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The state of the streaming wars May 02, 2022

Show notes

Streaming services were one of the few winners from the pandemic, especially Netflix. But the pandemic’s binge boom seems to have burst.

Today, the winners and losers in the streaming wars and how providers are handling the post-quarantine subscriber drop.

Read the transcript.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times film business reporter Ryan Faughnder

More reading:

After Netflix’s week from hell, why streaming is becoming more like ‘just TV’

Same-day streaming film releases are ‘dead,’ cinema group leader says

Layoffs at Netflix have some staffers questioning company strategy and culture

What light rail will bring to South L.A. Apr 29, 2022

Show notes

After South L.A. erupted in anger 30 years ago, government officials promised to end the community’s economic disparity once and for all, and invest. It’s a promise that many residents say remains unfulfilled. But is that finally going to change?

Today, Part Two of our L.A. riots anniversary coverage will focus on the Crenshaw Line, a light-rail system that some South L.A. leaders say will help the neighborhood improve — and others fear will bring gentrification.

Read the transcript.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times business reporter Samantha Masunaga

More reading:

Facing schedule delays, L.A. Metro seeks $120 million more for Crenshaw Line

Meet six artists making the public art you’ll soon see on Metro’s Crenshaw/LAX Line

Opinion: The Crenshaw Line is a start, but L.A.'s most transit-dependent neighborhoods need more options

The L.A. riots, 30 years later Apr 28, 2022

Show notes

April 29, 1992. A date that forever changed Los Angeles. Six days of chaos erupted after the acquittal of four police officers in the videotaped beating of Rodney King, an unarmed Black motorist. This is the first of two episodes on the 30th anniversary of the L.A. riots.

Today, Black, Latino and Asian communities reflect on the uprising. We also discuss the racial reckoning of the L.A. Times newsroom in its aftermath. Read the transcript.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times columnists Sandy Banks and Frank Shyong

More reading:

Column: What we got wrong about Black and Korean communities after the L.A. riots

Column: He was murdered during the L.A. riots. We can’t forget Latinos like him

The damage went deep

Black Twitter frets for its future Apr 27, 2022

Show notes

For more than a decade, #BlackTwitter — a community of millions that has harnessed the power of the social media platform to create real-world change — has been a cultural phenomenon. But with Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter, many Black activists fret for the future of the space they created and say they might not stick around to see what changes the platform’s new owner will make.

Today, how Twitter’s influential Black community is reacting to the controversial new leader — and where Black online social activism might thrive next. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times columnist Erika D. Smith

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Column: With Elon Musk in charge, it’s the beginning of the end for #BlackTwitter

Elon Musk reaches $44-billion deal to buy Twitter

Black Tesla employees describe a culture of racism: ‘I was at my breaking point’

Big Tobacco, Black trauma Apr 26, 2022

Show notes

Menthol-flavored cigarettes have been controversial for decades, and the Food and Drug Administration is weighing a national ban on them. But tobacco companies are not a fan of losing out on millions of dollars with that possible move. So they’ve enlisted leaders in a community that has long been the biggest consumer of menthols: Black people.

Read the show transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times medical investigations reporter Emily Baumgaertner, and Ben Stockton of the Bureau of Investigative Journalism.

More reading:

How Big Tobacco used George Floyd and Eric Garner to stoke fear among Black smokers

Addicted to menthol: Big Tobacco’s targeting of Black communities could soon end

Op-Ed: Big Tobacco helped destroy Black Americans’ health. Banning menthols could help improve it

Helping and hoping in Ukraine Apr 25, 2022

Show notes

As Russia’s war against Ukraine enters its third month, ordinary Ukrainians continue to upend their lives to protect their homeland. Today, we’ll hear the stories of three Ukrainians who came to the aid of their country in its hour of greatest need.

Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times foreign correspondent Kate Linthicum

More reading:

Full coverage of the war in Ukraine

Ukraine war heroes: A student spiriting supplies to soldiers. A DJ answering calls about the missing

Ukrainian citizens trapped as Russia attacks hospitals, schools and refuses evacuations

Shanghai’s lockdown tests limits Apr 22, 2022

Show notes

The strict lockdowns and zero-tolerance COVID policies that were once praised for keeping China largely infection-free; they’re back. And they’re now pushing people to their limits.

Today, how the recent lockdown in Shanghai is testing China’s zero tolerance strategy, and what it means for the country’s communist government. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times China correspondent Stephanie Yang

More reading:

Strain of Shanghai’s COVID lockdown tests China’s zero tolerance resolve

Human toll from Shanghai lockdown fuels public frustration

‘It’s a nightmare’: Hong Kong runs low on coffins as Omicron exacts deadly toll

Mexico's weird presidential self-recall Apr 21, 2022

Show notes

Earlier this month, Mexico had an election. But it wasn’t business as usual. The vote was a first in Mexico — a recall referendum on the country’s president. The person pushing to recall the president … was the president himself.

Today we get into the curious history of Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times foreign correspondents Leila Miller and Kate Linthicum

More reading:

Mexicans vote on whether to recall the president, an election he pushed for

López Obrador on track to retain control of Mexico’s Congress, but with reduced majority

Amid journalist killings, Mexican president tries to shame famous reporter who wrote about his son

The AriZona iced-tea 99-cent miracle Apr 20, 2022

Show notes

Since AriZona iced tea launched in 1994, a can of the stuff has cost 99 cents. It’s a business anomaly, yet one that has turned the company into a multibillion-dollar outfit. And the owner vows to keep his iced tea at that price even during the worst inflation the United States has seen in 40 years, which is eating into the company’s revenue.

Today, we get into this odd business ideology.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guest: L.A. Times business reporter Sam Dean

More reading:

As inflation soars, how is AriZona iced tea still 99 cents?

Read the episode transcript

Tijuana sí! Apr 19, 2022

Show notes

In Chapter 3 of “Border City,” a podcast from the San Diego Union Tribune and L.A. Times, Sandra Dibble continues her story about living and working as a journalist in Tijuana. It’s both sides of Tijuana that eventually make Sandra feel like she’s not just passing through anymore, but like she’s finally found her place and purpose.

From drug cartels, a kidnapping and an attempted murder of a journalist, to building real friendships, a surprise birthday party, tennis lessons, aerobics and intimate concerts in Tijuas, Sandra’s real-life experiences bring the border town’s sharp contrasts into focus — the bitter and the sweet.

Host: Sandra Dibble

More reading:

Jesus Blancornelas, 70; writer exposed actions of drug cartels

Here’s something you didn’t know about Tijuana: It’s a great weekend escape for food lovers

From the Archives: Amid all the bustle, Tijuana has classic lilts

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