Arun Venugopal

New York, NY —

Brothers should pull up their pants. That's the advice of President-elect Barack Obama who was recently asked by MTV how he felt about the style favored by some young African-Americans of wearing their pants well below the waist. WNYC's Arun Venugopal headed out to Fulton ...

New York, NY —

Five New York City lawyers and other legal professionals arrived in the city of Pune, India Saturday, hoping to expand access to the courts for those who can't afford lawyers.

REPORTER: The initiative was established by the Community Legal Resource Network, or CLRN, based at CUNY. ...

New York, NY —

Two Staten Island men have been charged with hate-crimes after allegedly beating a young African man in the hours following Barack Obama's election. The Staten Island District Attorney claims the two assaulted the victim Ali Kamara with a pipe and baton because they wanted to ...

New York, NY —

Governor Paterson has said he's reluctant to raise taxes on the wealthy because it might cause them to pack up and leave.

But at least one member of that tax bracket takes issue with his logic, Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

BLOOMBERG: I can only tell you, among my ...

New York, NY —

The city's department of consumer affairs has shut down three employment agencies and issued fines to others after conducting an 18-month-long investigation into what it calls "predatory practices." Consumer Affairs Commissioner Jonathan Mintz says people seeking employment should beware.

MINTZ: If you're going to sign a ...

New York, NY —

Sunday services were extra special for many of the city's black congregations celebrating the historic election of Barack Obama. WNYC's Arun Venugopal went to church in Jamaica, Queens, at the Greater Allen AME Cathedral.

FLAKE: Our topic this morning, at last: the Promised Land.

REPORTER: The Reverend ...

New York, NY —

This time, they're filing their lawsuit in federal court, claiming the mayor and speaker Christine Quinn acted illegally when they changed the term limits law by legislation, and not a voter referendum.

Attorney Norman Siegel says legal precedent supports their case, that elected officials cannot act ...

New York, NY —

Two City Council members are demanding changes in the city's new admissions policy for gifted and talented programs in its public schools, following news that the change did not bring more students in, or make the programs more ethnically and racially diverse.

Councilman Lew Fidler says ...

New York, NY —

Mayor Bloomberg signed his term limits bill into law, allowing himself and City Council members to run for a third term.

However, before the mayor signed, he got an earful from during the four-hour long public testimony. Several speakers praised the mayor, saying his financial skills ...

New York, NY —

One of the most closely watched races locally is in Staten Island, where Republican Bob Straniere is trying to defend Vito Fossella's seat for the GOP.

But polls suggest Councilman Mike McMahon is poised to win and that would make the city's entire congressional delegation Democratic.

Straniere, ...

New York, NY —

Republicans have held on to the Congressional seat in Staten Island for the last 28 years, but that may very well change on Election Day.

Polls suggest Democratic Candidate, Councilman Michael McMahon is likely to defeat his Republican opponent, former Assemblyman Robert Straniere.

The two are vying ...

New York, NY —

Mayor Bloomberg and the city's Board of Elections are blaming each other for what could turn out to be a very messy Election Day. WNYC's Arun Venugopal has more.

REPORTER: Mayor Bloomberg has never been a fan of the city's board of elections. But yesterday, when ...

New York, NY —

Hip hop has played a visible role in presidential politics since at least the early 90s, when Bill Clinton had his Sista Souljah moment and denounced the performer's racially-charged statements.

In the last couple election cycles performers like Sean Combs, or Diddy have encouraged young people ...

New York, NY —

The Bloomberg Administration says the Waterfalls exhibit on the East River, which ran from June 26th to October 13th, had an even greater economic impact than anticipated.

REPORTER: Officials say the falls generated $69 million dollars in economic activity, exceeding the initial expectation of $55 million ...

New York, NY —

ELMO: Hi everybody, I'm so excited for Elmo's neighborhood Sesame Street to grow.

REPORTER: Sesame Street's Elmo yesterday helped Mayor Bloomberg break ground on a 40,000-foot expansion of the Kaufman Astoria Studios in Queens. City and state officials say a 35 percent tax credit for film ...

New York, NY —

Despite a new Quinnipiac poll that found a vast majority of New Yorkers want to settle the issue of term limits by public referendum.

Mayor Bloomberg says having a special election would only result in prolonged litigation. And the city has enough on its plate.

BLOOMBERG: I ...

New York, NY —

Our latest count has 17 city council members in favor of Mayor Bloomberg's bid for a term limits extension. Nineteen are against and 15 remain undecided. Opponents of the plan were out in full force this weekend, including Comptroller Bill Thompson, who's planning to run ...

New York, NY —

Patricia Kaufman heads the governor's office for film and TV development.

She says the state's decision to increase its tax credit for production costs, from 10 to 30 percent, has resulted in a spike in productions seeking to film here.

KAUFMAN: So I think it's pretty safe ...

New York, NY —

Mayor Bloomberg is denying accusations that he's abusing his power in order to drum up support for his bid to change term limits.

BLOOMBERG: We're out there, promoting, trying to rally people to support the administration's position. That's what we're supposed to do. But we do ...

New York, NY —

You've heard of the 42nd Street subway shuttle, being covered in ads? Well, how about garbage trucks and street sweepers?

It's something Council Speaker Christine Quinn is proposing, as a way of raising more money for the city to bridge upcoming budget gaps.

Quinn told members of ...