WITF Smart Talk Podcast

Analyzing the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic comes down to the numbers.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reports the numbers daily: the number of positives, hospitalized, tested, deaths and so on. Data is driving our understanding of the impact and the government’s response.

In April, Carnegie Mellon University’s Delphi Research Group began collecting real-time expanded data from around the country through a survey distributed using social media outreach. To date, that survey has reached and collected information from more than one million people in the U.S.

Anecdotally, this is the largest survey ever taken in the U.S., outside of the census.

The CMU survey collects information on COVID-19 symptoms, providing county-level information about the coronavirus pandemic that is “updated continuously and available from no other source.” It has now expanded to include questions about how people are responding to public health recommendations, such as mask use, and access to COVID-19 testing.

Joining Smart Talk to detail the initiative are Zachary Chase Lipton, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Operations Research and Machine Learning, Tepper School of Business, CMU and Alex Reinhart, Ph.D., Assistant teaching Professor in Statistics & Data Science, CMU.

Also on Smart Talk Wednesday, we continue to talk with journalists in swing states about the presidential election.

Tom Zalaski, an anchor at WFRV-TV in Green Bay and host of the program Newsmakers Sunday, joins us to discuss the presidential race in Wisconsin.

 

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Achieving, or at the very least improving, equity in education is the goal set by the Pennsylvania Department of Education when they set to work to create an equity toolkit for schools, teachers, and families.

The Equitable Practices Hub was two years in the making and began with the premise that equity in Pennsylvania’s education systems has not been realized, but there is a path forward. The goal is to eliminate barriers within the educational system to make it fairer and more impartial to all students.

Joining Smart Talk to help define equity in education and describe the Equitable Practices Hub are Nikole Hollins-Sims, Ed.D., special advisor on equity to the Pennsylvania Department of Education and Dana Milakovic, PsyD., Office of Safe Schools, Pennsylvania Department of Education. Also, on the program is Steve Gerhard, Ed.D., Governor Mifflin School District superintendent to share how the hub is used in their school district.

Over the next few days, Smart Talk will feature conversations about the presidential election with journalists from swing states.

On Tuesday’s program, we’ll hear from Mary Ellen Klas, Tallahassee (Capital) Bureau Chief for the Miami Herald.

With information overwhelming social media users, it’s important for media organizations to ensure their listeners/viewers/readers can trust their reporting. Questions like, “How do people decide what news is trustworthy?” or “How can journalists influence what users consume and share?” have come up repeatedly at public forums with WITF journalists.

To help answer those questions, WITF is taking part in the Trusting News project and joining Smart Talk to offer perspective is WITF Multimedia News Director Tim Lambert.

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Declining enrollments at the 14-member Pennsylvania System of Higher Education universities has resulted in plans for a significant shake up of the system.

PASSHE plans to integrate six of its universities into two regional combinations as part of a strategy to slow down their financial losses.

Under the plan, Edinboro, Clarion and California University of Pennsylvania will be combined into one regional University and Bloomsburg, Lock Haven and Mansfield will be combined into another.

PASSHE Chancellor Dan Greenstein appears on Smart Talk Monday to offer details.

Also, the Trump Administration wants poll watchers to observe at Pennsylvania voting locations on Election Day next Tuesday. It’s been described as an effort to ensure voting is conducted legally and without fraud.

Pennsylvania has rules in place for what observers can do on Election Day.

WITF reporter Emily Previti covers elections and answers questions on Monday’s program. If voters have a concern at the polls reference poll watching, the nonpartisan election protection coalition is 866-OUR-VOTE

Finally, an immigrant rights group has released a study aimed at providing a snapshot of the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on Latinos.

Make The Road Pennsylvania says it found a majority of those polled are struggling to get by during the pandemic and as a result, less likely to vote.

Anthony Orozco, WITF Latino Communities Reporter and Report For America Fellow appears on Smart Talk to discuss the findings.

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WITF’s Election 2020 coverage on Smart Talk continues Friday when we’re joined by Incumbent Republican Congressman Lloyd Smucker who is running for reelection to the U.S. House of Representatives in the 11th Congressional District.

The 11th District includes all of Lancaster County and the southern half of York County. Democrat Sarah Hammond is also on the ballot and she appeared on Smart Talk Wednesday.

Also on Smart Talk Friday is Democrat Josh Shapiro who is running for reelection as Pennsylvania Attorney General. Republican Heather Heidelbaugh, Libertarian Daniel Wassmer, and Green Party candidate Richard Weiss are also on the ticket. Interviews with Hammond and Heidelbaugh can be heard at WITF.org/elections, while Wassmer and Weiss did not respond to invitations.

As a reminder to our listeners, these conversations with candidates are designed to explore where the candidates stand on issues so that voters have information to assist them when deciding which candidates they will vote for.

These conversations are happening earlier than in past election years because so many voters are voting by mail.

 

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WITF’s Election 2020 coverage on Smart Talk continues Wednesday when we’re joined by Democrat Sarah Hammond, who is running for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 11th Congressional District.

The 11th District includes all of of Lancaster County and the southern half of York County. Incumbent Republican Congressman Lloyd Smucker is also on the ballot. He is scheduled to appear on Smart Talk Friday.

Also on Smart Talk Wednesday is Republican Stacy Garrity who is running for Pennsylvania Treasurer. Other candidates on the ballot are incumbent Democratic Treasurer Joe Torsella, Libertarian Joe Soloski and Green Party candidate Timothy Runkle. Both Runkle and Torsella appeared on Smart Talk and their interviews can be heard at WITF.org/elections.

The Pennsylvania Office of the State Treasurer serves as the custodian of more than $100 billion in Commonwealth funds, and is responsible for the receipt and deposit of state monies, investment management and oversight of all withdrawals and deposits from state agencies.

As a reminder to our listeners, these conversations with candidates are designed to explore where the candidates stand on issues so that voters have information to assist them when deciding which candidates they will vote for.

These conversations are happening earlier than in past election years because so many voters are voting by mail.

 

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Tuesday’s Smart Talk will include the Democratic incumbent and candidate for Pennsylvania Treasurer Joseph Torsella who joins us to discuss his record and priorities before the November election.

The Pennsylvania Office of the State Treasurer serves as the custodian of more than $100 billion in Commonwealth funds, and is responsible for the receipt and deposit of state monies, investment management and oversight of all withdrawals and deposits from state agencies.

Other candidates on the ballot for Treasurer are Republican Stacy Garrity, Libertarian Joe Soloski, and Green Party Timothy Runkle, who appeared on the program on September 22. You can hear that conversation at witf.org. Garrity is scheduled to join Smart Talk later this week, however, Soloski did not respond to invitations.

A death in the family is devastating. A COVID-19 death is equally so and researchers looked into how a pandemic death, in particular, impacts a family.

In a study of kinship networks in the United States, the Penn State University researchers found that approximately nine surviving close family members will be affected by each death from the virus.

Appearing on Smart Talk to share more details on their findings is Ashton Verdery, Ph.D., associate professor of sociology, demography and social data analytics at Penn State University.

With information overwhelming social media users, it’s important for media organizations to ensure their listeners/viewers/readers can trust their reporting. Questions like, “How do people decide what news is trustworthy?” or “How can journalists influence what users consume and share?” have come up repeatedly at public forums with WITF journalists.

To help answer those questions, WITF is taking part in the Trusting News project and joining Smart Talk to offer perspective is WITF Multimedia News Director Tim Lambert.

 

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U.S. intelligence agencies say that Russia, China and probably Iran are trying to interfere with the 2020 presidential election. A recent poll found 59 % of Americans believe foreign governments are trying to interfere.

One of the strategies used to disrupt the election process is to promote information that isn’t true about the candidates or news in the U.S.

The Alliance for Securing Democracy is a bipartisan transatlantic national security advocacy group formed in July 2017 with the stated aim of countering efforts by Russia to undermine democratic institutions in the United States and Europe.

On Monday’s Smart Talk, we are joined by Jessica Brandt, head of policy and research for the Alliance for Securing Democracy and a fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States.

Also on Monday’s show, the Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania Auditor General Nina Ahmad, joins us to discuss priorities before the November election.

The Pennsylvania Department of the Auditor General is the chief fiscal watchdog of the commonwealth. It is responsible for using audits to ensure that all state money is spent legally and properly.

Other candidates on the ballot are Republican Tim DeFoor, Green Party candidate Olivia Faison, and Jennifer Moore representing the Libertarian Party. DeFoor appeared on the program October 5th. You can hear that conversation at witf.org. The other candidates have not responded to our invitations to appear.

 

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WITF’s Election 2020 coverage on Smart Talk continues Friday with a candidate running for statewide office.

Heather Heidelbaugh is a Republican running for Pennsylvania Attorney General. The Pittsburgh-area attorney is on the ballot with incumbent Democrat Josh Shapiro, Libertarian Daniel Wassmer, and Green Party candidate Richard Weiss.

Conversations with candidates are designed to give voters an opportunity to hear where candidates stand on the issues before this fall’s election.

Also, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and others are suing the federal Environmental Protection Agency saying EPA failed to require Pennsylvania and New York to develop plans to reduce pollution in the bay under two agreements.

According to CBF, Pennsylvania’s plan to meet the 2025 goals in the Chesapeake Bay Clean Water Blueprint contains improvements over past plans. However, it says the state will meet less than 75 percent of its 31 million-pound nitrogen-reduction commitment, and the plan is underfunded by more than $300 million dollars a year.

The Susquehanna River that runs through Pennsylvania is the largest source of fresh water that empties into the bay.

Appearing on Friday’s Smart Talk to explain the court action is Chesapeake Bay foundation President William Baker.

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You’ve probably heard it said many times by now that Pennsylvania is one of the states that will determine who wins the presidency. In fact, some go as far as saying that Pennsylvania will crown the winner.

That’s the reason the candidates have been in Pennsylvania so often, there’s so much media attention and a different poll every day.

The polls show Democratic nominee Joe Biden with a lead over President Trump today.

But how are we to interpret the polls and what useful information can we get from them?

Berwood Yost, Director of the Center for Opinion Research at Franklin & Marshall College appears on Thursday’s Smart Talk.

Also on Thursday’s Smart Talk – we speak with Allen Clements, the director of the three-part TV documentary Dismantling Democracy that examines democratic structures in the U.S. and around the world.

Interviews offer perspectives as the series depicts factors behind the gradual deterioration of the effectiveness of the democratic form of government.

Dismantling Democracy is produced by MAKE Films and airs on WITF-TV starting Sunday at noon.

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[box]Smart Talk will not air at 9am today. The Senate Judiciary Committee is conducting hearings for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett. Special coverage on WITF is expected to continue through Wednesday, October 14.[/box]

Social isolation impacts every facet of a person’s life. It not only affects one’s mental health, but it also raises the risk of disease progression in physical health.

Human beings are social by their very nature and when isolated, by geography or a global pandemic, negative things can happen on a profound scale.

Two social science researchers from Millersville University studied how poverty and social isolation in a rural area (Lancaster County) affects people with this experience. Now their research is expanding to include the impact of isolation during the coronavirus pandemic.

Appearing on Smart Talk to share their findings are Laura Brierton Granruth, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Master of Social Work director and Jennifer M. Frank, Ph.D., Assistant Professor at the School of Social Work both at Millersville University.

Vitamin D is known to many as the vitamin that added to milk and other beverages because it works synergistically with calcium to strengthen bones. Adding Vitamin D to milk began in the United States in the 1930’s to help reduce rickets and bone deformities in children.

Health professionals now understand that the “sunshine vitamin” actually serves other important functions in the body, to include offering improved resistance to certain diseases and regulating mood.

Smart Talk is joined by Dr. Meena Venigalla, MD, Endocrinologist with Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health to offer more information about this important vitamin.

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