Humans slaughtered grizzlies to extinction from California by 1924. An effort to bring them back is afoot in Sacramento; Mariel Garza explains why she's softened her stance on this. www.golden-state.org/dont-fear-th...

Maybe, just maybe, population decline is a good thing? www.golden-state.org/bring-on-the...

De-aging actors. A completely machine-generated "star." An arthouse studio partnering with Google DeepMind. These have stoked fears that removing human artistry from productions will alter the industry in catastrophic ways. But are those fears overblown? www.golden-state.org/how-one-gen-...

How one Gen Z journalist learned to stop freaking out over AI in Hollywood

She had doubts about the use of AI in filmmaking, but talking to experts and doing some research softened her views.

golden-state.org

Attorney General Rob Bonta's rewrite of the title for Proposition 39, the voter ID initiative, shows where he stands on this issue. It's a problem. MORE: www.golden-state.org/rob-bonta-op...

The Culver City In-N-Out drama is back in the news, with recent coverage focusing on the "wider" discussion on drive-thrus in dense urban areas. ⬇️ A reminder that we had that discussion with @bubbathefish.bsky.social a few weeks ago. ⬇️ www.golden-state.org/who-in-their...

There goes that minimum wage hike again. Author John Boal satirizes how L.A.'s fine-dining restaurants are coping. www.golden-state.org/would-you-li...

MacArthur Park is safer and cleaner than it was a year ago. It even hosted a festival and World Cup watch party that saw the portion of Wilshire Boulevard splitting the park in half closed to vehicle traffic. Still, the place's future is tenuous. www.golden-state.org/safer-cleane...

Deep cuts, capricious management – and now a kidnapping? The federal employees stewarding some of the most majestic public lands deserve a lot better. www.golden-state.org/in-praise-of...

The franchise that backed Jackie Robinson and his integration of baseball and gave us Fernandomania is "doubling down on the huge mistake it made with last year’s visit to the White House," writes Oscar Garza www.golden-state.org/a-sorry-doub...

Who in their right mind says no to In-N-Out? Culver City, for one. Vice Mayor Bubba Fish explains how residents’ concerns over pollution and traffic led the city to consider banning drive-thrus altogether. www.golden-state.org/who-in-their...

In 2020, the UC regents ignored the recommendation of faculty and dumped the SAT. But with grade inflation, tests -- not high GPAs -- have become the better indicator of success in college, writes Karin Klein. Link: www.golden-state.org/ucs-test-fre...

Our piece on e-bikes was co-published by the nonprofit news organization CalMatters. Thank you, @calmatters.org!

Opinion | Making e-bikes safer in California is smart. Smothering this new technology is not

A flurry of bills this year threatened to stall the climate-friendly e-bike revolution. Thankfully, lawmakers are taking a saner path.

calmatters.org

Those e-bikes you find so dangerous might not actually be, well, e-bikes. A bill in the California Legislature would make the distinction between electric bicycles and much, much faster electric motorcycles.

Making e-bikes safer is smart. Smothering new technology is not

After a flurry of panic bills, the Legislature is contemplating a saner path. First stop is SB 1167, which makes clear that electric motorcycles are not e-bikes.

golden-state.org

One of the 14 measures on California's November ballot is an easy call, writes Mariel Garza. She says Prop. 5 would fix the glaring problem with the state's recall law.

A fix for California’s undemocratic recall loophole

Current rules allow unpopular elected officials to be replaced by someone with even less public support. Proposition 5 is the remedy.

golden-state.org

It's summer, and Yosemite beckons. Take it from a lifelong Californian: Steer clear.

Skip Yosemite's crowds. Visit these California gems instead

The crown jewel of California's national parks is buckling under overtourism. Luckily, natural beauty abounds in the Golden State, even at places that lack huge summer crowds.

golden-state.org

Between errant emergency messages and Amber Alerts that may or may not work, we're being trained to ignore phone notifications that could contain life-or-death information.

Are Amber Alerts actually helpful?

Those loud, buzzing notifications to our phones are the way we get emergency information nowadays. These regular annoyances may be training us to ignore them.

golden-state.org

Elmira Muradkhanyan, a student journalist and Golden State's summer intern, visited World Cup watch parties around L.A. and saw something bigger than sports: "These are moments of exuberance, fraternity and cultural pride that transcend soccer – and it’s something we badly need now."

What I saw at World Cup watch parties in L.A. gives me hope

People are using the matches to get back to old-fashioned, human-to-human camaraderie. We need that to persist after the final match.

golden-state.org

When city councils try to ban all fireworks -- the "safe and sane" variety in addition to the explosive kind outlawed statewide -- a curious thing happens that can short-circuit discussions on air quality, safety and noise.

The reason it's so hard to ban all fireworks

Local service groups rely on fundraisers from the sale of safe-and-sane fireworks in the 33 cities in L.A. County that allow them.

golden-state.org

Oscar Garza, a third-generation Mexican American (both parents born in the U.S.), makes sense of all the support in L.A. for El Tri, even among fans with as distant a connection to Mexico as his.

Why all the local support for Team Mexico in the World Cup?

Even third-generation Mexican Americans like me have a soft spot for El Tri. But there's a difference between rooting for a country and rooting for a country's soccer team.

golden-state.org

Condo construction has plummeted since 2003, when a law sold as protecting both builders and buyers went into effect. Former Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs says a fix from the state Legislature could finally be on the way.

This law is killing California condo building. Here's how to fix it

Developers have stopped building starter homes in California over fears of lawsuits for fixable construction defects. The Legislature has the solution before it.

golden-state.org

Among L.A.'s immigrant families, Alberto Carvalho won over what few prior leaders could: their trust. Here's what his sudden resignation as LAUSD superintendent means for them and the school district amid Trump administration immigration raids.

LAUSD's immigrant school children lost their champion

Former Supt. Alberto Carvalho was a fierce protector of L.A.'s immigrant students. His replacement should pay heed.

golden-state.org

Can density-skeptical Angelenos be won over by public exhibits of irresistibly beautiful, inclusive, abundant housing? That's part of a plan to address the housing crisis by winning over hearts and minds.

A denser L.A. doesn't have to be an ugly L.A.

How one group is betting that a plan for abundant and affordable housing that is also beautiful will have Angelenos clamoring to say 'yes please.'

golden-state.org

In our newsletter for paid subscribers, @paulthornton.bsky.social says he was wrong to call for boycotting the World Cup. The sporting mega-event is serving as a propaganda stage -- not for our autocratic leader, but American decency and culture.

I was wrong about boycotting the World Cup

Far from a propaganda tool for an autocratic leader, the sporting event showcases Americans' decency on a global stage.

golden-state.org

A month-long smoldering in Ontario. Burned medical supplies poisoning the air in Tracy. A fire in Boyle Heights pumping God knows what into Angelenos' lungs. And that's just since April. What's going on with California's megawarehouses?

"Forgive my profanity, but that is complete bullshit." - Mariel Garza's reaction to the excuse for keeping L.A. City Council expansion off the November ballot www.golden-state.org/is-los-angel...

Is Los Angeles trying to bait election deniers?

Noncitizen voting is a bad idea. Council expansion is a great one. Guess which the City Council decided to put on the November ballot?

golden-state.org

Measure ER is squeaking by, but it doesn't tell the whole story. Across L.A. County on Election Day, sales tax increases in eight cities to fund local services had a great Election Day. Read more in our newsletter for paid subscribers.

Sales tax hikes had a great Election Day in L.A. County

Measure ER is passing in a squeaker, but sales tax increases are running the table in these eight L.A. County cities.

golden-state.org

After ICE started swarming a year ago, life went on in L.A. -- in fear for immigrants, but also with some versions of the joy and celebration from before the raids. We're privileged to publish these podcasts and essays in partnership with students, professors and journalists at USC Annenberg.

A year of ICE: How L.A.'s immigrant communities carried on in a world shaped by fear

In podcast episodes and essays, journalism students at USC follow immigrants and their families in Southern California as they orient even the most mundane details of their lives to a new reality.

golden-state.org

L.A. is worse than politically divided, says @jonregardie.bsky.social, and the June 2 election results prove it.

What happened to L.A.? Election results show a deeply fractured city

It wasn't long ago that the city was united by transformative leaders. Now disagreement over how City Hall should be run and what it should prioritize is increasingly leading to deep-seated distrust.

golden-state.org

Mariel Garza sat down with Republican strategist and "Latino Century" author Mike Madrid to discuss the California vote count and preview Steve Hilton vs. Xavier Becerra.

Are California elections rigged?

A recording from Mike Madrid's live video

greattransformation.substack.com

A USC sociologist who researches guard violence against incarcerated people isn't at all surprised that the "gladiator fighting" prosecutions out of L.A. County's Los Padrinos juvenile hall are failing. www.golden-state.org/gladiator-fi...

The L.A. juvenile hall 'gladiator fights' are part of a bigger, violent guard culture

And occasionally indicting 'bad apple' officers won’t fix the problem, as the cases now falling apart at the Los Padrinos juvenile hall show.

golden-state.org