Michael Tanenbaum

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Michael Tanenbaum is a senior staff writer for PhillyVoice.com, with interests ranging from technology and behavioral health to local community initiatives and cultural life. Michael has written for the Argentina Independent and Bespoke Magazine and previously served as a news editor for Xfinity.com before joining PhillyVoice. He received his B.A. in The Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University.


tanenbaum@phillyvoice.com

September 20, 2024

Technology

Plan would power new Microsoft AI data center with electricity from Pa.'s Three Mile Island nuclear reactor

One of the nuclear reactors at Three Mile Island, the Pennsylvania site of a partial meltdown that occurred March 28, 1979, would be brought back online power a Microsoft's artificial intelligence data center. Constellation Energy has signed a 20-year power purchasing agreement with the tech giant to draw nuclear energy from the plant along the Susquehanna River outside Harrisburg and about 85 miles west of Philadelphia.

September 19, 2024

Courts

Fantasy football rivalry goes awry, ending with fake reports of international threats and conviction for Philly man

A Philadelphia man submitted fake tips to police in Norway and at the University of Iowa, claiming a rival in his fantasy football league was planning mass shootings and bombings on two occasions in August 2023 and March of this year, federal prosecutors said. Matthew Gabriel, 25, pleaded guilty to charges on Wednesday.

September 19, 2024

Transportation

Section of I-76 East to close during next four weekends to allow PennDOT repairs

A section of I-76 East will close each of the next four weekends in South Philadelphia while PennDOT makes bridge repairs. The closure extends from just before the ramp for the Grays Ferry Avenue/University Avenue (Exit 346B) to just before the 34th Street on-ramp. When the highway is closed, motorists will be detoured to I-676 East to get to I-95 South, or I-476 North to get to I-95 North.

September 19, 2024

Business

An overnight market for food trucks is headed to Fishtown outside the Fillmore

A new space for food trucks is coming to Fishtown in an area outside the Fillmore Philadelphia concert venue starting in October. The Overnight Market will be open Thursday through Sunday from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. The project is a partnership between Fishtown District and the city's Commerce Department, which hopes to develop similar overnight markets in other Philly neighborhoods.

September 19, 2024

TV

'Abbott Elementary' cast gets big raises ahead of Season 4 premiere

The cast of Abbott Elementary negotiated significant pay raises ahead of the premiere of season 4 of the ABC sitcom in October. Emmy Award-winning star Quinta Brunson reportedly will make between $350,000-$400,000 per episode of the series. Other stars on the show also reportedly had their pay doubled or tripled, Deadline reported. The comedy about Philadelphia's public school system returns to ABC on Oct. 9.

September 18, 2024

Investigations

Atlantic City mayor, wife indicted for alleged abuse of teenage daughter

Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. and his wife, La'Quetta, have been indicted on charges for allegedly abusing their teenage daughter on multiple occasions at their home last winter, the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office said.

September 18, 2024

Development

Mayor Cherelle Parker endorses 76ers arena in Center City, saying agreement has been reached

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker endorsed the 76ers arena proposal in Center City on Wednesday afternoon. The $1.5 billion plan aims to build a new stadium on East Market Street just south of Chinatown, which is currently part of the Fashion District Philadelphia mall.

September 17, 2024

Business

Wawa to close 51-year-old store on Route 70 in Cherry Hill

Wawa plans to close a 51-year-old store on Route 70 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, in early October. The company has said its newer operations and products can't be adapted to work in many of its older store designs. Wawa's original store in Folsom, Delaware County, opened in 1964 and was closed in 2016.

September 17, 2024

Courts

Nephew of former labor leader John Dougherty pleads guilty in extortion case

Gregory Fiocca, the nephew of former IBEW Local 98 boss John Dougherty, pleaded guilty Monday to charges that he threatened a contractor during a payment dispute at a construction site in South Philadelphia in 2020. The case ended in a mistrial in April, prompting prosecutors to drop similar charges against Dougherty after he was sentenced for convictions in two other cases. Dougherty is serving a six-year prison sentence.

September 17, 2024

Education

Temple faculty union reaches tentative contract agreement with university

Temple University's faculty union reached a tentative, five-year contract agreement that includes the union's largest negotiated pay increases in 25 years and more job protections, union officials say. The deal, which includes pay raises for adjunct professors, comes after more than a year of negotiations.

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