NYC NOW

WNYC and Gothamist arts and culture editor Matthew Schnipper joins us to talk about Kelly Clarkson’s dispute with Brooklyn Heights shop Art of Play, a photographer trying to document every neighborhood in the city and what really makes someone a New Yorker. Plus, Citi Bike’s unlikely rise as a symbol of New York cool and some of the places opening their doors for Open House New York. Photo: Sonia...

Micron, the chipmaker building a massive complex outside Syracuse, says it will bring 50,000 jobs to Central New York. In this year’s race for governor, Kathy Hochul has put billions in state subsidies behind the project, while challenger Bruce Blakeman says the state should get out of the way and let businesses come on their own. But for the people training for those jobs, the bigger question is...

After at least four yellow cab drivers died while working in New York City this summer, WNYC reporter Ramsey Khalife examines the financial pressures that can keep drivers behind the wheel even when they are sick.  Photo: Ramsey Khalifeh - WNYC/Gothamist   Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org . Driving to death: NYC yellow taxi drivers keep dyi...

WNYC and Gothamist reporter Ben Feuerherd joins us to break down what we know about the shooting in Marble Hill, where a federal immigration agent shot 28 year old Oscar Belgal while his five year old son was inside the car. They discuss newly released NYPD body camera footage, the department’s role when federal agents operate in New York City, the public's response and Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s unsu...

In a small daycare center in Upstate New York, families are pulling their kids out after the state assistance that made childcare affordable ran dry. It's happening in dozens of counties across New York, and it's part of a bigger fight over the cost of living that's at the center of this year's race for governor. Kathy Hochul wants to expand childcare subsidies, while challenger Bruce Blakeman arg...

WNYC and Gothamist reporter David Brand joins us to talk about a couple of the housing battles he’s covering right now, including the lawsuit challenging the Rent Guidelines Board’s rent freeze and a new fast-track process for certain affordable housing projects. Plus, WNYC and Gothamist reporter Walter Wuthmann looks at noise complaints surrounding rooftop parties at the Brooklyn Children’s Museu...

Chef Ham El-Waylly grew up in Doha, Qatar, eating his mom's Egyptian and Bolivian cooking and dreaming about New York bagels while watching Seinfeld. Today, he's the co-owner and chef behind Strange Delight, a Creole restaurant in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. In this episode, Ham joins NYC Now host Janae Pierre to talk about the unexpected throughlines between Southern cooking and the food he grew up on...

October 1st marks the start of heat season in New York City, when landlords are legally required to keep buildings warm... but getting a landlord to actually fix a heat problem can be its own battle. Tenants' rights attorney Leah Goodridge walks us through what tenants are entitled to and the steps she, herself, took to get the hot water back in her apartment. Then, WNYC and Gothamist housing repo...

New York City has seen a string of deadly Legionnaires outbreaks. Daniel Thomas reflects on losing his father, retired New York State Supreme Court Justice Charles Thomas, after he contracted the disease during this summer’s Upper East Side outbreak. But death is not the only lasting consequence. WNYC and Gothamist reporter Joe Hong speaks with two survivors of the 2025 Central Harlem outbreak who...

WNYC and Gothamist culture reporter Sonia Rao joins Matthew Schnipper to discuss the Harry Styles pop up that drew huge crowds to the East Village and a confrontation that ended with cookbook store owner Bonnie Slotnick being arrested. They also look at a new film about location scouting in New York, the growing number of creative workers going freelance and the return of Saint Vitus in Bushwick....

As the New York Liberty head into the WNBA playoffs for a sixth straight year, the franchise is also marking its 30th season. WNYC's Morning Edition producer Amanda Rozon takes us to Liberty Legends Weekend in Brooklyn, where original team members like Teresa Weatherspoon and Crystal Robinson reflect on the franchise's early years, as rising ticket prices are reshaping who gets to be in the stands...

Upstate New York is home to the country's last two foie gras (fatty duck liver) farms, even though New York City banned the sale of foie gras back in 2019. The ban's never actually been enforced, and now it's headed to the state's highest court. WNYC's Walter Wuthmann drove up to the Hudson Valley to see the force feeding process for himself, and talked us through the perspective of the farmers wh...

New York City's parks have long doubled as free, open air gyms, and the tradition stretches back to groups like The Bartendaz, who started training on playground bars in the Bronx and Brooklyn in the early 2000s. WNYC producer James Ramsey headed to Chelsea Park to get a lesson in that scene from Brooklyn-born trainer Danny Kavadlo, and shared what he learned with us.   Photo: Walter Wuthmann...

Fifteen years after Occupy Wall Street began in Zuccotti Park, NYC Now returns to WNYC’s archives to ask what the movement changed, where it fell short and what remains today. WNYC reporter Stephen Nessen reflects on covering Occupy in real time, while City Council member Sandy Nurse looks back on her experience inside the movement and the path that eventually took her from activism into elected o...

New York City has launched its new 2-K program as the first major step toward universal childcare. But some providers started the school year without city funding they were counting on, leaving some to borrow money or dip into their own savings to cover payroll, rent and supplies. WNYC’s Karen Yi explains why payment and contracting delays keep happening and what they could mean for the city’s pla...

Twenty five years ago, WNYC reporters fanned out across the city recording New Yorkers in the hours and days after the attacks on the World Trade Center. Today, we revisit two of those New Yorkers: a scared, pregnant 21 year old wondering if her baby would grow up to enjoy the city she loves, and a 15 year old Muslim girl bracing for the Islamophobia that followed. WNYC's Samantha Max found both w...

Keeping chickens in city backyards is becoming more popular. WNYC’s Morning Edition producer Verónica Del Valle visits a Jersey City backyard farm to see what urban chicken keeping actually looks like and the rules to know before starting a flock of your own.  Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org . Photo cred: Verónica Del Valle/WNYC Mayor Mamdani r...

New York City is restricting AI across public schools, including a one year ban for students through eighth grade and new limits on screen time for younger students. WNYC and Gothamist education reporter Jessica Gould explains why the city reversed its earlier approach, where AI will still be allowed for high school students and teachers, and the challenges schools face enforcing the rules once st...

As WQXR morning host Jeff Spurgeon retires after a 50-year radio career, we sit down with him to reflect on his path from a Nebraska farm to three decades on New York's airwaves, and talk about classical music's surprising resurgence among Gen Z and Millennial listeners. Photo: WQXR Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org . NYPD data shows decline in summer...

Earlier this summer, the Trump administration ended Temporary Protected Status for Haitians and Syrians, upending life for tens of thousands of New Yorkers. We headed to Flatbush's Little Caribbean neighborhood to hear how the policy shift is playing out on the ground for business owners. Photo: Djon Djon executive chef Chef Wesly Jean Simon / Iru Ekpunobi Got any questions, comments or story idea...

A coalition representing hundreds of independent grocers is suing New York City over Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plan to open five city owned grocery stores, arguing the taxpayer backed stores could put neighborhood businesses at a disadvantage. WNYC and Gothamist reporter Karen Yi looks at what the lawsuits challenge, how the city is defending the plan and whether the experiment could ultimately help...

WNYC arts and culture editor Matthew Schnipper joins Janae Pierre to talk about the US Open, rising New York Liberty ticket prices and what it costs to be a sports fan in the city right now. Also discussed are Dolly Parton’s legacy and some of the best ways to spend the final days of summer across New York City. Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org. Phot...

WNYC’s Ryan Kost joins us to revisit some of the biggest stories NYC Now and Gothamist covered this summer, from the Knicks championship and Zohran Mamdani’s first months in office to extreme weather, major public health concerns, the World Cup and more. -Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org Photo: NurPhoto/Getty    Episode Notes: NYC honors Do...

Recorded live at HANAC Harmony JVL Older Adult Center in Astoria, this installment of In Conversation: The Affordability Series examines New York City’s small two and three family homes, where an owner may live in one unit and rent out another. The conversation explores rising costs, limited tenant protections, basement apartment legalization, home flipping and what it would take to keep more New...

A cyclosporiasis outbreak linked to recalled Taylor Farms iceberg lettuce has sickened hundreds and left health officials recommending cooked produce over raw salads... which is a tough sell in the middle of summer. NYC Now producer Iru Ekpunobi walks us through the ways New York City chefs Sohla El-Waylly, Ayo Balogun and Nasim Alikhani recommend to keep eating cooked vegetables safely without gi...