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@jessyedwards.bsky.social

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jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · 3d

As of this month, the TVs in NYC taxis are now playing national news from Newsmax—the ultra-conservative outlet known for pushing baseless election fraud claims.

Curb, the company that controls what's on the screens, announced the collab late September.

Taxi TV Is MAGA Now

New York City taxi riders are now served conservative news segments during their trips.

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · 15d

My favorite writers also happen to be my @hellgatenyc.com colleagues. RIP Blink Fitness.

Blink and You’ll Miss It: PureGym Is Upon Us

New York's most egalitarian gym closes its eyes for the last time.

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · 16d

This Bronx family went 6 weeks with no running water, gas or power. Instead of using all the tools at its disposal to restore the utilities, the City's HPD told them to leave.

An incredibly frustrating case illustrating how some NYC families are falling through the cracks.

These Bronx Tenants Lived Six Weeks Without Water and Power. The City’s Fix? A Vacate Order

The plight of the Ramos family reveals the weaknesses in the City's system to protect tenants from unlivable conditions—and from being put out on the street.

hellgatenyc.com

Reposted

Nick Pinto @nickpinto.bsky.social · Sep 24

Subscribe to @hellgatenyc.com, support worker-owned local journalism, and get your Spooky Bookstore Opening news days before right-wing corporate media publishes it with an “exclusive”tag!

hellgatenyc.com/twisted-spin...

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Sep 23

Sophie, a 30-year-old social worker at Brooklyn Defender Services, had barely interacted with the org's boss before she was summoned to her office last week.

When Lisa Schreibersdorf asked her to lead a union-busting effort, she said she was shocked.

Boss of Brooklyn Defenders Charged With Shockingly Sloppy Attempt at Union Busting

"She was like, 'Once you inevitably execute and are successful in this plan, of course you would be union president.'"

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Sep 18

A researcher on the Hindutva movement told me the ads were likely bought with Indian taxpayer money.

"[The BJP] has long held these superpower ambitions for Modi, and in the absence of anything real to show for it, they're happy to pay a private, anonymous advertising firm to blast these around."

What's Up With Those Weird Narendra Modi Birthday Ads on LinkNYC Kiosks?

A mysterious Dubai-based company apparently paid for the ads.

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Sep 15

I tagged along on a tour of NYC rent-stabilized apartments hosted by @emilyassembly.bsky.social for Austrian Vice-Chancellor @andibabler.at, where the Austrian had some frank advice for NY lawmakers (and a warning for his constituents back home)

Leaders of Vienna, an Oasis of Affordable Housing, Tour NYC’s Grim Offerings

Austrian Vice Chancellor Andreas Babler had some advice for New York lawmakers after seeing the city's rent-stabilized apartments up close.

hellgatenyc.com

Reposted

Hell Gate *subscribe today!* @hellgatenyc.com · Sep 9

I told the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet his band's new album is his best yet, and he replied, "we don't necessarily improve as artists. We just don't."

hellgatenyc.com/paul-muldoon...

I Think Paul Muldoon's Rock Music Has Improved. Paul Muldoon Disagrees

I told the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet his band's new album is his best yet, and he replied: "We don't necessarily improve as artists. We just don't."

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Sep 9

"If you have enough money to book Third Eye Blind and give us free drinks, you can afford to pay your workers."

At Instacart’s free concert last week, attendees weighed in on the company’s campaign to block fair wage laws for its deliveristas (set to go in front of the City Council tomorrow)

How Instacart Spent Its Summer Vacation: Fighting a Fair Wage Law and Throwing a Third Eye Blind Concert

As the City Council prepares to override Mayor Eric Adams's veto and close the "Instacart loophole," the company is waging a PR blitz.

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Aug 29

Eternally grateful to the women who shared their stories for this piece, and for the team that worked so hard to build this story.

Special investigation: He went by 'Champagne' on Rikers Island. Here's what 24 women allege he did. - Online Journalism Awards

awards.journalists.org

Reposted

Hell Gate *subscribe today!* @hellgatenyc.com · Aug 18

Two and a half years and $180,000 later, Aaron Alexis thought he did everything right on his way to opening his own licensed weed dispensary—but an abrupt announcement from the Office of Cannabis Management has left him "hopeless" and stranded in limbo.

He Staked Everything on His Legal Weed Store—Then New York State Pulled the Plug

When New York legalized recreational cannabis sales in 2021, Aaron Alexis thought he did everything right—but a sudden change in state policy has placed his business plan in limbo.

hellgatenyc.com

Reposted

Hell Gate *subscribe today!* @hellgatenyc.com · Aug 15

A Hell Gate data analysis found the Parks Department cancels tree plantings near NYPD precincts due to cops parking on the sidewalk.

No Shade: Illegally Parked Cop Cars Are Why We Can't Have Nice Trees

A Hell Gate investigation reveals that the Parks Department has canceled tree plantings near NYPD precincts where cops park on the sidewalk.

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Aug 13

This upstate landfill is New York’s largest emitter of methane; a man-made mountain piled high with trash from NYC & elsewhere. It’s supposed to close at the end of the year. But a billion-dollar Texas-based corporation and the politicians they helped elect are fighting to keep it open until 2040.

1,500 Tons of NYC Trash Every Day—For Another 15 Years?

A Seneca Falls landfill—which is the state's largest emitter of methane—is supposed to close at the end of the year. But a Texas-based trash corporation and the politicians they helped elect are fight...

hellgatenyc.com

Reposted

Hell Gate *subscribe today!* @hellgatenyc.com · Aug 11

More than a century ago, a young, charismatic socialist with the gift of gab decided to run for mayor in his NY town. He campaigned on a platform of affordability: City-run grocery stores, cheap fares for streetcars, taxing the rich, & good government. Sound familiar?

How a Fiery Socialist Mayor Captured the Hearts of New York Voters—in 1911

Union College professor Andrew Morris tells us what Zohran Mamdani could learn from George Lunn's successes—and failures—as a four-term mayor of Schenectady.

hellgatenyc.com

Reposted

Hell Gate *subscribe today!* @hellgatenyc.com · Aug 11

Andrew Cuomo has a new social media team. In the last week and a half, the former-governor's X account—once populated with policy boasts and handshake photos—appears to have been taken over by an acerbic, millennial attack dog.

Morning Spew: Cuomo Tries to Sh*tpost His Way to Victory

The former governor has a new online persona, and a new housing policy. And other news for your Monday.

hellgatenyc.com

Reposted

Hell Gate *subscribe today!* @hellgatenyc.com · Aug 8

More than a century ago, a young, charismatic socialist with the gift of gab decided to run for mayor in his New York town. He campaigned on a platform of affordability: City-run grocery stores, cheap fares for streetcars, taxing the rich, and good government.

Sound familiar?

How a Fiery Socialist Mayor Captured the Hearts of New York Voters—in 1911

Union College professor Andrew Morris tells us what Zohran Mamdani could learn from George Lunn's successes—and failures—as a four-term mayor of Schenectady.

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Aug 6

“[Cuomo’s new logo] looks like he is copying Mamdani's color scheme. The tag line ‘to build a New NYC’ is odd if you try to say it out loud. It means he is building a ‘New New York,’ which is what New York City is called in the cartoon ‘Futurama.’”

NYC Designers Review Cuomo's and Adams's Rebrands

Two mayoral candidates unveil (strangely familiar) rebrands. And other links for your Wednesday.

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Aug 1

After I interviewed George Santos in May, he sent me a message saying he thought my story made him look like a “slob.” I unpack that, and other complicated feelings about Santos and justice, here:

I Can't Stop Thinking About George Santos

Liar, grifter, political showman, mirror to some of our political contradictions—I cannot get enough.

hellgatenyc.com

Reposted

Hell Gate *subscribe today!* @hellgatenyc.com · Jul 25

Rabbi Chanina Sperlin, a powerful player in NYC politics, was ordered to appear at Carl Miller's hearing this week, where his testimony is considered vital to overturning Miller's murder conviction. But the rabbi never showed up. Now, he could be held in contempt of court, fined or even arrested.

A Powerful Rabbi Could Help Carl Miller Clear His Name. But He Refuses to Show Up to Court.

Rabbi Chanina Sperlin saw a different man running from the scene of the murder in 1979, but he won't come to court to tell a judge that now.

hellgatenyc.com

Reposted

Nick Pinto @nickpinto.bsky.social · Jul 21

The museum of the banality of evil has many rooms and exhibits and its latest acquisition is a stunner: this piece by Liv Veazey which opens on her eavesdropping on some ICE agents in a cafe before following them to their job snatching people at NYC immigration court. hellgatenyc.com/what-ice-age...

What ICE Agents Talk About When They Think Nobody Is Listening

Cat videos, “The Good Place,” and free Slurpies: these are the topics of conversation among federal agents between arrests in immigration court.

hellgatenyc.com

Reposted

Hell Gate *subscribe today!* @hellgatenyc.com · Jul 11

One month after the FARE Act—the bill that banned forced broker fees—took effect on June 11, renters are still navigating a housing market rife with confusion and trickery

The FARE Act Doomsaying Hasn't Come to Pass—But NYC Real Estate Brokers Are Still Playing Games

One month after the bill that banned forced broker fees took effect, renters are still navigating a housing market rife with confusion and trickery.

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Jun 28

Thank you Mandy!

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Jun 28

Thank you, Tom!

Reposted

Tom Ochs @tomochs.bsky.social · Jun 27

Terrific article on @bradlander.bsky.social by Jessy Edwards @jessyedwards.bsky.social @hellgatenyc.com Come for the article, definitely stay for the wild interview that has multiple NYers shouting out Brad Lander. @nickpinto.bsky.social @maxrn.bsky.social have a great team at Hell Gate. Subscribe!

Hell Gate *subscribe today!* @hellgatenyc.com · Jun 27

In the past two weeks, we seemed to watch Brad Lander evolve in front of our very eyes: From a measured civil servant who releases long, detailed reports, to a ball-busting, rollercoaster-riding mayoral candidate who practices civil disobedience and curses out Cuomo.

hellgatenyc.com/brad-lander-...

Brad Lander, Unfiltered and Unplugged

He didn't win the Democratic mayoral primary… but he won a lot of New Yorkers' hearts.

hellgatenyc.com

jessyedwards.bsky.social @jessyedwards.bsky.social · Jun 24

Ousmane Traore, 56, a janitor, said he was ranking Cuomo #1 (one word: "experience!") and Lander #2. "I'm glad to participate," he said, grinning, before fist-bumping me and zooming off on his scooter. @hellgatenyc.com