The Brief

Federal workers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are on high alert as they monitor signs of a potential Trump administration overhaul of one of the government's main scientific agencies.

Many employees are bracing for potential staff cuts, as well as slashes to the funding that supports science within the agency and by many research partners across the country.

In particular, NOAA staffers are concerned about how President Trump's executive orders, including one targeting climate change programs, could affect the agency's research and operations. Agency officials have received a list, which NPR has viewed, of terms that could run afoul of the orders in the grants and programs they manage; the list includes terms like "climate change," "pollution" and "natural resources," as well as many terms associated with diversity, equity and inclusion. NPR obtained the list from an official at NOAA who agreed to talk on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.

NOAA did not respond to NPR's request for comment.

What NOAA does — and how that might change under the Trump administration

NOAA includes offices that study the ocean and atmosphere, forecast the weather at the National Weather Service and manage the country's oceanic fisheries.

"If you are a recreational boater, you use NOAA charts. If you like fish, you're eating fish that NOAA manages. If you are concerned about severe weather events, that information — whether it be flooding, tornadoes or tsunamis or hurricanes — that information is tracked by, analyzed by and put into forecasts by NOAA," says Andy Rosenberg, a former NOAA official.

The "Project 2025" plan, a 900-plus page blueprint for governing produced by conservative groups led by the Heritage Foundation, called NOAA "one of the main drivers of the climate change alarm industry." It suggested breaking the agency up, slashing its budget and privatizing much of its weather forecasting work.

Trump – who often distanced himself from the Project 2025 plan during the campaign — has placed some of the project's authors into prominent staff roles in his administration and issued a bevy of executive actions that closely mirror its recommendations.

Previous administrations have discussed moving NOAA from its current home in the Department of Commerce to another part of government, or breaking apart its different arms: for example, officials have previously explored the idea of moving the National Marine Fisheries Service, a branch of NOAA, to the Fish and Wildlife Service. And Trump showed interest during his first administration in privatizing weather forecasting and technology.

"The mood's lower than I've ever seen it" 

NPR spoke with several NOAA employees who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation at work. They said they are concerned that the Trump administration will impede the agency's scientific work as part of the push to cut government costs by Elon Musk's team within the Trump administration known as the Department of Government Efficiency. Some staffers are watching to see if NOAA continues to issue, for example, its closely watched reports on weather and climate, which often influence economic activity across the globe.

"The mood's lower than I've ever seen it," a NOAA contractor tells NPR. "There's a lot of fear in the office."

Career civil servants at NOAA are also awaiting the likely return of Neil Jacobs, an atmospheric scientist who served as NOAA's acting head during the first Trump administration. Trump has nominated Jacobs to be the agency's next leader.

Jacobs is a weather modeler respected by many peers and is currently a fellow at the American Meteorological Society, a prestigious professional association of meteorologists. But he was also cited for misconduct by an independent expert panel of the National Academy of Public Administration after following the "Sharpiegate" incident in 2019. In the incident, Trump incorrectly stated Hurricane Dorian would affect Alabama, a state outside its forecasted track. NOAA, under Jacobs' leadership, later released an unsigned statement backing up Trump's incorrect claims.

Another new nominee to a key NOAA leadership position, Taylor Jordan, is also well-versed in weather forecasting and technology, says Craig McLean, a former NOAA official who served across several previous administrations. The nomination is slightly unusual, says McLean, because historically, the two leadership positions to which Jordan and Jacobs have been nominated would be held by a weather expert and an expert on coasts or fisheries.

A new commerce secretary could influence NOAA's future

Potential new leadership at NOAA's parent agency, the Commerce Department, is also raising questions about NOAA's future. Democratic lawmakers on the Senate Commerce Committee have been pressing Trump's commerce secretary nominee, Howard Lutnick, on his plans for the agency in light of Project 2025's call for the end of NOAA.

Advocates of NOAA have raised the alarm about how shutting off public NOAA data that informs daily weather forecasts, wildfire alerts and hurricane tracking could have dire consequences on people's lives and the country's economy.

"In a world where catastrophic climate change impacts and extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and intense, I can think of nothing worse than turning this scientific powerhouse into a skeletal operation," Juan Declet-Barreto, senior social scientist for climate vulnerability at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said in a statement. "If President Trump moves forward with demolishing NOAA, he will jeopardize most people's access to life-saving information, while only the rich might be able to afford private data sources."

Asked by Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington, the committee's top Democrat, whether NOAA should be dismantled, Lutnick said in a written response that "it is premature to discuss any specific recommendations before engaging with NOAA and the Office of Management and Budget," as well as the Commerce Department and Trump.

All Republican lawmakers on the committee, plus Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, voted to advance Lutnick's nomination last week largely along party lines.

NPR climate reporter Julia Simon contributed reporting.

Edited by Sadie Babits, Neela Banerjee and Benjamin Swasey

Copyright 2025 NPR

The U.S. job market unexpectedly stalled in July.

A report Friday from the Labor Department shows that employers cut 23,000 jobs last month, and job gains for May and June were revised sharply lower.

The unemployment rate dipped to 4.1%, but only because more than 260,000 people dropped out of the workforce.

It was the second month in a row that the monthly jobs tally came in weaker than forecasters had expected.

"We are increasingly hearing from workers that they are anxious about their job security and they are frustrated by the fact that they are stuck in roles that are not necessarily good for them," said Daniel Zhao, chief economist at the job search website Glassdoor. "And that's on top of workers who are not in a job right now and feel frozen out of the job market."

Glassdoor's worker confidence index slumped in July to a record low.

The Fed's job gets harder

Restaurants and retailers cut thousands of jobs last month, and local government also saw large job losses. Healthcare continued to add workers, but at a more modest pace than earlier in the year.

The softening job market may complicate the Federal Reserve's job, since it's also battling stubborn inflation. The Fed may be more cautious about raising interest rates at a time when the labor market appears less stable.

For people who are working, average wages have risen 3.2% in the last 12 months. That's likely not enough to keep pace with inflation, however, so workers' paychecks don't stretch as far as they used to.

"Part of the reason that workers are feeling bad about today's job market," Zhao says, is that "a lot of those wage gains have been eaten up by rising energy prices."

Copyright 2026 NPR

It seems that jazz is everywhere in Los Angeles. Blue Note opened a club last year, venues like Sam First, Catalina’s, Vibrato and the Baked Potato draw large crowds, and hotels and bars are adding jazz to their schedules.

But every week, a semi-secret event at the tony Los Angeles Athletic Club lets anyone experience a near-private concert from legends such as Rickey Woodard, who played saxophone for Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn and others; and Nolan Shaheed, trumpeter for Duke Ellington, Marvin Gaye and more.

That’s before you get to the evening’s singer, who might be 96-year-old pianist Betty Bryant, former Raelette Val Monroe or singer and Grammy-winning songwriter John Proulx.

Until recently, the Sunday night Jazz Salon was free. Now it charges a nominal $10 per person, which is still an outrageous bargain, so be sure to add something to the tip jar on the piano, and maybe try one of the cocktails or the steak frites.

Inside the club 

Walking into the club earlier, you see black-and-white photos of all types of healthy pursuits on the walls, as well as trophies and mementos of the club’s nearly century-and-a-half history. Plush sofas, high ceilings and book-filled shelves are the order of the day, and alongside members in gym gear or lugging laptops, you go up in one of the elevators to the third floor, where the Jazz Salon takes place.

Dave Ross, bassist and founder of the Jazz Salon.

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James Bartlett

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LAist

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The bassist who built it 

Earlier in the day, Dave Ross, 76, was setting up the amps, drum kit, mixer and mic stands. He also administers the website, acts as MC and plays double bass as part of the ensemble. He began the venture over a decade ago, when he persuaded the LAAC, of which he had long been a member, to host concerts in their redecorated restaurant and bar.

Ross draws from a repertory group of about 15 artists, and the concert takes place opposite the bar in a wood-paneled room of just a few dozen leather chairs and tables. This small scale makes the night intimate and unique.

“No gig is ever the same,” says Ross. “We don’t rehearse, and every time we play a song, we're never trying to play it the same way we played it before.”

That makes the night fun, too. Since you’re right near the musicians, you can hear their laughter and banter, as well as their impressive solos. Ross, stage left, stays out of the limelight — which is how he prefers it — and often says he's just happy to be there playing.

“You're there to keep the beat, the pulse of the music,” he says. “And then, secondarily, the notes that you play help the other musicians understand what the chord, what the harmony is. I'm just doing it for the pleasure of playing the music.”

The Jazz Salon is a $10 Sunday night concert at the Los Angeles Athletic Club.

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James Bartlett

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LAist

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Why $10 barely covers it 

Once a month, Ross and some of his stable join a touring artist — recently five-time Grammy-nominee Karrin Allyson — in the club’s 250-seat ballroom for a more formal ticketed event, but there have been just two complete sellouts of them this year: tributes to Bill Evans and Dave Brubeck/Paul Desmond.

Donations and the tip jar on Sunday evenings sometimes haven’t been enough to break even, either, which led to Ross reluctantly introducing the $10 charge. No matter what, he is determined the Jazz Salon will keep going.

“When I was younger, there was a receptionist I knew who was a nun. She said: “‘You know what your problem is? You’re too optimistic!’”

Daniel Shemtob has been going around Los Angeles asking strangers this question: "What's your mom's best dish?"

He then turns their answers — from Filipino oxtail adobo to the Ashkenazi Jewish favorite of gefilte fish — into a taco for his new five-episode web series, "Better Than Your Mom."

One episode breaks from the format entirely: a head-to-head chopped salad taco challenge between Shemtob and Vanessa Silverton, daughter of famed L.A. chef Nancy Silverton, judged blind by Nancy herself.

Daniel Shemtob, founder of The Lime Truck and creator and host of Better Than Your Mom.

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Courtesy Daniel Shemtob

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A two-time winner of "The Great Food Truck Race" on the Food Network, Shemtob is no stranger to reality TV — he also founded The Lime Truck, serving Cali-Mex cuisine in Orange County.

What starts as a quick, chaotic street-corner challenge opens into something bigger — a Long Beach woman honoring her late mother-in-law's gefilte fish recipe, and a chef processing his own mother's death and the loss of his home in the 2025 Palisades Fire.

A dish for his mother

Despite loving fine dining, Shemtob said nothing beats the experience of having someone invite him to their mother's home for dinner.

"It's by far my favorite thing," he said.

Gundry watched as Shemtob reworked her mother-in-law's recipe in real time — a process that normally takes her more than two hours, done in 20 minutes.

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Screenshot via Better Than Your Mom

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That urge to connect with other people also came from wanting to celebrate his late mother's legacy and the impact she had on him in the kitchen.

"Eating was like a big part of how we shared and celebrated," Shemtob said. "It was a culture that was built around food."

A stranger says, 'yes'

While most walk past him or decline to talk, Shemtob said he's been surprised by how many strangers say yes almost immediately — like Anne Gundry, a retired biology teacher in Long Beach.

She answered with a dish from her mother-in-law from her first marriage — gefilte fish served cold.

Shemtob's take on Dena Levenstein's gefilte fish, reimagined as a taco with an apple-horseradish slaw.

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Courtesy Daniel Shemtob

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Gundry recalled her first meeting with Dena Levenstein, who would become her mother-in-law. The relationship started out cold — but cooking together changed their dynamic.

"That's where I honestly think we had the deepest bond with her," Gundry said.

Gundry described yearly visits to Levenstein's house as a cooking "apprenticeship," where Gundry was taught to cook by feel — adding ingredients by the handful, testing a dish's consistency by touch.

"She used to say, 'How does it feel?'" Gundry recalled. "And I'd say, 'I don't know, I don't know how it's supposed to feel.'"

Over the years, she learned. Now, Gundry teaches her own children that recipe the same way — without referring to what's written down.

Watching Shemtob cook on "Better Than Your Mom," Gundry was skeptical. Her own process takes over two hours; his took 20 minutes — until she tasted the apple-horseradish slaw he added.

"Brilliant," she said. "I've been trying to duplicate it at home."

You can find Shemtob's videos on his YouTube channel.

Next week Phoebe Bridgers fans in Southern California will get an otherworldly way to enjoy her new album ahead of its official release Friday.

And a Costa Mesa institution will enjoy the chance to introduce indie music lovers to what it does beyond astronomy lectures and field trips.

The Orange Coast College Planetarium is one of dozens of planetariums around the world – and the only in Southern California – hosting listening sessions next week for Lost Weekend, one of the year’s most anticipated indie releases and Bridgers’ first solo studio album in six years.

The Pasadena native is not expected at any of the planetarium shows. But that doesn’t matter to her fan base.

Phoebe Bridger fans can listen to her album in the planetarium's 125-seat dome theater.

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Courtesy Orange Coast College Planetarium

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Twelve shows in the 125-seat theater sold out within four hours of going on sale Thursday, according to the planetarium. So staff added 16 more, bringing the total to 28 screenings over four days, Aug. 10 through 13. (At last check, tickets for showings earlier in the day were still available.)

“We have never had an event that was this anticipated,” Rhiannon Graffio, lead speaker and educator at the planetarium.

There’s two ways to experience the record from start to finish, which is a little over 50 minutes long.

One is a full-dome show featuring images taken by renowned astrophotographer Babak Tafreshi.

“It's gorgeous,” Graffio said. “There's some that are of the night sky, where you can see the paths of the stars as the Earth rotates, or auroras or lightning.”

The other option is a laser show created by Laser Fantasy, with scenes and storylines moving in time with the music.

Graffio said the planetarium had been approached by Bridgers’ label Dead Oceans to host the shows, which are being presented in partnership with Spotify.

Rhiannon Graffio, a lead speaker at the Orange Coast College Planetarium, has been working with Phoebe Bridgers' label on next week's listening sessions.

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Courtesy Rhiannon Graffio

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The events are strictly phone-free. To prevent album leaks, attendees will have to put their phones in pouches provided by Yondr, a company that works concerts and other events. Smartwatches, and Meta glasses also aren’t allowed.

The Lost Weekend events are the most high-profile but certainly not the planetarium’s first experiment with mixing music and visuals.

The theater regularly hosts laser shows set to music, cycling through different artists like Taylor Swift and Beyoncé each month while keeping some crowd favorites like Pink Floyd in rotation. Graffio said in the last year KPop Demon Hunters laser shows have been especially popular.

Accommodating the Lost Weekend shows has meant bringing extra staff to handle the weekday crowds at the community planetarium.

But Graffio said there's a big upside to introducing music fans to a place they may never have thought to visit.

“It’s a wonderful experience,” she said. “And most of the shows that we do are also educational in some sense. As cool as the visuals are, they are about the universe and what we know about it.”

And for those who can't make it to the planetarium shows, there's a more traditional route to marking Bridgers' new album. A dozen record stores around Southern California are hosting listening sessions at midnight Friday.