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Mike Tyson is right: Hulu’s exploitation of his story is more Hollywood racism

By Solomon Jones | Inquirer.comThe tale of Mike Tyson’s life is riveting.Abandoned by his father at age 2, Tyson and his two siblings were raised by a single motherwho moved the family to a crime-ridden Brooklyn neighborhood called Brownsville. Tyson learned to fight, joined a gang, and was arrested repeatedly before he was sent to the Tryon School For Boys, which eventually led him to legendary trainer Cus D’Amato. It was D’Amato who […]

March 3, 2021

Coronavirus

Heard On WURD: Charles Ellison Interviews Dr. Nicolette Louissaint

By Ngakiya Camara | WURD Radio Dr. Nicolette Louissaint, executive director of Healthcare Ready, joined Charles Ellison on WURD’s Reality Check this past week to discuss vaccine initiatives and the overall future for the coronavirus. Focusing firstly on the single-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine-- whose relatively low effective rate compared to the Pfizer vaccine has created much skepticism in the public sphere-- Dr. Louissaint clarifies that the single-dose option is […]

March 3, 2021

Commentary

These Organizations Want To Spur a Movement Around Impact Investing In Philadelphia And The U.S.

By Hadriana Lowenkron | The PlugFrom Black Lives Matter and police brutality, to COVID-19 and racial disparities in public health, millions of people took to the streets last summer to protest injustice. For many Americans, however, their words and posters do not match their financial investments — a disconnect two organizations are attempting to fight in Philadelphia and throughout the country.With the support of funders, grants, and donations, Cory Donovan, […]

February 26, 2021

Commentary

Help Wanted

This story is part of the SoJo Exchange of COVID-19 stories from the Solutions Journalism Network, a nonprofit organization dedicated to rigorous reporting about responses to social problems.By Sarah Gustavus | Solutions Journalism NetworkSJN’s Economic Mobility Beat needs open-minded journalists willing to shed biases, tired narratives and musty ideasA few years ago, I was at a gathering in Colorado with journalists and civic leaders interested in exploring solutions. We discussed […]

February 24, 2021

Commentary

Our Town bowling alley is a murder scene, and things will never be the same

By Solomon Jones | WHYY.orgBefore COVID-19 shut down the world, I would often take my family to a bowling alley in East Norriton, Montgomery County. Back then, it was called the Facenda-Whitaker Bowling Lanes. Now it’s called the Our Town Alley Bowling Lanes, and it’s called one thing more — a murder scene.In the days before gunshots shattered the peace on a quiet winter weekend, we’d head to Steppy’s Sports Bar, which was attached […]

February 23, 2021

Health & Wellness

Heard On WURD: Solomon Jones Interviews Dr. Ala Stanford

By Ngakiya Camara | WURD RadioDr. Ala Stanford, pediatric surgeon and the founder of the Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium, joined Solomon Jones last week on WURD Radio to announce an amazing initiative to vaccinate Philadelphians who’ve been impacted the most by this pandemic. Beginning last Friday at noon, the Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium began a 24-hour vaccination clinic lasting until the following Saturday at the Liacouras Center on Broad Street.This first […]

February 23, 2021

Coronavirus

‘The people live here’: First Philly-run mass vaccination clinics target underserved neighborhoods

By Ximena Conde | WHYY.orgPhiladelphia opened on Tuesday its first city-run mass COVID-19 vaccination site for eligible residents in Phase 1B. The clinic at North Philly’s Martin Luther King Jr. Older Adult Center is one of three opening this week with the aim of making the vaccines easy to access in traditionally underserved neighborhoods.“There’s been this discussion about these large-scale facilities, and that’s all great — drive-throughs, Convention Center — […]

February 23, 2021

Press Release

A Message From WURD Radio President and CEO, Sara Lomax-Reese Regarding Cody Anderson

It is with a very heavy heart that we acknowledge the passing of radio icon Cody Anderson. According to his family he passed peacefully on Saturday evening. Cody was instrumental in breathing life into WURD and shepherding it over our almost 20 years, first as General Manager and most recently as a beloved host, mentor and friend. Like his biological family, the WURD family will miss him deeply. But we […]

February 21, 2021

Commentary

Dear journalism students: Feeling dispirited? Try covering more than just problems

This story is part of the SoJo Exchange of COVID-19 stories from the Solutions Journalism Network, a nonprofit organization dedicated to rigorous reporting about responses to social problems.By Sara Catania | Solutions Journalism NetworkGoing into her senior year as a journalism major at FAMU, Nallah Brown was having serious doubts about her chosen career path.She wanted to make a difference with her reporting, but she knew for certain that she […]

February 20, 2021

Education

Philly schools delay reopening amid stalled dispute with teachers union

By Avi Wolfman-Arent | WHYY.orgThe School District of Philadelphia is delaying its plan to return some students to classrooms due to ongoing mediation with the teachers union — postponing from Feb. 22 to March 1.The decision comes amid a dispute with the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, which opposes returning members to buildings until all are fully inoculated against COVID-19.The district and the union had agreed to a plan to return to schools […]

February 19, 2021