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Long form journalism and deep dive investigative reporting on local issues have historically been the domain of local newspapers. But as newsrooms have shrunk, gaps have been created — and a new model for local journalism has emerged in response: nonprofit newsrooms, mostly comprised of reporters who once worked for newspapers and other forms of commercial media. We meet the Executive Editor-in Chief of Suncoast Searchlight which focuses on Sarasota, Manatee, and DeSoto Counties to get a sense of their origin story and mission — and reflect on the state of local news that’s led to the rise of these online, nonprofit news organizations.

Craig Pittman is a native Floridian who has written about Florida and Floridians and them any, shall we say, unique characteristics they both have. He covered environmental issues for the Tampa Bay Times for more than two decades and he now writes a weekly column for the nonprofit newsroom Florida Phoenix, and he co-hosts the “Welcome to Florida” podcast. Pittman is author of  “Oh, Florida! How America's Weirdest State Influences the Rest of the Country,” and 2020’s “Cat Tale: The Wild, Weird Battle to Save the Florida Panther.” He’ll be in town on Wednesday to give a talk about Florida panthers at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Greater Naples so we get a preview.

Model UNs are educational simulations — basically role playing — that teach participating students diplomacy, international relations, and how the United Nations works. At Model UN conferences student delegates deeply study a United Nations member country, research topics of global interest, and work to get resolutions passed on that country’s behalf. They happen around the world at the high school and college level, and this week the Southwest Florida Model UN is happening on the campus of Florida Gulf Coast University, bringing together high school teams from schools around southwest Florida. It’s sponsored by the Naples Council on World Affairs in partnership with FGCU. Today we talk with its Keynote Speaker.

April 10 is Gopher Tortoise Day, as designed by the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission and the nonprofit Gopher Tortoise Council. So, we have a conversation about the importance of these large, long-lived reptiles that can be found in all of Florida’s 67 counties. These large, slow moving reptiles are crucial to ecosystems because of the deep burrows they dig and live in. More than 350 other species — known as commensals — take advantage of those burrows for shelter. Their main threats are cars while trying to cross roads, and development that occurs on the land where they live.

2021 was the highest year on record for documented reports of violence, harassment, and vandalism directed toward Jews — and the 2022 numbers are likely to show the same or even an increase. That’s according to the Anti-Defamation League. Much, if not most, of these incidents begin in the virtual world, where hate speech often flows freely, even on large social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. It’s especially prevalent on smaller social media sites which generally provide no moderation or censorship whatsoever. Our guest today has spent much of his academic career focusing on antisemitism — both the why and the how, especially online.

2021 was the highest year on record for documented reports of violence, harassment, and vandalism directed toward Jews — and the 2022 numbers are likely to show the same or even an increase. That’s according to the Anti-Defamation League. Much, if not most, of these incidents begin in the virtual world, where hate speech often flows freely, even on large social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. It’s especially prevalent on smaller social media sites which generally provide no moderation or censorship whatsoever. Our guest today has spent much of his academic career focusing on antisemitism — both the why and the how, especially online.

Karyn Parsons spent six years playing the ditzy character, Hilary, on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The show was huge in the culture in the 1990s — it ran for six seasons beginning in 1990 and left an indelible mark on pop culture. Her character, Hilary, was — and still is — truly beloved by fans everywhere. What fans didn't know is that during her time playing Hilary, Parsons was devoting quite a bit of her own personal time to writing short fiction, and learning about history — particularly inspiring and empowering stories of African American achievement.

More than four thousand Southwest Floridians from all walks of life sat down together back in March to talk about the problems that are affecting our region and its residents. Spearheaded by the Collaboratory in downtown Fort Myers, in partnership with the Collier Community Foundation and Charlotte Community Foundation, this is a follow up to an On The Table event held back in 2019. People attended one of about 280 "tables" and about a quarter of them filled out a survey that asked them to rank the issues they thought were most pressing. We dig into the results.

While visitors to Koreshan State Park in Estero have often asked whether there was any connection between Cyrus Teed Koresh — the man who founded The Koreshan Unity which called the land home beginning in the early 1800s, and David Koresh — the man who led the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas from the mid 1980s until the group’s fiery demise during an FBI siege gone wrong on their Mount Carmel compound on April 19th, 1993 — the answer was always no, there is no connection between the two and the similarity between their names is purely coincidental. Well, new evidence has come to light that seems to prove there was most certainly a connection of some kind.

We meet Fran Mainella, the new Director of the Alliance for Florida's National Parks. The 20-year-old nonprofit works to promote the Everglades, Dry Tortugas and Biscayne National Parks, as well as Big Cypress National Preserve. Its website says their goal is “to instill in all people an appreciation of Florida's public lands and natural resources for what they are – the key to the sustainability and prosperity of the state - by enriching the park experience and connecting diverse communities to the nature that abounds in their backyards.”