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:
20th Anniversary of 9/11 Special
Saturday, September 11, 2021
As Federal Unemployment Benefits End, Employers Still Struggle to Fill Vacancies
Friday, September 03, 2021
Up to 800,000 New York City Residents Could Lose Federal Unemployment Pandemic Benefits in September
Friday, August 27, 2021
Meet The Owner Who Got The Smallest Federal Restaurant Grant in New York City
Thursday, August 12, 2021
Cuomo’s Critics Worry He Could Be Setting Himself Up to Run Again
Wednesday, August 11, 2021
Why Some Outer Borough Restaurants Can't Make Outdoor Dining Work
Tuesday, August 10, 2021
Outdoor Dining Is Spreading In NYC, But Not Everywhere
Sunday, August 08, 2021
Access-A-Ride Users Plead With MTA to Stop Shared Rides
Friday, August 06, 2021
With Details Still Pending, City’s Restaurant Industry Accepts Vaccine Mandate To Avoid Another Shutdown
Wednesday, August 04, 2021
New York City Council Puts New Limits on Delivery Apps
Thursday, July 29, 2021
When Leasing Manhattan Office Space, B Stands for Better Deals Than Before
Wednesday, July 21, 2021
Without More Tourists, City Hotels Can’t Bring Back All Their Furloughed Staffers
Wednesday, June 30, 2021
Thousands of Minority and Women-Owned Restaurants Won’t Get Aid Because of Lawsuits
Tuesday, June 15, 2021
As Vaccination Rates Rise, More Companies Consider Soft Reopening Over Summer
Thursday, June 03, 2021
Reopening a Comedy Club is No Joke as Pandemic Eases
Friday, May 28, 2021
Threading the Needle: An Apparel Company Owner Hopes to Bring Back NYC's Garment District
Thursday, May 20, 2021
City Restaurants to Albany: Keep Lax Liquor Laws Post Pandemic
Monday, May 17, 2021
Hanging On: How a Custom Framing Shop Survived the Pandemic
Wednesday, May 05, 2021
NYC Mayor De Blasio Orders Municipal Employees Back To The Office
Tuesday, May 04, 2021
80,000 New York City Municipal Employees Report Back to Their Desks This Week
Monday, May 03, 2021
