Beth Fertig is a senior reporter covering courts and legal affairs. She focuses on how different New Yorkers interact with the civil and criminal justice systems. Her work explores whether justice is meted out fairly and whether programs within the courts can reduce incarceration and solve social problems. She also covers the federal immigration courts and how changes in immigration law affect New Yorkers under President Donald Trump's administration.
Beth started working at WNYC in 1995 covering city politics and spent many years covering public education. She is the author of Why cant u teach me 2 read? Three Students and a Mayor Put Our Schools to the Test (FSG Books) which grew out of a radio series on the low graduation rate for special education students. She also worked on the award-winning WNYC series “Being 12” and reported on efforts to promote integration in the New York City public schools. Follow her @bethfertig.
Beth is a New York City native who discovered her love for journalism at her college newspaper at the University of Michigan. She also has a Master’s degree in Social Sciences from the University of Chicago. She is a frequent contributor to National Public Radio. She’s won many local and national awards, including the prestigious Alfred I. duPont Columbia University Award for Broadcast Journalism for her series of reports in 2001 about an effort to privatize some struggling city schools.
Beth also won an Edward R. Murrow award for an investigation of a subway fire. And she’s won numerous awards from the city's Deadline Club, the Society of Professional Journalists, and the New York Press Club -- which gave her a special award after the 2001 terrorist attacks for a profile on the friendship of two WTC survivors.
Read Beth's latest reporting on Gothamist.
Beth Fertig appears in the following:
Guatemalan Mom to Be Reunited With Her Son in New York After Being Separated at US Border
Thursday, January 23, 2020
Supporters Of NY’s Bail Law Say Considering A Defendant’s Dangerousness is Biased
Wednesday, January 22, 2020
Trump Administration Loses Fight To Temporarily Block Public Charge Rule For Immigrants
Wednesday, January 08, 2020
New York's New Bail Law May be Amended for Hate Crimes
Monday, January 06, 2020
As New Bail Laws Take Effect, Some Defendants Walk Free But With Conditions
Thursday, January 02, 2020
New Bail and Discovery Laws in New York
Monday, December 30, 2019
Will New York’s New Criminal Justice Laws Lead to More Trials?
Wednesday, December 18, 2019
NY Gets Ready for Bail Reform, Part 3
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
NY Gets Ready for Bail Reform, Part 2
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
NY Gets Ready for Bail Reform, Part 1
Tuesday, December 10, 2019
The Women Who Sketch Justice at Work
Monday, November 04, 2019
HIV Positive Woman Wins Asylum, Can Now Bring Over Deported Daughter
Wednesday, October 30, 2019
Three Young Girls Were Separated at the Border from a Father with HIV
Tuesday, September 03, 2019
Undocumented Restaurant Worker Is Arrested by ICE During Deposition Against His Employer
Friday, August 16, 2019
As Raids Failed to Materialize, Many Immigrants Still Felt Fearful
Sunday, July 14, 2019
Queens DA Candidates Champion Progressive Policies – Some More Than Others
Tuesday, June 18, 2019
What You Need to Know About the Queens D.A. Candidates
Tuesday, June 11, 2019
American Bar Association Says Immigration Courts Are 'On The Brink Of Collapse'
Tuesday, June 04, 2019
A Cautionary Tale For DACA Recipients From A Detained Student
Thursday, May 30, 2019
