Citizencast

“Traditional license plate readers were developed in the 1950s and 60s,” says Garrett Langley of Flock Safety. “But you can go into Flock and say I’m looking for a black Sedan with after-market tires and a dent on the left corner, and we will find that car.” On this episode of How To Really Run A City, our hosts chat with Langley about his innovative and cost-saving approach to public safety, which made national headlines last year by promptly apprehending a would-be Trump assassin and an Atlanta mass shooter. After being the victim of a robbery in his own neighborhood, Langley reimagined vehicle surveillance and built a company that operates alongside thousands of law enforcement agencies across the country. “I love citizen entrepreneurs who are in the civic problem-solving business,” Larry Platt told former mayors Kasim Reed and Michael Nutter. “That’s who this guy is.” Join us for a deep dive into an idea that keeps cities safer while avoiding the typical pitfalls of street surveillance.  As cities go, so

Forty years after the City bombed a house, killed 11 MOVE members and destroyed a neighborhood, Philadelphia still has not reckoned with what it says about us

A nonprofit that recruits volunteers to repair homes is strengthening the physical, social and economic infrastructure of Philly’s neighborhoods.

The austerity mindset Donald Trump is asking of the American people is not the result of a wartime economy or a natural disaster. "No," says Ali Velshi, "we're not buying the idea that Americans need to give up the things that keep our lives running, just because you lit the house on fire."

Jew hate in a Center City bar. A cop shot during a brawl outside Overbrook High. An assassination attempt on our Governor. Maybe it’s time for a rally that reminds us to refocus on shared values and seeing ourselves in one another?

This week the Citizen screened a powerful documentary featuring witnesses of the MOVE bombing, one of the darkest moments of Philadelphia’s racial history.

Sinners, Ryan Coogler’s latest film in theaters now, is a tribute to Black people, their music, and their American experience. Dr. James Peterson argues this is more than a film -- it's a crossroads at its own cultural crossroads.

As a candidate, Donald Trump constantly distanced himself from from the hyper-conservative agenda of Project 2025. As the President, has he changed his tune and embraced it? Ali Velshi explains.

As this budget season reminds us, Democrats had better stop celebrating what they spend — and instead focus on what they actually build and deliver for real people. It was for this reason that I purchased copies of Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson and sent them to our city's leaders.

Join us for a rare behind-the-scenes look into the Citizen's newsroom and a friendly debate about athletes and what political responsibilities they may have.

Donald Trump’s tariff policies pose an economic threat to Rochester Hills, Michigan — and Republican Mayor Bryan Barnett has not been shy about speaking out. “More robots are made in my city than in any other city in North America,” Barnett told Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and former Philly Mayor Michael Nutter, along with Citizen Co-founder Larry Platt, in the latest episode of How To Really Run A City. “Our two biggest trading partners — and it’s not even close — are Canada and Mexico.” Barnett has held onto the mayoral office for an astounding 18 years — in no small part because of his unique style of “governtainment,” as well as the realization that cities are firmly in the business of customer service. “Our competition isn’t who you think: It’s Amazon,” Barnett says. “If you can get something delivered to your house from across the world in 24 hours, but it takes four or five visits to city hall to get a dog license, people say this just doesn’t make any sense." Join us for a conversation about getting shit

Citizen writer Malcolm Burnley sat down with the author of a new nonfiction book about his epic attempt to learn the identity of Bitcoin’s fabled inventor, one of the world’s richest people

Trees provide documented health benefits and even reduce crime, but two years into the City's first-ever Tree Plan, our leafy coverage has remained pretty much static. Why is that, and what happens next?

"I don't remember Trump campaigning on the promise to cut local library funding, but there were warnings," says Ali Velshi on this episode of the Banned Book Club. He brings onto the show Jon Yaged, CEO of Macmillan Publishers to discuss the effects of book banning and the slashing of federal funding to the little-known federal agency, the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

After the assassination attempt, Governor Shapiro's principled call for moral clarity might be better served by retiring the phrase “antisemitism" and calling it what it is: Jew Hate.

Iconic fashion designer and renowned chef Big Rube invites Jim Buck of Made By Buck down to his kitchen at Pitchers Pub in Manayunk. Buck tells Rube his story of pulling himself up by his literal bootstraps.

On this week's episode of Citizen WURDs, James Peterson is joined by Dr. Kevana Nixon, whose mission is to "eradicate the stigma of mental health in the Black community."

Layoffs, vacant labs and NIH cuts are diminishing the once-booming biotech sector that promised an economic windfall in the region. Is it time to write off biotech?

Private companies are increasingly profiting from state-sponsored surveillance aimed at immigrants. Ali Velshi brings the practice into the light and asks what this all means since "the true mark of any society is how it treats its most vulnerable."

The latest push for a ban on egregious gifts to legislators is the 38th attempt at a gift ban in the last 25 years ...