Reuven Blau
@reuvenblau.bsky.social
Senior Reporter @ THE CITY. Co-author: "Rikers: An Oral History." Denver native.
Marcy is the prison where Robert Brooks was killed by a group of officers as he was handcuffed on Dec. 9, 2024.
November 7, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Marcy is the prison where Robert Brooks was killed by a group of officers as he was handcuffed on Dec. 9, 2024.
“Zane’s family is still reckoning with their loss – and trying to understand how he could have chosen to spend months talking with an AI tool rather than his loved ones. From their home, his parents recalled their son as a loving family member who was taken too soon.”
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
ChatGPT encouraged college graduate to commit suicide, family claims in lawsuit against OpenAI | CNN
A 23-year-old man killed himself in Texas after ChatGPT ‘goaded’ him to commit suicide, his family says in a lawsuit.
www.cnn.com
November 7, 2025 at 11:36 AM
“Zane’s family is still reckoning with their loss – and trying to understand how he could have chosen to spend months talking with an AI tool rather than his loved ones. From their home, his parents recalled their son as a loving family member who was taken too soon.”
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
“A travel request reviewed by @THE CITY for Rodriguez and another DOT staffer totaled more than $6,600, which included $587 for round-trip flights and a $125 per diem for meals.” — via @katiehonan.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/s...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/s...
Post-Election, Pols Hit Puerto Rico for 5-Day SOMOS Feast
City Hall staffers — many on the taxpayer tab — also traveled to San Juan.
www.thecity.nyc
November 7, 2025 at 11:08 AM
“A travel request reviewed by @THE CITY for Rodriguez and another DOT staffer totaled more than $6,600, which included $587 for round-trip flights and a $125 per diem for meals.” — via @katiehonan.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/s...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/s...
“With Cuomo garnering just under 855,000 votes, that amounted to the would-be power brokers spending $65 per vote for a losing candidate.” — via @gregbsmithnyc.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/c...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/c...
Cuomo Backers Burned $65 Per Vote, Including $13.3 Million From Bloomberg
A blizzard of outside spending on ads, including a spot that linked Zohran Mamdani to 9/11, failed to move voters and may have even backfired.
www.thecity.nyc
November 6, 2025 at 9:59 PM
“With Cuomo garnering just under 855,000 votes, that amounted to the would-be power brokers spending $65 per vote for a losing candidate.” — via @gregbsmithnyc.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/c...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/c...
"A Manhattan Supreme Court judge on Thursday rejected a petition from a mysterious advocacy group to toss the city’s new self-funded health plan for municipal workers, administered by EmblemHealth and UnitedHealthcare." — via @clauirizarry.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/e...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/e...
Judge Declines to Pause New Health Insurance Plan for City Workers
A case filed by a mysterious opposition group and several municipal employees will proceed, as unions and City Hall seek save a projected $1 billion annually.
www.thecity.nyc
November 6, 2025 at 7:18 PM
"A Manhattan Supreme Court judge on Thursday rejected a petition from a mysterious advocacy group to toss the city’s new self-funded health plan for municipal workers, administered by EmblemHealth and UnitedHealthcare." — via @clauirizarry.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/e...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/06/e...
THIS 👇
It’d be truly amazing if the political media simply stopped focusing so much on the horse-race polls and covered the actual issues.
They aren’t political consultants. Their job isn’t to say “this issue resonated w that group.” It’s to tell us what the POLICY implications of the policies are.
They aren’t political consultants. Their job isn’t to say “this issue resonated w that group.” It’s to tell us what the POLICY implications of the policies are.
Cant wait for next November when ppl have a full on meltdown bc some combo of Emerson, AtlasIntel, & Trafalgar say the GCB is like R+1 or something
November 6, 2025 at 1:36 PM
THIS 👇
"The board report also noted that Correction staff in two of the five deaths did not immediately notify medical personnel after witnessing detainees in distress. In four of the cases, facility commanders delayed required notifications to central DOC leadership."
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/05/r...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/05/r...
Rikers Detainee Found Dead With 121 Pills as Oversight Board Cites Mass Failures
A new oversight report on 2025 jail deaths reveals officers ignored medical emergencies, falsified records and allowed drugs to circulate freely behind bars.
www.thecity.nyc
November 5, 2025 at 11:23 PM
"The board report also noted that Correction staff in two of the five deaths did not immediately notify medical personnel after witnessing detainees in distress. In four of the cases, facility commanders delayed required notifications to central DOC leadership."
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/05/r...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/05/r...
Does mayor-elect Mamdani support a receiver for Rikers Island? "I think that Eric Adams’ actions have left us with no alternative. I also think that the fact that we have ended here is a reflection of what he has and hasn’t done," he told @katiehonan.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/05/m...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/05/m...
15 Minutes With the Next Mayor of New York City
On the W train, we asked the questions we couldn’t get to in the debate.
www.thecity.nyc
November 5, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Does mayor-elect Mamdani support a receiver for Rikers Island? "I think that Eric Adams’ actions have left us with no alternative. I also think that the fact that we have ended here is a reflection of what he has and hasn’t done," he told @katiehonan.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/05/m...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/05/m...
Reposted by Reuven Blau
you've got to click around on this map, and the graphics here ... it's astounding. @haidee.bsky.social did such a great job with this:
Explore How Different New Yorkers Voted for Mayor
See how voters turned out for Zohran Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa in every neighborhood in the city — and by income, housing and transit preference.
www.thecity.nyc
November 5, 2025 at 4:59 AM
you've got to click around on this map, and the graphics here ... it's astounding. @haidee.bsky.social did such a great job with this:
“Queens Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani culminated a meteoric political rise by scoring a decisive victory in a polarizing mayoral election. At just 34 years old, he will become the youngest mayor in over a century and the first Muslim to lead New York City.”
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/m...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/m...
Mamdani Makes History With Victory in Mayor’s Race
More than 2 million New Yorkers cast a ballot in a high-stakes election that smashed recent turnout levels.
www.thecity.nyc
November 5, 2025 at 2:47 AM
“Queens Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani culminated a meteoric political rise by scoring a decisive victory in a polarizing mayoral election. At just 34 years old, he will become the youngest mayor in over a century and the first Muslim to lead New York City.”
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/m...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/m...
The number of voters casting ballots in the tense three-way race for mayor between Zohran Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa is breaking records, with more than 2 million check-ins, according to the city Board of Elections.
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/r...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/r...
Voter Turnout Highest in Half Century as Mamdani Phenomenon Galvanizes Electorate
More than 2 million New York voters cast ballots, the most in a mayoral race since 1969.
www.thecity.nyc
November 5, 2025 at 2:27 AM
The number of voters casting ballots in the tense three-way race for mayor between Zohran Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa is breaking records, with more than 2 million check-ins, according to the city Board of Elections.
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/r...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/r...
A new proposal would require judges who hand down sentences or make detention decisions to conduct meaningful prison visits annually. The proposed change would be the first of its kind in the nation and mandate hundreds of in-depth judicial visits to state prisons. www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/b...
Bringing the Bench Behind Bars: Plan Would Require Yearly Prison Visits by Judges
For decades, many New York judges skipped required visits. A new rule would change that.
www.thecity.nyc
November 4, 2025 at 8:24 PM
A new proposal would require judges who hand down sentences or make detention decisions to conduct meaningful prison visits annually. The proposed change would be the first of its kind in the nation and mandate hundreds of in-depth judicial visits to state prisons. www.thecity.nyc/2025/11/04/b...
Reposted by Reuven Blau
New Yorkers are HITTING THOSE POLLS. It's the highest turnout in about two decades.
November 4, 2025 at 5:38 PM
New Yorkers are HITTING THOSE POLLS. It's the highest turnout in about two decades.
Must-read brilliant deep dive into the complicated pedi cab industry following the death of a 29-year-old Turkish immigrant driver shortly after his arrest inside an NYPD precinct holding cell — via @yoavgonen.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/p...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/p...
Pedicab Driver’s Death Amid NYPD Crackdown Rattles a Freewheeling Industry
Musa Cetin hanged himself in a police precinct cell as the pedicab industry, known for blaring music and tourist scams, is snared in sweeping NYPD enforcement.
www.thecity.nyc
November 3, 2025 at 8:16 PM
Must-read brilliant deep dive into the complicated pedi cab industry following the death of a 29-year-old Turkish immigrant driver shortly after his arrest inside an NYPD precinct holding cell — via @yoavgonen.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/p...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/p...
"The White House also refused to source funds from a second account with billions of $, comprised largely of tariff revenues. It declined to do so even though the administration had taken the same approach with another federal nutrition program during the shutdown."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/u...
Food Stamp Cuts Expose Trump’s Strategy to Use Shutdown to Advance Agenda
www.nytimes.com
November 2, 2025 at 12:37 PM
"The White House also refused to source funds from a second account with billions of $, comprised largely of tariff revenues. It declined to do so even though the administration had taken the same approach with another federal nutrition program during the shutdown."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/u...
Avoid commas, semicolons and the word “castigate,” if you want to have impact. The Times’s corresponding headline that day — “Ford, Castigating City, Asserts He’d Veto Federal Bailout; Offers Bankruptcy Bill” — stands as a verbose counterpoint to “Drop Dead.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/n...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/n...
50 Years Ago, My Father Wrote the Headline That Refuses to Die
www.nytimes.com
October 31, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Avoid commas, semicolons and the word “castigate,” if you want to have impact. The Times’s corresponding headline that day — “Ford, Castigating City, Asserts He’d Veto Federal Bailout; Offers Bankruptcy Bill” — stands as a verbose counterpoint to “Drop Dead.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/n...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/n...
More cops has historically led to more arrests and people on Rikers. There are current over 7,000 people locked up w/roughly 85% awaiting trial. Context: the number dropped to below 4,000 during the peak of the pandemic. The city needs to reduce the headcount to around that number to close Rikers.
October 31, 2025 at 1:20 PM
More cops has historically led to more arrests and people on Rikers. There are current over 7,000 people locked up w/roughly 85% awaiting trial. Context: the number dropped to below 4,000 during the peak of the pandemic. The city needs to reduce the headcount to around that number to close Rikers.
“Two people died in flooded New York City buildings on Thursday after sudden and intense rain brought a deluge of water to the city in a major afternoon squall.” — @smaldo.bsky.social reports
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/f...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/f...
Two Die in NYC Basements as Squall Brings Massive Rain Burst to City
Two men, one in Central Brooklyn and another in Upper Manhattan, were found dead in flooded areas after intense rain arrived late on Thursday.
www.thecity.nyc
October 31, 2025 at 11:10 AM
“Two people died in flooded New York City buildings on Thursday after sudden and intense rain brought a deluge of water to the city in a major afternoon squall.” — @smaldo.bsky.social reports
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/f...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/f...
“Over the past year, President Trump and his allies have impinged on free speech to a degree that the federal government has not since perhaps the Red Scare of the 1940s and 1950s.”
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Opinion | In Trump’s America, Are We Losing Our Democracy? (Gift Article)
Donald Trump has wielded power as no previous president has.
www.nytimes.com
October 31, 2025 at 11:02 AM
“Over the past year, President Trump and his allies have impinged on free speech to a degree that the federal government has not since perhaps the Red Scare of the 1940s and 1950s.”
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
“New York City Marshals and sheriff’s deputies have booted more than 600,000 vehicles since 2020, a dramatic rise after enforcement slowed during the pandemic. Just 31,379 cars were immobilized in 2020, compared with nearly 159,000 so far this year.”
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/b...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/b...
Queens Company Gets the Boot for Gouging Locked-In Drivers
More than 600,000 scofflaws have had their vehicles booted since 2020. City regulators cracked down on one unlicensed firm’s excessive fees with a proposed six-figure penalty.
www.thecity.nyc
October 30, 2025 at 10:04 AM
“New York City Marshals and sheriff’s deputies have booted more than 600,000 vehicles since 2020, a dramatic rise after enforcement slowed during the pandemic. Just 31,379 cars were immobilized in 2020, compared with nearly 159,000 so far this year.”
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/b...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/30/b...
“He lives for political power,” Frank Seddio, a former Brooklyn Democratic chairman who has known Mr. Cuomo since the 1970s, said after the two campaigned together in southeast Brooklyn last week. This was a compliment.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/n...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/n...
Andrew Cuomo, Scraping and Scrambling, Is Still Running as Andrew Cuomo
www.nytimes.com
October 30, 2025 at 9:50 AM
“He lives for political power,” Frank Seddio, a former Brooklyn Democratic chairman who has known Mr. Cuomo since the 1970s, said after the two campaigned together in southeast Brooklyn last week. This was a compliment.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/n...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/n...
“There is an emergency on Rikers Island but ending solitary will not make it worse,” Dr. Robert Cohen says at his goodbye party as he recalls his years long struggle to reform Rikers including banning the use of restraint desks that shackle mostly young detainees for hours at a time.
October 30, 2025 at 12:04 AM
“There is an emergency on Rikers Island but ending solitary will not make it worse,” Dr. Robert Cohen says at his goodbye party as he recalls his years long struggle to reform Rikers including banning the use of restraint desks that shackle mostly young detainees for hours at a time.
"Cuomo can see everyone’s faults but his own. He doesn’t show humility. He rarely apologizes. And if you never admit mistakes, you never learn from them. You never evolve."
www.nydailynews.com/2025/10/29/t...
www.nydailynews.com/2025/10/29/t...
The same old Cuomo, dividing as always
I’ve never won an argument with Andrew Cuomo. When Bill de Blasio wanted to raise New York City’s minimum wage, Cuomo argued it was the selfish act of a mayor more interested in campaigning than go…
www.nydailynews.com
October 29, 2025 at 5:03 PM
"Cuomo can see everyone’s faults but his own. He doesn’t show humility. He rarely apologizes. And if you never admit mistakes, you never learn from them. You never evolve."
www.nydailynews.com/2025/10/29/t...
www.nydailynews.com/2025/10/29/t...
"A public disclosure law request — which the NYPD took 15 months to fulfill — has turned up 3 deaths that resulted from chases that were not previously reported, putting the # of deaths related to vehicle pursuits over those two years at 20." — @yoavgonen.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/29/n...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/29/n...
Lawmaker Seeks to Curb Deadly NYPD Car Chases After Upsurge
Legislation by Council Member Tiffany Cabán also calls for disclosure of pursuits, amid an ongoing investigation by THE CITY that has now uncovered three unreported deaths.
www.thecity.nyc
October 29, 2025 at 4:41 PM
"A public disclosure law request — which the NYPD took 15 months to fulfill — has turned up 3 deaths that resulted from chases that were not previously reported, putting the # of deaths related to vehicle pursuits over those two years at 20." — @yoavgonen.bsky.social
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/29/n...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/29/n...
"The New York Housing Conference finds that 10 Council districts produced just seven units of affordable housing in total during the first six months of this year. Four produced none."
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/29/a...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/29/a...
These Council Districts Produced Zero Affordable Homes This Year
Voters are deciding on a proposal to bypass the City Council on planned developments in the neighborhoods that have built the least. They include swaths of eastern Queens and southern Brooklyn.
www.thecity.nyc
October 29, 2025 at 4:38 PM
"The New York Housing Conference finds that 10 Council districts produced just seven units of affordable housing in total during the first six months of this year. Four produced none."
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/29/a...
www.thecity.nyc/2025/10/29/a...