{"id":158572,"date":"2026-02-17T17:08:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T17:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/158572\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T17:08:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T17:08:10","slug":"%f0%9f%8e%a8%f0%9f%96%8a%ef%b8%8f-bob-whitmore-the-cartoonist-who-captures-tampas-soul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/158572\/","title":{"rendered":"\ud83c\udfa8\ud83d\udd8a\ufe0f Bob Whitmore: The cartoonist who captures Tampa\u2019s soul"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1032\" height=\"578\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Untitled-47.png\" class=\"attachment-253903 size-253903 wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" large=\"\" decoding=\"async\"  \/><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBob Whitmore<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019ve ever smiled (or nodded knowingly) at one of the cartoons featured on WMNF or in Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, you\u2019ve already experienced the work of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wmnf.org\/author\/bob-whitmore\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Bob Whitmore<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Bob is a self-syndicated cartoonist with a big heart for independent media. He makes his cartoons free to any publication that wants to run them, a rare and generous commitment to keeping local journalism vibrant and accessible. In an era when so much content is locked behind paywalls, Bob\u2019s approach is rooted in community first.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1000001729-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-253906\" style=\"width:315px;height:auto\"  \/><\/p>\n<p>As a member of the editorial staff at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cltampa.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Creative Loafing Tampa Bay<\/a>, Bob brings a sharp eye, quick wit, and unmistakable style to the issues shaping our city. His work blends humor and commentary, often shining a light on local politics, culture, and the wonderfully quirky personalities that make Tampa, well\u2026 Tampa.<\/p>\n<p>And while his weekly cartoons lean into political commentary, Bob also knows how to celebrate community. For this year\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wmnf.org\/wmnf-spring-2026-fund-drive-rooted-in-community-growing-together\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Spring Fund Drive (Feb. 18\u201325)<\/a>, he created a lively illustration featuring WMNF volunteers, staff, and programmers, past and present, capturing the energy, diversity, and heart of the station in his signature playful style.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wmnf.org\/support\/wmnf-swag\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SPR26-11x14-Bob-Whitmore-print-fundraiseup-mockups-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-252561 size-full\"  \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-170e39a09329909251a52bdc74f09f2d\">11\u00d714 Full-Color Bob Whitmore Print \u2013 Featuring a lively illustration of WMNF volunteers, staff, and programmers past and present. Prints signed by artist.<\/p>\n<p>For our Spring Fund Drive (February 18\u201325), we\u2019re proud to feature Bob\u2019s artwork as part of the celebration of community-powered radio. His illustrations reflect exactly what WMNF stands for: creativity, independence, and the power of local voices.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wmnf.org\/support\/wmnf-swag\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\" noreferrer noopener nofollow\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"574\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/COF-t-shirt-campaign-pic-1024x574.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-253908 size-full\"  \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>This t-shirt features Bob Whitmore\u2019s playful circular design, a perfect match for our Circle of Friends. <\/p>\n<p>Support the station. Celebrate local art. Keep community radio thriving. \ud83d\udc9a<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Bob Whitmore If you\u2019ve ever smiled (or nodded knowingly) at one of the cartoons featured on WMNF or&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":158573,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[75973,135,137,136,75974],"class_list":["post-158572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-bob-whitmore","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news","tag-wmnf-fund-drive"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158572","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=158572"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158572\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/158573"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=158572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=158572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=158572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}