WPKN Local Daily News Podcast · John Iannuzzi, WPKN

January 19, 2026

January 19, 2026·22 min

WPKN News opens with John Iannuzzi. He sets the morning in MLK Day 2026 terms, then shifts into local observances, civic reminders, and the practical work of getting listeners oriented for the day. West Hartford comes first. The town's annual celebration at Town Hall is highlighted, with Dr. Fiona Vernal set to give the keynote and connect the holiday to housing, migration, and African American, Puerto Rican, and West Indian migration in the greater Hartford region. New Haven follows. Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church's 56th annual MLK Love March is noted as a recent event that arrived before the winter weather, giving the holiday its own local tradition and memory. Trumbull is next. Officials there close town facilities for the day in honor of the MLK holiday. Bridgeport then takes over. City and police officials present the FLOC drone program as a public-safety tool for calls for service, investigations, missing-person cases, and fires, stressing that the technology is meant to give responders a clearer view of what is happening. The pitch stays firmly administrative. Chief Porter credits the mayor, Senator Gaston, and council leaders for helping move the program forward, and he ties the effort to earlier community recommendations for more advanced police technology. The report keeps moving. Rather than settle into one long interview, the broadcast strings together short local updates and official remarks, which gives it the feel of a community newscast built from briefs, tape, and station resets. Solar gets a turn. Melinda Tooze is introduced for a report on efforts to increase residential solar installations, adding a clean-energy note to the civic mix. New York politics also stays in view. The hour teases a look at whether lawmakers fully understand the bills that they are voting on, which broadens the lens beyond Connecticut without leaving the news format. The broadcast closes on service. Its final promise is simple: return with more inspiring and informative neighbors and newsmakers from the region, and keep the local agenda moving.

As heard by us

A grounded MLK Day roundup centered on Bridgeport's drone briefing and other practical Connecticut updates.

WPKN's MLK Day news hour keeps its feet on the ground. It moves from holiday observances to local service news without much flourish, and the Bridgeport drone program briefing gives the hour its clearest center of gravity by spelling out the technology in practical terms.

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Why you'd press play

A local Connecticut roundup for MLK Day 2026, Bridgeport's FLOC drone rollout, and a few community notes from around the state.

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