AI bots in Philly news?; Farewell to the SS United States; Weekly gun violence brief

#BILLYPENNGRAM OF THE DAY

Looking back on South 4th St.
(Photo by @danherman456)

Are AI bots running these Philadelphia and New Jersey news sites?

For months, Billy Penn has been keeping tabs on several local news websites – including Northeast Times, Lower Bucks Times, the South Philly Review and centraljersey.com. What we found led us down a local news rabbit hole that had us questioning reality. Continue reading…

Are robots writing the news? (Image created with Canva designs)

An historic bon voyage to the SS United States

Today is the day: the SS United States’ final voyage, sinking into the waters of the Gulf and becoming the world’s largest artificial reef off the coast of Florida.

The ship was originally scheduled to be deployed Thursday morning, but Okaloosa County moved up the timeline due to avoid the heavy winds and unsafe weather forecasted for that day.

Weather-permitting, watch it live at 2 p.m., live-streamed on the county’s web page for the ship. Continue reading…

The SS United States passes under the Walt Whitman Bridge on its journey to Florida in February 2025. (Emma Lee/WHYY)

A new exhibit puts Philadelphians in the shoes of 19th-century veterans

When the U.S.government offered pensions to aging Revolutionary War veterans in the early 1800s, they ran into an issue – many did not have a record of their service.

The solution – to have veterans come into local government offices to record details – ended up creating almost 80,000 perspectives of the Revolutionary War, and a priceless collection of oral history accounts from some of America’s first veterans.

Now, a new virtual project at the Museum of the American Revolution is linking these accounts to present-day veterans. Continue reading…

Museum of the American Revolution at 3rd and Chestnut streets in Old City, Philadelphia. (Danya Henninger/Billy Penn)

BP Quizzo Question of the Day

Veterans Stadium was built in South Philly in the 1960s after which sports team threatened to leave the city?

RECAP: What else happened?

$ = paywalled

• Public Advocate seeks “full and public investigation” of PGW CEO’s freebies following WHYY’s report. [WHYY]

• Philadelphia Mayor Parker ordered a review of city’s foster care system after the murder of 10-year-old Malayshia Allford. [WHYY]

• Philadelphia state test scores are months late. Now state officials want to change the cut scores. [Chalkbeat]

• The award-winning Women in Natural Sciences program spins off from Academy of Natural Sciences and Drexel. [WHYY]

• An eye out for vision loss: New Philly mobile van brings free eye disease screening directly to patients. [WHYY]

• Bob Boone, the Phillies’ first World Series-winning catcher, died at 78. [PhillyVoice]

Weekly brief on gun violence prevention (with PCGVR)

We publish this report each week in partnership with the Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting.

These students want to change the narrative about gun violence — so they’re taking to social media. [Chalkbeat]
Gun violence prevention majorities won control of the U.S. House and Senate; advocacy group Brady: United Against Gun Violence calls for swift legislative action. [BradyUnited.org]

By the numbers in Philadelphia

15: Shooting victims recorded from Nov. 2 to 8, with 3 fatalities, according to city data. During the previous week, 15 shooting victims were recorded, including 3 fatalities. [Source: nickhand.dev]
157: Year-to-date homicides, down 18% vs. last year’s pace; down 67% vs. five years ago. [Philly Police]

MAYOR WATCH

Mayor Parker attends Penn’s David & Lyn Silfen University Forum celebrating 150 years of Penn Women. (3:30 p.m.)

Highlights from Billy Penn’s City Guide

Philly’s Navy Yard is becoming a neighborhood. Here’s what it’s like now
Once a sprawling military shipyard, the Navy Yard is adding homes, transit and more while holding onto its industrial past.
15 cozy soups to get you through the cooler weather
These hearty favorites of Billy Penn and WHYY staff will help keep your belly full till spring.

ON THE CALENDAR

Veterans Day events,
Empathy Games (Wednesday),
Screening + Panel discussion: “Crime and Punishment in America” (Thursday),
7th annual West Philly Swing Thing (Friday),
AND MORE!

See the **FULL LIST** of this week’s events calendar at BillyPenn.com!