Categories for DailyPost

Feb 23

2022

Changes afoot at WGRZ

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Big doings this week at WGRZ. Tuesday came the announcement that the station’s parent company, TEGNA, has been sold, pending approval by shareholders and the FCC. The buyer, Standard General, a hedge fund, presently owns just a handful of television stations; TEGNA consists of 64 stations, three of which will be sold as part of the transaction. TEGNA, NextStar and Sinclair, are considered the “Big Three” of television chains.  Standard General is presently TEGNA’s largest shareholder. Ownership of the stations will go private when the transaction is finalized, which is expected in the second half of this year. The Manhattan-based[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Feb 22

2022

Scott Levin interview with Jim Heaney

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Editor Jim Heaney discussed the past, present and future of Investigative Post in an interview earlier this week with WGRZ news anchor Scott Levin. Investigative Post marked its 10 year anniversary Tuesday. Heaney, in his seven-minute interview with Levin, described Investigative Post’s place in the local media landscape, outlined his plans to continue to grow his nonprofit news organization, and noted the challenges reporters face these days – namely, stonewalling politicians and bureaucrats contemptuous of the public’s right to know. In addition to watching the interview above, you can read Heaney’s history of Investigative Post at this link.

Posted 3 years ago

Feb 21

2022

Celebrating a decade of muckraking

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A billionaire is pouring money — $15 million the first year of operation alone — to launch a nonprofit news organization in Baltimore.  Five foundations are putting up $20 million to start a similar venture in Houston. Me? I started Investigative Post with my credit card and an understanding wife. It was the fall of 2011. I had just taken a buyout from The Buffalo News, where I had worked for 25 years. I’d had enough. The paper was in the early stages of a downward spiral that continues to this day. I figured I had 10 years left in[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Feb 21

2022

Subscribe to our newsletter for free

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Editor’s note: WeeklyPost is an email newsletter written by Jim Heaney and published Sunday mornings. It recaps our coverage of the previous week and highlights other local, state and national stories that Heaney finds of interest, along with a bit of commentary. If you don’t already subscribe, you can do so at this link. To give you a flavor, here’s a sampling of the “What I’m Reading” section of yesterday’s newsletter. The Buffalo News published some very good pieces last week. Matt Spina reported on how former Erie County Sheriff Tim Howard continues to sponge off taxpayers. Mark Sommer reported on the[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Feb 20

2022

‘Completely stupid’ burning of toxins

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A Niagara Falls waste incineration plant burned almost 13 tons of firefighting foam over a three-year period, potentially releasing into the air and water insidious toxins linked in studies to infertility, birth defects, developmental disorders, compromised immune systems and cancer.  When questioned by state officials, Covanta Niagara at first denied it. Eventually, the company admitted burning “a small amount” of the material — aqueous film-forming foam, or AFFF — but claimed it didn’t know what it was burning. “That is not a small amount,” said David Bond, a Bennington College professor who fought to stop a waste incinerator doing the[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Feb 16

2022

Fire station burning up City Hall budget

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The City of Buffalo plans to build a palace of a new fire station in South Buffalo, judging from its price tag. Over the last several years, the city has approved borrowing about $9 million to replace Station No. 6 at the corner of Seneca Street and Southside Parkway. The station houses two trucks, Engine 25 and Ladder 10, and the department’s 6th Battalion.  The 62-year-old building definitely needs replacing. It’s a wreck. But $9 million (“… and counting,” says a City Hall source) is more than double the cost of the last new fire station the city built in[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Feb 15

2022

Heaney on Hochul: “I’m not impressed”

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Writing for Buffalo Spree, Jim Heaney weighs in on Kathy Hochul’a performance as governor six months into her tenure. Heaney, in his Outrages and Insights column, writes that he has concerns. “I’m not impressed” he writes. “My reasons are mostly related to her handling of issues I consider of paramount importance: transparency and ethics, economic development, and fiscal prudence.” You can read his full column here.

Posted 3 years ago

Feb 14

2022

OTB reform bills pass first test

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Amid pushback from some county law legisislatures, a series of bills aimed at restructuring operations of the Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. have cleared their first legislative hurdle.  The the three bills, sponsored by Buffalo Democratic Sen. Tim Kennedy, moved through the state senate’s Committee on Racing, Gaming and Wager on Monday.  Kennedy introduced the bills last month in a bid to end what he described as “perverse dysfunction” within WROTB. His proposed legislation calls for a restructuring of OTB’s board based on population. It would also limit the take-home use of OTB vehicles by select agency employees and put[...]

Posted 3 years ago
Investigative Post