Billy Penn at WHYY
Billy Penn at WHYY is a local news team focused on reporting and explaining Philadelphia's political, physical, and cultural infrastructure. Their goal is to connect residents with useful information and help them learn from one another. They cover everything Philly - from breaking news to urban life to food and fun. Founded in 2014 as a startup, they joined WHYY, the region's NPR and PBS public media affiliate, in 2019. Billy Penn is a member-supported nonprofit newsroom that depends on generous contributions and participation from its readers. They have a team of dedicated journalists who cover various topics such as food and drink, politics, and community events.
73%
The Daily's Verdict
This news site has a mixed reputation for journalistic standards. It is advisable to fact-check, scrutinize for bias, and check for conflicts of interest before relying on its reporting.
Bias
80%
Examples:
- It's also unclear how and when drug users might be prosecuted or threatened with prosecution.
- Other critics, including some of those living on Kensington Avenue, note that past crackdowns have simply displaced dealers and users for a short time, and expect that will happen again this time around.
- The larger drug problem seemed largely unchanged or even got worse, with 650 or more people living on the streets.
- Without a greater plan that deals with the core causes of how we got here in Kensington, after the initial ‘successes’ from cleaning, curfews, and policing are celebrated, the crime, drugs, and encampments – which relocated for a time – will return.
Conflicts of Interest
100%
Examples:
- An apparent increase in police targeting drug users caused alarm among people living on the street and nonprofit organizations that help them, especially after heavily armed law enforcement agents from the state Attorney General’s office were seen rounding people up near Kensington and Allegheny avenues in early February.
Contradictions
80%
Examples:
- Mayor Parker’s administration released a plan to ‘eliminate Kensington as the narcotics destination of Philadelphia’, The plan includes bringing in the National Guard
Deceptions
35%
Examples:
- But the encampment clearing is separate from Bethel’s Kensington Community Revival, Managing Director Adam Thiel reportedly said. As Parker’s term as mayor moves into its fifth month, it’s still unclear when that longer-term ‘weeding and seeding’ will formally launch.
- It's also unclear how and when drug users might be prosecuted or threatened with prosecution.
- The city has cleared encampments in the same spot and other parts of Kensington many times in the past, and arrested drug dealers, only to see them reappear within days.
Recent Articles
Mayor Parker's Mission to Eliminate Kensington's Drug Crisis: A Complex Challenge
Broke On: Tuesday, 07 May 2024