KSL's Inside Sources

Topics we will cover on this episode of KSL Inside Sources include:

• Back to School: Bell-to-bell cell phone ban, finding bargains for back-to-school shopping
• Report: Roughly half of Americans store stuff at their parents' house
• New jobs report signals a stalling market
• Utah's Energy Future: A conversation with Representative Celeste Maloy
• Meta must pay massive payout over New Mexico lawsuit – how will that affect Utah's lawsuit?

As you prepare to send your kids back to school this year, don't plan on the cell phone being a part of those plans. The state's bell-to-bell cell phone ban is officially now in effect. That means for many students in the state, it'll be the first year they won't  be allowed to have their phones during the school year. As we wrap up a week of Back-to-School topics, we also take a look at how you can find the bargains to help bring down the cost of buying school supplies for the new year.

More showdowns are forming between President Trump and the courts. Despite the Supreme Court shutting down the President's earlier plans to restrict birthright citizenship, the President is trying to find another way around the ruling. At the same time, another appeals court is putting the kibosh on Trump's plans to build a new massive ballroom at the White House. President Trump vs. The Courts -- Greg and Holly break down the new developments.

Here's an interesting question for you: are your adult children still storing their stuff in your house? Or are you still storing stuff in your parents' house? A new survey came out from Talker Research, showing that nearly half of all Americans – across several age groups – still use their parents' place as a personal storage unit. Greg and Holly have personal experience with this kind of thing; they discuss and share their thoughts.

Well this isn't good news -- the labor market may be stalling again. New jobs numbers out today show the country actually lost jobs in July. Across retail, finance, hospitality, local government, and education, the U.S. lost 23,000 jobs last month. Does this signal a slowing economy, meaning it's time for the Feds to cut interest rates? Senior Economist at Zions Bank Robert Spendlove shares his expertise.

When it comes to energy production, how much of it should be renewable and how much of it should be traditional? Is it an "either/or" or a "yes/and"? This week, we learned that Utah's number one source of energy in May was solar energy. But we constantly need more and more energy, so is it enough? Congresswoman Celeste Maloy joins Inside Sources for a conversation about energy and how we can find balance between traditional and renewable energies... to ensure we have enough power for our growing society.

A New Mexico court has ordered a massive payout from Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. Yesterday, the court ordered the social media giant to pay $567 million in damages for their algorithms and technology, both of which have been shown to harm children. That's in addition to $375 million already ordered by another New Mexico court in March. So how could this payout affect the ongoing lawsuit brought against Meta by Utah? The Inside Sources hosts discuss.

• Utah Firewatch: High heat and high fire risk coming this weekend
• Senate committee votes to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in Contempt of Congress
• Examining Utah's college graduation retention rates
• Back to School: How are Utah schools planning to use AI in the classroom?
• Lawsuit filed against state over plans to tax 'big tech'
• National, local changes to child care
• Gene editing to create hypoallergenic beagles
• LinkedIn adds button to flag 'AI slop'

If you get on social media nowadays, you're bound to see something a lot of people tend to hate. In fact, it's been lovingly (or annoyingly) called "AI slop," and it = covers any kind of AI-generated content that looks... well... sloppy. Now, a major social media platform has created a new button so that users can flag this kind of "AI slop."

Scientists are using gene editing to create hypoallergenic beagles -- dogs that people with canine allergies would be able to own and be around. Greg and Holly both found the story fascinating at first, but Inside Sources Executive Producer Andy Cupp -- who's also the proud owner of two beagles -- had some serious concerns. Turns out he's not alone; many on social media share the same worries. So what are they concerned about? Andy joins the show to discuss.

Child care regulations might mostly be tossed out under new plans from the Trump Administration. This morning, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the proposed policy changes would put more decision-making in the hands of local governments. Speaking of local control and child care, the chair of the Salt Lake County Council is also defending the council's decision earlier this year to end county-run daycare programs. With so much going on with child care right now, Inside Sources talks more about it.

Taxing big tech companies -- is it legal or not? The state of Utah says it is; in fact, they passed a bill to do just that in the last legislative session. But the Utah Taxpayers Association disagrees, saying the state's new law violates existing federal law. Remember, the legislature passed the bill to tax large tech companies earlier this year, saying it's meant to target ads that are supposedly designed to addict minors. KSL Legal Analyst Greg Skordas shares his takes on what this lawsuit could mean for the future of "big tech" in Utah.

Education and artificial intelligence -- are they polar opposites? Or can they work hand-in-hand? And if they can work together, what's the most effective, most ethical way? Today, we really dig into artificial intelligence and how the state of Utah plans to use it in the coming school year. Over the course of two segments, Greg and Holly consult Matt Winters, AI Specialist at the Utah State Board of Education, to learn how schools, teachers, parents, and students can best use AI in the coming school year.

Utah's college students head back to class in just a few weeks. As we talk about back-to-school, we can't forget our college and university students. In this segment, Greg and Holly talk about graduation retention rates -- what drives people to go to college, stay in college, graduate from college, and then live in the same place where they earned their degree? Dr. Peter Bahr, Vice President of Employer Engagement and Managing Research Director for the Institute for the Future of Work at Strada Education Foundation, joins them.

The Senate Homeland Security Committee has voted to hold Dr. Anthony Fauci in Contempt of Congress. Dr. Fauci oversaw the beginning of the nation's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. There have been conspiracies following him around for years, so he was subpoenaed to testify before a congressional committee. But he didn't really answer any of their questions, choosing to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination 111 times. So what happens next?

Little-to-no relief in sight for wildfires burning around the state today. And the heat that's blowing into Utah for the weekend... well, it's certainly not helping very much. This summer feels like it's just dragged on and on and on when it comes to fires. And with the heat, the last couple of months have certainly been challenging. Inside Sources shares updates on new fires around the state, the fires that continue to burn out of control, and the potential long-term effects of the blazes here in Utah.

Utah's water systems -- and public utilities systems in general -- could be susceptible to attacks from Iran. According to a new intelligence note reviewed by ABC News, Utah is one of more than a dozen states that could find themselves the subject of cyberattacks from bad foreign actors. We've known for a while now that we could face attacks -- a legislative audit from the last general session confirmed as much. But according to ABC News, we were actually the target of attempted attacks last November. Greg and Holly share their thoughts on the fragility of our security systems.

Topics we will cover on this episode of KSL Inside Sources include: 

• The role ethics is playing in the midterm elections
• Man accused of killing Santaquin police sergeant to stand trial for aggravated murder
• Impact foreign buyers have on Utah's housing market
• Back to School: Using technology to prepare for a new school year 
• Bipartisan push in Congress for better forest management 

Read these phrases aloud and think about what's wrong with them: Match and mix,  jelly and peanut butter, stones and sticks, Clyde and Bonnie. Did those sound right to you? Probably not. They're called irreversible binomials, and Merriam Webster dictionaries is teaching us all about it on their social media. If you haven't seen their X/Twitter posts, you have to check them out -- they're both educational and fun!

Every election season, we hear from people across the country pleading for more ethical and moral candidates. But when push comes to shove and we're casting our ballot, it often feels like it's a low priority. One thing that's been really interesting to watch in this midterm election season has been this push for ethical lawmakers. At the same time however, some unethical or immoral candidates have also been pushed ahead. So when Election Day finally rolls around, will ethics actually matter?

In some developing news today, the man accused of killing a Santaquin police sergeant will stand trial for 15 charges after all, including aggravated murder and two counts of attempted aggravated murder. Michael Aaron Jayne has been charged for killing Sergeant Bill Hooser in May 2024. In this segment, KSL Legal Analyst Greg Skordas catches listeners up on how the case has been progressing behind the scenes.

Foreign citizens are fewer buying homes in the United States right now. The National Association of Realtors says it's the second lowest rate of foreigners buying U.S. homes since 2009. So what does a thing like that do to the market? And specifically here in Utah -- how does that affect things? Inside Sources gets some answers from Russell Faucette, co-founder of The Stern Team of Omada Real Estate.

This whole week, we're spending time each day to get you and your family ready for back-to-school season. With the start of school right around the corner, we want to talk about technology -- how can you best use it to prepare for heading back into the classroom? And what things are in high supply already, so you can plan your shopping a bit better? Today, Greg and Holly speak with Amy Eisinger, a Google Search Trend Expert who talks more about using Google to get ready for a new school year. 

It's not very often that Congress can come together and cross party lines to get something done. But the ongoing wildfires around the country may have lit a bit of a fire under lawmakers, and now they have a rare bipartisan priority: wildfire prevention. Utah's own Senator John Curtis is now asking his colleagues to pass a bill aimed at forest management. It's being called the Fix Our Forests Act. Deseret News congressional correspondent Cami Mondeaux has been following this bill and joins us with more. 

The U.S. stock market hit record highs on Tuesday, and profits for A-I and oil companies continue to soar. So amidst all of that, how are you feeling? How's your wallet feeling right now? The Trump Administration continues to relish in a strong stock market, but are the benefits trickling down to the average consumer? Dr. Michael Kofoed, Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville joins to talk about the disconnect.