Florida Matters

Originally aired Aug. 18

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. Census Bureau is trying to count every individual living in the United States: a difficult task as millions of lives have been upended.

Adding to worries of an incomplete count, the deadline to respond to the 2020 census is fast approaching. All counting efforts end on Sept. 30.

Florida Matters Host Bradley George spoke with D'Vera Cohn, a writer and editor at the Pew Research Center who specializes demographics, and Mike Schneider, an Orlando-based reporter with the Associated Press who is covering the 2020 census.

Days before the shutdown to slow the spread of COVID 19, David Brancaccio, host of the Marketplace Morning Report, visited downtown St. Petersburg for a live event. He joined host Bradley George at the Palladium touching on a wide variety of topics.

The coronavirus pandemic is not only taking its toll of the nation’s healthcare system, but also its businesses. This week, Florida Matters takes a look at small businesses, which are particularly hard hit.

This election cycle, WUSF is focusing on the issues rather than the political horse race. We've teamed up with NPR member station WMFE in Orlando for I-4 Votes, a collaboration covering the issues that matter to those along the I-4 corridor.

Professional wrestling, or as it’s called in some circles, “sports entertainment,” has a long history in Florida and in Tampa. It date back to the days of Championship Wrestling in Florida.

Historian Canter Brown takes a look at the man who literally put Tampa on the map. He has written a new book, Henry Bradley Plant: Gilded Age Dreams for Florida and the New South."

A new comprehensive book – "Jews of Florida: Centuries of Stories" – takes a look at the historic individuals who helped shape Florida's early history.

Florida's state animal has never had it very good. The Florida Panther was shot at, run off its hunting grounds and hemmed in by roads and development. It got so bad that by the early 1990s, only a few remained.

WUSF's Robin Sussingham talks with Brian Corley, supervisor of elections with Pasco County, and Miles Parks, a reporter with National Public Radio in Washington, D.C.

As the Florida Legislature opens its 2020 session, Gov. Ron DeSantis addressed House and Senate members Tuesday during his State of the State address.