Yahoo! Inc.

In case you missed it, Mike Bloomberg was on The Today Show this morning to announce that the city will phase in hybrid vehicles into the city’s taxi fleet over the next five years as part of his overall effort to reduce local pollution.

The mayor was joined by two other guests. One was Yahoo’s Vice President of Marketing, Patrick Crane, whose company donated 10 hybrid taxis to the city.

“And," the mayor said, by way of announcing the other, "most importantly, this is City Councilman David Yassky, who’s been leading the environmental fight here in the city."

Not a bad plug for Yassky on national television.

Afterwards, Matt Lauer used the occasion to ask about 2008.

“So the taxis next year have to meet emission standards, just in time for you to run for President,” he said.

 

Bloomberg’s response: “Well, part of your statement is right.”

Anybody who shares a name with an elected official, candidate, or press aide, can sympathize with Maureen Donovan whose last name is one letter off from the very busy press aide to congressman John Sweeney (of the infamous 911 calls).

Here's Donovan's automated response to from Donovan's Yahoo account:

If you are trying to e-mail Maureen Donovan w/info re: political campaigns, news stories, or visits to NYC, you have the wrong Maureen Donovan! From the many e-mails I have received in error, my guess is that this person's e-mail address is "maureenodonovan@yahoo.com." Note the "o" in the middle of the address. Subtle difference, but one that has caused me to get dozens of e-mails, some of which seem to contain rather sensitive information, that are not intended for me. Please check and correct this in your e-mail address book. THANKS!

-- Azi Paybarah

On Sept.  read more »

Yahoo/AP has a good story this morning on plans to create a beach on the Hudson, at Piers 52/53.

The story misses a growing movement led by boaters to revive the city's beaches. For instance, the argument is raging now in Community Board 1 over providing access to a beach on the East River just below the Brooklyn Bridge. This beach exists already, and is about 250 feet long—but barriers make it impossible to get to the beach from the streets.

The big secret is that New York harbor has many beaches. A fine new website called NewYork Harbor Beaches offers aerial photography of some of these hidden spots. And it has an important message about the vitality to the city of "dozens of natural sand beaches" in the harbor:

Largely unknown to the public, and frequently uncharted, these beaches are tangible reminders of the thriving estuary and recreational playground that the harbor used to be—and could be again. Beaches are great because they soften the edge of a shoreline that is now mostly concrete and stone. They absorb storm and wake energy, function as natural filters for runoff, and make prime habitat for wildlife, including shellfish and shorebirds.

Daily News editor Dawn Eden writes in response to criticism of a recent piece in her section that, to me, seemed to gloss over the politics of abortion, and that led a reader to apparently discover that the profile subject was spreading misinformation:

"Moral rehab for reporters" --I like that. Thanks for the plug, Ben.

Regarding Ms. Chapman’s grievances, I stand by Colin O’Brien’s excellent story.

As the story states, abortion is not Bridge to Life’s mission. The center has helped hundreds, perhaps thousands, of women support babies whom they would not be able to support otherwise.

Regarding Ms. Chapman’s other criticism in the comments, she is correct that Yahoo Yellow Pages does not list 11 abortion clinics in College Point itself. I found that statistic via searching for abortion clinics in Flushing, Queens, which includes College Point. Here are the results of that search. To be accurate, should have said that there are 11 abortion clinics in the College Point area and the omission was my mistake. Nonetheless, the truth remains that it is easier to find an abortion clinic in Flushing than it is to find a Starbucks. But ask any one of those abortion clinics to give you diapers, clothes, food, toys, and a housing referral, and you’d have better luck asking Starbucks for a free grande mochaccino. That’s why Bridge to Life fills an important need in the community and, in my mind, deserves all the recognition it gets.

Ben, I hope that while you were searching for Big Town , you also found the very first one, on Frank Jump, a schoolteacher who has been living with HIV for over 20 years. Also, check out today’s story (which will be available here) about former slave Simon Deng’s Sudan Freedom Walk.

On a slow night, Anne, a 23-year-old assistant at an art consultancy, will get drunk at home with he  read more »

Wednesday 30th Sit down, folks, because Joan Rivers is doing stand-up again , even if it hasn't  read more »

It's another down day for Internet stocks, and Lehman Brothers'star Internet analyst Holly Becker is  read more »

I have often wondered if Manhattan might be a better place without any automobiles.  read more »

It's a little hard for this preflood lady to understand the kick.  read more »

Old-School Eakle Hypes a Client, With Some Help From Dan DorfmanRichard Eakle is a busy man.  read more »

It's 1999, and the Internet stock boom is flooding Silicon Alley, New York City's "new media" zone,  read more »