WBFO Brief

Book banning discussions have hit WNY school boards, and are on the rise nationwide. WBFO's Tom Dinki takes a look. From Albany, Karen DeWitt looks at the advertisements and tone of the NYS campaign for Governor. Also state legislators have spent thousands fighting re-redistricting in the state. Also, the latest Siena poll shows slippage for incumbent Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James, and clergy have filed suit to try and lift the ban on carrying firearms in church.

As screens take over more and more of our lives, a South Buffalo bookstore is running a program to have kids read more hands-on books. WBFO's Mike Desmond goes inside "Dog Ear Books" . Also more about crime on the campaign trail in Albany, a look at former Pres. Donald Trump's endorsement of republican Lee Zeldin for NYS Governor, and Pres. Biden's "infrastructure czar" visits Buffalo today.

If it's Friday, It's Theater Talk- today with Anthony and Peter reminiscing about the life and career of Angela Lansbury. And Kaleida Health is warning of some financial difficulties, even though it's nurses and other staffers have ratified their latest contract.

A discussion of Food Equity issues nationwide could end up funding some efforts on Buffalo's East side, rather than just trying to bring in another supermarket. And with holiday travel coming up, there are a lot of special challenges that come to the region's disabled or chronically ill. WBFO's Emyle Watkins reports. Meanwhile, in the Governor's race, abortion and crime remain top issues on the campaign trail. And singer Billy Bragg performs an impromptu sidewalk concert in support of striking workers outside the Elmwood Ave. Starbucks store.

Crime rates across New York are suddenly a part of the camaign for Governor, after a driv-by shooting outside the Long Island home of Republican candidate Lee Zeldin. Also Sen. Schumer swings by Buffalo to warn of "Rainbow Fentanyl" and fresh funding for Southern tier libraries.

Today Thomas O'Neil-White reports on efforts to give students some space where they feel reflected, as Black and Brown students, in the schools. Karen DeWitt reports on the drive by shooting at the home of Lee Zeldin, the Republican running for Governor. Also hear about money to support food growers in the East side, and get the latest on a meeting to start and plan what should be a part of the preserved history marking the event.

If it's Friday, it's Theater Talk, with Anthony and Peter looking at Shawfest, Stratford and more. Also today, a look at the Kaleida workers agreement that avoided a strike, and in-depth reporting on the rising costs of durable medical equipment such as wheelchairs, crutches and braces.

Praise for the lifting of Canadian border requirements that made it harder for US citizens to cross into Canada without complicated COVID related rules. We have news of the push to allow assisted deaths in NYS, and Buffalo Schools Supt. Tonja Williams is speaking out on the latest student violence at Mc Kinley HS saying the students are "not out of control".

Albany correspondent Karen DeWitt looks at the state purchase of COVID tests and whether the state may have used an unnecessary middle man that donated to Gov. Kathy Hochul's campaign. Also news of a federal sting that led to the arrest of a minister who performed and facilitated allegedly fraudulent marriages for the sake of landing green cards for spouses facing deportation.

The Buffalo Police Athletic League is launching a new program to get youth and police talking together more, in sessions designed to showcase the different perspectives they both have. Also, news of money to revitalize buildings in Buffalo, and Roswell Park Cancer Inst. says the region's cancer rate is on the decline, despite still having one of the highest death rates in the state.