Phaedra Trethan
@byphaedra.bsky.social
I read, I write, I live and let live. You can usually find me in Jersey or Philadelphia, near the ocean, at the ballpark or in the woods. Reporter for @usatoday.com
Reposted by Phaedra Trethan
Love this story about this historic alley in Philly via @byphaedra.bsky.social
I've wandered along Elfreth's Alley countless times & wondered what it was like to live in one of its tiny historic houses.
So for this story, part of @usatoday.com 's series looking at @america250.bsky.social I asked a resident. Here's what I learned. #america250
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
So for this story, part of @usatoday.com 's series looking at @america250.bsky.social I asked a resident. Here's what I learned. #america250
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
A Philadelphia street dates to 1703. People still live in its houses.
"Yes! People really do live here and have since 1713," says a sign at Elfreth's Alley. A new park will honor a woman who worked to preserve it.
www.usatoday.com
January 15, 2026 at 1:02 AM
Love this story about this historic alley in Philly via @byphaedra.bsky.social
I've wandered along Elfreth's Alley countless times & wondered what it was like to live in one of its tiny historic houses.
So for this story, part of @usatoday.com 's series looking at @america250.bsky.social I asked a resident. Here's what I learned. #america250
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
So for this story, part of @usatoday.com 's series looking at @america250.bsky.social I asked a resident. Here's what I learned. #america250
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
A Philadelphia street dates to 1703. People still live in its houses.
"Yes! People really do live here and have since 1713," says a sign at Elfreth's Alley. A new park will honor a woman who worked to preserve it.
www.usatoday.com
January 14, 2026 at 3:51 PM
I've wandered along Elfreth's Alley countless times & wondered what it was like to live in one of its tiny historic houses.
So for this story, part of @usatoday.com 's series looking at @america250.bsky.social I asked a resident. Here's what I learned. #america250
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
So for this story, part of @usatoday.com 's series looking at @america250.bsky.social I asked a resident. Here's what I learned. #america250
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Interested in history?
Interested in Americana?
Interested in @america250.bsky.social ?
Our newest @usatoday.com newsletter starts Monday w/ stories, videos, photos etc from us & our Network across the U.S. for America's 250th bday. #America250
Subscribe here: profile.usatoday.com/newsletters/...
Interested in Americana?
Interested in @america250.bsky.social ?
Our newest @usatoday.com newsletter starts Monday w/ stories, videos, photos etc from us & our Network across the U.S. for America's 250th bday. #America250
Subscribe here: profile.usatoday.com/newsletters/...
USA 250
Explore, celebrate and remember who we are as a nation after 250 years
profile.usatoday.com
January 9, 2026 at 2:57 PM
Interested in history?
Interested in Americana?
Interested in @america250.bsky.social ?
Our newest @usatoday.com newsletter starts Monday w/ stories, videos, photos etc from us & our Network across the U.S. for America's 250th bday. #America250
Subscribe here: profile.usatoday.com/newsletters/...
Interested in Americana?
Interested in @america250.bsky.social ?
Our newest @usatoday.com newsletter starts Monday w/ stories, videos, photos etc from us & our Network across the U.S. for America's 250th bday. #America250
Subscribe here: profile.usatoday.com/newsletters/...
Humbly offering a little break from all the darkness in the world right now: Puppies.
My story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/pets-a...
My story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/pets-a...
Researchers find dogs are somehow getting even better
A Duke University study found dogs exhibit different kinds of intelligence, even as puppies.
www.usatoday.com
December 15, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Humbly offering a little break from all the darkness in the world right now: Puppies.
My story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/pets-a...
My story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/pets-a...
I may not be the first person to make this observation but @wxpnfm.bsky.social could do an #greatestcoversongs countdown consisting entirely of white guys covering the blues.
December 10, 2025 at 7:07 PM
I may not be the first person to make this observation but @wxpnfm.bsky.social could do an #greatestcoversongs countdown consisting entirely of white guys covering the blues.
Michael Cifone is interested in what he calls "the empirical weird," phenomena that defy easy explanation. He leads a group of researchers who say it's time for academia to get serious about studying UFOs.
My latest @usatoday.com story.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
My latest @usatoday.com story.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
These researchers say they have serious questions about UFOs, aliens
A group of researchers wants to make the study of UFOs an academic discipline. Experts call them unidentified anomalous phenomena (or UAPs).
www.usatoday.com
December 8, 2025 at 4:49 PM
Michael Cifone is interested in what he calls "the empirical weird," phenomena that defy easy explanation. He leads a group of researchers who say it's time for academia to get serious about studying UFOs.
My latest @usatoday.com story.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
My latest @usatoday.com story.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Hitting the road today? Keep an eye on your speedometer, because in a lot of places, cameras are keeping an eye on you. My story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/cars/n...
www.usatoday.com/story/cars/n...
Speeders beware of big fines. Cameras are watching in these states.
More than 300 communities in the U.S. have speed cameras keeping an eye on motorists. In some states, costly fines can be levied for violations.
www.usatoday.com
November 26, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Hitting the road today? Keep an eye on your speedometer, because in a lot of places, cameras are keeping an eye on you. My story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/cars/n...
www.usatoday.com/story/cars/n...
As I stood beside Benjamin Franklin's grave yesterday, all I could hear in my mind was Louis Prima singing "Pennies from Heaven." Visitors might have to start leaving nickels on the Founding Father's final resting place.
www.usatoday.com/story/money/...
www.usatoday.com/story/money/...
US Mint says it has stamped its last penny, a historic end for a humble coin
The Treasury Department said the last pennies were stamped with a special omega mark and will not go into circulation.
www.usatoday.com
November 13, 2025 at 4:06 PM
As I stood beside Benjamin Franklin's grave yesterday, all I could hear in my mind was Louis Prima singing "Pennies from Heaven." Visitors might have to start leaving nickels on the Founding Father's final resting place.
www.usatoday.com/story/money/...
www.usatoday.com/story/money/...
October 31, 2025 at 11:06 AM
Mark Moran of @weirdnj.bsky.social has a theory about why #MischiefNight caught on here: "We have our own devil; what other state can claim that?
"We just like to raise hell once a year."
My latest for @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
"We just like to raise hell once a year."
My latest for @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Police keep fighting a Halloween Eve 'mischief' tradition
"Mischief Night" is supposed to be the night of harmless pranks, but many police departments have developed plans to prevent the shenanigans.
www.usatoday.com
October 30, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Mark Moran of @weirdnj.bsky.social has a theory about why #MischiefNight caught on here: "We have our own devil; what other state can claim that?
"We just like to raise hell once a year."
My latest for @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
"We just like to raise hell once a year."
My latest for @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
@pierrerobert933.bsky.social & Ed Sciaky on @933wmmr.bsky.social were the soundtrack to my teens, the reason I found Springsteen & Grateful Dead & Dylan & all the music that meant the world to me then & now. They helped a lonely, lost kid feel a lot less so, just by playing & talking about music.
October 29, 2025 at 8:37 PM
@pierrerobert933.bsky.social & Ed Sciaky on @933wmmr.bsky.social were the soundtrack to my teens, the reason I found Springsteen & Grateful Dead & Dylan & all the music that meant the world to me then & now. They helped a lonely, lost kid feel a lot less so, just by playing & talking about music.
🪲 🪰 🪳 🦟 🕷️ 🐜
My latest @usatoday.com story, about bugs & bodies & decomposition, just in time for Halloween.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
My latest @usatoday.com story, about bugs & bodies & decomposition, just in time for Halloween.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Crime-solving bugs? New tech has big aspirations.
Researchers have long used bugs in complex homicide and death investigations, but new tech aims to make it much easier.
www.usatoday.com
October 29, 2025 at 2:24 PM
🪲 🪰 🪳 🦟 🕷️ 🐜
My latest @usatoday.com story, about bugs & bodies & decomposition, just in time for Halloween.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
My latest @usatoday.com story, about bugs & bodies & decomposition, just in time for Halloween.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
I've long been fascinated by the macabre, dark edges of humanness.
So I was relieved when an academic I talked to for this @usatoday.com story told me, "Morbid fascinations do not correlate with moral character."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
So I was relieved when an academic I talked to for this @usatoday.com story told me, "Morbid fascinations do not correlate with moral character."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Tragic, scary and fun? Some Halloween attractions have an ethical conundrum
Historic sites like former prisons and asylums were the sites of real-life horrors. Halloween can mean needed revenue, but also ethical questions.
www.usatoday.com
October 27, 2025 at 3:48 PM
I've long been fascinated by the macabre, dark edges of humanness.
So I was relieved when an academic I talked to for this @usatoday.com story told me, "Morbid fascinations do not correlate with moral character."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
So I was relieved when an academic I talked to for this @usatoday.com story told me, "Morbid fascinations do not correlate with moral character."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
I had a lot of fun reporting this @usatoday.com story, and managed to sneak in one of my favorite #spooky places.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Tales of perpetual fire, demons and ghosts haunt these creepy US towns
A fire that won't stop. The landscape of a horror film. A legendary demon. Spooky isn't just a seasonal fad at these U.S. locations.
www.usatoday.com
October 20, 2025 at 3:56 PM
I had a lot of fun reporting this @usatoday.com story, and managed to sneak in one of my favorite #spooky places.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
After serving more than 40 years for a murder he did not commit, Subramanyam “Subu” Vedam was set to go free. But ICE took him into custody & now he may be sent back to a country he hasn't lived in since he was a baby. My latest for @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Exonerated after serving 40-plus years, he's now detained by ICE
Subramanyam “Subu” Vedam was released Oct. 3 from prison after serving over 40 years for a crime he didn't commit. ICE immediately took him into custody.
www.usatoday.com
October 15, 2025 at 3:02 PM
After serving more than 40 years for a murder he did not commit, Subramanyam “Subu” Vedam was set to go free. But ICE took him into custody & now he may be sent back to a country he hasn't lived in since he was a baby. My latest for @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Reposted by Phaedra Trethan
Are you a Democrat or no party voter who doesn't know what to do or doesn't feel like it is worth pushing back on the Trump administration's actions? I'd like to talk to you for a @usatoday.com article. Message me at swire@usatoday.com or on Signal at sarahdwire.71
October 9, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Are you a Democrat or no party voter who doesn't know what to do or doesn't feel like it is worth pushing back on the Trump administration's actions? I'd like to talk to you for a @usatoday.com article. Message me at swire@usatoday.com or on Signal at sarahdwire.71
New(sletter) adventures in old journalism:
Starting today (& every Mon-Thurs), I am writing @usatoday.com The Short List, a late dayroundup of the day's events.
We produce a TON of cool content at USAT, and I'm excited to highlight our best work.
Subscribe:
profile.usatoday.com/newsletters/...
Starting today (& every Mon-Thurs), I am writing @usatoday.com The Short List, a late dayroundup of the day's events.
We produce a TON of cool content at USAT, and I'm excited to highlight our best work.
Subscribe:
profile.usatoday.com/newsletters/...
The Short List
What happened today? We make the long story short in this snappy news roundup.
profile.usatoday.com
October 6, 2025 at 8:15 PM
New(sletter) adventures in old journalism:
Starting today (& every Mon-Thurs), I am writing @usatoday.com The Short List, a late dayroundup of the day's events.
We produce a TON of cool content at USAT, and I'm excited to highlight our best work.
Subscribe:
profile.usatoday.com/newsletters/...
Starting today (& every Mon-Thurs), I am writing @usatoday.com The Short List, a late dayroundup of the day's events.
We produce a TON of cool content at USAT, and I'm excited to highlight our best work.
Subscribe:
profile.usatoday.com/newsletters/...
As a GenX parent who's often perplexed by some new word or phrase my kid throws at me, let me say this:
Dude. Your slang is bogus. Like, what in the holy name of Nirvana is so funny about "6-7"? Will you please chill with "Ohio"?
Or don't. Whatever.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Dude. Your slang is bogus. Like, what in the holy name of Nirvana is so funny about "6-7"? Will you please chill with "Ohio"?
Or don't. Whatever.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Can you understand the most popular slang words of 2025?
An analysis of the most searched slang terms reveals some words that may confuse you. That's kind of the point.
www.usatoday.com
October 6, 2025 at 3:05 PM
As a GenX parent who's often perplexed by some new word or phrase my kid throws at me, let me say this:
Dude. Your slang is bogus. Like, what in the holy name of Nirvana is so funny about "6-7"? Will you please chill with "Ohio"?
Or don't. Whatever.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Dude. Your slang is bogus. Like, what in the holy name of Nirvana is so funny about "6-7"? Will you please chill with "Ohio"?
Or don't. Whatever.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Reposted by Phaedra Trethan
Fun story by @byphaedra.bsky.social
Can you understand the most popular slang words of 2025?
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Can you understand the most popular slang words of 2025?
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Can you understand the most popular slang words of 2025?
An analysis of the most searched slang terms reveals some words that may confuse you. That's kind of the point.
www.usatoday.com
October 5, 2025 at 11:10 AM
Fun story by @byphaedra.bsky.social
Can you understand the most popular slang words of 2025?
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Can you understand the most popular slang words of 2025?
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
"Slavery was in America's first White House," Michael Coard told me for this @usatoday.com story. "If you want to call (Washington) a great general, do that. If you want to call him a great President, do that. No one would object to that.
"But this is history."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
"But this is history."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Activists vow to protect display on George Washington's ties to slavery
The President's House in Philadelphia educates visitors about Washington's ties to slavery and is a memorial to the people who were enslaved.
www.usatoday.com
September 24, 2025 at 3:57 PM
"Slavery was in America's first White House," Michael Coard told me for this @usatoday.com story. "If you want to call (Washington) a great general, do that. If you want to call him a great President, do that. No one would object to that.
"But this is history."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
"But this is history."
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Stop when the bus stops. The cost of not doing so can be a lot higher than a ticket.
My latest @usatoday.com story.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
My latest @usatoday.com story.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Thousands of school buses record bad drivers. The tickets can be intense.
Cameras on about 40,000 school buses are helping identify and punish people who pass stopped buses illegally. The penalties can be severe.
www.usatoday.com
September 23, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Stop when the bus stops. The cost of not doing so can be a lot higher than a ticket.
My latest @usatoday.com story.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
My latest @usatoday.com story.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
A rare flesh-eating bacteria almost killed this Florida woman, who compared the pain to having her leg set on fire. What the bacteria is, where's been found, and how to protect yourself. Story @usatoday.com and Pensacola News Journal
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Flesh-eating bacteria tried to kill her. Here's what it took to survive.
Genevieve Gallagher was infected with Vibrio vulnificus in July after boating and swimming with her family in Florida. Her recovery is ongoing.
www.usatoday.com
September 10, 2025 at 3:15 PM
A rare flesh-eating bacteria almost killed this Florida woman, who compared the pain to having her leg set on fire. What the bacteria is, where's been found, and how to protect yourself. Story @usatoday.com and Pensacola News Journal
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
Can a hand signal safe a life?
How one victim of alleged #domesticviolence let a bystander know she needed help. Story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
How one victim of alleged #domesticviolence let a bystander know she needed help. Story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
www.usatoday.com
September 4, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Can a hand signal safe a life?
How one victim of alleged #domesticviolence let a bystander know she needed help. Story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
How one victim of alleged #domesticviolence let a bystander know she needed help. Story @usatoday.com
www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...