WHEN IS ENOUGH enough when it comes to crowded trains? For about 20 percent of those who ride the MBTA, apparently there is nothing that will stop them from trying […]
Jack Sullivan
Jack Sullivan is now retired. A veteran of the Boston newspaper scene for nearly three decades. Prior to joining CommonWealth, he was editorial page editor of The Patriot Ledger in Quincy, a part of the GateHouse Media chain. Prior to that he was news editor at another GateHouse paper, The Enterprise of Brockton, and also was city edition editor at the Ledger. Jack was an investigative and enterprise reporter and executive city editor at the Boston Herald and a reporter at The Boston Globe.
He has reported stories such as the federal investigation into the Teamsters, the workings of the Yawkey Trust and sale of the Red Sox, organized crime, the church sex abuse scandal and the September 11 terrorist attacks. He has covered the State House, state and local politics, K-16 education, courts, crime, and general assignment.
Jack received the New England Press Association award for investigative reporting for a series on unused properties owned by the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston, and shared the association's award for business for his reporting on the sale of the Boston Red Sox. As the Ledger editorial page editor, he won second place in 2007 for editorial writing from the Inland Press Association, the nation's oldest national journalism association of nearly 900 newspapers as members.
At CommonWealth, Jack and editor Bruce Mohl won first place for In-Depth Reporting from the Association of Capitol Reporters and Editors for a look at special education funding in Massachusetts. The same organization also awarded first place to a unique collaboration between WFXT-TV (FOX25) and CommonWealth for a series of stories on the Boston Redevelopment Authority and city employees getting affordable housing units, written by Jack and Bruce.
Senate puts teeth into public records reform
THE STATE SENATE unveiled its version of Public Records reform, potentially the first major overhaul since the law was enacted in 1973, placing a hard time limit on responses, requiring courts […]
Another $80 million debt for MBTA
THE CASH-STRAPPED MBTA, with a seemingly bottomless supply of bad financial news, received another jolt on Wednesday when an audit revealed the agency owes about $80 million to retired agency […]
Report: MBTA knew two years ago about Green Line ext. overruns
MBTA OFFICIALS KNEW or should have known more than two years ago that the price of the Green Line extension was running far beyond initial estimates, long before officials say […]
Galvin orders T to release Green Line ext. report
THE SECRETARY OF STATE HAS ORDERED the MBTA to release a sealed consultant’s report on the botched Green Line extension, saying the embattled agency could not withhold the document because […]
Closed doors
Photographs by Michael Manning IN NEWTON, WHERE single-family home values are creeping into the million-dollar range, few things trigger more raw emotion than proposals for affordable housing. That emotion […]
Public schools extend their reach
SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS AROUND the state, faced with rising costs and stagnant budgets, are turning outside their districts —even outside the country—to attract tuition money from foreign students and students from […]
House unveils its own opioid bill
THE HOUSE UNVEILED its version of a bill to address the opioid epidemic in the state but the measure drops two key provisions of legislation filed by Gov. Charlie Baker, […]
State courts revamp their website
THE STATE’S TRIAL COURT has upgraded its outmoded computer system to allow lawyers to electronically file case records and to allow judicial decisions to be shared automatically with other government […]
Luxe backs out
LUXE VALET, the San Francisco-based technology company that looks to solve urban parking problems, is pulling out of Boston after a mere six months of parking people’s cars. In an email […]
Rosenberg says fiancé can make Senate run
SENATE PRESIDENT STANLEY ROSENBERG said on Tuesday that his fiancé can run for the Senate if he chooses but the Amherst Democrat stopped short of saying whether or not he […]
Probation case drags on and on
NEARLY SIX YEARS after the Probation Department patronage scandal exploded into public view, almost four years after three top officials were indicted, 18 months after their convictions, and nearly one […]
T refuses to release Green Line report
STATE TRANSPORTATION OFFICIALS are refusing to release a consultant’s report on what went wrong with a contract for the Green Line extension to Somerville, saying the document “was prepared under […]
Uber CEO touts social responsibility
UBER CEO TRAVIS KALANICK is a billionaire, ranking 290th on the Forbes list of richest people with a net worth of $6 billion, but he says the success of his […]
Valet for the common man
IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD to be true: A new app offering valet parking in Boston for less than what it costs to park in most garages. A San Francisco-based technology […]
House okays panel to review public records exemptions
THE HOUSE ON Wednesday unanimously approved a watered-down Public Records reform bill but beat back an attempt to lift the exemption covering the Legislature, instead agreeing to form a commission […]
Public records bill does little to open access
THE HOUSE WAYS AND MEANS Committee is set to unveil a bill that would allow those who are thwarted in seeking public records to collect attorney fees, a stick designed […]
No nightclub for Everett casino
WYNN RESORTS, which touts itself as an all-inclusive mecca that offers entertainment choices beyond gambling, has killed the planned nightclub at its proposed Everett casino because state alcohol laws require […]
Cabbies defaulting on loans
BOSTON CABBIES GETTINGÂ hammered by the booming ride-hailing apps are beginning to show signs of being unable to stay afloat as banks have started to foreclose on delinquent loans they hold […]
Two of Big Three want to tax fantasy sports
SENATE PRESIDENT STAN ROSENBERG has joined his counterpart in the House by calling for regulations and taxes on the booming business of online fantasy sports gaming, dismissing the argument that it’s […]
Contracting system isn’t saving money
Photographs by Mark Morelli IT SOUNDED LIKE a good idea at the time. Stung by the enormous cost overruns of the Big Dig and other open-spigot public projects, officials […]
Don’t tax my yogurt
FOR MANY, the new Roche Bros. supermarket in the old Filene’s building at Boston’s Downtown Crossing is manna from heaven. There is a large full-service grocery store in the old […]
Partners head points finger at state
THE HEAD OFÂ Partners HealthCare System on Tuesday pointed the finger at state regulators, saying the tight rein they have on hospitals is as much to blame for rising health care […]
Dissecting UMass coach’s bonus-laden salary
DEREK KELLOGG, the UMass men’s basketball coach, is the highest paid public employee in Massachusetts, but you’d never know it looking at his base salary. Kellogg’s base salary is $225,000, […]
