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| The Man Who’s Earning $250,000 to Sing the Praises of Mayor Adams Share full article Account

The Man Who’s Earning $250,000 to

Sing the Praises of Mayor Adams
Mayor Eric Adams promoted a spokesman to become deputy
mayor on Monday, part of his strategy to go around traditional
media outlets to reach New Yorkers directly.

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Mayor Eric Adams often lines up an array of staff members behind them when he
makes a City Hall announcement. His new deputy mayor, Fabien Levy, is at the far
left. Benjamin Norman for The New York Times

By Emma G. Fitzsimmons and Dana Rubinstein

Aug. 14, 2023

The fanfare started building minutes before Mayor Eric Adams

made his arrival on Monday. Dozens of supporters, most on Mr.
Adams’s payroll, lined the City Hall rotunda staircase, behind the
lectern where the mayor was about to appear.

After a brief lull, the familiar chorus of the mayor’s designated

walkout song — “Empire State of Mind,” by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys
— filled the room, a sound that seemed to startle the state attorney
general, Letitia James, who mouthed, “Oh, God,” before laughing.

With everything in place, Mr. Adams strode in to make his

announcement. He was elevating his press secretary, Fabien Levy,
to become his administration’s seventh deputy mayor.

In doing so, Mr. Adams was underscoring the importance he places

on messaging: Mr. Levy, according to the mayor, will be the first
person in New York City to hold the title of deputy mayor for
communications.

“The antiquated method of communicating with your constituency,

of just through the daily tabloids, is just not acceptable anymore,”
Mr. Adams said on Monday. “We have to communicate directly to
our consumers.”
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Mr. Adams’s promotion of Mr. Levy is part of his all-out focus on

controlling his messaging through political stagecraft and Out of the Closet
and Into the Garden
calculated choices about whom the mayor talks to and when.

He is doing a podcast, a newsletter and a new “Hear From the

How Bad Is a
Mayor” interview show on WBLS, an R&B radio station where he Suntan, Really?
greets his interviewer, Imhotep Gary Byrd , as “Brother Gary.”

Mr. Adams has argued that traditional media outlets do not cover 36 Hours in
what he regards as his key accomplishments, including a drop in Palermo, Italy

crime and dyslexia screenings for children , though both have in

fact received attention.

“If y’all want to acknowledge it or not, I’m doing a damn good job,”
he said at a news conference last month.

Mr. Levy, 39, has worked as press secretary for Mr. Adams in his
first 19 months in office, serving as his primary spokesman and as
an attack dog in response to news coverage that the mayor
dislikes. His salary will be the same as other deputy mayors at
$251,900, up from roughly $211,000, city officials said.

Mr. Levy, seen at Mayor Adams’s right, has been his press secretary for 19
months. Dave Sanders for The New York Times

While former Mayor Bill de Blasio did weekly appearances with

well-regarded local journalists, like Errol Louis on NY1 and Brian
Lehrer on WNYC, Mr. Adams often prefers to receive questions
from friendly hosts. Mr. Adams regularly visits Caribbean Power
Jam Radio, where the host praises the mayor and told him last
month on air, “We have nothing but love and respect for you.”

One podcast interview for his “Get Stuff Done-Cast” featured

Darryl McDaniels, who is better known as DMC from Run-DMC,
and an email newsletter recently had the subject “16 FREE
activities you can’t miss this week.”

At the mayor’s news conferences, a city official often introduces

him with overflowing praise. When Mr. Adams launched the latest
effort to reduce sidewalk sheds, his deputy mayor for operations,
Meera Joshi, said he was the “one person, far more than anyone
else,” who “is driven to every day ensure all that is beautiful about
New York City is actually seen by all New Yorkers.”

The pageantry can exude an “Eric Adams Show” vibe. There is

often music. Sometimes there is dancing. There is also generally a
show of force, with the mayor’s senior staff arrayed behind him,
projecting positive affirmation and energy. At a July 31 event about
gun violence, among the many senior officials standing behind him
was the executive director of the Mayor’s Office of Food Policy.

Mr. Adams, who has often sought to highlight the diversity of his
administration , drew attention to Mr. Levy’s biography as the son
of Jewish immigrants from Iran and Iraq . Mr. Levy, who becomes
Mr. Adams’s first Jewish deputy mayor, previously served as Ms.
James’s press secretary and as a communications director for Gov.
Kathy Hochul when she was a congresswoman.

Mr. Adams praised Mr. Levy’s work ethic on Monday and referred
to his confrontational style, which has included testy exchanges
with City Hall reporters.

“The folks in the press, they all know Fabien because I’m sure he
called you and yelled at you one time or another,” the mayor said,
laughing.

Mr. Levy is not the first deputy mayor to be responsible for

communications. Under former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg,
Howard Wolfson served as deputy mayor for government affairs
and communications. Mayor David N. Dinkins had a deputy mayor
for public and community affairs .

Mr. Adams is not the first mayor to have such a large population of
deputy mayors. Edward I. Koch also had seven. But after a year
and half in office, “he was pulling what remaining hair he had out
of the back of his head,” said Bill Cunningham, a communications
director for Mr. Bloomberg. Mr. Koch ended up eliminating four of
those deputy mayor positions.

It was known as the “Thursday night massacre.”

Emma G. Fitzsimmons is the City Hall bureau chief, covering politics in New York City.
She previously covered the transit beat and breaking news. More about Emma G.
Fitzsimmons
Dana Rubinstein is a reporter on the Metro desk covering New York City politics. Before
joining The Times in 2020, she spent nine years at the publication now known as Politico
New York. More about Dana Rubinstein
A version of this article appears in print on Aug. 15, 2023 , Section A , Page 19 of the New York edition with the
headline: A Mayor Intensely Focused on the Medium of His Message . Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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Explore Our Coverage of the Adams Administration

New Deputy Mayor: Mayor Eric Adams has elevated his press secretary, Fabien
Levy, to become his administration’s seventh deputy mayor — a move that
underscores the importance Adams is increasingly placing on messaging.
Migrant Crisis: This summer, the mayor declared the city didn’t have any more
space to accommodate migrants, many of whom were stuck in line outside a main
processing center A few days later that overnight line mysteriously disappeared
. .

Adams’s Circle of Support: The Manhattan district attorney’s office is prosecuting

two criminal cases that come uncomfortably close to the mayor raising questions ,

about his relationships with the accused.

Re-election Bid: Despite falling poll numbers and critical news coverage, Adams
has continued to receive substantial support from two influential groups: real
estate leaders and the donor class from New York City and beyond.
New N.Y.P.D. Commissioner: The mayor announced that Edward Caban, who had
been serving as acting commissioner, would become the first Latino officer to lead
the N.Y.P.D. in its 177-year history .

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