Karen Kasler
Bureau ChiefContact Karen at 614-578-6375 or at kkasler@statehousenews.org.
Karen Kasler grew up in Lancaster, attended Otterbein College in Westerville, and found her professional break at WCBE-FM in Columbus. Karen was selected as a Fellow in the Kiplinger Master's Degree Program for Mid-Career Journalists at Ohio State University in 1994. She worked at WTVN-AM and WBNS-TV, both in Columbus, then for eight years was the afternoon drive anchor and assignment editor for WTAM-AM, Cleveland.
Since returning to Columbus in 2004, Karen has covered major elections and the controversies surrounding them. She served as moderator for the Ohio Debate Commission's Republican US Senate debate in 2022, its Supreme Court debate in 2020 and its gubernatorial debate in 2018. In addition to other election-related debates, she's led forums on statewide issues including redistricting, tax policy, drug sentencing, marijuana legalization and the collective bargaining law known as Senate Bill 5.
She's produced features for NPR and "Marketplace", and has been interviewed by NPR, the BBC, CBS, NBC, Radio New Zealand and stations around the country. She's a regular panelist on ideastream's "The Sound of Ideas" and a frequent guest on WOSU-TV’s “Columbus on the Record”, WOSU-FM's "All Sides with Anna Staver" and WVXU's "Cincinnati Edition".
Karen has been honored by the Cleveland Press Club, the Society of Professional Journalists and the Association of Capitol Editors and Reporters, and holds a National Headliner Award. She's won several awards from the Ohio AP, and is a four-time winner of the AP's Best Broadcast Writing award. She's a three-time Emmy nominee for "The State of Ohio". She's a past president of the Ohio Associated Press and has served on the Board of Directors for the Central Ohio Society of Professional Journalists. Karen is also a former adjunct professor at Capital University in Columbus.
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A bipartisan bill would require the state to provide security for Ohio's lieutenant governor and for the endorsed candidates and nominees for governor if they request it. -
Ohio’s state auditor said cybercrime has become a big and costly problem for some local governments. -
Two Republican lawmakers have introduced a bill that they say will fight fraud in publicly-funded child care centers, saying the state of Ohio isn’t doing enough to catch it. -
The group that wants to stop the law that changes Ohio's marijuana and intoxicating hemp statutes and to allow voters to decide on it in November will have to try again. -
Ohio isn’t one of the five states where the Trump administration tried to freeze funding funding, but advocates for affordable childcare are worried. -
A panel intended to hold hearings on violations of elections and campaign laws in Ohio met for its first session Friday, when it approved its operating rules. -
The move of at least $1.7 billion in unclaimed funds held by the state of Ohio to a fund for sports facilities is still halted while the case goes on in federal and county court. -
The two leading candidates for Ohio governor still say they have specific reasons for selecting the men they introduced as their running mates on Wednesday. -
The leading major party candidates for Ohio governor are both introducing their running mates Wednesday, just hours apart. -
The new year is bringing movement in the race for Ohio governor.
