Family-owned media company returns to its NYC roots Straus News, a leading community news publisher and owner of weeklies in the tri-state region, today acquired Manhattan’s premiere weekly newspapers. The weeklies include one of New York City’s best-known papers, Our Town, along with its sister publications Our Town Downtown, The West Side Spirit, The Chelsea 
The last of the old-style publishing and political power brokers in New York City left us for the great cigar bar in the sky this week. Jerry Finkelstein, a legendary newspaper publisher and political kingmaker, was my boss and mentor for 15 years. I am among many in New York who will mourn his death 
This being the 10th anniversary year of the Blackboard Awards, it seems only fitting to recall the involvement of the awards’ patron saint, the legendary teacher and author Frank McCourt. You may remember that McCourt was the career high school English teacher who, in retirement, wrote the mega-bestselling memoir about his childhood in Ireland, Angela’s Ashes. 
It may have been downplayed in years past, but there’s no doubt about it: 2012 is going to be a big year for cycling enthusiasts. With gas prices skyrocketing, more New Yorkers are taking to the streets than ever before. And, as a response to this demand, the city is promising cyclists an unforgettable spring. 
