The Point

The Point, Jan. 26, 2023: WUFT Special Report: Behind the bet: the rise of sports betting

WUFT | By WUFT News

Published January 26, 2023 at 1:00 PM EST

Subscribe to The Point, arriving in your inbox Monday through Friday at 8 a.m.

The stories near you

• WUFT News Special Report: Behind the bet: the rise of sports betting. "Because sports betting has become normalized in most states, it’s increasingly harder to keep students at colleges and universities in Florida, where the practice is illegal, from taking part."

• Gainesville Sun ($): Alachua County commissioners share support for Restless Mommas owners, request meeting with Micanopy officials. "At the Alachua County Commission meeting Tuesday, officials said they wanted answers from town officials and asked to schedule a discussion on the topic with the neighboring municipality leadership."

• WUFT News: The American Dream goes to the mat in “The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity,” Friday at the Hippodrome. "Flashing lights, larger-than-life personalities and intoxicating energy. As the fighters take the ring, audiences are consumed by the vicious rivalries and suddenly forget they are at the theater."

• Mainstreet Daily News: GNV festival to celebrate prescribed fire use. "The festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday at the UF/IFAS Austin Cary Forest Campus, 10625 NW Waldo Road, halfway between Gainesville and Waldo."

• WCJB: Day two of the Ocala Breeders Sale’s Winter Mixed Sale nets a little more than $2 million. "Totals for the session nearly mirrored the same day last year, with 183 head sold for a little more than $2 million."

• Ocala Gazette: The sheriff’s turkey trouble. "Marion County’s top law enforcement officer broke a state law during the early days of Florida’s spring gobbler season in 2021."

Today's sponsored message

Around the state

• News Service of Florida: Florida lawmakers are considering more oversight of local utilities. "The Public Service Commission regulates for-profit utilities such as Florida Power & Light and Duke Energy Florida but has little oversight of municipal utilities."

• WFSU-Tallahassee: Tallahassee attorney Ben Crump announces plans for lawsuit over AP African American Studies course. "A crowd gathered in the Florida Capitol to hear state lawmakers, Crump and the three students who will participate as plaintiffs in the lawsuit should it be brought."

• WJCT-Jacksonville: Projected messages outlawed in Jax. But could the new law be challenged? "Any time the government tries to restrict speech, especially political speech, the legislation has to be narrowly tailored, said Jacksonville attorney Edward Birk, who handles communications, copyright and labor and employment cases among others."

• Florida Politics: House panel advances bill to require greater financial disclosure from Mayors, City Councilmembers. "The bill (HB 37) would make local officials fill out a Form 6 financial disclosure, which requires disclosure of their total net worth and all assets and liabilities worth more than $1,000."

•NPR: Florida Power CEO implicated in scandals abruptly steps down. "Under the leadership of Eric Silagy, 54, the company has been tied to allegations of campaign finance violations, media manipulation, and the surveillance of critical journalists. Silagy, CEO since 2014, will depart the company in April."

• Florida Politics: Driver safety has deteriorated post-pandemic, with crashes and shootings rampant on Florida roads. "With 22.9 million vehicles currently in the state, and difficulty filling the ranks of Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) troopers, issues abound on Florida roads, including nearly documented 110,000 hit-and-run crashes and 700,000 crashes in the last year."