Former Capitol Reporter Remembers His Days in Albany

ALBANY, NY (01/31/2010)(readMedia)-- Covering Washington is a lot different than covering Albany back in the day according to Jonathan Salant, national political correspondent for Bloomberg News. Salant spent a decade in Albany working for the Albany Times Union and now-defunct Syracuse Herald Journal.

"The biggest difference is access," Salant states in an exclusive interview published today on the Empire Page website. "I miss being able to go on to the floor of the legislature to talk to lawmakers, or walk down to the second floor and go into the governor's press office."

Salant covered a number of major stories while in Albany including Mario Cuomo's 1984 Democratic Convention speech and co-wrote an expose that led to the resignation of a top state official.

Like many journalists Salant is concerned about the impact financial problems have had on many newspapers. "Newsday's Supreme Court reporter, Tim Phelps, broke the Anita Hill story," Salant citing one example. "Newsday is down to one reporter in Washington. The paper no longer has a person covering the Court."

The entire interview with Jonathan Salant can be found in the Improving New York section of the Empire Page website.

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