All Sides with Amy Juravich

Cyclospora is a microscopic organism that is causing a big problem in the U.S.

Cases of cyclosporiasis have been growing throughout the summer, with about 4,000 reported cases in Ohio alone.

Federal health officials are still investigating the source. How much longer do we have to worry about the produce we eat? Have recent cuts to federal agencies played a role in the outbreak?

This episode of All Sides will discuss the public health outbreak with a public health expert, gastroenterologist and journalist who covers the CDC and FDA.

Guests:

• Sanja Ilic, food safety state specialist/professor of human nutrition, Ohio State University
• Dr. We’am Hussain, gastroenterologist, Kettering Health
• Marcia Brown, food and agriculture reporter, POLITICO

photo: Jeff Amy / AP

There isn't anything much better than eating and cooking with the produce you grew in your backyard.

Tomatoes, cucumbers, basil and strawberries are all things that Ohio gardeners have planted. But with gardening comes a lot of un-answered questions.

Is what you grew in your backyard safe from the parasite causing stomach distress? How can you keep deer from eating your entire garden? How often should you be watering with the ever-changing heat extremes?

Plus, native gardening has grown from a niche practice to a mainstream trend.

What native plants should you add to your yard to attract bees and butterflies and help the environment?

Gardening experts will answer your questions on this hour of All Sides.

Guests:

• Mike Hogan, extension educator/associate professor of agriculture and natural resources, Ohio State University
• Deb Knapke, author/educator/Ohio's Garden Sage

It looks like federal officials are moving one step closer to deporting Haitians in central Ohio who no longer have temporary protected status.

Action from ICE officials over the weekend contrasts with comments Gov. Mike DeWine made just days ago.

Democratic governor candidate Amy Acton put out her first TV ad, months and many ads after her Republican challenger Vivek Ramaswamy.

Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno doesn't want voters to forget the COVID years, using a profanity-laced cross-examination of Dr. Anthony Fauci.

A longshot effort by a Democratic representative could let 16 and 17 year-old Ohioans vote.

We're talking about all of these topics on this week's Reporter Roundtable.

Guests:

• Jo Ingles, senior reporter, Ohio Public Radio Statehouse News Bureau
• Jeremy Pelzer, chief political reporter, Cleveland.com

Before going viral, Tara DeFrancisco already had a list of talents she’s known for. She is a comedian, performer, actor as well as an educator and adjunct professor.

Now, she’s best known for her social media accounts where she posts humorous and inspirational content.

A Columbus-based poet planned a visit to Iceland, but she wasn’t expecting it to turn into one of her most successful exhibitions: A Journey of Iceland — From Darkness to Light.

The piece includes poetry of her time in Iceland, as well as music and visual elements by an Icelandic artist she met on her trip.

The CEO and co-founder of the Women of Color Retail Alliance was just recognized as a member of Columbus Monthly’s 2026 class of Inspiring Women.

The organization is working to diversify retail jobs and elevate women of color within those roles through training and support networks.

We're talking to all three on this week's edition of Fascinating Ohio.

Guests:

• Tara DeFrancisco, comedy performer and social media influence
• Erin Boggs, poet, Journey of Iceland: From Darkness to Light
• Kimberly Lee Minor, CEO/co-founder, Women of Color Retail Alliance

Grady Memorial Hospital in Delaware is closing its labor and delivery unit, diverting patients and babies to other OhioHealth hospitals that are farther away.

The facility is hardly alone. More than 20 other hospitals in the state have taken similar steps.

Among the reasons: fewer babies, not enough staff, costly to operate, etc.

All of this is happening in a state still grappling with high maternal and infant mortality rates. What's the answer?

We're talking about the issue on this hour of All Sides.

Guests:

• Jack Slemenda, reporter, Delaware Source
• Bianca Holder, manager, Maternal Infant Health Initiative, March of Dimes Ohio
• John Palmer, public affairs director, Ohio Hospital Association

Our look at the campaign for governor this week runs from property taxes to the rights of transgender athletes to police union endorsements. We start with taxes.

Next to rising gas prices and grocery prices, property taxes have loomed as the symbol of affordability in Ohio. Thanks to rising property values and voter-approved levies, property taxes have risen sharply in Ohio over the last few years.

State lawmakers have done a little to limit the increases. A ballot effort to abolish property taxes has stalled.

And candidates for governor are laying out their plans.

Democrat Amy Acton has presented her plan to lower tax bills for some. Her plan calls for extending the homestead exemption, which helps low- to moderate-income seniors. She also proposes a rebate to low- and moderate-income Ohioans who see sharp increases in property taxes. Republican Vivek Ramaswamy has promised to reduce property taxes across the board to levels from before the end of the pandemic. Neither candidate has said how they would make up for the reduction in local tax revenue.

Property tax relief is topic one this week. Here to discuss is WOSU-TV’s "Columbus on the Record" panel:

• Sarah Donaldson, statehouse reporter for Ohio Public Radio
• Maria Bruno, director of Ohioans Against Extremism
• Mark Weaver, Republican strategist

Snollygoster of the week

For the second week in a row, we give it to Sen. Bernie Moreno, Ohio's senior U.S. senator and a member of the world's greatest deliberative body, who had this question for Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the national COVID-19 response, at a nationally televised hearing of the U.S. Senate. Before we run the unedited clip, a warning: Moreno uses an f-word, and it is not Fauci or Fifth, as in the Fifth Amendment.

You know, there's not much more to say. But it got headlines. It went kind of viral. It certainly pleased the far right of his political base. Will it hurt him politically in a statewide race? He won't be tested for four years.

It is certainly worthy of our Snollygoster of the Week award.

Cartoons have been around for centuries. In more modern days, they fill our newspapers and bookshelves, showcasing both artistic and written talent.

Cartoons, comics and graphic novels have all found their way into our lives, tackling tough subjects or just providing a good laugh.

On Aug. 8, the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum at Ohio State will be holding the National Cartoonists Society Showcase, bringing many popular cartoonists to the Buckeye State.

We will hear from the head curator of comics and cartoon art at the museum, the creator of the Cathy comics which is celebrating its 50thanniversary and the cartoonist behind the New York Times-bestselling book Smile.

Guests:

• Jenny Robb, head curator of comics and cartoon art/associate professor, Ohio State University’s Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum
• Cathy Guisewite, creator of the "Cathy" comic strip
• Raina Telgemeier, cartoonist/author of the graphic memoir Smile

Related Link:

• National Cartoonists Society Showcase

Accessory Dwelling Units, better known as ADU's, are small, self-contained residential units that can be attached to a home or built as a separate structure, often as a small apartment or in-law suite.

Columbus has released a new handbook for residents in building one on their property, though under current city code, building one could be very expensive.

We’re looking at the role ADU's could play in the need for housing here in Columbus.

Guests:

• Brent Warren, reporter, Columbus Underground
• Alison Goebel, executive director, Greater Ohio Policy Center
• Otto Beatty, former Columbus City Councilmember
• Jenny Carlson, executive director, Ohio AARP

What happens if we manipulate the weather?

That was a question that scientists addressed in a recent study about cloud brightening and its possible effects on the El Niño storms.

The benefits could save entire towns from the storms, but the consequences could greatly outweigh the benefits.

Stroke and spinal cord injuries affect millions of people. But breakthroughs in recovery have been singular.

Battelle and Ohio State’s NeuroTech Institute have partnered to create non-invasive rehabilitative, wearable technology.

Two of OpenAI’s most capable models hacked into Hugging Face, an AI startup. The AI did this unprompted with limited guardrails, raising concerns about the technology’s capabilities.

Guests:

• Dr. Jessica Wan, climate scientist and postdoctoral researcher, University of Chicago
• Justin Sanchez, Battelle Tech fellow
• Jon Snyder, CEO, NeuroLife
• Russell Holly, director of commerce content, CNET

photo: Tony Gutierrez / AP

The health of American Democracy is in decline.

According to the McCourtney Institute for Democracy, only 27% of Gen Z strongly agree that democracy is the best form of government.

Democracy can be found in many forms and political ideologies. Most recently, we’re witnessing the rise of Democratic Socialism. Zohran Mamdani, Bernie Sanders, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are just some of the politicians who identify as socialists.

Combined with the public’s growing anti-capitalist sentiments, these new political ideologies are stirring quite the controversy. President Trump and JD Vance have spent the past year comparing them to communism.

But are these new approaches to government really a threat to our democracy, or arethey tryingto revive the health of our democracy?

We’ll learn more about how Americans are rethinking democracy.

Guests:

• Michael Kazin, professor of history at Georgetown University
• Brianna Mack, associate professor of politics and government at Ohio Wesleyan University
• Tanmay Shah, Cleveland City Council Member, Ward 12