Beyond the News WFLA Interviews

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor presents her State of the City address Monday (28th). St. Leo University professor Gianna Russo, who has formerly served as the city's official Wordsmith, will read a poem she composed for the occasion. She'll preview the themes in this year's message.

Pope Francis died early Monday. After nine days of mourning, the process of choosing a new pontiff to lead the Roman Catholic Church will begin. We speak with Dr. Stephen Okey, head of the Doctor of Theology program at St. Leo University near Tampa, to explain what's ahead.

Pinellas County is holding in-person and virtual meetings to get public input on how to spend an $813-million grant from HUD to support recovery from Hurricanes Idalia, Helene and Milton. Gordon Byrd speaks with Deputy County Administrator Matthew Spoor.

Bradenton police are looking for a man in connection with an incident in which three Teslas were vandalized in the parking lot of the Pinebrook Commons shopping center. Detectives think he was driving a dark Chevy crossover or SUV. We get more information from police spokesperson Meredith Censullo.

Tampa celebrates St. Patrick's Day by dyeing the Hillsborough River green. It's the centerpiece of a daylong festival Saturday (15th). We speak with Ivy Lupco of the Tampa Downtown Partnership, which stages the event.

Several Pinellas County towns are holding city elections March 11th (Tuesday) for the first time since Hurricanes Helene and Milton. We focus in on the Gulfport mayor's election as that city was particularly hard-hit by the storms. This isn't just about an election but about a city's recovery from last year's history-making storms. In this podcast we interview candidate Sam Henderson, the incumbent Mayor,

Several Pinellas County towns are holding city elections March 11th (Tuesday) for the first time since Hurricanes Helene and Milton. We focus in on the Gulfport mayor's election as that city was particularly hard-hit by the storms. This isn't just about an election but about a city's recovery from last year's history-making storms. In this podcast we interview candidate Karen Love.

Several Pinellas County towns are holding city elections March 11th (Tuesday) for the first time since Hurricanes Helene and Milton. We focus in on the Gulfport mayor's election as that city was particularly hard-hit by the storms. This isn't just about an election but about a city's recovery from last year's history-making storms. In this podcast we interview candidate John Liccione.

The Pinellas beach city of Treasure Island is celebrating its ongoing recovery from last year's hurricanes with a "Back to the Beach" event Saturday and Sunday, inviting people from all over to join in. We speak with the city's Jason Beisel about the event and ongoing recovery.

Your old documents, your old computers, your old phones, and even your old gaming consoles could leave you vulnerable to identity theft. Hillsborough County is giving residents the chance to destroy that information Saturday morning. Listen to Consumer and Veterans Services director Eric Olsen to find out more about Shred Fest.

Hillsborough County holds its annual Neighborhoods Expo Saturday morning (March 1st). It gives county residents the chance to meet with county departments and services. We speak with county neighborhood liaison Stephanie Agliano.

City of Tampa and Hillsborough County officials will be on hand Wednesday morning as a historic marker is dedicated to Zion Cemetery. The first cemetery for Tampa's Black residents during the segregation era was sold and erased from maps and public knowledge, even though bodies were found at the site decades later. Part of the graveyard was incorporated into the Robles Park Village public housing complex. Its rediscovery in 2019 led to a campaign to uncover the area's hidden Black gravesites of the 20th century. We speak with Fred Hearns, Black History Curator at the Tampa Bay History Center, and president of the Zion Cemetery's preservation society about the site's past and future.

The Grapefruit League plays its first game Friday, and major league baseball teams that spend spring training in Florida are starting games over this weekend. Teams on Florida's west coast include the Yankees, Pirates, Orioles, Braves, Rays and Red Sox. We speak with Jennifer Grondahl, VP of Communications with the Baltimore Orioles, about spring at Ed Smith Stadium and how the O's bring year-round economic impact to Sarasota.

The SS United States, formerly the world's fastest transatlantic passenger liner, is about to become the world's biggest artificial reef. Later this week, the liner will be towed on its last voyage from Philadelphia to Mobile, Alabama, where it'll be stripped of fuel and other biohazards. Then it will be towed to waters off Okaloosa County, which bought the ship to give both sea creatures and divers a refuge. The county also plans a land-based museum honoring the ship's legacy. We speak with Alex Fogg, who's in charge of natural resources for the county.

February 14th is a day for the heart, Valentine's Day, but it's also a day for other organs as well. It's National Organ Donor Day. We talk with Tampa General Hospital nephrologist Dr. Pranjal Jain about becoming a living organ donor. You may be eligible even if you think you aren't.

Last year many seasonal residents of Manatee County watched helplessly from their summer homes as Tropical Storm Debby, and Hurricanes Helene and Milton did a number on their properties. Many snowbirds aren't sure how much hurricane prep they're allowed to do before heading north. Manatee County is holding a Q-and-A sessionFriday (2-14) aimed at those folks. We speak with Manatee County Public Safety Director Jodie Fiske.

The Florida State Fair opens its 12-day run Thursday (6th) in Tampa. We speak with Fair CEO Cheryl Flood about what to expect.

It's sort of like the day the steel mill closed in Allentown. HSN, once one of the Tampa Bay area's largest employers, is closing its St. Petersburg studios and moving operations to Pennsylvania. Home shopping on TV was born in Pinellas County (on the radio), then went nationwide and worldwide. We speak with the first salesman-host, Bob Circosta, about HSN and its legacy in the region.

Pinellas is among Florida counties seeing a spike in flu cases as the season nears peak. We speak with Dr. Eric Shamas, an emergency room physician at Orlando Health Bayfront Hospital in St. Petersburg.

A case so unusual it made it to the medical journals. Dr. Kostas Marmagkiolis, a cardiologist with Tampa Heart and Vascular who's affiliated with Tampa General Hospital, co-wrote an article for JAMA Cardiology about a local patient. The man had a yellow rash on his hands and feet that the doctor identified as a sign of extremely high cholesterol. Listen to find out what drove his levels so high.