The Amplify team's goal is to connect people living in Michigan with the resources and information they need to thrive. Our reporting, how-to guides, and community events will help you become your own best advocate on basic needs like housing, public safety, health and more.
Recent Stories
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Tips from a lifelong fan to help you cheer the Lions on without looking like a rookie
Helpful Guides
Get resources on a range of topics from housing needs, due process rights, and more.
Can you cuss at cops? Know your rights when interacting with police
It is legal to speak your mind, advocate for yourself or record police activity in most circumstances. Still, attorneys and a former law enforcement officer say there’s no guarantee your rights will be respected in the moment — or that it’s always safe to exercise them.
You can’t recycle that… right? Find places in Michigan that take pizza boxes, foil and more
Does recycling feel messy and confusing to you? You're not alone. We've made a map and searchable database of Michigan recycling programs to help you navigate the do's and don'ts of recycling in your area.
See someone in crisis? You don't have to call the police. Here are alternatives.
Following the police killing of a young man with schizophrenia several months ago, Michigan Radio collected resources to find support for people in mental health crisis.
What you should know about car insurance after no-fault overhaul
Michigan Radio has put together this guide to help you understand the biggest changes brought by the state's 2019 no-fault law.
Detroit's going to restart water shutoffs. Here's how you can avoid one.
About a quarter of Detroit's residential water customers were behind on their bills as of late last year. But Detroit Water and Sewerage Department officials say they won't shut off anyone who enrolls in an assistance program or gets on a payment plan.
How to escrow your rent in Michigan
This guide looks at escrow in Michigan, its risks, and what resources may be available in your area. Escrow is one of the tools tenants have to deal with housing problems when landlords are unresponsive.
Detroit renters with building problems do have options. Here's how to protect yourselves.
Michigan Radio consulted residents, lawyers, academics, and activists to round up what renters can do to protect themselves when building problems go unaddressed.
Thousands of Michigan children are eligible for free school meals. Here’s how you can make sure your kid gets theirs.
COVID-era universal school lunches — where all kids were given free meals regardless of income, feeding an additional 10 million students nationwide — has ended.
How you can protect yourself online, post-Roe
Abortion is still legal in Michigan. But many privacy advocates are urging caution about online activity that could be used to prosecute people seeking or assisting with abortion services.
A guide to understanding due process rights in Wayne County jails
A Michigan Radio analysis found that as of January 2022, at least 120 people were being held in pre-trial detention at a Wayne County jail for more than 18 months. We’ve created this guide to help you understand due process rights, and ways you can support a loved one in pre-trial detention.
More from the Amplify Team
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Just over half of the school bond proposals on the ballot in 2024 were rejected by voters. About a quarter of the proposals were repeat attempts after previous failures. -
Few Michigan ballots get rejected because of voter signatures. If yours did, there’s still time to fix it. -
Every county can have different groups of challengers. We got a list of challenger organizations for most counties in the state. -
Dozens of Michigan communities are voting on school funding questions this November. This guide can help you figure out the school bond, sinking fund or millage question on your ballot. -
Library funding questions are being posed to voters in many Michigan communities. Sometimes, those voters reject their requests. Here's what you need to know about the library millage on your ballot. -
The typically dull but important process of officially counting ballots became a circus show four years ago in Michigan. Since then, courts and voters have reiterated that the board of canvassers' job is simple – to count votes. Challenges go elsewhere. -
Are you ready to cast your ballot? Whether you’re curious about how candidates for president are speaking about your priorities, need to get up to speed on local and statewide races, or want to check whether you’re registered to vote, Outlier Media is here to help you get informed — before, during and after Election Day, Nov. 5. -
Nearly two dozen people are running for three seats on the Detroit school board during a pivotal time for the school district. Only one of the three incumbents, Sherry Gay-Dagnogo, is seeking re-election. That means there will be two new faces on the board, as members Misha Stallworth and Sonya Mays have opted not to seek re-election. -
Virtually 100% of babies in Flint are receiving up to $7,500 in cash aid, no strings attached. Now, that program is trying to expand to more Michigan communities, including the rural eastern Upper Peninsula. But first, they have to raise millions in private funding. -
Thousands of Michiganders can get cold or hot meals at restaurants in 26 counties through a food assistance program called the Restaurant Meal Program.
Amplify Events
The Amplify Team often holds events related to the stories they report in the communities that are affected by those stories. See photos from some of these events below:
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— Jail's True Cost 1
Community Engagement Reporter Jamie Simmons speaks at the Jail's True Cost event (2022).
Jodi Westrick / Michigan Radio
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— Jail's True Cost 2
Attendees look at art by prisoners at the Jail's True Cost event (2022).
Jodi Westrick / Michigan Radio
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— Jail's True Cost 3
Handouts and informative flyers at the Jail's True Cost event (2022).
Jodi Westrick / Michigan Radio
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— Jail's True Cost 4
Attendees had the opportunity to hear from prisoners in this interactive display at Jail's True Cost (2022).
Jodi Westrick / Michigan Radio
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— Housing Forum 1
Data reporter Nisa Khan at the Housing Forum (2022).
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
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— Housing Forum 2
Kids are welcome at most Enterprise events. Here, reporter Lindsey Smith teaches a young attendee to use a recorder.
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
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— Housing Forum
Community Engagement Reporter Jamie Simmons speaks at the Housing Forum (2022).
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
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— Housing Forum 3
A panel of local experts speaks about the housing crisis in Detroit and give resources for residents.
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
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— Housing Forum 5
Attendees at the Enterprise Housing Forum (2022).
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
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