The Spark

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Sweeny Murti grew up in Middletown in Dauphin County. Like millions of young boys before him, he played baseball. Sweeny realized early on that he probably didn't have the on-the-field skills to play big league baseball, but he did have a dream. Sweeny wanted to be like Harry Kalas -- the legendary play-by-play announcer for the Philadelphia Phillies -- he grew up listening to.

Last Thursday night he realized that dream. Sweeny Murti described the action on the New York Yankees radio network as the Yankees lost 2-1 to the Houston Astros.

Murti was filling in for long time Yankees announcer John Stirling.

Sweeny is not a newcomer to radio and the Yankees -- he's been the Yankees' beat reporter for WFAN Sports Radio in New York for much of the past 30 years. Early in his career, Murti worked for WITF's Radio Pennsylvania Network.

Sweeny Murti talks about his dream come true and broadcasting career on Wednesday's Smart Talk.

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Have you gotten your monthly electric bill yet? Electricity prices increased for most Pennsylvania utilities from 6% to 45% in June and those bills should just be arriving.

Prices are up because of the rising cost of natural gas which generates about half of Pennsylvania's electricity.

In recent years, ratepayers were advised to shop for the best rates when looking to save money on their bills. Is it still the way to go to find a better price and offset the rate hikes?

State Consumer Advocate Patrick Cicero is on Wednesday's Smart Talk to discuss if electric customers have alternatives that can help them minimize higher electric rates.

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Imagine a time when only a few hundred whitetail deer roamed the woods and fields of Pennsylvania. That was the reality in the early part of the 1900s in Pennsylvania. Then, compare that with today when there are hundreds of thousands of deer in the state.

A number of wildlife species like deer, elk, bald eagles and carrier pigeons were close to or were wiped out completely due to destruction of their habitat or over hunting.

The Pennsylvania Game Commission came into existence in 1895 to preserve and manage the state's wildlife.

A new museum that opened last month-- the Pennsylvania Conservation Heritage Museum -- located at the Middle Creek Wildlife Management Visitors Center near Kleinfeltersville -- chronicles that history.

Brian Collett, an education specialist at the museum sat down with Smart Talk to describe the history and the museum.

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The spotted lanternfly has made its return to Pennsylvania. The invasive species seems to be everywhere in some places.

For several years, there was no known natural predator to the invasive spotted lanternfly.

But, as more studies have cropped up, researchers are finding that several animals like to make a meal out of the pests.

At Penn State University, one study has asked the public for help.  Researchers say they’re using a “community science approach” to gather data about which species of birds and other predators are eating spotted lanternfly.  They’re also looking at how frequently they eat them.

Kelli Hoover, Professor of Entomology, Centers for Chemical Ecology, Insect Biodiversity and Pollinator Research at Penn State University appears on Tuesday's Smart Talk to discuss the lanternfly and how to control the insect.

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Three-quarters of Pennsylvanians believe there is solid evidence that temperatures on Earth have risen over the past four decades.

However, they’re split on one of Pennsylvania’s biggest industries – the extraction of natural gas from shale deposits in the state.

Those figures come from the 2022 Pennsylvania Climate and Energy Survey conducted by the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion and Sustainability Studies Program.

To provide analysis of the poll results and Pennsylvanians' attitudes toward climate and energy on Tuesday's Smart Talk are Christopher Borick, the founder and director of the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion and Dr. Richard Niesenbaum, the Director of Sustainability Studies at Muhlenberg College.

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Almost all Americans should be able to able to dial 9-8-8 on their phones in the future if they are someone close to them is in a crisis.

The 988 hotline is scheduled to go live in mid-July and for many mobile phone users, it’s live already and calls are coming into crisis intervention centers.

However, they’re facing challenges in getting 988 up and running. That includes people to staff intervention centers and answer the phones, paying for 988 hotlines and just the infrastructure needed.

WITF’s Transforming Health reporter Brett Sholtis has investigated the rollout of 988 and is on Tuesday’s Smart Talk with details.

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Other than the nation’s independence, the Fourth of July holiday may be known most for fireworks and not just the ones that are scheduled for public viewing.

The fireworks business is booming. Sales of fireworks more than doubled between 2019 and 2021 from $1 billion to $2.2 billion. It’s estimated more than 400 million pounds of fireworks were set off last year.

However, fireworks that have been purchased and set off at home or at Fourth of July celebrations can be dangerous and a nuisance as well.

Pennsylvania’s Acting State Fire Commissioner Charles McGarvey is on Thursday’s Smart Talk to discuss fireworks safety.

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“Congress shall pass no law respecting an establishment of religion.” The establishment clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution is cited as the basis for the separation between church and state.

However a growing Christian Nationalist movement in politics believes America was founded as a Christian Nation and should return to it Christian roots.

Republican Congresswoman Lauren Boebert of Colorado, said at a religious service Sunday: “The church is supposed to direct the government. The government is not supposed to direct the church. That is not how our Founding Fathers intended it.” She added: “I’m tired of this separation of church and state junk that’s not in the Constitution. It was in a stinking letter, and it means nothing like what they say it does.”

Is that an example of Christian Nationalism?

John Fea, Distinguished Professor of American History at Messiah University appears on Wednesday’s Smart Talk to discuss Christian Nationalism in politics.

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More than 32,000 abortions were performed in Pennsylvania in 2020 and that number may increase, as women from states where last week’s Supreme Court decision made abortion illegal, travel to Pennsylvania for the procedure.

To be clear, the Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision does not make abortion illegal nationwide. Pennsylvania is one of about 30 states where women can still get an abortion legally, although Dobbs has energized Republican lawmakers and candidates to outlaw or further restrict abortion here and in other states.

Smart Talk examines how the court ruling impacts Pennsylvania. Our guest is Amal Bass, Director of Policy and Advocacy with the Women’s Law Project.

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70% of all incorporated businesses in the United States are family controlled. One-third of all Fortune 500 firms are family controlled. Family firms account for almost half of the nation’s Gross Domestic Production.

However, only 30% of family controlled businesses are transferred to a second generation.

The S. Dale High Center for Family Business at Elizabethtown College addresses, advocates for and teaches about all these issues.

We’re joined on Tuesday's Smart Talk by the High Center’s Executive Director Mike Mitchell to discuss these and other issues..

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