Nick Hune-Brown
@nickhunebrown.bsky.social
Toronto magazine writer and executive editor @thelocal.to. Here for smart long-form articles and dumb basketball posts. Email nick@thelocal.to
A very thoughtful piece by @nickhunebrown.bsky.social about Puig’s signing and how predictable the fallout (and lack of impact on the Leafs) would be and is. I wish he’d spoke to me! I have lots more to add thelocal.to/yasiel-puig-...
Yasiel Puig at Christie Pits | The Local
A free Maple Leafs baseball game at my local playground has long been the best community event in the city. Then the team signed a former Major League Baseball star awaiting sentencing.
thelocal.to
A Canadian lawmaker is facing backlash online after delivering a speech in New Brunswick's Legislative Assembly that seemingly included an AI prompt. "I'm Ron Burgundy?" some commenters reacted on Reddit.
I don’t know how to convince anyone of this, but the hundreds or thousands of words many publications run below the headline aren’t decorative. Often they contain nuance that doesn’t fit into ten words.
Old dog (me) tries new trick (sports writing!!!😱) Big love to @royinori.bsky.social for all the thought and care she put into editing this story. thelocal.to/wheelchair-r...
Wheelchair Athlete Rio Kanda Kovac Wants to Win | The Local
His thirst for victory has gotten Team Canada's youngest player this far in wheelchair rugby. But in this fast-paced, aggressive, yet remarkably inclusive sport, getting ahead also means learning to p...
thelocal.to
We’re 100 days away from the next municipal election. Behind the scenes, things have already kicked into high gear at The Local. thelocal.to/gearing-up-f...
Gearing Up for October’s Municipal Elections | The Local
We are building a civic newsroom unlike any other, with an expanded scope to serve residents of not just Toronto, but also Mississauga and Brampton.
thelocal.to
Sharing this one again. I wanted to write a how-can-you-not-be-romantic-about-baseball-style story about my beloved Maple Leafs, the professional-ish team that plays in the same playground as my 9-year-old. Then they signed former all-star/convicted criminal Yasiel Puig. thelocal.to/yasiel-puig-...
Yasiel Puig at Christie Pits | The Local
A free Maple Leafs baseball game at my local playground has long been the best community event in the city. Then the team signed a former Major League Baseball star awaiting sentencing.
thelocal.to
A great piece in the Local that was supposed to be about the joys of *very* minor league baseball, until an ex-MLBer with serious allegations against him joined the team. Yasiel Puig at Christie Pits - thelocal.to/yasiel-puig-...
Yasiel Puig at Christie Pits | The Local
A free Maple Leafs baseball game at my local playground has long been the best community event in the city. Then the team signed a former Major League Baseball star awaiting sentencing.
thelocal.to
A very lovely piece about topics both complicated (What is Puig doing, anyway?) and uncomplicated (baseball is good, especially when it's played for the people).
Nick Hune-Brown@nickhunebrown.bsky.social · last mo.I wrote about my beloved baseball Maple Leafs signing Yasiel Puig. thelocal.to/yasiel-puig-...
"Why was the team they loved signing a guy with sexual assault allegations who could be in jail in just weeks?" I also love to watch the Maple Leafs play at Christie Pits. @nickhunebrown.bsky.social has summed up the fans' dilemma beautifully
Nick Hune-Brown@nickhunebrown.bsky.social · last mo.I wrote about my beloved baseball Maple Leafs signing Yasiel Puig. thelocal.to/yasiel-puig-...
I wrote about my beloved baseball Maple Leafs signing Yasiel Puig. thelocal.to/yasiel-puig-...
Yasiel Puig at Christie Pits | The Local
A free Maple Leafs baseball game at my local playground has long been the best community event in the city. Then the team signed a former Major League Baseball star awaiting sentencing.
thelocal.to
Trans-inclusive health care is already hard to find in Ontario. Now, growing anti-trans rhetoric is making physicians more hesitant to get trained in gender-affirming care, experts tell @ziyajones.bsky.social. A new feature published in partnership with @script.health: thelocal.to/trans-health...
The New Chill Facing Trans Health Care Providers | The Local
As anti-trans rhetoric intensifies at home and abroad, the organizations providing training in trans-inclusive healthcare say they’re seeing less uptake from physicians across Ontario.
thelocal.to
“As public schools struggle to deliver the physical education kids need,” writes @rachelgiese.bsky.social, “a massive industry around competitive, specialized youth sports has taken root.” thelocal.to/youth-sports...
Kids Aren’t Active Enough. Youth Sports Are Part of the Problem. | The Local
As competitive, specialized athletics dominate gyms and community fields, the children who need physical activity most are the ones being left out.
thelocal.to
Love to have the great Rachel Giese in @thelocal.to, writing about the big shift in how kids play: “As public schools struggle to deliver the physical education kids need, a massive industry around competitive, specialized youth sports has taken root.” thelocal.to/youth-sports...
Kids Aren’t Active Enough. Youth Sports Are Part of the Problem. | The Local
As competitive, specialized athletics dominate gyms and community fields, the children who need physical activity most are the ones being left out.
thelocal.to
Since last June, @wencyleung.bsky.social has been covering the Ford government's school board takeover for @thelocal.to. This is the clearest analysis I've read on the state of Toronto schools one year later. thelocal.to/one-year-tds...
The State of Toronto Schools A Year After the Ford Takeover | The Local
The province promised to fix public education. A year after unprecedented takeovers, it’s delivered less transparency, cuts to programs, and deeper uncertainty for the students who need the most suppo...
thelocal.to
Local soccer officials expect the World Cup to bring a surge of interest in the sport. But that growth can’t happen without training, and retaining, a new generation of refs—the perpetually ignored, often abused officials who make the games work. thelocal.to/soccer-refer...
The Grand Ambitions and Grubby Indignities of the Aspiring Soccer Referee | The Local
Making it pro as a referee in Canada is in many ways harder than making it pro as a player. That doesn’t stop this corps of exacting, self-serious officials from trying.
thelocal.to
My latest. This story is based on FOI documents released before the Ford government changed the law. Under the new rules, the province will now be able to keep records like this secret.
Toronto Star@thestar.com · 2mo agoStar Investigation: As a Ford government staffer, he helped get through permits for a controversial gold mine. Now he works for the company as a lobbyist. New from @emmamci.bsky.social:
I'll be watching the refs all tournament
Nick Hune-Brown@nickhunebrown.bsky.social · 2mo agoGood morning, happy World Cup, please read this brilliant Sam Rosati Martin story about ambitious soccer refs striving to make it pro—self-serious, much-abused true believers without whom the game couldn't exist. #longreads #sundaylongread thelocal.to/soccer-refer...
Good morning, happy World Cup, please read this brilliant Sam Rosati Martin story about ambitious soccer refs striving to make it pro—self-serious, much-abused true believers without whom the game couldn't exist. #longreads #sundaylongread thelocal.to/soccer-refer...
The Grand Ambitions and Grubby Indignities of the Aspiring Soccer Referee | The Local
Making it pro as a referee in Canada is in many ways harder than making it pro as a player. That doesn’t stop this corps of exacting, self-serious officials from trying.
thelocal.to
Was cheering for the Spurs, but man, I love OG. The crowd at MSG chanting his name, what a moment.
this is the ideal newspaper columnist. you may not like it but this is what peak performance looks like
Wait, how much are we spending on reusable cups? @michaeldeforge.bsky.social and @wencyleung.bsky.social make sense of the costs and payoffs of hosting the World Cup in seven illustrations. thelocal.to/fifa-world-c...
An Illustrated Guide to the FIFA World Cup in Toronto | The Local
How many private jets could this pay for? Seven illustrations to make sense of the costs and payoffs of hosting the World Cup.
thelocal.to
An ancient burial site discovered during construction at Toronto’s Withrow Avenue in 2024 is still awaiting investigation. But as journalist Gabrielle McMann finds through her reporting, it’s tangible evidence of Toronto’s long and complex pre-colonial past. thelocal.to/toronto-arch...
An Ancient Past Unearthed by Urban Construction | The Local
In 2024, an Indigenous burial site was found during construction on Withrow Avenue, near Riverdale Park East. Where others see a “hole” in the ground awaiting investigation, journalist Gabrielle McMan...
thelocal.to
📦 The 49th National Magazine Awards — Editorial Package: Gold: "Wild Wild City," @thelocal.to Silver: Brave New Year," @torontolifemag.bsky.social #NMA26
Thrilled to win a National Magazine Award for my feature on horse racing! thelocal.to/breakdown-at...
National Media Awards Foundation@canadamediaawards.bsky.social · 2mo ago📝 The 49th National Magazine Awards — Long-Form Feature Writing: 6000+: Gold: "Breakdown at the Racetrack," @thelocal.to Silver: "Edward the Conqueror," @torontolifemag.bsky.social #NMA26
Bowled over by this piece by @emmapaling.bsky.social, who's been reporting from the Moss Park safe consumption site for 18 months and was there the day the closure was announced. Her story about the last days of a life-saving hub is the best thing I've read in a while. thelocal.to/moss-park-sa...
The Long Last Days of Toronto’s First Safe Consumption Site | The Local
Nick says he’ll go back to Manitoulin. Texas can’t even think about the closure. Inside Moss Park in the final days of a nine-year era of safe consumption.
thelocal.to
When Alex Grieco and Donna Bardy complained about the care his mother was receiving at her long-term care home, the home restricted them from seeing her—first for days, then for months, with little explanation. Read the latest from our “Inspecting Long-Term Care” issue. thelocal.to/ontario-long...
He Complained About His Mother’s Care. The Home Restricted Him From Seeing Her | The Local
Five years after Queen’s Park unanimously voted to end the practice, families say they’re still being kept from their loved ones as punishment for complaining about care—with no clear legal recourse.
thelocal.to
Disturbing investigation and fantastic feature writing from @royinori.bsky.social. thelocal.to/ontario-long...
He Complained About His Mother’s Care. The Home Restricted Him From Seeing Her | The Local
Five years after Queen’s Park unanimously voted to end the practice, families say they’re still being kept from their loved ones as punishment for complaining about care—with no clear legal recourse.
thelocal.to
