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Watch the Feb. 25 Democratic debate with Newsday’s editorial board and columnists

Watch the Feb. 25 Democratic debate with Newsday’s editorial board and columnists

Members of Newsday’s editorial board, along with opinion columnists William F.B. O’Reilly and Cathy Young, watch the Democratic candidates square off in South Carolina on Feb. 25.

Read through their live conversation and ratings of the candidates here.

The field narrowed to seven candidates who qualified based on polling or receiving a delegate from either the Iowa caucuses, New Hampshire primary, or the Nevada caucuses.

Mark Chiusano: Despite other candidates having much smoother performances, Bernie Sanders probably did well enough to win the night: opponents and moderators came at him more than usual, and as usual, he stuck to his talking points.

Rita Ciolli: Pete Buttigieg had his most solid performance yet, but Joe Biden takes the prize for looking more presidential than Sanders.

Michael Dobie: In a messy, chaotic back-and-forth that likely didn’t play well in much of the country and didn’t serve certain candidates well, Biden and Michael Bloomberg survived and Sanders took some hits. But Buttigieg rose above by projecting calm, connecting with the audience and landing more strong lines than anyone.

Lane Filler: Biden has improved throughout this process, if only because he’s become more comfortable with his own weaknesses on stage, and increasingly makes the case that he could do the job.

Amanda Fiscina: Voters are sick of the anger and attacks in our politics today, and Buttigieg showed Tuesday night again he can be a voice of reason.

Randi F. Marshall: In a debate marked by far too little substance, Bloomberg outperformed himself, and as such, came out as a clear winner. Biden and Buttigieg showed how capable they are, but without resonating enough at this stage.

William F. B. O’Reilly: Bloomberg and Biden both helped themselves, but that doesn’t solve their moderate logjam problem. Amy Klobuchar and Buttigieg were superb, but their campaigns are probably reaching the end. Elizabeth Warren hurt herself Tuesday night by looking cruel. Sanders remains the clear front-runner.

Eli Reyes: Biden and Bloomberg did better, but only because they had done so poorly before. Both were being measured against themselves not the other candidates.

Cathy Young: Biden performed well enough to regain some momentum; Bloomberg came back from being pummeled last week and held his own. Sanders stayed even. Buttigieg and Klobuchar did well, but not enough to pull off a miracle. And Warren actually got booed.

Mark Chiusano: Despite other candidates having much smoother performances, Bernie Sanders probably did well enough to win the night: opponents and moderators came at him more than usual, and as usual, he stuck to his talking points.

Rita Ciolli: Pete Buttigieg had his most solid performance yet, but Joe Biden takes the prize for looking more presidential than Sanders.

Michael Dobie: In a messy, chaotic back-and-forth that likely didn’t play well in much of the country and didn’t serve certain candidates well, Biden and Michael Bloomberg survived and Sanders took some hits. But Buttigieg rose above by projecting calm, connecting with the audience and landing more strong lines than anyone.

Lane Filler: Biden has improved throughout this process, if only because he’s become more comfortable with his own weaknesses on stage, and increasingly makes the case that he could do the job.

Amanda Fiscina: Voters are sick of the anger and attacks in our politics today, and Buttigieg showed Tuesday night again he can be a voice of reason.

Randi F. Marshall: In a debate marked by far too little substance, Bloomberg outperformed himself, and as such, came out as a clear winner. Biden and Buttigieg showed how capable they are, but without resonating enough at this stage.

William F. B. O’Reilly: Bloomberg and Biden both helped themselves, but that doesn’t solve their moderate logjam problem. Amy Klobuchar and Buttigieg were superb, but their campaigns are probably reaching the end. Elizabeth Warren hurt herself Tuesday night by looking cruel. Sanders remains the clear front-runner.

Eli Reyes: Biden and Bloomberg did better, but only because they had done so poorly before. Both were being measured against themselves not the other candidates.

Cathy Young: Biden performed well enough to regain some momentum; Bloomberg came back from being pummeled last week and held his own. Sanders stayed even. Buttigieg and Klobuchar did well, but not enough to pull off a miracle. And Warren actually got booed.

Presidential candidates

Feb. 19 Democratic debate: Editorial board rates how each candidate performed

Democratic debate: Editorial board judges how each candidate did

Las Vegas always puts on a good show and Wednesday’s Democratic debate delivered it. It was more prize fight than spectacle.

Supporters of each candidate will find some winning moments, as well as some cringe-worthy ones.

Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg stumbled badly at the start, but came back to land a few blows and Elizabeth Warren finally took the gloves off. Bernie Sanders emerged unscathed and Joe Biden did better than usual.

See what the Newsday editorial board and columnists had to say as they watched live Wednesday night.

Here’s how some members of the Newsday editorial board ranked the candidates:

Presidential candidates

Joe Biden

Former Vice President

Rita Ciolli:
Michael Dobie:
Lane Filler:
Amanda Fiscina:
Randi Marshall:

Michael Bloomberg

Former Mayor of New York City

Rita Ciolli:
Michael Dobie:
Lane Filler:
Amanda Fiscina:
Randi Marshall:

Pete Buttigieg

Former Mayor of South Bend, Indiana

Rita Ciolli:
Michael Dobie:
Lane Filler:
Amanda Fiscina:
Randi Marshall:

Amy Klobuchar

U.S. Senator, Minnesota

Rita Ciolli:
Michael Dobie:
Lane Filler:
Amanda Fiscina:
Randi Marshall:

Bernie Sanders

U.S. Senator, Vermont

Rita Ciolli:
Michael Dobie:
Lane Filler:
Amanda Fiscina:
Randi Marshall:

Elizabeth Warren

U.S. Senator, Massachusetts

Rita Ciolli:
Michael Dobie:
Lane Filler:
Amanda Fiscina:
Randi Marshall:

Democratic debate: Editorial board judges how each candidate did

Democratic debate: Editorial board judges how each candidate did

The Democratic presidential primary season continued Tuesday night with the first debate of 2020.

For this debate, members of Newsday’s editorial board watched and evaluated each candidate’s debate performances and shared their thoughts here after the debate ended. The evaluations are not an endorsement of any candidates, his or her views or policy positions.

The field of candidates has shrunk to six. They had to qualify by raising money from at least 225,000 unique donors and reach at least 5 percent in four different national polls or 7 percent in two polls from early voting states. Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders, Tom Steyer and Elizabeth Warren qualified. To follow all of the editorial board’s coverage of the 2020 election season, sign up for The Point.

Presidential candidates

Joe Biden

Former Vice President

Mark Chiusano: The vice president remained calm and only intermittently tongue-tied, meeting the bar for a front-runner.
Rita Ciolli: Biden continued his “been there done that, I have the experience” mantra. He didn’t seem to be debating anyone, assuming the mantle of the only Democratic hope.
Matt Davies: He’s still polling an affable front runner, but based on this debate performance there’s little evidence that he’s up to the demands of a campaign against Trump.
Michael Dobie: Biden was Biden, not always that smooth but reassuring enough to voters who want to be reassured. Strong and personal on impeachment.
Lane Filler: Biden had perhaps his best night and clearly is the only moderate with a chance at the nomination, which is not the same as having a chance at the presidency.
Randi Marshall: Biden was Biden, with no real surprises, no major flubs, but no major “wow” moment either, with his best answers coming on how he can beat Trump.

Pete Buttigieg

Former Mayor of South Bend, Indiana

Mark Chiusano: An interestingly un-combative night from the South Bend mayor who may think being nice works better now that he’s in the top tier.
Rita Ciolli: Buttigieg played small ball trying to win the Iowa voter, while claiming he was the best to compete with Trump in the outsider, religious/evangelical zone.
Matt Davies: Brilliant communicator. While the youngest on the stage, he has Clinton-era moderation, which may not be the way to attract Dem voters in 2020.
Michael Dobie: Whip-smart, as usual, but lacked fire — until he knocked it out of park with military/religion answer on taking on Trump, and finished strong with closing argument for generational change.
Lane Filler: Buttigieg never makes it clear what he’d want to do as president, besides being fantastically calm.
Randi Marshall: Buttigieg spent the debate trying to show America that he’s an experienced and knowledgeable leader, and had some of the strongest moments of any of the men on the stage.

Amy Klobuchar

U.S. Senator, Minnesota

Mark Chiusano: The senator from Minnesota seems to have gotten more comfortable on the debate stage but rarely grabbed the spotlight.
Rita Ciolli: Klobuchar’s performance was as flat as her accent. She had an multi-prong answer for every question, lots of details but no juice.
Matt Davies: Smart. Pragmatic. Good debater. And will continue to make an excellent senator.
Michael Dobie: Lots of folksiness, lots of stories, lots of “I’m the only one on this stage,” routinely blew past time limits and ignored moderators, but hard to say she really changed her calculus.
Lane Filler: Klobuchar gave her worst performance, with flatter jokes and bland policy points.
Randi Marshall: Klobuchar stuck to her spot as a moderate, but she seemed to be trying too hard, with too many one-liners and stories.

Bernie Sanders

U.S. Senator, Vermont

Mark Chiusano: Sanders has the real benefit of having simple, forceful answers to the questions that come up in these debates.
Rita Ciolli: Sanders played himself.
Matt Davies: His positions in this debate were … reliable. He’s a rock star in an election that in this political era can maybe only be won by a rock star.
Michael Dobie: Being consistent usually is a virtue, but hearing Sanders be Sanders over and over is getting tired, especially when he won’t say how much his vaunted health care plan will cost.
Lane Filler: Sanders gave his most measured and professional performance yet. But why? Let Sanders be Sanders!
Randi Marshall: Sanders floundered in spots but generally held his own, staking out the position of the most progressive of progressive candidates.

Tom Steyer

Billionaire

Mark Chiusano: Those who spend evenings agreeing with people don’t tend to have great reasons for running.
Rita Ciolli: Steyer was always seconding someone else’s motion. With more face time, he still did little to energize his climate change agenda.
Matt Davies: Likeable billionaire with good policy positions, but not exactly sure why he’s still in the presidential race.
Michael Dobie: News flash: Being a world traveler doesn’t qualify one to be commander-in-chief. Started the night wondering why he was up there, finished it still looking for the answer.
Lane Filler: Steyer’s campaign is an exercise in spending a fortune to buy a few votes — and little else.
Randi Marshall: From the first question, it became clear that Steyer lacks the experience, knowledge and depth of understanding to become president – or even to be on the debate stage.

Elizabeth Warren

U.S. Senator, Massachusetts

Mark Chiusano: Warren’s strength is her confident if wonky monologues covering issues like prescription drugs, as she showed again on Tuesday.
Rita Ciolli: Warren answered the woman question by owning it. She messaged to women at every opportunity. She was lit.
Matt Davies: Powerful stage presence and command of issues. Like Sanders she has a message that resonates with real Americans who struggle.
Michael Dobie: Expected: That Warren would win the argument on whether a woman could win the election. Unexpected: That she would make the best argument for being commander-in-chief.
Lane Filler: Warren, a consummate debater, experienced leader and policy savant, won. She always does.
Randi Marshall: Warren owned the stage all night, from foreign policy to the discussion about whether a woman can be president, and nearly every issue in between.

Editorials Year in Review 2019

Throughout 2019, the editorial board took positions on events, politics and policies that touch Long Islanders, writing nearly 400 editorials throughout the year. Editorials are the consensus position of the board. They are researched and written independently of the newsroom; news editors, reporters and photographers are not involved.

With each argument we publish, we strive to be a reasoned and pragmatic advocate for what is best for Long Island. We hope readers will use this index of the editorials written in 2019 to easily find our past positions and hold us accountable for our views. And we always welcome suggestions for topics we have not addressed.

Want to respond to something we wrote? Send a letter to the editor.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z #

Podcast – Chapter 4

Newsday and Levittown | Chapter 4: Epilogue

A conversation between two Long Islanders — one black, one white — with different reactions to Newsday’s series on the practices of real estate agents. After “Long Island Divided” was published we opened up our Letters to the Editor section and a special voicemail hotline. Here’s what we heard from readers about their experiences of discrimination and life on Long Island.

Hosted by Mark Chiusano, a member of the Newsday editorial board. Produced by Amanda Fiscina.

Long Island Divided letters

Reader letters in response to the Long Island Divided series.

Long Island Divided

The Long Island Divided series was a three-year investigation by Newsday exploring real estate practices.

Long Island Divided letters

Reader letters in response to the Long Island Divided series.

Letter to the editor October 1947

Letter to the editor October 1947

Long Island Divided letters

Reader letters in response to the Long Island Divided series.

Mark and readers

Readers Mary and Keith talk to podcast host Mark Chiusano at Newsday.

Nov. 20 Democratic debate: Point readers rate the candidates

Democratic debate watch: Live rating of the candidates

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By entering your email address and clicking “Vote now,” you are opting in to receive email from The Point, the Newsday editorial board’s inside look into politics and policy.

Rating the presidential candidates as they debate is available only for those who subscribe to The Point newsletter. To participate next time, sign up here.

Welcome to a perk of signing up for The Point – helping us rate the 2020 Democratic presidential primary candidates as they debate live this week.

Participate along with us by rating each contender on overall performance on a scale of one to five stars, with five being the best. Just tap on the stars and your vote will be automatically recorded.

Your ratings will be averaged in with those of other Point readers and displayed here alongside the Editorial Board’s ratings (your name will not appear anywhere with your ratings).

At the end of the night the candidate who receives the most stars from Point readers will appear here.

Nov. 20 Democratic debate: Editorial Board and Point readers pick winner

Nov. 20 Democratic debate: Editorial Board and Point readers pick winner

In a week dominated by House impeachment hearings, the 2020 Democratic presidential primary season continues Wednesday night with a fifth debate.

Members of Newsday’s editorial board will evaluate the positions of the 10 candidates on the stage.

Our ratings will be done on a scale of one to five stars. Five, of course, being the best. The ratings are not an endorsement of any candidate, his or her views or policy positions. Instead, the ratings are a measure of how well the candidates contribute to the national discussion.

Readers of The Point, our newsletter, have the exclusive opportunity to rate the candidates along with editorial board members. Join The Point here.

The Editorial Board selected Pete Buttigieg as the debate winner tonight and Cory Booker came in second. Point readers picked Pete Buttigieg as well and Amy Klobuchar came in second. Here are key takeaways from Tuesday’s debate from members of Newsday’s Editorial Board:

Mark Chiusano: In a sign that Iowa and New Hampshire are growing near, the intra-party attacks ratcheted up on Wednesday: candidates tweaking each other on Iraq War support, marijuana, judgement, experience, and lack thereof. Shockingly, for better or worse, the end is in sight.

Rita Ciolli: Finally a debate that addressed issues on the minds of most voters. Generally, all did pretty well. Joe Biden had his best debate yet, Kamala Harris punched her way back into the top tier, but Pete Buttigieg didn’t seem to make a strong emotional connection.

Matt Davies: Impeachment hearings for 11 relentless hours today were followed almost immediately by a substantive debate about climate change, race and healthcare — things that matter to people. While even the most ardent political junkie might be forgiven for flagging at this stage of the 2020 primaries marathon, it is refreshing to see, at mile 13, democracy still enthusiastically kicking.

Michael Dobie: Refreshing to see moderators cover new issues, depressing to see candidates dodge lots of those questions, but at end perhaps only on-the-fringe Cory Booker moves his standing … a little. Meh — maybe it’s impeachment inquiry exhaustion.

Lane Filler: One interesting way to judge this group as presidential contenders is by how many would make good to great cabinet members … and I’d say the answer is all of them, except Tulsi Gabbard.

Randi F. Marshall: In a debate moderated by women, several women candidates, led by Kamala Harris, at times commanded the stage, but Pete Buttigieg and Cory Booker had memorable moments, too. In the end, however, no one significantly moved a needle, because the day’s impeachment hearings overshadowed all of them, and tomorrow’s hearings likely will too.

Eli Reyes: Many came to this fifth Democratic debate believing the candidates would pounce on Pete Buttigieg because of his strong showing in Iowa polling. It didn’t happen.

Lawrence Striegel: I’m still looking for someone to separate himself or herself from the group. Cory Booker, Tom Steyer, Andrew Yang, Joe Biden and Amy Klobuchar seemed like stronger candidates Wednesday night. Pete Buttigieg held his own, but I was unimpressed with the others. I was surprised that Biden escaped any questions at all about Ukraine.

Final result

Presidential candidates

Podcast – Chapter 3

Newsday and Levittown | Chapter 3: Peaches and yards

The storage attic in Newsday’s former Melville building was not a place for public display. It was cold and drafty, a door open to the elements. A fire proofing substance haphazardly lined the walls. But the material there was important not just to Newsday, but Long Islanders: the paper’s archives, including hundreds of interview tapes about Newsday and Long Island history.

I went up to the attic to learn more about why Newsday’s editorial board was muted for years about racial covenants in Levittown, a question prompted by the paper’s just-released investigation into real estate practices in the present day.

What I found is the subject of the Newsday Opinion podcast, “Newsday and Levittown,” co-produced with Amanda Fiscina.

Many of the tapes from the attic deal with Newsday’s founder, Alicia Patterson, a pioneering female publisher, pilot and high-society staple: “Sort of a princess,” one employee calls her in a marveling tone. “She was used to a woman having to make her point more precisely than a man would,” remembers a friend in another tape. It was Patterson who made many of the early decisions about the paper’s crusades.

The crusades worked, including the one to encourage more housing for veterans after World War II.

This is how Newsday’s history intersects with Levittown’s, a story told in the tapes, scratchy with age. Patterson decided that people needed houses, and that builder William Levitt was just what Long Island needed. So Patterson put her might behind him.

She did so by campaigning for a change in local building codes, eliminating the requirement for a basement, to smooth the way for Levitt’s project.

“Newsday jumped into the fight on the side of the veterans,” a Newsday promotional video from the 1960s says, triumphant old-timey music playing in the background (you can hear an excerpt in the podcast). The editorial board encouraged readers to come out to a Hempstead Town Board meeting to show their support for the houses, too.

“None of us will ever forget that meeting. Thousands of veterans answered Newsday’s call,” the promotional video cheers.

It was a prime example of Patterson’s fighting spirit and the way she made her paper into a fighter, too.

“There was a crusading spirit on the entire newspaper and I loved it, I just thought it was wonderful,” says Robert Caro, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and former Newsday reporter, in one of the tapes.

She was a fierce advocate for Long Island. “She wanted it to have a zoo, she wanted it to have housing, she wanted it to have good streets,” chimes in her friend Phyllis Cerf Wagner. “I mean she just absolutely adored Long Island. It was her child, as the newspaper was her child.”

But the crusading flagged when it came to challenging Levitt, editorial writer Hal Burton says in another tape.

That included, crucially, when Levitt was discriminating against black homeseekers. Newsday’s editorial board at first said there was nothing much to see there.

Why?

The tapes give some suggestions: “She felt strongly on social justice, except for the blacks,” says Burton.

But it’s more complicated than that. As former editorial board member Robert Keeler describes in his 1990 history “Newsday,” for which he recorded and used most of those tapes tucked away in the attic, Patterson had a mixed record on discrimination apart from Levittown. She called out others’ racism and pushed for more Jewish immigration at the dawn of World War II when so many were trying to escape the Nazis. It was a tragically uncommon position.

So our podcast looks at other factors: the way that the growth of the suburbs encouraged by Levitt and Newsday was key to Newsday’s business. How the paper’s stance was in some ways sadly the norm for the time.

But that’s just half the story. To see what effect all this had, I left the attic and started making new recordings. I talked to people who live in Levittown now, and others who wanted to but couldn’t.

On this podcast, you’ll hear from a white family from the Bronx that had a house all set in Levittown but turned it down when they learned about the discrimination on display. Academics discuss the home values black residents missed out on when they couldn’t buy into up-and-coming Levittown.

And there’s a conversation from a meeting of the Levittown Historical Society, in the lower part of a school off Abbey Lane marked by suburban memorabilia and old photos. It was one of various times residents talked to me candidly about the beauties of life in Levittown, peach trees and open yards, everything Levittown represented and offered for families looking to start out on their own, and what it has meant over the years even as some have been excluded. Because the debates over Levittown, more than 70 years later, are still ongoing.

And Newsday, then and now, has been a part of it.


Hosted by Mark Chiusano, a member of the Newsday editorial board. Produced by Amanda Fiscina.

Levittown Historical Society

Levittown Historical Society

Levittown Historical Society

Levittown Historical Society

Levittown Historical Society

Levittown Historical Society

Levittown Historical Society

Levittown Historical Society

Levittown Historical Society

Levittown Historical Society

Elaine Gross

Elaine Gross, Erase Racism

Louise Cassano

Louise Cassano

Weiss

Morty Weiss and his wife.

Weiss

Weiss

Levittown Historical Society

Cotter family

Cotter Family

Elaine Gross

Elaine Gross, Erase Racism

Newsday

A World Apart Newsday series 1990

Joshua Ruff

Joshua Ruff, Long Island Museum

Louise Cassano

Louise Cassano

Thomas

Kevin Thomas

Manton

Paul Manton, Levittown Historical Society

Manton

Paul Manton, Levittown Historical Society

Chiusano

Mark Chiusano, Host

Podcast – Chapter 2

Newsday and Levittown Chapter 2: Alicia Patterson and Levittown

The storage attic in Newsday’s former Melville building was not a place for public display. It was cold and drafty, a door open to the elements. A fire proofing substance haphazardly lined the walls. But the material there was important not just to Newsday, but Long Islanders: the paper’s archives, including hundreds of interview tapes about Newsday and Long Island history.

I went up to the attic to learn more about why Newsday’s editorial board was muted for years about racial covenants in Levittown, a question prompted by the paper’s just-released investigation into real estate practices in the present day.

What I found is the subject of the Newsday Opinion podcast, “Newsday and Levittown,” co-produced with Amanda Fiscina.

Many of the tapes from the attic deal with Newsday’s founder, Alicia Patterson, a pioneering female publisher, pilot and high-society staple: “Sort of a princess,” one employee calls her in a marveling tone. “She was used to a woman having to make her point more precisely than a man would,” remembers a friend in another tape. It was Patterson who made many of the early decisions about the paper’s crusades.

The crusades worked, including the one to encourage more housing for veterans after World War II.

This is how Newsday’s history intersects with Levittown’s, a story told in the tapes, scratchy with age. Patterson decided that people needed houses, and that builder William Levitt was just what Long Island needed. So Patterson put her might behind him.

She did so by campaigning for a change in local building codes, eliminating the requirement for a basement, to smooth the way for Levitt’s project.

“Newsday jumped into the fight on the side of the veterans,” a Newsday promotional video from the 1960s says, triumphant old-timey music playing in the background (you can hear an excerpt in the podcast). The editorial board encouraged readers to come out to a Hempstead Town Board meeting to show their support for the houses, too.

“None of us will ever forget that meeting. Thousands of veterans answered Newsday’s call,” the promotional video cheers.

It was a prime example of Patterson’s fighting spirit and the way she made her paper into a fighter, too.

“There was a crusading spirit on the entire newspaper and I loved it, I just thought it was wonderful,” says Robert Caro, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and former Newsday reporter, in one of the tapes.

She was a fierce advocate for Long Island. “She wanted it to have a zoo, she wanted it to have housing, she wanted it to have good streets,” chimes in her friend Phyllis Cerf Wagner. “I mean she just absolutely adored Long Island. It was her child, as the newspaper was her child.”

But the crusading flagged when it came to challenging Levitt, editorial writer Hal Burton says in another tape.

That included, crucially, when Levitt was discriminating against black homeseekers. Newsday’s editorial board at first said there was nothing much to see there.

Why?

The tapes give some suggestions: “She felt strongly on social justice, except for the blacks,” says Burton.

But it’s more complicated than that. As former editorial board member Robert Keeler describes in his 1990 history “Newsday,” for which he recorded and used most of those tapes tucked away in the attic, Patterson had a mixed record on discrimination apart from Levittown. She called out others’ racism and pushed for more Jewish immigration at the dawn of World War II when so many were trying to escape the Nazis. It was a tragically uncommon position.

So our podcast looks at other factors: the way that the growth of the suburbs encouraged by Levitt and Newsday was key to Newsday’s business. How the paper’s stance was in some ways sadly the norm for the time.

But that’s just half the story. To see what effect all this had, I left the attic and started making new recordings. I talked to people who live in Levittown now, and others who wanted to but couldn’t.

On this podcast, you’ll hear from a white family from the Bronx that had a house all set in Levittown but turned it down when they learned about the discrimination on display. Academics discuss the home values black residents missed out on when they couldn’t buy into up-and-coming Levittown.

And there’s a conversation from a meeting of the Levittown Historical Society, in the lower part of a school off Abbey Lane marked by suburban memorabilia and old photos. It was one of various times residents talked to me candidly about the beauties of life in Levittown, peach trees and open yards, everything Levittown represented and offered for families looking to start out on their own, and what it has meant over the years even as some have been excluded. Because the debates over Levittown, more than 70 years later, are still ongoing.

And Newsday, then and now, has been a part of it.


Hosted by Mark Chiusano, a member of the Newsday editorial board. Produced by Amanda Fiscina.

Levittown

Credit: Joe Dombroski/Newsday

Editorial

Newsday editorial 1949

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Editorial

Newsday editorial 1953

Editorial

Newsday editorial 1949

Keeler

Bob Keeler

Editorial

Newsday editorial 1961

Editorial

New York Amsterdam News

Alicia Patterson

Alicia Patterson

Editorial

Newsday editorial 1947

Burton

Hal Burton

LI Divided

Long Island Divided Newsday series

NY Times Ad

New York Times Ad

Letter

Newsday letter to the editor 1948