Media Watch
Streetsblog Basics
Vision Zero Hasn’t Changed NYPD Practice of Blaming Deceased Crash Victims
Last week an MTA bus driver crushed a pedestrian to death in Mott Haven. By all accounts the victim, walking with a cane, was in the crosswalk at Willis Avenue and E. 147th Street when the driver ran him over while turning left.
October 8, 2014
The Case for Driving as Fast as You Want in a School Zone
If you're wondering who complains about a wrist-tap fine for speeding through a school zone during school hours -- the type of person who has Council Member Mark Weprin sweating bullets over the city's new 25 mph speed limit -- check out this Times Ledger op-ed from one Bob Friedrich, an Eastern Queens eminence who believes NYC's small and constrained speed camera program is a government conspiracy to balance the city budget on the backs of working stiffs who just want to ignore traffic laws without interference.
October 7, 2014
No Charges for Bus Driver Who Killed Pedestrian Jennifer White-Estick
Police filed no charges against the MTA bus driver who killed a pedestrian in Bedford-Stuyvesant two weeks ago. Instead, NYPD and the tabloids put the victim on trial.
September 29, 2014
Every NYC Traffic Death Should Be Investigated Like the Central Park Crash
When the news broke last week that a cyclist had critically injured a pedestrian in Central Park, a number of things happened that you don't normally see after a serious New York City traffic crash.
September 22, 2014
Why You Can’t Trust TV News to Report on Bike Lanes
Earlier this week, in an "investigation" seeking to link bike lanes to traffic congestion, ABC 7 reporter Jim Hoffer drove around Manhattan avenues timing his trips. The station ostensibly wanted to test DOT's numbers showing that average travel times on two streets with protected bike lanes decreased after the lanes were installed.
September 19, 2014
Driving in Manhattan Stank Yesterday, It Stinks Today, It Will Stink Tomorrow
This just in from the crack investigative team at ABC 7: Driving in Manhattan stinks!
September 16, 2014
WPIX Gets BIke Law Facts Wrong and Misses DMV Scandal Under Its Nose
New Yorkers have seen their fair share of malicious press about bikes, from willful ignorance in Daily News editorials to Marcia Kramer linking cyclists to terrorists. But sometimes, it's not maliciousness that causes trouble. A story from WPIX reporter Kaitlin Monte this morning may have been intended to educate the public, but did little more than circulate misinformation. A moment of fact-checking before going on air could have salvaged much of the piece -- and perhaps spotlighted a newsworthy scandal right under the reporter's nose.
August 21, 2014
The Daily News Editorial Board — Still Part of the Problem
I've been trying to put my finger on why this morning's Daily News editorial about slower speed limits got under my skin so much. The core message is fine -- New York does need to measure the impact of new street safety policies. But it's obscured by a thick layer of ignorance.
August 6, 2014
One Mindblowing Fact Missing From BuzzFeed’s Port Authority Listicle
Earlier this week, BuzzFeed gleaned some fun facts about the Hudson River bridges and tunnels from a Port Authority data dump on the number of eastbound automobiles, buses, and trucks. If you took the numbers at face value, you might be left with the impression that cars are the most important thing moving around New York. But when you measure people instead of vehicles, the numbers look quite different.
July 25, 2014
Satirical “Bicycle Lobby” Twitter Account Fakes Out Media Giants
The @BicycleLobby Twitter account is a parody inspired by last year's unhinged rant about bike-share from Wall Street Journal columnist Dorothy Rabinowitz. Its running joke for the past 13 months has been that "the all-powerful bike lobby" envisioned by Rabinowitz is real -- and yes, it controls the universe.
July 22, 2014