Update: Patrick Catena is stepping down from his leadership position a week after several of his colleagues on council mounted an effort to force him out of the post — and just days after he lost a bruising primary election. www.post-gazette.com/news/politic...

This story is playing out across the country as more parents skip routine childhood vaccines. Here in Pennsylvania, vaccination rates in hundreds kindergarten classrooms have dropped below the 95% threshold needed to stop measles from spreading.

The latest episode of Widow’s Bay has one of the most haunting shots I’ve seen in a while, and it flashes on screen so quickly my wife missed it. This show is so good.

Allegheny County Council President Patrick Catena — a Democratic candidate for the state House — is facing mounting backlash over an attack on trans athletes in a political mailer sent out last week.

Amid a surge in measles cases, top Pa. state lawmakers say school vaccine rates need to be made public. Several states already do this. www.post-gazette.com/news/health/...

Pa.’s second measles outbreak this year comes as vaccination rates plummet in schools across the state. In Lebanon County, rates in kindergarten classrooms have fallen in nearly every school, with five dropping below herd immunity for measles, the level needed to stem the spread of the disease.

The Venetoulis Institute, the new owner of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, plans on holding listening sessions in the coming to months to learn how the region’s largest news organization can better serve the community.

This week was difficult. We had braced for cuts, but nothing prepares you to watch talented colleagues — some of the finest reporters and photographers in Pennsylvania — lose their jobs. The expertise they brought and the community relationships they built can’t easily be replaced.

🐧 Heartbreaking game.

Post-Gazette wins national award for investigation that exposed enforcement failures in protecting miners

A lot has been written about falling vaccination rates across the U.S. Our latest investigation found that in Pennsylvania, hundreds of school leaders are contributing to the decline by failing to enforce the state’s school vaccine laws. newsinteractive.post-gazette.com/pennsylvania...

Incredibly grateful to @healthjournalism.org for recognizing our investigation on black lung disease. Kudos to @michaeldsallah.bsky.social, @wereschagin.bsky.social, and the @medillschool.bsky.social student journalists who contributed to the investigation. healthjournalism.org/blog/2026/04...

Some good news for Pittsburgh: the nonprofit Venetoulis Institute, which owns @thebaltimorebanner.com, has acquired the @post-gazette.com, ensuring the future of Western Pennsylvania’s oldest and largest newspaper. www.post-gazette.com/local/city/2...

“If we can bring more safeguards to tenants who speak up, we can improve the quality of housing and safety standards across Allegheny County.” www.post-gazette.com/news/politic...

Incredibly honored that our reporting on the black lung epidemic and the federal government’s regulation of silica — or lack thereof — has been recognized alongside some of the best investigative journalism of last year. Some truly remarkable and important work on this list.

How Allegheny County’s tax base is collapsing — one appeal at a time www.post-gazette.com/business/dev... by @madaleinerubin.bsky.social & @jrcloutier.com

In his last piece for the @post-gazette.com, @benkail.bsky.social covers Pennsylvania’s role in the battle over voting reforms and the Trump administration’s efforts to “nationalize” elections ahead of the midterms. www.post-gazette.com/news/politic...

Measles outbreak confirmed in Lancaster County

Sen. John Fetterman on Thursday voted against advancing a highly-contested government funding package that includes allocations for the Department of Homeland Security, despite noting his objections to shutting down the government earlier this week.

Washington County clinic helps black lung patients battle for crucial benefits — and to survive

In the end, the pressure on the family simply became too great. Johny Merida Aguilara, the detained immigrant father of a 5-year-old son with brain cancer, has decided to drop efforts to stay in the United States, prompting his family to make a decision as well. 🔗 www.inquirer.com/news/johny...

Salt delivery delays force some Western Pa. towns to strategize ahead of snowstorm

More than a hundred demonstrators gathered at the Target in Pittsburgh’s East Liberty neighborhood, claiming the retail giant is cooperating with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement in Minneapolis. Jacob Geanous has the details ⬇️

The weather today in Pittsburgh is brutal. 12° F with windchill, 34mph gusts, and snow. But demonstrators have still come out to protest immigration enforcement following three shootings by federal agents last week.

Breaking with fellow Democrats once more, Sen. John Fetterman joined GOP Sen. Dave McCormick in praising the U.S. military operation that deposed Venezuela's leader — an action the U.N. secretary-general called a "dangerous precedent."

Massive fraud scheme that fleeced thousands of people had ties to Pittsburgh area

Federal judge stops DOJ's efforts to get UPMC Children’s to turn over patient info on gender-affirming care

My colleagues and I dug into new data on ICE detentions in Pittsburgh. Since Trump entered office, at least 810 people have been sent to the South Side ICE office — an 8x increase from the same period in 2024. www.post-gazette.com/news/politic...

Our latest investigation explores a regulatory gap fueling the black lung epidemic in Appalachia. Federal rules empower the government to penalize mines for high coal dust—but not for silica, a far deadlier toxin. www.post-gazette.com/news/health/...

There you have it. Following two years of community pushback, the Pittsburgh Public school board have voted 6-3 against a plan to shutter nine schools and reorganize several others.

Nearly 80 parents urged the Pittsburgh Public School Board on Monday to vote against a proposed school closure plan that many described as “half baked.” The board votes tomorrow. @megantomasic.bsky.social has the details.

Electric bills across Pennsylvania are set to increase next month, due in part to the rapid growth of data centers and AI.

The president this week called veteran Democrats in Congress “traitors,” questioned whether they should be locked up and charged with sedition, and then reposted a comment that said they should be hanged. The next day, the offices of one of those lawmakers received bomb threats.

An incomprehensible amount of money — about half the GDP of Canada — for one person. The median Tesla worker, by contrast, earned around $57,000 in 2024. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/b...

Yesterday, coal miners rallied in the nation's capital to demand protections from toxic dust. New rules that were supposed to come into effect earlier this year are being challenged by the mining industry and have been paused by the Trump administration. www.post-gazette.com/news/politic...

#USA RSF and 16 other organizations published a joint statement calling for the Trump admin to abandon a proposal to severely restrict visas for international journalists. Read the statement here: rsf.org/en/usa-rsf-a...

NEW: U.S. Is Losing Race to Return to Moon, Critics Say, Pointing at SpaceX The company’s Starship rocket, which has suffered a series of recent test explosions, is still years away from being ready for the mission, former NASA executives say. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/20/u...

Mario Guevara is here legally and is not facing any criminal charges. He is being thrown out of the country for nothing but reporting news.

This Pennsylvania settlement could set the standard for preventing tiny plastic pellet pollution. A company agreed to install technology to watch for the tiny plastic pellets. grist.org/solutions/pl... #Plastic #Pennsylvania #Pollution #Health #Toxic #Climate #Environment

County Council calls on Congress to increase monthly benefits for coal miners with black lung

Federal regulatory gaps and enforcement lapses allow mine operators to expose their workers to dangerously high levels of coal dust. Read the latest from @michaeldsallah.bsky.social, @wereschagin.bsky.social, and me.

Mold, lead and more environmental factors threaten health of Pa. schoolchildren, per new report

Amid immigration uncertainty, ‘Hello Neighbor’ helps migrants find their place in Pittsburgh

Republicans, eager to avoid a repeat of Doug Mastriano's 2022 loss, are rallying behind state Treasurer Stacy Garrity for governor. Though she hasn’t formally declared, GOP leaders see her as their best chance to challenge Gov. Josh Shapiro and avoid downballot damage in some key districts.

Under international law, it is a war crime to deliberately target journalists.

The U.S. desperately needs to regulate blindingly bright vehicle headlights. It’s become near impossible to drive at night

@wereschagin.bsky.social has new details on the dark money donors who spent tens of thousands of dollars to defeat Mayor Ed Gainey in the Democratic primary. www.post-gazette.com/news/politic...

Dark money in national elections gets a lot of coverage, but, increasingly, we're also seeing it seep into local politics. “It's one more nail in the coffin of our democratic system,” said Terry Goddard, a former attorney general of Arizona who led an anti-dark money campaign in the state.

The House Ethics Committee concluded on Friday that Rep. Mike Kelly — whose wife bought $23,000 worth of stock in a steel company in 2020 — broke ethics rules during insider trading investigation. @benkail.bsky.social & @wereschagin.bsky.social have the details: www.post-gazette.com/news/politic...

'We're on a slippery slope': Alarming number of measles cases sees U.S. on course to no longer consider the disease eliminated www.post-gazette.com/news/health/...