DIGGING DEEP

Plagued by low ratings, Al Jazeera America, the cable television network owned by the government of Qatar and launched last year, isn’t on the radar screen of most Americans. But the quality of the programming is top notch in an age when talking heads spouting opinions passes for news on other networks. On Tuesday, a taste of what the network offers will be available for free at the Capital City Bar and Grill, 3149 S. Dirksen Parkway, when “Wisconsin’s Mining Standoff” will be screened starting at 7 p.m. The 25-minute documentary commissioned by Al Jazeera America and produced by Milwaukeebased 371 Productions explores a proposal to develop a massive $1.5 billion open-pit iron mine in what is now forest in northern Wisconsin. The mining company in Wisconsin is owned by Chris Cline, who has resurrected the coal mining industry in Illinois, and, like critics here, critics in Wisconsin say that Cline’s mining plans will devastate the environment. As in Illinois, Cline and his companies have made plenty of campaign contributions in Wisconsin, where lawmakers have overhauled mining laws to allow the massive iron mine. Citizens Against Longwall Mining is organizing the screening.