The New York Observer » Local

Thrillist Teams Up With HuffPo and ESPN

Thrillist, looking to tap the boom in local ad dollars, is expanding its NY-based guide to men's lifestyle and entertainment across the nation through two big new partnerships.

Paid Content reported today that Thrillist will be partnering with the Huffington Post and ESPN, taking its content beyond a newsletter and setting it live on the Read More

NY-23: The Democratic Bench

Now that State Senator Darrel Aubertine is out of the running, here's a quick review of the other potential Democratic candidates to replace John McHugh in Congress: --Daniel French, a former federal prosecutor and aide to Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, considered by many to be one of the strongest choices. He would offer a firm Read More

Morning Read: De Blasio Fallout, Bloomberg’s Apology, Kalikow’s Request

If Bill de Blasio stays off the ballot, Mark Green has a better chance of winning, says Sally Goldenberg. De Blasio plans to appeal his removal. On the bright side, he did get some endorsements from the Bronx. Reader Insanity said removing de Blasio would set a bad precedent. Michael Bloomberg’s girlfriend may join the Read More

Morning Read, Upstate: Aubertine Out

New Jersey. Whoa. The Post says federal indictments need not stop at the Hudson's western bank. State Senator Darrel Aubertine, considered the best Democratic candidate for a congressional seat in the North Country, announced he will not run. Other potential candidates have not submitted paperwork to Democratic leaders indicating interest, and it's unclear how flexible Read More

De Blasio Removed

Bill de Blasio was removed from the ballot for telling the city Board of Elections officials he had 131 pages of petitions, instead of the 132 pages he actually filed. I reached out to de Blasio’s three opponents in the Democratic primary and asked if they thought he should be reinstated. “This is not a Read More

Aubertine Bows Out

ALBANY—State Senator Darrel Aubertine is not running for Congress. "My priority must continue to be the work I have started in the state Senate, representing Oswego, Jefferson and St. Lawrence counties. My commitment is to the people of the 48th Senate District and has been all along. Before I could even consider the possibility of serving Read More

The Council Upgrades Its Web Site

The City Council just upgraded its web site to make it easier to search for legislation, part of a year-long overhaul that was started around the same time they were sued by the New York Times for charging thousands of dollars for that kind of information. The change is fairly significant and should help nosy Read More

Elsewhere: Pushing for Board of Ed Meeting, a Life-Saving Zip Code, Real Estate Money

Jarret Murphy says Bill Thompson oversold his report on drop-out rates, but says Bloomberg politicized the issues since they’re in most of his ads. Scott Stringer and Marty Markowitz want the Board of Education to meet before September. City Hall spokeswoman Dawn Walker responded to the letter, saying, "We expect the governance debate in Albany Read More

How Legislators Eat (When the Campaign Is Paying)

ALBANY—Jeff Klein likes the filet mignon at 677 Prime, with a side of chopped salad. Dean Skelos is partial to the eggplant at Amo la Bella. Malcolm Smith enjoys the mussels at the Brown Derby. And you can find Tom Libous at Lombardo's on Madison. During the six months of the legislative session, the four Read More

Dems Tight-Lipped on Aubertine Run as Deadline Bears Down

ALBANY—Democrats insist they're not in a rush to pick a candidate for a special Congressional election, and are treating the potential Congresional run of State Senator Darrel Aubertine like a state secret. "We're talking about days rather than ... We're not following the Republican program," said Sean Hennessey, the Jefferson County Democratic chairman, who has Read More

Pedro Espada Thinks a Daily News Reporter Is Out to Get Him

Here's Daily News reporter Barbara Ross, who wrote about Pedro Espada's unreported campaign activity today, trying to get some answers after a press conference at City Hall today. Espada calls it "yellow journalism" and "disrespectful" and walks away. He then chats with New York Post reporter Carl Campanile about mayoral control for a bit. Then Read More

Pedro Espada Gets Mad at Reporters Who Ask About Filings

Some Democratic state senators stood on the steps of City Hall and trashed Michael Bloomberg and Joel Klein for a full 30 minutes over their position on mayoral control of schools. And then things got interesting. One of the senators, Pedro Espada, blew up at reporters who asked him about fund-raising activity that was not Read More

Silver Gets a Live Caller

Here’s a voice mail message a reader received from Assemblyman Sheldon Silver that’s different from the previous ones sent out by his office. It’s not a robocall, but a real, live human being. Previous calls used a recording of “your assemblyman, Shelly Silver.” This one is from a woman who identified herself as “Lisa.” Lisa Read More

Weprin Says He’s Not Getting Personal, Rivals Disagree

David Weprin said he stands by the critical statements his spokespeople have made about his opponents, but insisted, “I’m trying not to make anything personal.” In the last few days, his spokespeople have slammed Melinda Katz for being too close to the real estate industry, and questioned John Liu’s dedication to the office, noting his Read More

Conservative Jim Kelly Ready to Run Against ‘RINO’ Scozzafava

ALBANY—Less than 24 hours after her designation as the Republican candidate to replace John McHugh in Congress, Assemblywoman DeDe Scozzafava is about to get a challenge from the right. "I did call up Mike Long, and Shaun Marie Lavine. Clearly they are not backing DeDe Scozzafava," said Jim Kelly, a Conservative Party operative from Wilmington Read More