Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Local TV News Dumbs Down New Yorkers

Corruption Everywhere, 8.8% Unemployment, Hospitals Closing and 23% of HS Graduates are Ready for College and All Local TV News Can Do Show YouTubes of A Squirrel on A Surf Board
The pathetic condition New York City newscasts as produced and presented in the media capital of the world was an ecco of a 2008 report by True News in 2008 Shrinking Newspaper Coverage Means Less Real TV News More Sexy Reporters.  NYP reporter Phil Mushnick says what once-proud local news divisions now present as news once would have been unfit to serve to the Loyal Royal Order of Dopes. Two Monday evenings ago, what WNBC presented to this City as news could just as easily have been chosen by a chimpanzee quickly scrolling through YouTube with a pointer. There was a video clip of a truck overturning, just missing a fellow who was stopped, on his motorbike, at a red light. Why the fellow simply didn’t move out of the way as the truck neared, we’ll likely never know — unless Ch. 4 dispatches a reporter to Asia. There was a video clip of a truck overturning, just missing a fellow who was stopped, on his motorbike, at a red light. Why the fellow simply didn’t move out of the way as the truck neared, we’ll likely never know — unless Ch. 4 dispatches a reporter to Asia. Another failing grade for local news(NYP)

“An enlightened citizenry is indispensable for the proper functioning of a republic.” - Thomas Jefferson 
Rip and read headline news content  As newspapers go out of business and layoff experienced reporters leave, local news now have have more time for ratings grabbers “Happy Talk” and fluff.
The pathetic state of New York’s newscasts, all of which boast to best serve the public’s needs and trust. And not one of the local networks seems the least bit interested in changing anything, at least not for the better. Let's face it: TV and radio stations rely on the local newspaper for most of their news. So what happens to those "rip and read" broadcasters as print staffs shrivel amid the draconian layoffs strafing the newspaper industry? Print journalists have long chafed at broadcast media pilfering their stories, often without bothering to credit the source. The thinness in assembling TV news -- and the manner in which they use newspapers as de facto tip sheets and newsgathering surrogates - has long been one of broadcasting's dirty little secrets. Today, most Americans say they get most of their information from local television news. Local broadcasters are not living up to the public promise to keep the public informed that made in order to get their licenses? As print fades, the fallout promises to hasten broadcast news' descent as well -- from "Rip and read" to simply "read it and weep." Our Democracy is in serious trouble.

 Local TV News Has Become Wires and Lights in A Box

This instrument (television) can teach, it can illuminate; yes, and it can even inspire. But it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise it is merely wires and lights in a box. There is a great and perhaps decisive battle to be fought against ignorance, intolerance and indifference.”Edward R. Murrow 1958 speech * Good Night, and Good Luck: Edward Murrow Speech

 

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Lopez Sexual Harasser of Children?


Breaking Vito Lopez JCOPE Report Done


JCOPE says it's completed an investigation, intuitively related to sexual harassment allegations against Assemblyman Vito Lopez. Under state law, any findings regarding legislative employees must be adjudicated by the bipartisan Legislative Ethics Committee That body decides on appropriate punishment, if any. If it does nothing in 45 days, the report becomes public.JCOPE says it's completed an investigation, intuitively related to sexual harassment allegations against Assemblyman Vito Lopez. * Lefcourt, Lopez's lawyer, says JCOPE commissioner told him today they're overnighting the report to him. ?* JCOPE finishes investigation of Lopez, Assembly(TU)
Silver spokesman says they're confident JCOPE found "no ethical or legal violation" by speaker, urges ethics commission to release it

JCOPE Leak Designed to Send Lopez A Message: Get Out of Albany and Disappear
According to testimony submitted to the Joint Commission on Public Ethics, Assemblyman Vito Lopez made inappropriate comments about a 14-year old intern in his office and would have female employees massage his hands
If Vito Lopez Runs for Council Very Ugly Voting Patterns and Political Connections Will be Discussed in the Media
Gropez even 'ogled' a child: Accusation he made creepy comments on 14-year-old intern (NYP) There’s a creepy new accusation in the sexual-harassment probe of Assemblyman Vito Lopez — that he even leered at a 14-year-old intern and made comments about her sexy attire, sources told the The Post.





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Political Corruption

 Even Huntly Double Guilty Plea Does Not Start A Call For An End Member Items
.'s office says former sen. Huntley pleaded guilty to tampering w/ physical evidence in this morning
Another felony plea for former Sen. Shirley Huntley * Ex-Sen. Huntley pleads guilty to covering up theft of funds from non-profit(NYP)
Huntley pleaded guilty in Nassau County Supreme Court to falsifying evidence in an effort to obstruct a probe into the theft of $29,950 in state funds she funneled to Parent Workshop Inc., a group set up by the senator. The case was brought by state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and Comptroller Tom DiNapoli.  The attorney general recommended a five-years probation for her E felony guilty plea, noting Huntley already faces an 18 to 24 month sentence for her federal conviction.*  Fmr. Queens Senator Enters Second Guilty Plea In Non-Profit Scam(NY1) * Ex-State Senator Files 2nd Guilty Plea in Fraud(NYT)


 
DiNapoli: Former Senator Huntley betrayed the trust of her constituents and her public duty.
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Campaign 2013


Staten Island Republican power broker Guy Molinari withdrew his support for Republican mayoral candidate Joe Lhota because Lhota would not return his phone calls, and will instead support the candidacy of Adolfo Carrión, Jr., the New York Daily News reports


Eliot Spitzer Says Comptroller Speculation ‘Made up out of Nowhere’

Analysis: Why the Frum Community Lost A Seat in the New York City Council yeshivaworld.com



Erick Salgado Will Officially Declare His Mayoral Candidacy“Very Soon” (Barkin)

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Board of Elections Corruption Enabled by the NYT

Shame of the NYT NYers Are Not All As Dumb As You Think

Yesterday the NYT uses the dysfunction of the NYC BOE to Help Their Mayoral Pick by
Pushing for a June Primary

The newspaper has not written one article about the problems at the BOE since election day.
Move New York City’s Primaries to June(NYT ED)

Today the NYT says Obama
failed to propose a strong legislative agenda to eliminate long lines at the polls, instead announcing a bipartisan commission to recommend changes, even though good bills to improve registration and early voting have already been introduced.More on the BOE Corruption * Obama Appoints a Controversial GOP Lawyer to His Voting Commission (Nation) * The Assembly Democrats and Senate Republicans are again at an impasse about whether to change the date of the fall primary elections.


BOECommissionerGate
With NYC Board Of Elections Shake-Up In Court, Dan Halloran Has Questions Of His Own(NYDN)* “I have concerns about the information that was put in the lawsuits,” Halloran said. “I have serious concerns about the timetables that were alleged.” The councilman questioned how it could be that Stupp’s re-recommendation wasn’t sent by certified mail and how both the copies sent to the City Clerk’s office and to Council Minority Leader James Oddo failed to show up. Halloran personally would have "walked them over" to assure delivery, he said. The opposition lawyer Mandelker says Robert Hornak of the Queens GOP -- who also himself happens to work for the Board of Elections, a reader reminds me -- has sworn under oath that following the borough party's Nov. 1 decision to re-nominate Stupp for another term, he mailed (on Nov. 19) the necessary documents to the city clerk and to Council Minority Leader James Oddo to renominate Stupp as a BOE Commissioner


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NYC Murder Rate By Community

Some NY Neighborhood Slay Rates 3rd World
Hunts Point in The Bronx had 15.3 murders per 100,000, about the same as the West African nation of Benin. Mott Haven-Melrose in The Bronx, with 13.1 killings, tied with postrevolutionary Nicaragua. And another Bronx neighborhood, University Heights, with 10.1, was just under mob-riven Russia’s 10.2. In the 24th Precinct on the Upper West Side, there were 3.7 killings per 100,000, the same rate as Chile.
NYC world of hurt: Some nabes’ slay rates like worst nations’(NYP)  East Harlem and the nation of Brazil have something in common — and it has nothing to do with delicious food. The Manhattan neighborhood’s 21 murders per 100,000 residents mirrored the rate in the crime-ravaged South American country according to a Columbia University study that compared every city precinct’s homicide rate with a UN member.

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Fracking

Cuomo Fracking Delay Again
Andrew Cuomo Says He's No Hamlet When It Comes To Gas Drilling
New York Governor Puts Off Decision on Drilling(NYT) The Cuomo administration again delayed a decision on whether to allow hydraulic fracturing shale drilling, with the state Health Commissioner recommending that a decision not be made until a health review on drilling was complete* Fracking Decision Is Put Off(WSJ)
Town Sued After Barring Debate on Gas Extraction at Meetings(NYT)*
The Post suggests that Cuomo’s delay on a decision on whether the state should proceed with natural gas drilling is tied to his presidential ambitions * The New York Times’s Danny Hakim says Cuomo is “becoming Hamlet on the Shale,” following the latest delay of a decision on fracking.* The pro-fracking New York Post believes Cuomo’s reluctance to act is tied to his presidential ambitions. About three dozen people, including two Syracuse Common Councilors, protested outside Cuomo’s CNY office and called for a fracking ban.* Why he's hedging. "On fracking, there is no Cuomoesque middle ground"(Capital) * Cuomo Won’t Be Rushed On Fracking Decision, Would Meet With Yoko Ono(YNN) * Cuomo’s ex-brother-in-law, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., says the fracking delay was “exactly the right move to take.”


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NYS Government

Coalition Senate
THE GOP AND THE IDC: LIVING TOGETHER, BUT WILL IT LAST?: Gerald Benjamin looks at the dynamics at play in the State Senate coalition government so far and peers into the future of the alliance: (City and State)

 

 
  Wanted: A real opposition leader (and it's not Dean Skelos) Is New York's Republican leader a governing partner of Gov. Cuomo or just a doormat? explores:

   
Anti Gun Control Rally

Pro-Gun Rally Hits Cuomo(WSJ)More than 600 opponents of New York’s new gun control law rallied at the state Capitol yesterday, with many taking issue with Gov. Cuomo’s process of passing the bill in one day and saying they would not comply with the state’s new law*  Local sheriffs join online lawsuit challenging method of adopting NY Safe Act:

In the Buffalo News, Steven Dubovsky, chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Buffalo, writes that the state’s new gun control gives physicians too much power in determining what constitutes mentally ill behavior

Cuomo Vs. Comptroller Budget Battle
Megna Sharply Criticizes DiNapoli’s Office(YNN)* OSC: Megna Criticism ‘Puzzling’ And ‘Off-Base’(YNN)

Sexual Assault Victim Calls For Change In State's Rape Laws(NY1)*
'Rape is rape' bill gets support from Cuomo(NYDN)


Members of the state’s Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic, and Asian Caucus said their goal was to include provisions for an automatic increase in the minimum wage to keep up with inflation, with Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver supporting that plan, the Times-Union reports: * Cuomo: Better To Do Minimum Wage Increase On Federal Level(YNN)


 Cuomo wants his tax officials to take a “look-back” at the state’s STAR school tax break program to weed out double dippers. * New York State Comptroller: Gov. Andrew Cuomo's raises debt by "backdoor borrowing" |
 

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NYC Government

NYCHA Housing Authority Chairman Opens Up On His Agency's Failings After Sandy(NY1)


Will Bike Lanes Outlast Bloomberg?

Anxiety Over Future of Bike Lanes(NYT) With Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg to leave office at year’s end, there is concern that the city’s next leader will end a period of bike-friendly programs and policies.The New York Times took an look at the leading mayoral candidates and their tendency to frustrate bike advocates. Interestingly, former Comptroller Bill Thompson, who pledged to rip out a Grand Street bike lane in his 2009 campaign, now seems to be the most pro-bike lane of the bunch. Meanwhile, Deputy Mayor Howard Wolfson, an avid rider himself, declared the whole controversy moot, saying, “The great bike war is over, and the opponents lost.

Turning Around Times Square Vs Corporate Tax Break Giveaways
[image]Old Marriott Deal Gets New Scrutiny (WSJ) A little-known deal negotiated in 1998 allows the Marriott Marquis hotel, in the heart of Times Square, to purchase the city-controlled land beneath it for nearly $20 million in 2017.
John Liu: Times Square Marriott 'worst' deal in city's(NYDN) * Marriott Marquis Lease Could Cost Taxpayers $344.9 Million, Audit Says(NYT) Because of a 1998 agreement, Marriott can buy the property under its Times Square hotel for $19.9 million, one-tenth of its current value, according to a report by the city comptroller. Reins Easing on New York Construction Loans(NYT)*  The Times’ Jim Dwyer looks at the various tax exemptions granted to various New York City buildings in the wake of the city allowing the Marriot Marquis Hotel to purchase the land underneath the hotel at a below-market rate


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NYC Economy 


NYC's Dying Middle Class

CHARTS: NYC's 'Affordability Crisis'(Huff Post)




Quinn Talks About Helping the Middle Class But Her Policies As Speaker Push Them Out

The following was part of every budget Speaker Quinn and her city council pasted during the last 7 years: Oover regulations, high taxes, excessive fines and tickets, bad schools, increase tolls and transportation fares and high utility costs, are what is pushing out NYC middle class
 
Glad President focused on the last night. We need the help in the country and .s

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Education

City Moves Forward With Review Of School Bus Bids(NY1)
In the News, Maggie Moroff, coordinator of the ARISE coalition, details the effect that the school bus strike has had on disabled students:
Popular Public School Loses Out to Charter School for Space in Harlem(DNAINFO)
State: New deadline for evaluations(NYDN)
NYC could save $99m on the school bus routes it bid out to private co's for the first time since 1979


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Queens Machine Newspaper Sale Off

Whore ads safe for now(Queens Crap)

From Port Washington Patch:

The Long-Islander’s announced sale to a Washington, D.C.-based financial holding company is off. Peter Sloggatt, associate publisher and managing editor of the weekly, confirmed that the deal was dead. "The old masthead will be returning," he said, adding that he had no further information on what had happened to sale.  Michael Schenkler, publisher of The Long-Islander since 2006 and president of Tribco, LLC, had announced the sale of his media holdings to PFH Media Group in early January. He is also deputy mayor of Port Washington North.\PFH Media Group is a subsidiary of investment firm Phoenix Financial Holdings.  The deal included The Queens Tribune, The Record (of Northport), the Half Hollow Hills Newspaper and Dine Huntington, operators of Huntington Restaurant Week.  The sale occurred while the U.S. Labor Department was investigating the handling of employee benefit plans at another publication owned by Phoenix.Sharon Byron, an auditor for the Labor Department, confirmed to Patch that "an investigation is moving forward for valid reasons" after complaints about payroll and other problems at a publication in Antioch, Ill. She emphasized that the investigation is looking at the handling of those benefit plans, and that those with responsibilities for them may or may not be company employees.
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Sandy

Hurricane’s Downgrade Undercut Warnings, Report Finds(NYT) A report released by the National Hurricane Center on Tuesday charged that downgrading Hurricane Sandy to a post-tropical cyclone limited the warnings that weather forecasters could issue.A report released by the National Hurricane Center details the agency’s uncertainty over downgrading Hurricane Sandy to a post-tropical cyclone because they were unsure about how to warn the public about what was on the way * Shore Shifted by Storm(WSJ) Like it or not, Jersey Shore residents are awakening to the reality that the beloved summer destination is undergoing a transformation never before seen.* Banks Sitting On $200M In Sandy Relief Funds, Gov Says(NY1) *MTA Gets High Praise From Council At Sandy Response Hearing* Sandy was the deadliest hurricane in the Northeast in 40 years and second-costliest in the nation’s history, a new report found.* Sandy Second-Costliest Storm In U.S. History, Report Finds(NY1) * Feds Outline Plan To Restore Sandy Ravaged Queens Shore (NY1) * Sandy-Ravaged Brighton Beach Residents Hit With Huge Electric Bills For Space Heaters


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MTA

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority may restart limited train service to the South Ferry station in Lower Manhattan, which suffered extensive damage during Superstorm Sandy, in order to help commuters
Retired South Ferry Station May Reopen Temporarily(NYT) The century-old station was retired in 2009, but its $500 million replacement, flooded during Hurricane Sandy, could face years of rebuilding.* South Ferry Options Explored(WSJ) * Staged Reopening' of South Ferry Station Could Begin Sooner Than Thought(WSJ) * MTA looking into re-opening South Ferry station(WABC)



 
The MTA held over $90 million in funds and bank accounts that could have been used to meet its budgeted costs
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Koch How to Buy Votes

Thoughts From Koch on a 'Fool and a Simpleton'(NYT) In an interview released recently, former Mayor Edward I Koch revealed his secret to securing a borough president's vote: just promise to upgrade his bathroom.Ed Koch on how he really felt about some of his colleagues in NYC government.



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Washington

 State of the UnionObama Pledges Push to Lift Economy for Middle Class(NYT)
Obama hails big-spending fix for economy(NYP) * In Age of Spending Cuts, Making a Case for Government(NYT) * The President’s Challenge to Congress(NYT) * Raising Minimum Wage Would Ease Gap(NYT) * G.O.P. Puts On a Calmer Face, Except for One Wild-Eyed Rocker(NYT) * From Obama, a Proudly Liberal Message(NYT) * Obama Urges Action on Broad Agenda(WSJ) * Focus Turns To Wages, Guns, Climate(WSJ) * Minimum-Wage Debate Rekindled(WSJ) * Obama to Halve Afghan Force in Next Year(WSJ) * Interactive: Full Text & Analysis of Speech(WSJ) * Bronx advocate against illegal guns to attend Presiden Obama's(NYDN) * Here’s the full video and text of the president’s State of the Union address.* The State of the Union in GIFs(NY Mag)

NYU nurse gets shoutout from Obama during State of the Union(NYDN)  * Cuomo issued a statement in response to the SOTU, praising the president’s education proposals, call to raise the minimum wage and commitment to gun control.


 New GOP star’s counterattack*NYP) * The Rap on Rubio(Dowd, NYT) Gotta start makin’ changes, as Tupac says. And Marco Rubio is doing just that as he leads a desperate white, male Republican Party away from country to gangsta.* Rubio Puts Emphasis on Middle Class(WSJ) * Rubio Gets In Last Word on Water Slip(WSJ) * Rubio decried what he called Obama’s “obsession” with higher taxes.

OBAMA AND THE “BLACK” AGENDA: Michael Benjamin offers a list of issues that President Obama should take up in his second term, from health care to family-oriented antipoverty programs to stronger ties with Africa:
Challenged for His Seat at 89, a Senator Does Not Go Gentle(NYT)Senator Frank R. Lautenberg of New Jersey has embraced his job with new vigor, even as Cory Booker, the 43-year-old mayor of Newark, has announced that he will run for the seat.

Cory Booker’s Challenge Gave Frank Lautenberg the Will to Keep Fighting(NY Mag)
Cardinal Dolan on his chances of becoming the next pope: “Don’t bet your lunch money on that one. Bet on the Mets.” MICHELLE MALKIN: Who failed Chicago?(NYP
)Capture Historic Thirst: Marco Rubio Becomes His Own State Of The Union Drinking Game

NRA Gives Being Reasonable a Try in New Ad(NY Mag)
From Obama, a Proudly Liberal Message - Ted Widmer, New York Times
Deja Vu: The President Has Nothing New to Say - Victor Davis Hanson, NRO
The President's Message: We Can Fix This - David Ignatius, Washington Post
Dr. Carson a Good Remedy for What Ails U.S. - Charles Hurt, Wash Times
Despite Big Gulp, Rubio's Response Was No Flop - Scott Conroy, RCP
The full text of Obama's address is here:
The Rap on Marco Rubio - Maureen Dowd, New York Times
Why Can't This Economy Really Get Going? - Michael Sivy, Time
Obama's Growth Record Is the Worst in 60 Years - Jeffrey Anderson, IBD
"They Deserve a Vote" - Eleanor Clift, The Daily Beast
Who Failed Chicago? - Michelle Malkin, Townhall
Four Worrisome Issues for 2014 Democrats - James Hohmann, Politico
Obama's Strategy Is a High-Stakes Gamble - William Galston, Brookings
The Pope's Bombshell Decision - Peggy Noonan, Wall Street Journal
Why Pope Will Be Remembered for Generations - Timothy Stanley, CNN
The SNL Donkey Show, With McCain & Hagel - James Fallows, The Atlantic
Obama Is the First Cyber War President - Neal Ungerleider, Fast Company
A Real State of the Union - John Stossel, FOX Business
State of the Union: President's Speech | Sen. Rubio | Sen. Paul | Photos
NRA’s Wayne LaPierre Exploits Made-Up Memory of Hurricane Sandy(NY Mag)


Rep. Eliot Engel, known as an “Aisle Hog” for his yearly tradition of camping out a front-and-center aisle seat at the State of the Union, waited hours in advance for the prime location. President Barack Obama, however, snubbed him as he entered and shook hands with other New York representatives. But never fear, Mr. Obama got to Mr. Engel on his way out.

Obama Strikes Tougher Tone in Push for Reasonable Goals - Boston Globe
What Is Jack Lew Doing as Nominee to Run the Treasury? - WSJ
State of Benefits Threatens Obama's Big Vision - USA Today
An Unhinged Chicago Intrudes - Chicago Tribune
The people who sat next to Michelle Obama(Wash Post)
This is what President Obama said last night -- and how Twitter reacted(Wash Post)
Todd S. Purdum on the political realities of Barack Obama’s stirring, partially partisan State of the Union (Vanity Fair)
Treasury secretary nominee Jack Lew faces questions about his time at Citigroup during financial crisis at Senate hearing
Sen. Lindsey Graham to introduce a guns background check bill:(Politico)
Veteran SOTU squatter Rep. Eliot Engel insists he was not snubbed by the president last night.


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Wall Street

The Times-Union argues that the state political system should bear responsibility for financial companies’ systemic abuse of the financial sector:

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Media

Former Republican gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino gave New York Post columnist Fred Dicker the middle finger yesterday at the state Capitol, where Paladino was to speak at a pro-gun rally, The Buffalo News writes: * After getting flipped off by Carl Paladino, who was in Albany for the pro-gun rights rally, the NY Post’s Fred Dicker said: “His crudeness speaks for itself.”


 
Piece of the rock: GE sells NBC stake and landmark building to Comcast for $17B(NYP)

Covering Dorner’s Standoff Was a Media Minefield(NY Mag

 

Obama Meets the Press -- for Lunch...

MSNBC's New Hire Surprise(Huff Post)

Scott Brown Becomes a Fox News Contributor

 

Stewart Tears Apart Cheney: Where Does This ‘Shi*ty’ VP ‘Get The Balls’ To Attack Obama?

 

 

 Six More British Journalists Are Arrested in Hacking Investigation (NYT)

Rupert Murdoch's journalists are still getting arrested for phone hacking.(NY Mag)


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Law and Order

Snitch cooperating in federal drug probe gunned down  (NYP) An informant aiding the feds in a New York drug probe was gunned down after he left a nightclub in Brooklyn last month

Mob cop’s pension off limits to feds(NYP)
 
Cops fume: Jury valued killer over Figoski(NYP)
NYPD investigates deaths of 3 gay men in NYC(WSJ)
Suspect Shot After Pointing Gun at Officers: Police(NBC)
I-Team: Police Departments File Applications for Drones(NBC)
Rikers inmates accused in unemployment scam(WABC)

 Cops review footage in Aussie tourist rape case(NYDN)

Police Seek Surveillance Video In Midtown Sex Assault Of (WCBS)
Brooklyn prosecutor avoids jail after pleading guilty to assaulting EMT(NYP)

Man Shot By Police In Brooklyn After Refusing To Drop Gun, Authorities Say(NY1)


WATCH: Cops punch, kick Queens teen in drug arrest(NYP) * Queens Man Says Video, Graphic Images Prove Police Used Excessive Force In His Arrest(NY1)
* Rikers Island detainees embezzle $160K from state(NYDN)* Cops searching for purse snatcher(NYDN)* Assistant DA expected to plead guilty in EMT assault(WABC)