Mike Salinero is a Tampa native who attended Hillsborough High School and the University of South Florida. He spent 35 years working in newspapers, the last 15 years at The Tampa Tribune. His coverage included three years in Tallahassee reporting on the Legislature and state politics for the Tribune, then 12 years covering the environment and Hillsborough County government. Salinero and his wife, Nancy, live in a 98-year-old house in Southeast Seminole Heights with their Yorkshire terrier, Bella.