to Venezuela and also to Bloomington-Normal, since there were a lot of big feelings on the internet that week, and I really hope that people read it.
What's one thing about your daily job that would most surprise a reader or listener who only hears the finished product?
Lauren: I think maybe something that would be surprising is, what we do is fast. We turn things around quickly. It looks really immediate. Journalism is fast and it's not always super elegant. They call it, ‘the first draft of history,’ but there's a lot of thought and intention and deliberation that goes into every story. I mean, we've had full staff meetings about one word sometimes, and I think I would hope that our readers and listeners know that we do put a lot of care into what we do.
This is WGLT’s 60th anniversary. So let's do a prediction. What do you think news media will look like in 60 years? The year 2086.
Lauren: OK, I think this is maybe going to be an unpopular opinion, but I'm going to try it anyway. I think, honestly, it could be newspaper and radio. I'm old enough to have seen technologies die and come back again, and the fact that vinyl is living its best life right now makes me think that there's a possibility that these mediums that have survived for—in newspapers' case—you know, hundreds of years. I think it could still be there. And I think especially, one day the internet is going to implode or blow up or not be possible anymore, and all of that will be lost, but newspapers and radio remain. Maybe that's cautious optimism, or maybe AI robots will be directly downloading news to our brains. I don't know, I won't be here.
When you aren't at the station, where are we most likely to find you, and what are you doing to unplug?
Lauren: I spend a lot of time in my backyard, and I sort of "play" gardening. I think I'm gardening, but I'm not doing it very well, and so mostly that just looks like me wandering around in my backyard digging. But it is a good stress reliever for me. Also I like to do a lot of introvert-y things like cooking and reading and listening to music and podcasts. I like going to shows around town, but that's also kind of partly my job. So I wouldn't say that's an unwind situation.
Let's wrap it up with a speed round to get to know you a little better. First question, what's the last good book you've read?
Lauren: Babble, or The Necessity of Violence by Rebecca Kuang. Sounds like a downer, but it's excellent.
What's the movie you've seen the most?
Lauren: I think it's probably Amadeus.
Who's your favorite NPR host or reporter?
Lauren: I'm a sucker about the media, so at the top of the list is definitely going to be Brooke Gladstone and David Folkenflik.
And let's say you've got out of town relatives coming to visit you in Bloomington-Normal, you've got one day to show them around. Where do you take them to show off the town?
Lauren: Uptown Normal, Miller Park Zoo, dinner at Epiphany Farms.
