NYC NOW

Today, it’s all about food! WNYC’s Michael Hill talks with Matt Pomeranz, co-founder of Zucker’s Bagels & Smoked Fish, about a bagel maker's secrets. Plus, a few writers from Eater New York highlight their list of New York City’s most iconic dishes.

NYC Now presents a special episode from Season 3 of Blindspot: The Plague in the Shadows. Valerie Reyes-Jimenez called it “The Monster.” That’s how some people described HIV and AIDS in the 1980s. Valerie thinks as many as 75 people from her block on New York City’s Lower East Side died. They were succumbing to an illness that was not recognized as the same virus that was killing young, white, gay men just across town in the West Village.At the same time in Harlem, the 17th floor of the area’s struggling public hospital was filling up with infants and children who arrived and then never left. Some spent their whole lives on the pediatric ward, celebrating birthdays, first steps and first words with the nurses and doctors who had become their surrogate family. Welcome to Harlem Hospital at the height of the HIV and AIDS epidemics.When the nurses and doctors at this community hospital first began to see infants suffering from an unusual wasting disease, they were alarmed. They had heard that a strange new illness was killing gay men, but no one was talking about women and children. Soon, however, it became clear that HIV was sweeping through Harlem, sickening mothers who then passed it — unknowingly — to their kids. As the crisis grew, AIDS turned the pediatrics ward of Harlem Hospital into a makeshift home — and a makeshift family — for kids who were either too sick to go home, or who no longer had families to go home to.You can listen to more episodes of Blindspot: The Plague in the Shadows here.Voices in the episode include:• Valerie Reyes-Jimenez is an HIV-positive woman, activist, and organizer with Housing Works. She saw the AIDS crisis develop from a nameless monster into a pandemic from her home on New York City’s Lower East Side.• Dr. Margaret Heagarty was a doctor who ran the pediatric department at Harlem Hospital Center for nearly 20 years. She died in 2022. Archival interview with Margaret Heagarty comes from the Columbia Center for Oral History.• Dr. Stephen Nicholas was a pediatrician at Harlem Hospital Center for two decades.• Maxine Frere, a lifelong Harlem resident, is a retired nurse who spent the entirety of her 40-year career at Harlem Hospital Center.• Monica Digrado was a pediatric nurse at Harlem Hospital Center.• Victor Reyes was born at Harlem Hospital Center and spent much of his childhood receiving treatment and care at the hospital’s pediatric AIDS unit.Blindspot is a co-production of The HISTORY® Channel and WNYC Studios, in collaboration with The Nation Magazine.A companion photography exhibit by Kia LaBeija featuring portraits from the series is on view through March 11 at The Greene Space at WNYC. The photography for Blindspot was supported by a grant from the Economic Hardship Reporting Project, a nonprofit organization that promotes coverage of social inequality and economic justice.

The MTA doesn’t have enough money to start new construction projects. Plus, a Queens man faces charges in connection to a Brooklyn hit-and-run that killed a cyclist last year. Also, WNYC’s Jessica Gould reports some providers worry the mayor's proposed budget cuts could undermine an effort to create a new curriculum for the city’s youngest students that could help them become stronger readers. And finally, WNYC’s Sean Carlson and Jon Campbell discuss New York’s new congressional map.

Dan Goldman (NY-10) is pushing for more regulation of lithium-ion batteries used in e-bikes amid a string of fires caused by the batteries. Plus, the GOP majority in the U.S. House of Representatives is even slimmer now after Democrat Tom Suozzi reclaimed his old seat in New York's 3rd congressional district. WNYC’s Sean Carlson speaks with Republican strategist Bill O’Reilly about the closely-watched race and what it might portend.

Get up and get informed! Here’s all the local news you need to start your day: Several people accused of scuffling with NYPD officers in Times Square last month will face a judge in a Manhattan courtroom on Friday, and there may be political implications. Also, the bipartisan Independent Redistricting Commission has voted to approve a new congressional map in New York. Plus, scientists are reporting that fin whales are traveling to New York City for food.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul wants to make to-go cocktails permanent. Plus, a minor is in custody in connection with Monday’s subway shooting in the Bronx that killed one man and injured five others. And finally, WNYC’s Michael Hill and Samantha Max discuss concerns over two recent violent incidents in Times Square.

New York City officials are closing down a Bronx office that helps New Yorkers with food stamps and cash assistance. Also for New Jersey drivers, the Pulaski Skyway will be closed in both directions Thursday night as it goes through rehab work. The Knicks have now lost four games in a row, and the Nets lost to the Celtics by 50 points. And WNYC's Ryan Kailath takes a tour of an apartment that was decorated with items found in the garbage or yard sales.

Get up and get informed! Here’s all the local news you need to start your day: The New York City Council is considering legislation to reduce pollution and traffic from cruise ships docking in New York City. Meanwhile, Congress on Wednesday rejected a long-shot bid to temporarily double the $10,000 cap on state and local tax deductions for most married couples. Plus, a Queens man, who admitted to smuggling three Burmese pythons in his pants through the U.S.-Canadian border crossing, has been sentenced to a year of probation and fined $5,000.

Democratic attorney Landon Dais cruised to victory in a special election Tuesday for a state Assembly seat in the Bronx. Also, the Legal Aid Society is suing Mayor Eric Adams over his refusal to expand housing subsidies for poor New Yorkers. Plus, a new book from sociologist Terry Williams details the lives of people who lived in tunnels underneath New York City. And finally, forget love…baseball is in the air. Pitchers and catchers met up Wednesday for the Yankees and Mets spring training.

Police have a 17 year old in custody for an assault on NYPD officers in Times Square last month. He's charged along with 5 other suspects who've been arrested and charged for their roles in an altercation that was caught on video and quickly went viral. Meanwhile, a 15-year-old accused of shooting and injuring a tourist last week is facing attempted murder charges, but not charged with violating the Times Square Gun Ban. Plus, WNYC’s Brigid Bergin recaps Democrat Tom Suozzi’s victory over political newcomer Mazi Pilip in a special election to fill the congressional seat previously occupied by George Santos.