March 31 - April 4, 2008
Monday, March 31
SAG AFTRA Drama
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The two unions that represent actors, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artist and the Screen Actors Guild, have long sniped at each other. Still, the two managed to maintain a partnership and negotiated contracts together. No more. The real-life drama that split the two unions appears to involve soap operas, with SAG accused of trying to woo soap actors over from AFTRA (which normally represents television broadcast actors). Pundits say the break-up will hurt actors in upcoming contract negotiations with CBS, Fox and other producers, since the performers are coming in with a divided front. Larry talks to the Hollywood Reporter's Leslie Simmons about the split.
State Democratic Convention
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Larry gets a wrap-up of the state democratic convention this past weekend from KPCC Special Correspondent, Kitty Felde, and Bob Mulholland, campaign advisor to the California Democratic Party.
Overhauling Financial Regulation of Banks
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The sub-prime mess hit people struggling to buy their own homes. But it also slammed the high-stakes world of Wall Street investment banking. Large investment intuitions were selling mortgage-backed securities with the assumption that real-estate values only go up. When they didn't, and when a sufficient number of bad loans defaulted, investment banks lost billions--resulting in the federal rescue of Bear Sterns. Had it not been for the rescue, other banks might have collapsed as well. And that still could happen as the fallout continues. Why were banks trading and selling securities based on such faulty assumptions? And what should the government do, if anything, to keep it from happening again? Larry discusses the problem with Lakshman Achuthan of the Economic Cycle Research Institute, Jason Furman, director of Brookings Institute's Hamilton Project, and Marek Fuchs, columnist with "The Street dot com".
Tuesday, April 1
New Gas Tax Proposed To Fight Global Warming
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California State Assemblyman Mike Feuer is proposing a new gas tax to help fight global warming. If passed by voters, the extra fee would cost drivers in Los Angeles County an extra 9 cents per gallon, or an extra $90 on their vehicle registration. The funds would go towards improvements to mass transit and programs to ease traffic, but critics say there are already too many taxes at the pump. Larry talks with Assemblyman Mike Feuer, who authored the legislation, and takes listener calls.
Anthony Pellicano Trial
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Larry gets an update on the trial of Anthony Pellicano, the former private eye to the stars, who faces 110 counts of racketeering, wiretapping, conspiracy, and other federal charges. Larry talks with Carla Hall, staff writer for the Los Angeles Times.
Auto-Immune Disease: At War With Our Own Bodies
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Fifty or 100 years ago, infectious diseases such as polio, small pox and tuberculosis killed, disabled, and disfigured millions of Americans. But antibiotics, vaccines, and better hygiene have lead to a healthier nation. The problem: now autoimmune diseases and allergies are on the rise. Asthma, food allergies, and diseases such as lupus cause discomfort, pain and death. All are on the rise. Is this because our immune systems, deprived of outside attackers, are turning on our own bodies? Larry talks with Dr. Haig Tcheurekdjian, Assistant Clinical Professor at the Department of Medicine and Pediatrics at Case Western Reserve University, and an Associate at Allergy Immunology Associates, Incorporated, and Dr. Stanley Fineman, Asthma and Allergy specialist, at Atlanta Allergy Clinic about this disturbing trend.
Iraq Update
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Larry gets an update about the latest news out of Iraq with Sudarsan Raghavan, Baghdad Bureau Chief for The Washington Post, and Larry Kaplow, Newsweek correspondent in Iraq.
Birding At The End Of Nature
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Today, forty-six million Americans are bird-watchers. In his new book, "The Life of the Skies," author Jonathan Rosen sets out on a quest not merely to see birds but to understand their centrality-historically, spiritually and scientifically-to a culture torn between the desire to conquer and to conserve. Rosen argues that bird-watching is nothing less than the real national pastime and his book, part birding history, part birding travelogue also considers the spiritual yearning of the birder. Rosen joins Larry Mantle about the intimate connection between the birder and the bird.
Wednesday, April 2
Bernanke's Testimony On The Economy
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Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben S. Bernanke warned against a recession and a stagnant U.S. economy in a presentation to a Congressional committee Wednesday morning. Larry Mantle talks with experts Jack Shaw, Capitol Hill Reporter for Market News International, and Chris Thornberg, Principal of Beacon Economics about Bernanke's assessment of the country's financial situation and the impact it will have on global economic growth.
Mortgage Relief On The Way
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With pressure to curb mounting foreclosures, U.S. Senators drafted a bipartisan mortgage relief bill on Tuesday. For weeks Democrats and Republicans were deadlocked over the bill, but finally drafted legislation that promises to help struggling homeowners. Larry Mantle talks with experts J. Taylor Rushing, Staff Writer on the U.S. Senate for The Hill, and Chris Thornberg, Principal at Beacon Economics about the details of the bill and its benefit to homeowners.
State Steps In To Regulate Emergency Care Billing
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Governor Schwarzenegger's administration has moved to ban physicians and hospitals from billing patients for the cost of services that exceed what their HMOs are willing to pay. Larry talks with Jordan Rau, Sacramento Reporter for the L.A. Times, Francisco Silva, General Counsel for the California Medical Association, and Rick Martin, Deputy Director of the Department of Managed Health Care about "balance billing," the ongoing feud between doctors and insurance providers, and the patients caught in the middle.
Biofuels And Global Warming
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As biofuel use increases exponentially around the world, more and more research is addressing the impact biofuel production is having on the global warming problem. The news, so far, is not good. Some studies show that the increase in the production of biofuels like ethanol is actually speeding up global warming - not reducing it. Larry Mantle talks with Michael Grunwald, senior correspondent for Time Magazine, and author of the magazine's current cover story, "The Clean Energy Scam," Bruce Dale, a Professor at Michigan State University's Department of Chemical Engineering & Materials Science, and Tim Searchinger, visiting scholar at Princeton University about the complex issue of alternative fuels and the environment.
New U.C. President
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Larry Mantle chats with the University of California system's newly appointed President, University of Texas Chancellor Mark Yudof. They will discuss his leadership at the University of Texas, his plans for the UC System, and more.
Thursday, April 3
Harbor Pollution Accord
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Harbor officials have reached a tentative agreement with environmental groups to establish a trust fund to address the long-term effects of port operations on the surrounding neighborhoods. The agreement goes before the Harbor Commission today. It includes a promise from environmentalists to drop their challenge to the Port's planned expansion of TraPac's facility in Wilmington. Larry gets the details from Harbor Commissioner, S. David Freeman, and Martin Schlageter, Campaign Director for the Coalition for Clean Air.
SAG/AFTRA Split
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With the advent of digital media, new battles are raging over who gets residuals for actors in television shows, commercials and movies that appear on the Internet. Negotiations between producers and actors for a new contract are to start on April 28, and the last thing actors wanted was for a divided front. But that's exactly what's happened, with a split between the two main acting unions, the Screen Actor's Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Earlier this week Larry spoke with SAG head Alan Rosenberg. This morning he talks to Roberta Reardon, national president of AFTRA.
Orange County Journalists Roundtable
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Larry Mantle talks with William Lobdell, City Editor of the Orange County Edition of the Los Angeles Times, Orange County Register senior editorial writer and columnist, Steven Greenhut, and Gustavo Arellano, OC Weekly staff writer about the latest news events and developments in Orange County.
Darfur Peace Talks Break Down
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Peace talks in war-torn Darfur are facing further setbacks with a recent resurgence of violence. The U.N. and African Union have failed to organize meetings between warring factions from the Sudanese government and rebel forces since last fall. The Lybian peace conference fell apart in late 2007, and the A.U. reports little progress since then. Larry talks with Edmund Sanders, Los Angeles Times Nairobi Bureau Chief, and Jason Small, deputy director of the Sudan Programs Group at the Department of State to find out what is the latest news from the region.
Heathrow Woes
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Serious disorganization at the new terminal of London's Heathrow Airport may tarnish the image of British Airways. The nearly $9-billion addition took five years to build, and opened to a disastrous first week. British Airways has cancelled nearly 400 flights, and is sorting through about 20,000 undelivered pieces of luggage. Larry talks with Mark Rice-Oxley, Christian Science Monitor correspondent in London to find out what happened and how the mess can be fixed.
The Struggle To Control World Population
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In his new book "Fatal Misconception," author Matthew Connelly explores the global history of population control, from family planning to sterilization to genocide. The movement to control the population of other sects, ethnicities and families has changed how people view themselves and their family in the global setting.
Friday, April 4
Roommates.com can't Discriminate
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In an 8-3 ruling The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decided Thursday that Roommates.com may be found liable for violating fair housing laws by matching roommates according to gender, sexual orientation and parenthood. The judges said that the website may be brought to trial for possibly violating anti-discrimination laws because it requires users to provide information about gender, sexual orientation and whether they have children, and then uses the information to screen people for matches. Larry Mantle and guests discuss the case.
MySpace takes on iTunes
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Social networking giant MySpace is partnering with major record labels to form a digital music business: MySpace Music. The deal gives MySpace users--all 110 million of them--one stop shopping for their favorite songs, merchandise and concert tickets. Many experts say the deal is a direct challenge to Apple's iTunes--the leading music retailer. But is there room for both on the Internet? Larry talks to some music insiders to find out what this means for consumers, artists and the struggling music industry. He also talks to Dawn Chmielewski, who helped cover the story for the Los Angeles Times.
Where have all the Print Film Critics Gone?
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News of staff cuts at newspapers around the country has become fairly common lately. Among those who have been laid off or have taken buy-outs are film critics at dozens of dailies and weeklies. Though a plethora of movie blogs exist on the Web, critics whose work appears in print seem to be a dying breed. Larry and three of our FilmWeek critics discuss the trend.
Filmweek Reviews
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Larry and critics Jean Oppenheimer of "Village Voice Media," and Claudia Puig of "USA Today," review some of the week's new feature films including "Leatherheads," "Nim's Island," "My Blueberry Nights," "Chapter 27," and "Sex and Death 101," as well as the documentaries "Shine A Light" and "Imaginary Witness." The critics will also discuss the career of director Jules Dassin, who passed away this week at the age of 96.
