The revelation that the Justice Department got a hold of phone records at the Associated Press in an effort to track down a leak has already had a chilling effect on the news media.

That's the conclusion of Kelly McBride of the Poynter Institute's "Sense Making Project."

"If you're working at the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) or the Department of Agriculture and you think there are stories that the public ought to know, you are very unlike to call a journalist right now," said McBride.

It was too good to be true. That's what some people thought after Hillsborough County found a drop in the number of homeless by nearly half in January. So they went back on the streets for another look.

So, almost 100 volunteers canvassed the county earlier this month.  The surveying included  birthdays, disabilities and the length of time they were on the streets. The final tally came to 2,275 homeless.

That's still a drop of 47 percent since the last count in 2011.

Some things turn us to mush every time: Cute animals. Sappy Publix commercials. And most of all, surprise military reunions.

Nine-year-old Alayna Adams was chosen to throw out the first pitch at Thursday night's Rays game. What the Dunedin girl didn't know was that the catcher wasn't a pro ball player. It was her dad, Lt. Col. Will Adams, just home from Afghanistan.

After Alayna threw the ball, her father caught it. Then he lifted his catcher's mask. Alayna raced toward him and leaped into his arms.

And yes, the crowd went wild.

It's not every day that you see a bear in a tree in West Tampa.

But today was one of those days for the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office. 

At about 8:30 the HCSO was asking local TV stations to pull their helicopters back from the site in the Egypt Lake area, because they were "scaring the bear."

Florida has an estimated 142,000 women veterans and many likely had their eyes on the Pentagon this week.

First, there was the deadline for the services to submit plans on how to integrate women into combat units or explain why women should remain banned. Many women already are serving in units exposed to combat but aren’t officially acknowledged.

And there is more news related to the growing problem of military sexual trauma.

Tampa City Council got its first look today at an ordinance that would outlaw loud car stereos.

It may soon be illegal for Tampa drivers to blast their music, or any other kind of sound, loud enough to be heard clearly from 50 feet away. That's the width of a professional basketball court.

Everyone knows about the excitement of Manhattan, but Southern Business and Development is singing the praises of America's not-so-big downtowns. The magazine is out with a list of "Ten Wonderful Small Town Central Business Districts in the South."

The mag gave props to Bradenton for its laid-back vibe, theater scene and redeveloped Riverwalk, which debuted in October 2012. Here's an excerpt: