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Selected items from the media, our in box and other LA Observed sources. Posted occasionally — often in the morning.
David Lesher, the former LA Times reporter who is government affairs director for the Public Policy Institute of California, will join CALmatters as Chief Executive Officer and Editor-in-Chief. “Dave Lesher’s vision was a driving force in the creation of CALmatters, and there is no better person to lead the organization,” said Simone Coxe, CALmatters board chair and co-founder. The site intends to cover Sacramento. Story
Donald Trump does the Q-A and gets his first magazine cover as the Republican frontrunner. The Hollywood Reporter
Latest Hector Tobar column: Why Latino children are scared of Donald Trump. NYT Op-ed
The Board of Supervisors called a redo on its approval of a replacement plan for the men's central jail after being called for voting on an item that wasn't even on the agenda. Witness LA, LA Weekly
The drought is costing California about $2.7 billion this year, according to a new UC Davis study, although the statistics suggest the state’s overall economy can withstand the impact. Sacramento Bee
President Obama chatted about his life after the White House with Eva Longoria, Malcolm Gladwell, Vinod Khosla, John Doerr, Toni Morrison and more, and he had dinner in Beverly Hills in June with Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg. NYT
The City Council moves toward allowing Uber and Lyft to pick up at LAX, over the objections of taxicabs. LA Weekly
How long does it take to open a pizzeria in Los Angeles? Longer than it should, writes Steve Lopez. LAT column
Mayor Garcetti's back-to-school eduction message. DN Op-ed
Venice is ground zero for AirBnB backlash in Los Angeles. LA Weekly
LAX is poised to greatly increase its spending on vermin and pest control. KPCC
It has been a year since President Obama declared the San Gabriel Mountains a national monument, but little there has changed. LAT
The Board of Supervisors moved to redevelop a quarter-mile stretch of South Vermont Avenue between 4th and 6th streets. City News Service
Romero and MacAdams: Who Will Plan & Fund LA River Revitalization? The Planning Report
7 reasons that NBCUniversal is putting $200 million into BuzzFeed. Marketplace, NYT, Jonah Peretti's memo, WSJ
How The Skimm’s passionate readership helped its newsletter grow to 1.5 million subscribers (and 15 full-time employees.) Nieman Lab, The Skimm
NPR followed the LA Times with a story on poor children living in San Bernardino motel rooms. NPR
Also: Can massive warehouses save the Inland Empire? KCRW/WWLA
Pacific Standard has promoted Nicholas Jackson to editor in chief. He most recently served as interim editor in chief of the magazine. Fishbowl NY
From LA cartoonist and writer Lalo Alcaraz:
ESPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: I am on the team creating the new Pixar Day of the Dead movie titled "Coco". pic.twitter.com/tQ5MzOisbq
— Lalo Alcaraz (@laloalcaraz) August 16, 2015
Former LA Times staff writer and Mark Ridley-Thomas staffer Lorenza Muñoz has joined the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as managing director of membership and awards.
Former LAT reporter Lucille Renwick is the new director of communications at CUNY Law School.
Google News apparently expects the impact of the female Viagra to be…explosive.
Television producer Bud Yorkin died at home in Bel Air. He was 89. NYT
Yvonne Craig, who played Batgirl in the 1960s television series “Batman,” has died of cancer. She was 78. City News Service
Revised tsunami maps show there is a greater threat to coastal Ventura County than previously thought. LAT
On the other hand: a federal ranking based on scenery and climate lists Ventura County as no less than the absolute most desirable place to live in America. Washington Post
Hollywood and Highland to get a scramble crosswalk allowing pedestrians to cross in all directions at once. Or, as in Westwood, to wander confused. LAT
Downtown LA will be getting a W hotel on Figueroa Street across from LA Live. Brigham Yen
As many as 60 percent of Coachella Valley parolees end up in Desert Hot Springs, "making it famous for its high crime rate, gang activity, and abundant drugs. Unsurprisingly, a high percentage of the population has reported mental health problems, and…the city is now often known as 'Desperate Hot Springs.'" LA Review of Books
The carcass of another large deep-sea oarfish washed up on Catalina. LAT
The story behind that billboard of Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas kissing. Complex.com
It's one of those starry and hot summer nights when the wind blows redolent with the stench of a dead animal or just the Salton Sea.
— Tod Goldberg (@todgoldberg) August 19, 2015
A 7 minute dose of Grace Slick. Fantastic tonic heading into a night at my desk. https://t.co/ECyZE664hu
— Rose Kapolczynski (@RoseKapol) August 18, 2015
@LAObserved according to the car, you rock. pic.twitter.com/USMXtwkjxY
— b2rian lopez (@b2rian) August 18, 2015Must have me confused with someone else...
