The Metro Council approved the legislation this week despite opposition from the Nashville Scene and other local publications. According to the Tennessean, the law takes effect July 1. It will restrict the placement of news boxes and require publishers to pay permit fees and maintain their newsracks in good repair. "I'm not sure what it's supposed to accomplish, other than that we'll all have to register with a government entity and keep the boxes in working order," Scene publisher Chris Ferrell says. The councilman who co-sponsored the ordinance says he would lead the charge to rescind it if local publishers developed a better, voluntary plan. An earlier self-policing plan submitted by publishers was rejected by the council.

Continue ReadingNashville Passes News Box Regulation

Co-host Michele Norris praises the Pulitzer-winning LA Weekly food critic for having "a very expansive view" of what being a restaurant critic is all about. "You wouldn't believe how many bad meals I eat in order to find the ones I review every week," Gold says. He visited a particular Taiwanese restaurant 17 times -- "until I figured out what the aesthetic was," he says -- even though he despised the food. "I described one dish there as being bitter -- not bitter like coffee, but bitter like cancer medicine," Gold says. "But I meant it in a good way."

Continue ReadingJonathan Gold Talks Food on ‘All Things Considered’

Jason Sheehan's story on a semi-secret, unlicensed eatery catering to Denver's tight-knit community of Ghanaian immigrants has been named a 2007 Bert Greene Award winner by the International Association of Culinary Professionals. The awards, announced Saturday in Chicago, recognize excellence in food journalism. This marks the second year in a row Westword has won. Last year, Adam Cayton-Holland's "Word of Mouth" took top honors.

Continue ReadingWestword Takes Home Bert Greene Award for Food Journalism

In February, Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen issued an executive order halting all executions for 90 days so the Department of Corrections (DOC) could perform "a comprehensive review" of the state's execution protocol. Soon thereafter, the Scene filed an open-records request seeking information on the DOC's deliberations, but it was denied. With the May 2 deadline for the DOC's recommendations looming, the Scene filed suit yesterday in Davidson County Chancery Court. "We're talking about how we're going to go about killing people in this state," editor Liz Garrigan tells the Nashville Post. "We think that ought to be an open discussion." Nashville's City Paper reports the DOC has conducted its review entirely behind closed doors, with the exception of one 40-minute public forum.

Continue ReadingNashville Scene Sues for Information Denied by Dept. of Corrections