As New York tries to figure out what to build at the World Trade Center site, and how to reconstruct Downtown as a whole, there are a lot of people and agencies weighing in. But who really makes the final decisions? The Mayor? The Governor? The Port Authority? WNYC's Andrea ...

In a world where most of the awards go to the usual suspects, the Grammy Award for "Album of the Year" went, surprisingly enough, to the movie soundtrack O Brother Where Art Thou . And it wasn't the only unexpected winner on Grammy night… WNYC's John Schaefer fills us in.

You can't get there from the West, or the North or the South, for that matter. The subway stop on the corner is closed. The only way to get into century 21's Courtlandt or Dey street entrances is from Broadway, to the east. Even so, the official reopening of Century ...

Charles Schwarz could soon be a free man. Yesterday, a federal appeals court ordered a new trial for the former police officer... throwing out his conviction in the 1997 assault on Abner Louima. WNYC's Beth Fertig has more on the decision.

You may have heard Mayor Bloomberg joking about his weekend whereabouts ... which he been keeping secret from the press. The city's tabloids have taken him to task for this, with one printing a picture of Bloomberg on a milk carton. On the Media's Mike Pesca weighs in on the ...

New York's gay, lesbian and transgender communities mourned the death of Sylvia Rivera last night at memorial and march. The 50-year-old drag queen died last week from liver cancer. Her ashes were spread at the site, where more than 30 years ago, she participated and some say started the famous ...

This spring, a new crop of musicals will be presented on Broadway, and some old ones will be revived. Toiling behind the scenes, Sara Fishko tells us, are the orchestrators. Here is the next Fishko Files...

Monsoon Wedding is the new movie from director Mira Nair, whose films include Salaam Bombay! and Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love. Nair returned to her native city of Delhi to tell the story of a Punjabi family about to marry off itsdaughter. WNYC's cultural advisor on film and Enterainment ...

After a 54 year ban, skeleton racing is being reintroduced into the Winter Olympics. It was originally taken out of the games because officials thought shooting down a bobsled track face-first, on a sled, was too dangerous. But now it's back, and the first qualifying runs will be held later ...

With mayor Michael Bloomberg's proposed budget now on the table, city agencies are preparing for sweeping cuts. The package still needs to be approved by the City Council and one major sticking point expected is recycling. The mayor wants to suspend the bottle and can program, saying it doesn't work. ...

One of the biggest challenges for mayor-elect mike bloomberg, as for any mayor, will be to preside successfully over the nypd. But wnyc’s brian lehrer says with hard economic times and new security demands, it will be particularly difficult in 2002.


ANCHOR: wnyc’s brian lehrer. You can hear his call-in show ...

Some new yorkers are still in shock that a billionaire media mogul with no government experience has been elected mayor. But wnyc’s brian lehrer says if you’re one of those people, look on the bright side.

Brian:

On the morning after the election, an unhappy politically progressive colleague walked up ...

ANCHOR: In these last few days before new year’s, many commentators make predictions of things they expect to see in the new year. but wnyc’s brian lehrer has an ANTI-prediction: something he’s not SURE whether to expect in 2002.


BRIAN: I’m not sure whether to expect the following headline:

Bush to city: ...

ANCHOR: It’s back to the drawing board for the idea of a statue to represent the three white firefighters who hoisted an american flag at ground zero after the world trade center attacks. The controversial design that depicted the firefighters as white black and latino has been withdrawn. But wnyc’s ...

Mayor Michael Bloomberg released his preliminary $42 billion budget yesterday. To close a projected $4.8 billion gap, the mayor is asking for one third of that amount in savings, one third in borrowing, and one third in federal or state help. As WNYC’s Andrea Bernstein reports, despite the size of ...

12 couples will be married today at the top of the Empire State Building. In past years, the World Trade Center hosted marathon marriages on its observation deck on Valentine’s Day. WNYC’s Marianne McCune spent one valentine’s morning recording ceremonies and speaking with newlyweds there – recently she spoke again ...

More than just a teen idol, Britney Spears has become a global pop phenomenon. This week, the 20-year-old singer extends her brand into theater making her film debut in Crossroads, which opens across the country tomorrow.

Increased security could not quell canine high spirits at Madison Square Garden, and here, at least, a spirit of international cooperation prevailed as hundreds of breeds from Afghans to affenpinschers, originating from dozens of different countries and cultures, competed amicably for the coveted “Best in Show” title.

As leading dogs representing ...

Voters go to the polls in a variety of districts to select legislators. One of the most hotly contested races is on the East Side of Manhattan, where Democrat Liz Kruger is vying with Republican John Ravitz to fill the seat vacated by 33-year incumbent State Senator Roy Goodman. But ...