Wbal News Now With Bryan Nehman

The US Conference of Catholic Bishops is meeting in Baltimore this week. One of the big topics is how to handle sexual abuse allegations. Last month the Pope said all accusations should be reported and dealt with through the church. The group, SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) says it should go directly to the police. I talked with founding member Peter Isley who has given up on the church to do “the right thing” and even said the recent story in the Washington Post about the Bishop in West Virginia is evidence of a cover-up. It gets real at the end of the interview….

Forget a new bridge. There are conservations pushing for high-speed ferries, buses and even trains as alternatives to a new Chesapeake Bay Bridge. I talked with Jay Falstad from the Queen Anne’s Conservation Association on why he says locals in Kent Island feel like they’re being held hostage during the summer and how these “other” ideas should be considered.

Got a chance to talk with Michelle Boorstein of the Washington Post who broke the story about former West Virginia Bishop Michael Bransfield. She answers some big questions regarding the “gifts” Bransfield doled out and how apparently, it’s common practices among priests. Also, did anyone in WV know that the diocese who oil rich land in Texas and where did that $15M a year go? There’s a follow-up coming…

It’s a bold idea, but massively controversial. Talked with Spencer Levy this morning who’s an economic advisor to a real estate investment group. He literally travels the world looking at cities. He says places like Indianapolis, Nashville, St. Louis and Louisville are among the hottest for investment. These are similar sized cities to Baltimore and some of them have made drastic changes that include merging the city with the neighboring county. He says there will be pain but the best and most cost-effective way to “save” Baltimore is to incorporate into Baltimore COUNTY. Take a listen…

Specialization is happening at an alarming rate in youth sports. Kids are choosing their one sport at a very young age and playing it year-round. The quest to get a college scholarship and onslaught of travel teams have drastically altered the traditional norms. I spoke with science writer David Epstein who says the data proves that the more sports you play, the better you are at your “chosen” sport. He says there are more Roger Federer's (multi-sport athlete growing up) in the professional ranks than Tiger Woods (who seemed to be born with a golf club in his hand). His new book is called Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World.

President Trump’s trip to London hasn’t been all protests and tweets. I talked with historian Dr. Dominic Green who says the two countries have some parallels when it comes to populism. Don’t forget, Brexit came before Trump. Also, he crushes Theresa May, calling her not a lame duck, but a dead duck…

Should sexting be charged as child pornography? A 16-year-old Maryland girl who sent a, let’s just say a naked video of herself to friends is being charged with child pornography. Can/should a teen be charged criminally if they are the subject and SENDER of a naked picture? Maryland’s highest court will decide. I talked about it with attorney Bradley Shear who thinks it’s overkill to charge kids with child pornography for sexting.

It’s not often that C4 and I are on complete opposite sides of an argument, but we disagree about who’s responsible or at fault for the Ransomware attack. The Sun reports this morning that the city’s IT department issued a detailed warning that the computer system was out of date and highly vulnerable. I put the burden squarely on the city, but C4 says the NSA/federal government is responsible as well. It got a tad heated… Who ya got in this one??

Several Navy pilots reported seeing UFO’s flying over the East coast between 2014-2015. One pilot is on the record, and another 4 confirmed to the New York Times that they saw them regularly while flying and even have video. No one says what they saw were aliens, but they don’t have a clue of what they were. I talked with Ralph Blumenthal who broke the story. It’s a fascinating interview—not sure why they weren’t given permission to shoot ‘em down?

We learned over the weekend a leaked NSA cyber tool called "Eternal Blue" was used in the cyber attack on Baltimore City government computer systems. The New York Times reports the cyberweapon was made public in a security breach in 2017. A group called the “Shadow Breakers” put the information online. Some say it was a bigger leak than all that was outed by Edward Snowden. Now, the city is looking for federal dollars to help in the cleanup of this mess, seeking federal disaster aid. So, should the federal government help pay for a “weapon” it created, EVEN THOUGH Microsoft had issued patches to prevent it from working??? This morning, I talked with Scott Shane, the reporter from the New York Times who broke the story.

Your taxes are going up in Baltimore county! Big jump in the income tax (13%), a brand new $1.60 tax per month, per cell phone, and an impact fee on developers. The cell phone tax was lowered from the proposed $3.50 per phone. I talked with County Councilman Julian Jones (D-Dist 4) on the new taxes and impact on residents…

Got the chance to talk to police commissioner Michael Harrison last night for a special Project CommUNITY show. He seems like the real deal. I found him to be candid, committed to Baltimore and well aware of how difficult of a job he has ahead of him.

My conversation with Tom Anderson, Director of the National Legal & Policy Center’s Government Integrity Project. He’s asking the IRS to investigate Maya Rockeymoore Cummings. Is there another big political scandal about to hit Baltimore? He thinks so. Take a listen to why.

Mayor Jack Young is rethinking his hard line stance on NOT paying the ransomware money. I talked with Dr. Richard Forno, Assistant Director of the UMBC Center for Cybersecurity about the massive problems facing Baltimore. He says these types of attacks happen much more than is publicly known, but he doesn’t recommend anyone pay.

Here it is: The 2019 Fakeness. My annual overview of Baltimore and Maryland news set to a horse race. Who will win the race? Disclaimer: This is satire and parody. The views expressed are for fun as we look back at this year's news. 

The ransomware attack that crippled the Baltimore City government's computer systems is taking a huge toll on the city. Residents can't pay their bills online; families can't purchase homes, projects have ground to a halt and so much more. A Baltimore City Councilman stated that they expect the system to be repaired between three weeks to three months from now. Despite the FBI not supporting paying the criminals, should the city just pay the ransom...?

Attention Baltimore County residents, your cell phone bill may be going up. Councilman Julian Jones (D-Dist 4) joined me to discuss the proposal from County Executive Johnny Olszewski and why he’s against it. It would charge each phone line $3.50 and that includes every electronic device that has a phone number assigned to it—meaning some tablets and home security systems. So, a family with 4 separate phone numbers and an alarm system would wind up paying $17.50 in taxes per MONTH. Or, $210 for the year.

Despite the problem with crime, The Wall Street Journal has named Baltimore as one of three top cities for new college grads. Really? I was surprised, but it does make some sense. Hear why we made the list and the criticism the writer received for including Baltimore. WSJ reporter Vanessa Fuhrmans with me this morning…

Gonzales Research asked voters who would win the votes of Maryland Republicans in a theoretical primary. Trump or Hogan? Listen to what would happen if Maryland residents had to choose. Marylanders widely approve of Gov. Hogan, but can he take on President Trump...?

Reverend Donte Hickman, pastor of Southern Baptist Church in Baltimore City, speaks to me about how the recent violence talk of corruption is playing out in the local community of Baltimore.