Steve Newborn
ReporterI cover Florida’s unending series of issues with the environment and politics in the Tampa Bay area.
I love to go camping, ride bikes and go for long paddles on scenic, winding rivers, so I can think about that while covering meetings that go on for hours.
I've been around Florida so long that I have covered events that most people can’t remember anymore. I've covered President George W. Bush’s speech in Sarasota as the Sept. 11 attacks unfolded; the ongoing drama over whether the feeding tube should be removed from Terri Schiavo; the arrest and terrorism trial of USF professor Sami Al-Arian; how the BP Deepwater Horizon spill affected Florida; and followed the Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition as they walked and paddled through the state — twice.
I also got the privilege of tagging along with a Sarasota-based group investigating how manatees are faring in Cuba.
Before joining WUSF, I covered environmental and Polk County news for the late, great Tampa Tribune and worked for NASA at the Kennedy Space Center during the early days of the space shuttle.
-
Gray is running against incumbent Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna in Congressional District 13, which includes most of Pinellas County outside St. Petersburg. -
The amendment to the county charter would also reduce the number of commissioners voters can elect from the current four down to one. -
The agreement would have the baseball team pay back money to the city in installments for improvements to city neighborhoods around the proposed stadium. -
Amendment 3 would reduce most property taxes on primary residences — but at a significant cost to local governments. -
Central Avenue was buzzing before the first Rays home game in the Fall Classic. And it wasn't just Rays fans. Several Brewers backers said it was cheaper to fly and stay here than buy tickets back home. -
Political polling has been a staple of election season for hundreds of years. But recently, a lot of polls have missed the mark — widely. We take a look at how polling is done in Florida. -
Their message was helping the working class deal with rising inflation, a lack of health care and unlimited campaign financing by "the oligarchy." -
Also, Congressional Democratic candidates Kimberly Overman and Robert People appeared at the debate, held by Tampa Tiger Bay at the Cuban Club in Ybor City. -
It was initially a tie vote on the city council. It took getting one council member out of his sickbed to get it passed.
-
Ken Welch and Charlie Crist held what's likely their only one-on-one debate for St. Petersburg mayor. Among the topics is the future of the Historic Gas Plant District
