Pittsburg, PA

Review | ‘Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!’ in Pittsburgh and a love letter to NPR – The Pitt News

Published

2 years ago

April 15, 2024

Review | ‘Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!’ in Pittsburgh and a love letter to NPR – The Pitt News

From a young age, I’ve found solace in the Pavlovian pleasure of the brassy “All Things Considered” chime. While other kids were begging their parents to turn the dial to Top 40 pop radio, I preferred to hear two old brothers banter about auto maintenance on “Car Talk.” NPR has been an omnipresent voice in my ear, whispering tidbits of worldly happenings, accompanying me on my walks, drives, rows and rides. The centerpiece of NPR’s catalog is the witty weekly news quiz show “Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!”

Last week, I was listening to the sweet sounds of “Wait Wait” when host Peter Sagal, seemingly jumping out of my phone and speaking directly to me, said the cast would venture from their home base in Chicago to record a show at the Benedum Center in downtown Pittsburgh. I studied up on all the headlines until I felt like a news know-it-all walking down Penn Avenue towards the theater.

As I settled into my seat on Thursday night, I realized I had no idea what the cast looked like. They were always just little voices that live in my headphones and gab about Boeing and fiber supplements during my bus rides to Aldi. I don’t know how I expected Sagal to look — I could’ve imagined him as some mousey bespectacled variant on the dad from “Caillou,” but instead he more closely resembled Michael Stipe from R.E.M. with a liberal arts degree.

Hearing Bill Curtis speak sounded like God himself had taken an earthly vacation to Pittsburgh and stopped by the Benedum Center to host a quiz show. I can only compare the sensation of hearing Peter Sagal’s voice come out of Peter Sagal’s body to the uncanny feeling of seeing Tom Kenny do his SpongeBob voice in real life. Likewise, hearing Sagal drop an f-bomb in his opening monologue felt like hearing that SpongeBob voice narrate a reproductive anatomy chart.

The audience was what you might call an “NPR crowd.” These folks love a good charcuterie board and live for Shakespeare in the Park. They sip their coffee over the New York Times crossword on a Sunday morning after posting their Wordle on Facebook. Earlier that day, each one of them had told someone about an article they “read,” although in reality, they just saw the headline on their phone. These were my people.

Before the recording began, Sagal addressed the audience to mark the show’s return to Pittsburgh and lament the change from Heinz Field to Ac — Acri — sorry, I’m so bitter that it pains me to even type the new name. I resent that our sports writers have to call it that A-word, like how news publications are gradually warming us up to calling Twitter “X.”

Contestant Maeve Higgins said Pittsburgh reminded her of home in Ireland because everyone was pale and it was raining. And boy, did it rain — at one point in the show, a jarring flash flood warning alarm erupted from every iPhone in the audience. I figured that if the 71B washed away into the Monongahela on the ride back to Oakland, at least I heard the voice of Bill Curtis in person before I drowned.

Only once the game began, with Sagal and Curtis standing at name-tagged podiums sitting a disco ball away from the three headphone-clad contestants, did I breathe in the absurdity of this show’s premise. A troupe of nerds and news junkies yap about Ozempic and cicadas while some consultant from Connecticut sits on the phone and tries to get a word in edgewise. I love it. I could’ve been born a 12th-century feudal peasant shoveling pigswill until I died of the bubonic plague, but instead I’m lucky enough to live in the same time and place as “Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!”

The special guest for the evening was legendary Steelers coach Bill Cowher. A Crafton native, Cowher riled up the niche of NPR Yinzers in the theater with stories about being trapped on the Gateway Clipper cruise and winning the Super Bowl. When Sagal confronted him on Heinz Field’s transition to Ac — nope, still can’t do it — he said in his mind, it was still Three Rivers Stadium.

As contestants pored over the topics and trends of the week, I came to appreciate how much the producers polish each episode before it hits the air. There are so many line rereads, gaffes, awkward pauses and off-color quips that escape the final product. Contestant Mo Rocca even got up to use the bathroom mid-show, sneaking offstage with a Grinch-like gait before reestablishing his presence with a silent ballet routine. These weren’t just disembodied voices emanating from a podcast app — they’re real people who went to the Pittsburgh Banjo Club from their hotel last night and can hear your phone ringing in the mezzanine.

Perhaps the most potent auditory set piece of the show was the audience. When Sagal mispronounced “Primanti,” the crowd chastised him with an instantaneous nasal “a.” Two men presented Sagal and Curtis with hand-drawn parchment portraits. The woman sitting in front of me stood up for an impromptu audition to take Sagal’s job, handing him her heartiest “This is NPR.” I feel like I’ve left a little legacy in my laughter and applause, lost in the sea of sound splashing at the stage, immortalized over the airwaves.

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Pittsburg, PA

All Pittsburgh Steelers Picks 2026 NFL Draft | NESN

Published

11 hours ago

April 4, 2026

Press Room

All Pittsburgh Steelers Picks 2026 NFL Draft | NESN

No team in the league has more picks in the 2026 NFL Draft than the Pittsburgh Steelers. The defending AFC North Champions are scheduled to make 12 picks in this year’s draft.

Pittsburgh has a selection in all seven rounds of the draft, which kicks off on Thursday, April 23rd, and concludes on Saturday, April 25th.

Round 1: Pick 21
Round 2: Pick 53
Round 3: Pick 76
Round 3: Pick 85
Round 3: Pick 99
Round 4: Pick 121
Round 4: Pick 135
Round 5: Pick 161
Round 6: Pick 216
Round 7: Pick 224
Round 7: Pick 230
Round 7: Pick 237

New Head Coach Mike McCarthy inherited a roster with more than a fair share of holes to fill. Perhaps none more so than wide receiver.

Trading for highly productive former Indianapolis Colts draft pick Michael Pittman Jr. to play alongside D.K. Metcalf certainly helped, but third-year receiver Roman Wilson is currently slotted as the team’s wide receiver No. 3 with only 164 career yards. The Steelers can go anywhere with their first-round selection, and if one of the big three receivers falls (Carnell Tate, Jordyn Tyson, or Makai Lemon), don’t count the Steelers out.

The second most pressing need is safety, and the Steelers are in luck. There are at least three safeties with a consensus first-round grade in this year’s class. At 21, Pittsburgh is in a prime position to pick up a day-one starter if they go this route.

With 12 picks, McCarthy will hope to secure at least six starters/role players, and with three picks in the third round, they’ve got the draft capital to do just that.

More NFL: Colin Cowherd Explains Why Steelers Are ‘Slow, Outdated, Predictable’

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Ex-Steelers QB Fires Back at Adam Schefter Over Aaron Rodgers Rumor

Published

23 hours ago

April 3, 2026

Press Room

Ex-Steelers QB Fires Back at Adam Schefter Over Aaron Rodgers Rumor

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers are in the early months of the Mike McCarthy Era, and life has been good. A few roster questions remain, but there is a sense of trust building from the fanbase.

One of the most important unanswered questions is who will be the Steelers’ starting quarterback in 2026? The presumed answer remains Aaron Rodgers, but no contract has been signed, and the 2026 NFL Draft is just weeks away.

Recently, former Steelers quarterback and co-host of The Snap Count, Charlie Batch, shared his thoughts on the holdup. He believes it’s a financial dispute keeping things from moving forward, but ESPN’s Adam Schefter refuted that claim. Now, Batch continues to hold firm to his stance, reaffirming it in the most recent episode of his show.

“I will stand ten toes down on this,” he stated. “He deserves a pay raise. He’s not gona play on the number he had last year. For people to say, ‘He made a bunch of money,’ it’s not about money… This is about his services for this season.”

Jan 12, 2026; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) warms up before an AFC Wild Card Round game against the Houston Texans at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images | Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

Could Money Be an Issue?

The reality is that there is no clarity regarding the situation. The Steelers have continued to present a positive front regarding the situation. McCarthy spouts off about how often he and Rodgers communicate. General manager Omar Khan and owner Art Rooney II have both shared the sentiment.

That’s why many concluded that this waiting is just a formality, as the eccentric Rodgers takes his good ole time signing the deal. But that’s never been confirmed. Batch might be right on the money regarding the situation. And as he explained, the $13 million salary he played on last year is not commensurate with the rate quarterbacks are paid in the NFL right now.

“That number is not going to be $13 million,” Batch declared. “If you look at the rest of the league, he falls right into that $30 million range.”

Where does that leave things between the Steelers and Rodgers, then?

What Number Makes Sense for Rodgers?

If Rodgers wants to be paid like a top-25 quarterback in the NFL, that would require the Steelers to cough up some more dough than they anticipate. The recent free-agent market set a baseline of $22 million. That’s the average salary on the deal Malik Willis signed with the Miami Dolphins.

It seems that if Batch’s analysis is correct, the Steelers have to pony up at least $20 million to get Rodgers back. Despite the pushback from national media and conflicting information about the subject, Batch is standing firm in the assertion that money is a huge factor preventing the Steelers from knowing their starting QB in 2026.

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Plan ahead: Multi-day closures of Parkway East are coming up

Published

1 day ago

April 3, 2026

Press Room

Plan ahead: Multi-day closures of Parkway East are coming up

PennDOT has announced several major construction projects on the Parkway East this year, including a significant 25-day closure for the Commercial Street Bridge project.”I think the biggest thing is for all folks, plan ahead. Know where you’re starting from and where you’re going to, and to best determine the route that you should take during the closure period,” PennDOT senior construction manager John Myler said.Crews are working to finalize preparations to move a new bridge into place. “It’s not like launching a cruise ship where you just cut some cords and it falls into the water. It will be a very slow process,” Myler said. “We’ll continue to monitor the bridge as we’re moving it, and it will take many hours to move the bridge.”Transportation officials also provided updates on current projects and a look ahead at future plans. Part of those plans addresses issues with the notorious “bathtub” portion of I-376 in downtown Pittsburgh.In 2027, drivers can expect an 11-day closure to the section, which is often prone to flooding. “Right now the bathtub floods at 25 feet,” PennDOT executive Jason Zang said. “This would get us five more feet, and we think it will drastically reduce how much the ‘bathtub’ floods.” PennDOT officials assure that, much like the Commercial Street Bridge project, the inconvenience will be worth it in the end.

PITTSBURGH —

PennDOT has announced several major construction projects on the Parkway East this year, including a significant 25-day closure for the Commercial Street Bridge project.

“I think the biggest thing is for all folks, plan ahead. Know where you’re starting from and where you’re going to, and to best determine the route that you should take during the closure period,” PennDOT senior construction manager John Myler said.

Crews are working to finalize preparations to move a new bridge into place.

“It’s not like launching a cruise ship where you just cut some cords and it falls into the water. It will be a very slow process,” Myler said. “We’ll continue to monitor the bridge as we’re moving it, and it will take many hours to move the bridge.”

Transportation officials also provided updates on current projects and a look ahead at future plans.

Part of those plans addresses issues with the notorious “bathtub” portion of I-376 in downtown Pittsburgh.

In 2027, drivers can expect an 11-day closure to the section, which is often prone to flooding.

“Right now the bathtub floods at 25 feet,” PennDOT executive Jason Zang said. “This would get us five more feet, and we think it will drastically reduce how much the ‘bathtub’ floods.”

PennDOT officials assure that, much like the Commercial Street Bridge project, the inconvenience will be worth it in the end.

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