Two Capitol reporters shared their experiences and gave some new context for Wisconsin’s recent political turmoil Tuesday while talking to students about the “monumental moment” in Wisconsin history. 

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporters Jason Stein and Patrick Marley, co-authors of the new book “More Than They Bargained For,” talked to students about their book, which begins its account of the historic period shortly before tens of thousands of people protested Gov. Scott Walker’s policies at the Capitol.

The event, put on by the Wisconsin Union Directorate, is part of WUD’s Lit Fest, which runs through April 27.  

Stein said their book combines original reporting on almost every event surrounding the protests and the ensuing recall elections, including a failed attempt to unseat Walker.

“Whichever side [was very involved], [there was] something new and unbelievable,” Marley said. “That’s why we decided to write this book.”

Stein said he was amazed at how much people were interested in the state’s political fight, noting that more people wanted to read about the latest developments than read about the Green Bay Packers winning the Super Bowl. 

Stein explained the various things he wants readers to take away from the book. He said he wants readers to consider the book as a historic record of the “crazy” series of events that will now be integral to Wisconsin history.

Republicans did not warn Capitol Police about the response because they did not know so many protesters would come to the Capitol, Stein said.

As they point out in their book, Walker has said he would have spent more time making his case over the collective bargaining law. 

The law eliminated most collective bargaining rights for many public employees and faced appeals from Democrats and unions, with a Dane County judge striking down the law last year.

Although the collective bargaining law attracted the protesters, Walker has said it allowed local governments to rein in its budgets in a tough economic time, according to Stein.

The protests came at the same time as the Arab Spring and were a precursor to the Occupy Wall Street movement that spread internationally, Marley said. He added that TIME Magazine called 2011 “the year of the protester.”

Stein said he was impressed with the peaceful protests, contrasting it to injuries that occurred during Occupy protests, and said the state could have had a “tragic situation.”

Both Marley and Stein talked about the impact social media had on their work, speaking about using Twitter as a reliable, yet frustrating, source of information. Marley said reporters worked hard to verify the multitudes of information on Twitter and were pressured to be quicker in their reporting because of it.

“We saw social media become part of the protests in Madison that had never been that big a part of Wisconsin state politics as it is now,” Stein said. 

Lit Fest week will include different events on topics such as screenwriting and sports writing. It will also include a Harry Potter reading, according to WUD Publication Committee Marketing Coordinator Taylor Nye, a former Badger Herald employee. 

Senior Legislative Editor Polo Rocha contributed to this story.