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
As presidential hopeful Jeb Bush cuts ties to Constitution Center, search on for new chairman
The National Constitution Center is seeking a new, high-powered chairman, now that its former leader is running for president. ...
10 years ago
ListenPhiladelphia police to begin carrying Narcan to counteract overdoses
The city of Philadelphia plans to issue a potential life saver to police this year when officers begins carrying doses of Narcan. ...
10 years ago
ListenViolent crime down in Philadelphia in ’14
Philadelphia’s end-of-year crime statistics show the city had 248 murders — a rate virtually the same as that of 2013. ...
10 years ago
ListenA need for blood in a time of shortages
The American Red Cross is putting out a call for donors to make up for a holiday shortfall. During the holidays, blood donations d ...
10 years ago
ListenBowl at City Hall? There’s room today [video]
When business is slow at City Hall, the cavernous corridors can seem like bowling alleys. On Friday, I had an opportunity to put t ...
10 years ago
ListenHomicide rate in Camden cut in half since county cops took over
2014 was the first full year for a county police force patrolling Camden, New Jersey. Promising crime-fighting trends that began in ...
10 years ago
ListenReading cops use software to predict where crime will happen
A new concept in policing is showing some promise in Reading, Pennsylvania. It’s called PredPol, predictive poli ...
10 years ago
ListenSouth Jersey to lose a local TV newscast in the new year
A Jersey Shore TV station is losing its network status and its local newscast. As of Thursday, ...
10 years ago
ListenInvestigation under way into crash that killed S. Jersey 10-year-old
A South Jersey accident that claimed the life of a 10-year-old boy is under investigation in Franklin Township. A police off ...
10 years ago
ListenMummers Parade performs an about-face
An annual tradition in Philadelphia is turning on its head this year with an about-face for the Mummers Parade. The ...
10 years ago
ListenSerial bank robber at large in Philadelphia
A serial bank robber remains on the loose in Philadelphia. The same man appears to be responsible for six incidents in the c ...
10 years ago
ListenPhilly Council hopeful, 26, says her youth is asset
The race for Philadelphia City Council has a new entry, and, if elected, the woman running as a Democrat for an at-large seat could be th ...
10 years ago
Listen