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I've been on a partial holiday most of the past week. So there's an element of catching up in today's roundup.
SNCF, the French national railway, approached California's high speed rail project about being a partner but was rebuffed. LAT
First Lady Michelle Obama will headline an Aug. 12 fundraiser at the Beverly Hills home of Gwen Stefani. THR
Tony Castro returns to the subject of Antonio Villaraigosa. Voxxi
City Councilwoman and mayor candidate Jan Perry, says Jim Newton, "is refreshingly open, even blunt. She's affable, but she takes her politics seriously." LAT op-ed
Now that she no longer represents downtown, Perry reflects on when she did. DT News
A light profile of Eric Garcetti in The Forward says "Garcetti’s L.A. Jewish roots match Yaroslavsky’s, and then some. His maternal grandparents, Louis and Julia Roth, were Labor Zionists and founders of Louis Roth Clothes, which ran the first union shop in L.A.’s garment industry. Not far from there, Garcetti recalls, at the home of his Mexican grandparents, he enjoyed bowls of homemade menudo served on Sundays." Forward
Emanuel Pleitez, the former Villaraigosa assistant who ran for Congress in the 32nd district in 2009 — and whose presence on the ballot may have cost Gil Cedillo the election — has announced an exploratory committee to run for mayor.
Rick Orlov's Tipoff column: Cost of attending the national conventions, anti-crime cameras in the West Valley, Occupy LA at City Hall. DN
Councilman Dennis Zine called the CHP on a speeding driver on the Ventura Freeway who turned out to be Justin Bieber, reportedly trying to outrun paparazzi. "He was driving so erratically, I would have arrested him for reckless driving," says Zine, an LAPD traffic officer for many years. DN, LAT
Democrat Brian Johnson won't seek a recount in the 46th assembly district, conceding the general election runoff to Democrat Adrin Nazarian and Republican Jay Stern. DN
David Carr steps back for an overview of the state of the newspaper business and calls it an industry that "by all appearances was starting to come apart." Nut graf: Between operational fiascos and flailing attempts to slash costs on the fly, it’s clear that the print newspaper business, which has been fretting over a looming crisis for the last 15 years, is struggling to stay afloat. There are smart people trying to innovate, and tons of great journalism is published daily, but the financial distress is more visible by the week." NYT
David Folkenflik on the fake news bylines supplied to Tribune newspapers by cheap writers for Journatic, and the outsourcing of "news" overseas by pubs such as Pasadena Now. NPR
Tom Hoffarth of the Daily News runs a scathing critique of former ESPN sports reporter Erin Andrews, who is moving to Fox. DN, Romenesko
Ex-fabricator Stephen Glass's efforts to get a license to practice law in California was the subject of a Column One story in the LA Times and an editorial saying he should be admitted to the Bar.
Tours of the NBC studios in Burbank are ending as the network moves most of its operations to Universal City. Company Town
Dave Eggers spoke with KCRW "Bookworm" host Michael Silverblatt about his new novel, "A Hologram for the King." KCRW
Garrison Keillor, who appears in LA later this week, will be guest this afternoon with Patt Morrison on KPCC.
Lance Armstrong filed a federal lawsuit in Texas aimed at preventing the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency from moving ahead with charges that he used performance-enhancing drugs during his record-setting career. AP
The USS Iowa battleship opened to the public in San Pedro. Daily Breeze, LAT
Renovation of the stage and floor of the Ford Amphitheatre is scheduled to begin in October, after the close of the summer season, and be finished in time for next summer's season. The work will pre-empt the 2012-13 season in the [Inside] the Ford theater.
Westfield Century City on Saturday opened what may be the first dog park in a shopping mall.
Serena Williams won her fifth women's singles championship at Wimbledon, while she and Venus won their fifth doubles title. ESPN
Blake Griffin of the Clippers joined teammate Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant and ex-UCLA players Russell Westbrook and Kevin Love on the U.S. Olympic basketball team. ESPN LA
