WHYY reporter Tom MacDonald is a lifelong Philadelphia-area resident who has worked in the region since the mid-1980s. Tom started in commercial radio covering the MOVE standoff with police for WFIL-AM. He was also City Hall Bureau Chief, covering government and politics for more than a decade, for WWDB-FM.
Tom has been heard on numerous stations in the region during the decade he worked for Metro Traffic, doing news, traffic, and weather.
Tom has also been heard nationally, filing reports for NPR, ABC News Radio, NBC Radio, and CBS Radio.
He has won the Associated Press award for his coverage of the protests of the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia and a Religious Communicators award for a post-9/11 documentary he did with the late Peter Jennings.
More from the Contributor
Philly behind on female City Council representation, report finds
With only seven of its 17 city council members being women, a new Pew report found Philadelphia is falling behind other major U.S. cities in terms of female representation.
21 hours ago
Mayor Parker offers preview of ‘One Philly Budget’ spending blueprint for the city
Mayor Cherelle Parker called for a cleaner, greener, safer city and included a plan to keep and grow business as part of her spending blueprint.
5 days ago
Listen 1:16Philadelphia secures $158 million for Chinatown Stitch project
"We will finally be repairing a historic wrong,” said U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle.
1 week ago
Group representing Black Muslims wants to be heard nationally
The suburban Philadelphia based group said they have formed their organization so that their voices are heard by President Joe Biden and other elected officials.
1 week ago
Listen 1:08Wednesday’s mass shooting near SEPTA stop may be connected to earlier shooting, police say
Police say a car used in Wednesday’s shooting is connected to another car theft. Investigators are checking both vehicles for physical evidence.
2 weeks ago
Listen 1:09Pa. trooper charged at Philly LGBTQ+ leader as she recorded traffic stop, lawyers say
The arrest made national headlines over the weekend and has prompted questions over the car stop and use of force.
2 weeks ago
Listen 1:12Abortion, infrastructure and ‘tax fairness’: What to expect from Biden’s State of the Union address
The White House offered WHYY News a sneak peek of Biden's third State of the Union speech.
2 weeks ago
Listen 1:11From ‘SNL’ to Philly? City considers asking youth to help fight crime via social media
The goal is to use young people to do what they do all the time: Surf the web and review social media posts to identify potential crimes before they happen.
2 weeks ago
Listen 1:07The Philadelphia DA is vowing to get to the bottom of Monday’s quintuple shooting, and a car stop Saturday that involved a member of the Mayor’s administration.
2 weeks ago
Parker is requiring top city officials to work in the office five days a week, but wants all city government and private sector employees to work in person full-time.
3 weeks ago
Search underway after handcuffed prisoner escapes police custody in Kensington
Police continue to search for a suspect who fled custody Monday after being treated for reported pain at Episcopal Hospital in Philly’s Kensington section.
3 weeks ago
Philly police adding more officers to work the weekends
The new unit will supplement patrols and give police on the beat backup over the weekend.
3 weeks ago