Philadelphia, Pennsylvania news and analysis from The Conversationnderstand our complex world

Highlighting emerging research and expert analysis on issues important to Philadelphia.

Part of a pilot project funded by the Knight Foundation.

Latest news

Woman in black coat pulls book from shelf in library

How libraries in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and other Pennsylvania communities evolved from subscription clubs to vital public institutions

Bernadette A. Lear, Penn State

‘Fountain’ might make you laugh or scowl but asks important questions – a Philly art historian explains why Marcel Duchamp’s iconic 1917 sculpture still provokes

Matthew Palczynski, Temple University

Dog parks are an antidote to the isolation and divisions that social media can fuel

Kevin B. Johnson, University of Pennsylvania

Seven people and six dogs sit and stand together around two park benches

Data center projects in Pennsylvania face stronger local scrutiny after Shapiro’s executive order

Michael Helbing, Penn State

Two cooling towers releases steam in background and one-story structure of metal beams in foreground

Federal stimulus money bought new technology for Philly students, but many schools lost track of where items went

Suzanne McLeod, Binghamton University, State University of New York and Kathryn Blackman, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Two lower elementary school students work on laptops

Hello Readers! Our local team wants to hear your feedback and story ideas. Send an email to Emily Costello, Director of Local News + Collaborations, and Philadelphia and Pennsylvania Editor Kate Kilpatrick at philadelphia@theconversation.com

Politics

Why the DOJ is investigating Philadelphia after police stripped gun permits from Black Panthers-inspired group

Jonathan S. Goldstein, University of Pennsylvania and George A. Mocsary, University of Wyoming; Institute for Humane Studies

Man in black shirt stands in doorway with arm over door with a list of 'Class Rules' written on it

Pennsylvania coroners refuse to release autopsy reports – and that hinders research on deaths in custody

Jonah Walters, University of California, Los Angeles

Person in blue scrubs puts on blue plastic glove and stands by table with surgical tools

How Pennsylvania towns are protecting themselves from the noise, heat and utility costs of massive data centers

Michael Helbing, Penn State

Man stands on front porch above yellow sign that says 'No Data Centers'

John Fetterman is an unusual politician – but his rise from borough mayor to US senator reflects a recent trend

Richardson Dilworth, Drexel University

Large bald man wearing white hoodie walks past Grecian columns on ornate room

Are you an academic who studies Philadelphia or Pennsylvania?

Pitch us

Addiction and opioid crisis

Higher buprenorphine doses help patients stay in opioid use disorder treatment, new study finds

Rachel French, University of Pennsylvania

How business students learn to make ethical decisions by studying a soup kitchen in one of America’s toughest neighborhoods

Tim Swift, St. Joseph's University

Large group of people gather outside a building with a religious mural

Pennsylvania counties face tough choices on spending $2B opioid settlement funds

Halie Kampman, Penn State; Brian King, Penn State; Glenn Sterner, University of Kentucky; Kristina P. Brant, Penn State, and Maya Weinberg, Penn State

Various papers, brochures and flyers related to opioid addiction are organized on a blue table

Medetomidine is replacing xylazine in Philly street fentanyl − creating new hurdles for health care providers and drug users

Kory London, Thomas Jefferson University and Karen Alexander, Thomas Jefferson University

People standing on sidewalk on commercial corridor

Philly hospitals test new strategy for ‘tranq dope’ withdrawal – and it keeps patients from walking out before their treatment is done

Kory London, Thomas Jefferson University

Doctor and nurse attend to patient in emergency room

Immigration

What to do if someone you know in Philadelphia or elsewhere is detained by ICE

Jennifer J. Lee, Temple University

Armed man with jacket that says 'Police Federal Agent' pats down person in sweatshirt and jeans as other people stand watching

Philadelphia’s 40-year history of protecting undocumented immigrants began with churches hiding refugees from El Salvador

Menika Dirkson, Morgan State University

Two people stand in doorway of church underneath an arch with stained-glass window

Pennsylvania’s mushroom industry faces urgent labor shortage − and latest immigration policies will likely make it worse

Hazel Velasco Palacios, Penn State and Kathleen Sexsmith, Penn State

Man holds flashlight in one hand and touches white button mushrooms with other

Yes, Philadelphia is a sanctuary city − but that offers undocumented immigrants little protection from mass deportations

Jennifer J. Lee, Temple University

A group of 10 people stand in front of Philadelphia's City Hall and hold signs in support of sanctuary policies

Climate change and environment

Philadelphia’s failing air quality hits hardest in neighborhoods near industry and highways, where asthma rates soar

Qian He, Rowan University; Mahbubur Meenar, Rowan University, and Sean Olcese, Rowan University

Pennsylvania’s aging levees are under pressure from scarce funding and severe weather

Kaleigh Yost, Penn State

View of bridge over water with skyscrapers in background

Pennsylvania roads are being coated in radioactive wastewater − here’s why

William Burgos, Penn State and Nathaniel Warner, Penn State

A tanker truck spraying something on a highway road.

Abandoned Pennsylvania mines and waste-heat recycling could make the state’s massive new data centers far more sustainable

Wangda Zuo, Penn State

Philly media! Reach out to learn more about how to republish our content, request stories, data visualizations or expert sources to enrich your reporting -- or share your out-of-the-box idea for teaming up. You can reach our local team at philadelphia@theconversation.com. We have photos to share, too!

Meet our Philly team

Kate Kilpatrick, Philadelphia Editor

Emily Costello, Director of Collaborations + Local News

Some recent media pickups

Drexel University’s Laura Baehr in The Philadelphia Inquirer

Headline in The Philadelphia Inquirer reads: 'Keeping seniors fit in Philly takes a citywide effort' '

Temple University’s Caterina Roman in The Philadelphia Citizen

Headline in The Philadelphia Citizen reads: Can data prevent youth crime?

Penn State’s Flor Acevedo in Levittown Now

Headline in Levittown Now reads: Penn State Expert Talks About How Lanternflies Are Bad For PA’s Wine Industry

Temple University’s Mark Salzer in Metro Philadelphia

Headline in Metro Philadelphia says "Local programs aim to break isolation for residents with mental illness""

Crime and safety

A blighted urban block with colorful rowhomes on a sunny day

Philadelphia’s criminal justice fines and fees fall hardest on poorest neighborhoods

Jordan Hyatt, Drexel University; C. Clare Strange; Nathan Link, Rutgers University, and Brian Lawton, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

When a police officer is shot, how they get to the hospital depends on the city – and Philadelphia stands apart

Prachi Sanghavi, University of Chicago and Cal Chengqi Fang, University of Chicago

Police car with flashing lights drives through urban area with skyscrapers in background

How community groups, activists and local media turned Camden, New Jersey, into a model of police reform

John A. Shjarback, Rowan University

Cars drive down a street of city with skyscrapers in distant background

How mobsters’ own words brought down Philly’s mafia − a veteran crime reporter has the story behind the end of the ‘Mob War’

George Anastasia, Rowan University

Black and white photo of men escorting handcuffed man with mustache and beard and wearing a leather jacket

Data-driven early intervention strategies could revolutionize Philly’s approach to crime prevention

Caterina G. Roman, Temple University

Man seen huddling with young, smiling athletes

Health

Should you drink Philly’s tap water?

Christine Kirchhoff, Penn State

Mother and young boy stand by sink as boy drinks bottle of water

I’m a Philly neonatologist, and every time I discharge a baby from the NICU, I worry about the air they’ll breathe at home

Tim Nelin, University of Pennsylvania

Leg and foot of tiny diapered infant lying in an incubator

How Pennsylvania’s new paid leave bill leaves the sandwich generation behind

Kate Perepezko, Miami University

A little girl looking out a window while standing next to a man in a wheelchair and an adult woman.

Why rural hospitals in Pennsylvania and across the country are closing in increasing numbers – 5 myths about rural health care

Shayann Ramedani, Penn State and Daniel R. George, Penn State

View from hallway of an empty hospital bed in an emergency department room

Schools and teens

Woman sits with young girl on her lap and reads to her

Do more than half of Philadelphia adults really read at or below 5th grade level? It’s time for a new way to describe what they know

Jennifer D. Kobrin, University of Tennessee

For the 1 in 4 teens with ‘problematic smartphone use,’ Pennsylvania’s proposed bell-to-bell cellphone ban might not be a simple solution

Elizabeth Dowdell, Villanova University

Close-up of boy's hands holding a cellphone

Philadelphia plans to close 17 neighborhood public schools – here’s what went wrong when it shuttered 30 schools in 2013

Julia McWilliams, University of Pennsylvania

Aerial view of large rectangular building surrounded by residential area with skyscrapers in background

Nearly 1 in 3 missing children in the US are Black, driving Pennsylvania and other states to propose ‘Ebony Alerts’ to ensure equal protection and public safety

Itay Ravid, Villanova University

Back of girl with long ponytail as she sits looking out of a window

3 generations of Black Philadelphia students report persistent anti-Black attitudes in schools

Leana Cabral, Columbia University

High school student sits at a desk in a classroom with her hands propping up her face.

Pay and equity

Would a $1 rideshare fee affect wealthier or working-class Philadelphians more? 2 Chicago studies offer some perspective

Parth Vaishnav, University of Michigan and Miki Tsuchiya, University of Michigan

Woman in baseball cap holds phone while looking across large intersection

Why Pennsylvania’s low-income residents are feeling the squeeze as gas prices rise

Hannah Wiseman, Penn State

We analyzed Philly street scenes and identified signs of gentrification using machine learning trained on longtime residents’ observations

Maya Mueller, Drexel University and Isaac Quaye, Temple University

Street view image of a shuttered grocery store in a gentrifying neighborhood in North Philadelphia.

Black and Latino homeowners in Philly face discrimination when appraisers assess their properties

Gregory Squires, George Washington University and Ira Goldstein, University of Pennsylvania

Colorful block of rowhomes on residential street

Culture

Statues of a smiling and waving Hershey's Kiss, Hershey's Chocolate Bar and Reese's Peanut Butter Cup

The costume maker who convinced Hersheypark to embrace candy mascots and ‘chocolatize’ their old-timey theme park

John Haddad, Penn State

Philadelphia’s rich history of children’s television includes ‘Double Dare’ and a golden age of local hosts like Chief Halftown and Captain Noah

Jared Bahir Browsh, University of Colorado Boulder

Man in red sports uniform and black helmet is belly down on slide filled with green goo

Pepper pot stew was survival food for the poor and a path to freedom for Black women in early Philadelphia

Carolyn Zola, California State University, East Bay

Painting of Black woman ladling out soup as white customers surround her and eat it

Controversy over Reese’s ingredients reveals standard food industry practices most consumers never notice

Jonathan Deutsch, Drexel University

Three chocolate peanut butter cup candies in a row on white background

Sabrina Carpenter’s and Chappell Roan’s sexy pop hits have roots in the bedroom ballads of Teddy Pendergrass and Philly soul