Mark Katches

A drumbeat of stories, including big scoops, prompted loud reaction and changes. The impact underscores the importance of local newsrooms.

Many readers are probably wondering why their Tampa Bay Times on Sunday didn’t have news of an assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. It’s a fair question.For the past three years, we’ve printed our Wednesday and Sunday newspapers in Lakeland. Most readers have grown accustomed to the reality that evening sports scores and late-breaking news won’t arrive in the printed version of the paper. Still, it can be jarring when absent. Glaringly so, when the news is momentous.The f…

Thanks to all our readers and supporters who helped make our weeklong “It’s Your Times” fundraiser a smashing success.Despite hiccups Saturday with the widespread internet outages, we surpassed our $125,000 goal through a combination of online contributions, checks and pledges.Boy, did we.The total stands at more than $136,000 — the most we’ve ever raised in the four years of holding these weeklong campaigns. Checks are still arriving, including nearly 50 on Tuesday.The contributions will pay th…

Journalists at the Tampa Bay Times view our work as a calling. We are here to serve our community — bringing context to swirling news events, holding powerful figures to account, and delivering stories that no one else will tell.We love this gig.The Times remains independent and locally owned — a tremendous source of pride in a newspaper landscape increasingly dominated by hedge funds and sprawling publicly traded companies.We may not be as big as we were when many of our most loyal readers firs…

There’s no doubt how Tim Burke wants you to see him.His profile on X (formerly known as Twitter) starts here:Journalist.The Tampa man was indicted last month on 14 counts of conspiracy, wiretapping and hacking . The U.S. Justice Department doesn’t spell it out in the court filings, but the accusations stem from Fox News video outtakes Burke obtained of Tucker Carlson interviewing Ye (formerly known as Kanye West). The Tampa Bay Times first connected these dots soon after warrant-toting FBI agent…

Sunshine Week may be a contrived event — much like First Responder Wellness Week, National Siblings Day or National Donut Day. But it holds special significance to us. And it should for you.It’s a weeklong opportunity beginning Sunday to note the importance of public records and open government. It also can be a chance to call out those who try to keep the public in the dark.Let me share one chilling example. A couple weeks ago, Tampa Bay Times reporter Justin Garcia showed up, as any individual…

If you had never heard of kratom before this month, I trust you’ve heard of it now. Hundreds of people in Florida have died from kratom-related overdoses in the past decade. The vast majority of those deaths involved a fatal mixture of the herb and other substances, but kratom alone has accounted for dozens of tragic outcomes across the state.That was one of the central findings of a three-part Tampa Bay Times investigation called “Deadly Dose,” an exhaustive and meticulously researched series t…

The cartoon’s creator, Scott Adams, said Black people are members of a “hate group,” among other racist remarks.

Take a trip down West Zelar Street and you’ll see a microcosm of what’s happening all around South Tampa and other neighborhoods in the city.

The newsroom sets a target of $50,000 for its annual campaign to raise money from the community.

Reporting by the Tampa Bay Times this year has given voice to the voiceless and held the powerful to account throughout the region.

Editor

We call them “Spata Specials.”