Political producing and reporting

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What To Know Going In To Utah's 2018 Election

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Voter turnout in several of Utah’s counties has already reached record highs in advance of Tuesday’s mid-term elections. For those who have not yet cast their vote, the KSL team is on top of all of the big races.

Of interest are the hotly-contested 4th Congressional District – pitting Republican incumbent Mia Love with Democratic challenger, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams – and Utah’s Proposition 2, which would legalize medical cannabis in the state.

Doug Wright and

Explainer and In-Depth reporting

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KSL+: Growing “true crime” genre impacting Petito case

Matt Rascon: Today on KSL+, the search for a missing 22 year old that spanned the country and the one person of interest, her boyfriend, vanishes as police start asking questions. Officials announced this week they discovered the body of Gabby Petito in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, thanks in part to amateurs, and a growing source of investigative material.

I’m Matt Rascon and this is KSL+, and today we’re talking about why this story has grabbed the attention of so many, and how that publ
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KSL+: Jingle Dress Project Brings Healing Through Dance

Matt Rascon: Today on KSL+, during this disruptive and devastating pandemic, a group of Native Americans from Utah is bringing a different kind of healing to the people and land across the United States.

Eugene Tapahe: We went to do these things on our own, because we felt like this was what the land needed, what the people needed.

Matt Rascon: I’m Matt Rascon, and this is KSL+. And today we talk to Eugene Tapahe.

Eugene Tapahe: I have a few titles. Yeah. So yeah, my title would be landscape
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KSL+: Next Steps For Policing After Derek Chauvin Verdict

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Former Minnesota police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of all three charges against him in the death of George Floyd–second and third degree murder charges and one count of manslaughter. He is only the second officer to be convicted of murder in the state of Minnesota–and the first white officer to be convicted of killing a black man in that state.

The prosecution told the jury to believe their eyes — referring to the video seen around the world showing Chauvin kn
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Long-Term Changes To Health Care After Year Of COVID-19

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – After every natural disaster, pandemic, or other traumatic event, there are ripples felt for generations. Families of 2.6 million people around the world are dealing with loss due to COVID-19 and countless more who have been impacted financially, mentally or physically.

What changes will we see 5, 10, 20 years down the road that we’ll trace back to the year 2020 and COVID? One year in, we’re looking at changes to healthcare that will likely stick around.
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KSL+: Research Shows Frontline Medical Workers Struggling With Mental Health, Burnout

Matt Rascon: Hey, welcome back to KSL+. This is the digital only news cast designed to dive deeper into the stories impacting us right now. I’m Matt Rascon. We had to take a bit of a hiatus because of COVID. But we’re back in a more simplified format. As you can see, KSL+ will be available on the KSL-TV app on Thursdays.

You see a lot of news every day on KSL-TV, you read it on Desert News, KSL.com, KSL News Radio. And the idea on this show is to just take one topic, and then break it down. We’
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KSL+: Deep Dive Into the Critical Race Theory Debate

The country is abuzz discussing the merits or dangers of a academic lens called Critical Race Theory.

“It’s kind of a head scratcher for many scholars who do work in critical race theory, because it has been around for quite a while,” said Edmund Fong, Associate Professor and Chair of the Division of Ethnic Studies at the University of Utah. “It’s not controversial in academia.”

The idea has been around for about 40 years. The Utah House and Senate were determined to tackle the topic in a spec
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KSL Special Report: COVID-19 Vaccine

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Leading health experts agree, three promising vaccine candidates could help us get life back to normal, as Utah and the country face growing numbers of COVID cases.

Moderna, Pfizer and AstraZeneca all announced over the last couple weeks that their vaccines in clinical trials are safe and effective. The companies released this data in press releases, which is required by the FTC to avoid insider trading.

That data now faces a lot of scrutiny from the FDA and CDC, but man

Day to day reporting and producing

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Groups Hope For Second Chance At Natural Hairstyle Protection Bill

SALT LAKE CITY — A group of advocates pushed for lawmakers to take another look at a bill that would prevent discrimination against hairstyles traditionally associated with race.

“I want to be able to go in if I choose to, to go into work with my hair like this,” said Alyssha Dairsow, speaking of her short afro hairstyle.

Right now in Utah, there is nothing stopping an employer from telling Dairsow that her natural hairstyle is unprofessional and she needs to change it.

SB80 is looking to cha
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Sparse Shelves Add To Challenge For Those On SNAP, WIC Benefits

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – More than 206,000 Utahns rely on SNAP or WIC benefits to feed their families. That number is expected to grow. Sparse grocery shelves have added even more challenges for program participants.

Amanda Hyde and her husband, Keenan, have a daughter who spent 102 days in the NICU, and while healthy now, still requires a lot of extra care.

They use both SNAP and WIC benefits to get by.

Most stores in Utah do not accept SNAP or WIC for online grocery shopping or pickup, making