UPDATE —  4:50 p.m., Thu., Dec. 17: Number of today's new confirmed positive cases in Allegheny County: 850 Number of today's new confirmed coronavirus deaths in Allegheny County: 55...

It's December, and that can only mean one thing: an incessant stream of made-for-TV holiday movies. Last year, Lifetime and Hallmark, the two biggest producers of cheap holiday movies, introduced viewers to the novel concept of Hanukkah movies...

U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Lehigh) is pushing to include language in the emerging COVID-19 relief bill that would terminate an emergency lending program run by the Federal Reserve by year’s end, a move that critics say will limit the incoming Biden administration’s ability to address the nation’s economic woes, according to a published report. The Washington Post reports that the issue is holding progress on relief talks...

This year has been anything but normal, so why bother with cooking on the holidays? Instead, indulge in one of these holiday feasts — some traditional, some new — from a local restaurant...

Books for Change was created by the University of Pittsburgh Office of Child Development to educate young children about discrimination, prejudice, and racial injustice using a variety of books. Now, Pitt is asking people to donate certain titles to further the project's mission with the Raising Antiracist Readers book drive...

Natural wine is having a moment in Pittsburgh right now. The style of vino can be hard to describe, but it basically means that no additives were part of the wine-making process...

This summer, Pittsburgh area restaurant workers detailed a sort-of tragic phenomenon of the coronavirus pandemic. With restaurants re-opening after the first spring shutdown, workers said that there was a slight increase in the number of more entitled customers, like those who refuse to wear masks or ignore the server’s requests for social distancing...

Workers from across all four of the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh have taken another major step towards unionization by voting to join the Pittsburgh-based United Steelworkers union. Yesterday, it was announced that the United Museum Workers, a group that includes 500 scientists, educators, art handlers, gift shop clerks, and other staff members from Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History, The Warhol Museum, and the Carnegie Science Center,  officially became part of the USW...

Audio & Video Archive

Video Archive Beginning on a slightly different note today, Lynn is talking about the stories of some extraordinary women she's read about recently...

Last week, the New York Times reported on former Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporter Michael Fuoco’s history of alleged sexual misconduct. The story detailed accusations against Fuoco of inappropriate behavior, sexual harassment, and mental abuse from several women over several years...

The election in November was framed as a crossroads, and while President-elect Joe Biden came out on top on the national level, down ballot races in Pennsylvania showed Democrats losing ground and seats. As many paced around on election night and the days to follow, local LGBTQ activists were already forging ahead with the work that needed to be done — work that existed before the election on issues that aren’t immediately solved by an election, either...

The experience of watching the film adaption of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom is intensely bittersweet. Sweet, because of the privilege of seeing Pittsburgh playwright August Wilson's work put to film by some of the best actors of this generation...

Hazelwood has changed Tim Smith for the better, just as he’s bringing positive changes to the neighborhood through his nonprofit, Center of Life. When Smith’s family first came to the neighborhood in 1980, his father was a pastor at Hazelwood’s Keystone Church and Smith was studying to become a banker...

Last week, I broke my typical resolution of “voicemail first” and answered a call from an unknown number in Pittsburgh. To my surprise, it was Joey Hilty, co-owner of The Vandal in Lawrenceville...

Every time Paola Corso’s grandmother saw a church, she made the sign of the cross. Corso adopted her grandmother’s tradition when she crossed a bridge over one of the three rivers in Pittsburgh: “In the name of the Allegheny, the Monongahela, and the holy Ohio, amen," became Corso’s personal prayer...

As a radio host with deadlines, there’s a tendency to skim tracks of a new album. Sometimes, there's a note-to-self that the album is worthy of more attention...

Virtual holiday celebrations including theater performances, music, readings, and more

Thu., Dec. 17 DANCE • VIRTUAL Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre dances into your living room with Fireside Nutcracker, a virtual production following a young girl swept into a holiday adventure full of romance, danger, and magic. Even though it's not on an in-person stage, the show still features all the elements that have made it a favorite for generations, including stunning choreography by the PBT company and the timeless Tchaikovsky score...

Stating that the holidays look very different from previous years has become a cliché at this point. But for people like Lance Skapura, a professional Santa Claus who has performed in and around Pittsburgh for the last seven years, the rote sentiment still carries a lot of weight...

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): According to researcher Nick Watts and his documentary film The Human Footprint, the average person speaks more than 13 million words in a lifetime, or about 4,300 per day. But I suspect and hope that your output will increase in 2021...

Christmas is nearing, and the Postal Service is more swamped than ever, with people shopping online instead of in person. The USPS website even has a red banner at the top warning that they are "experiencing unprecedented volume increases and limited employee availability."