Topline:
The Jackie and Shadow live stream is facing a common issue among content creators: fakes.
Backstory: Friends of Big Bear Valley, the nonprofit that operates the nest cam, started noticing fake social accounts a few years ago. But the knock-offs have exploded this year, after the eaglet hatchings.
Read on… for what options the nonprofit has to combat the fake accounts.
Imitation, it's often said, is the sincerest form of flattery.
But in the case of the internet's favorite bald eagles, Jackie and Shadow, that has meant an explosion of fake social media accounts that have nothing to do with the official Big Bear Valley nonprofit behind the nest cam on YouTube.
Sandy Steers, executive director of Friends of Big Bear Valley, said fans started noticing copycat accounts on Instagram and Facebook a few years ago.
But as eaglets have emerged and endured (or not, in the case of one unfortunate chick) snow and wind, the imitators’ presence has grown.
According to the nonprofit, some 2.5 million unique visitors checked out the official Friends of Big Bear Valley website in the last 30 days. Their Instagram, launched in late 2024, has more than 80,000 followers. As for the live YouTube nest cam — that's at 588,000 subscribers and counting.
"Just this year is when everything started multiplying like crazy," said Steers, adding that the group has been filing takedown requests with social platforms when they spot imitators. "We're still working on a lot more. It's like they're popping up faster than we can keep a handle on it at this point."
Steers said there are knockoff accounts selling merchandise for a profit — and in some cases falsely claiming that the proceeds will go to the Friends of Big Bear Valley. And in others, they’re making up stories about the bald eagle family to gin up more clicks.
The Big Bear nonprofit that has made the parenting saga of Jackie and Shadow a must-watch stream is experiencing something that many successful content producers have had to grapple with — how to protect their content from exploitation.
Kristina Mitri is the vice president of social media and email marketing at Studio 3, an agency specializing in internet marketing with offices in Los Angeles and other cities.
Mitri said fake accounts is commonplace in the social media space. One tip for creators is to watermark or put an official logo over their content to prevent exploitation.
And once a copycat is identified, to let their fans and followers know. Finally, Mitri says to consider seeking legal counsel for protection.
"Social is ever evolving," Mitri said. "There's a lot of unknowns and so it's important to realize that each case is unique and to set a precedent. It could help others in this space going forward."
Given all the time and resources spent on the issue of fake accounts, Steers said the group is indeed looking into their legal recourse.
"That's taking away from our funds, taking away from our time that we could be helping other people to understand the eagles," Steers said.
With the live nest cam, the case of infringement might be hard to make, according to copyright expert Justin Hughes.
Hughes, a law professor at Loyola Law School, said that there are two conditions for copyright laws.
First, it requires fixation — meaning a work claiming copyright protection needs to be in a permanent or a semi-permanent form. Think a photograph or a painting.
"The phrase we use is 'fixed in a tangible medium of expression,'" Hughes said. " So a livestream by itself by definition is not subject to copyright."
But that condition could be met if the livestream is recorded — even if the recording is not made available to the public.
Now onto the second condition: human creativity.
"Copyright protects what we call original expression," Hughes said, citing Supreme Court precedents, "that shows a modicum of creativity."
In the court of law, the live eagles cam would unlikely be considered a work of "human original expression."
"Nothing that happens in the frame, nothing the birds do...it's not original expression," he said.
One possible argument, Hughes said, could be made over the angle or placement of the camera — but not if it's random or arbitrary.
"That there are unscrupulous people taking their video feed doesn't surprise me, and it saddens me," Hughes said. But "copyright is not going to give them much help.
Eleanor Musick, an attorney in San Diego who specializes in intellectual property law and who is representing the nonprofit, offers a different conclusion based on the inner workings of the nest cam.
The livestream is indeed recorded, she said. In addition, the two cameras capturing footage are controlled by someone at all time, Musick said, "who chooses when to zoom, when to pan, when to incorporate sound from a microphone on a separate camera and when to activate infrared lighting."
Such actions, she said, fits the definition of "original" expression.
Despite the prevalence and popularity of this type of content, Musick said, it's uncharted territory where the nonprofit has found itself in.
"I am aware of no court decisions to date regarding the copyrightability of trail camera or surveillance camera videos," Musick said.
As Friends of Big Bear Valley navigates these new terrains, Steers reminds new and longtime fans to keep an eye out.
"Anything that they see, you know, if they can just make a point of seeing what really is from Friends of Big Bear Valley and what is authenticated by us," Steers said.
Pasadena record store and venue Healing Force of the Universe, a destination for local musicians and music fans, is fundraising to move to a bigger space.
The performances: The shows Healing Force puts on are all kinds of genres, but they share a common thread. They’re often meant to promote peace and relaxation, as well as deep, careful listening on the hi-fi sound system.
What's next: Its current location is set to close this month, but Manuel and his team are already raising funds to cover a move to another space: G-Son Studios in Atwater Village. The repurposed ballroom was the home base for the Beastie Boys when they recorded their classic albums Check Your Head and Ill Communication.
See the Pasadena space before it closes: The venue is still open at 1200 E. Walnut Street and is holding events through this Halloween weekend. You can see their calendar of events on their website.
For the last three years, the record store and music venue Healing Force of the Universe has been operating on a sleepy street corner not far from Pasadena City College. Nearby businesses include a shoe repair store, a nail salon and several auto shops.
“We're kind of in a dead corner,” owner Austin Manuel said. “No offense if anybody lives here, but not a very foot-trafficked area, kind of a hard place to have a store.”
In spite of the location, Manuel said Healing Force has become a home away from home for musicians and music fans. One of them is Bobby Bradford, a jazz trumpet legend who lost his house and personal archive in the Eaton Fire. He performs regularly at the venue. (Healing Force has also partnered with LAist on fire recovery events.)
Its current location is set to close this month, but Manuel and his team are already raising funds to cover a move to another space: G-Son Studios in Atwater Village. The repurposed ballroom was the Beastie Boys' home base when they recorded their classic albums Check Your Head and Ill Communication. Run-DMC and Biz Markie stopped by at one point, and Beck also laid down tracks for his album Odelay there.
Healing Force sells records, of course, but these days it’s more of a nighttime performance space. Manuel said he wants people to feel comfortable striking up conversations after a show.
“I grew up in the church in the South, and I was like, ‘How do I design this so that it feels like a Southern church lady could come in here and feel welcome?’" Manuel said. “ I didn't want it to be too cool. I wanted it to feel kind of suburban in a way.”
Though the name might call to mind a cult slogan — and Manuel said they lean into that aesthetic on purpose — it’s actually a reference to the 1970 album Music Is the Healing Force of the Universe by saxophonist Albert Ayler.
At the venue, “people can kind of get … into a meditative zone,” Manuel said. “After the [January 2025] fires, it felt so good to come back together in this room and feel the healing of community.”
The shows Healing Force puts on share a common thread: They’re meant to promote peace and relaxation, as well as deep, careful listening on the hi-fi sound system. But they’re an eclectic mix of genres. On one night, you might see L.A. spiritual jazz band Phi-Psonics, who turned a residency at the venue into a live album, Expanding to One.
On another night, you might catch a spaced-out electronic set, an up-and-coming singer-songwriter or a group of session musicians who’ve played with the likes of Paul Simon, Elton John and Lucinda Williams.
With the new space on Glendale Boulevard, Manuel said, Healing Force would triple its capacity for concerts, get a bar space and be closer to other venues in Northeast L.A.
“If 1,000 people gave $25, we would get there,” Manuel said – though he also said most people have been giving more.
You can read more about the fundraiser and donate at Healing Force’s GoFundMe.
The venue is still open at 1200 E. Walnut Street and is holding events through this Halloween weekend. You can see their events calendar on their website.
Racist language still lurks in housing documents. You can get rid of it as part of a 2021 law which mandates its removal in California. Here’s how to do it across Southern California.
Why now: California counties are reporting mixed progress meeting the demands of a 2021 law to excise the language from property records.
The backstory: Language in housing documents that restricts the sale of a property to a person of the white race is called a “restrictive covenant,” and in California the practice began in the 19th century.
What's next: Counties are asking for the public’s help by identifying the language in their housing documents and filling out a form to get rid of it.
Read on… to read the text from a restrictive covenant from 1924.
The racist DNA of Jim Crow discrimination may be embedded in your housing documents.
The language in housing documents that restricts sale or use of a property only to a person of the white race is called a “restrictive covenant,” and in California the practice goes back to the 19th century and continued into the mid-20th century. While housing discrimination persists, the practice was found unconstitutional in 1948.
California counties are reporting mixed progress in meeting the demands of a 2021 law to excise the language from property records.
According to Sylvia Manzo, deputy recorder in the Orange County Clerk-Recorder’s office, the county finished the job in March of this year, removing racist language from more than 27,000 property documents with the help of computer software.
L.A. County is far from done. It says that with the help of an outside company hired in 2024, 50 million pages will be examined yearly, which would take about 10 years to finish the job.
Public agencies could use the public’s help.
Here’s a 1924 example from a property in Bakersfield. The text reads, “That the lands herein conveyed shall never, at any time, be sold to or rented to or occupied by any person not of the white or Caucasian race.”
Or this language from a 1936 document relating to a Costa Mesa property: “That said premises shall not be sold, conveyed, rented, or leased to, or occupied by any person of African, Mexican, or Asiatic descent.”
The Restrictive Covenant Modification Form is at the heart of the effort to remove the racist language from housing documents. Each county has its own process. Some charge a fee; others don’t. Some require a notary certification for the signature; others don’t.
Registrar-Recorder officials recommend these steps:
The Orange County spokesperson says there may be some properties not caught by its software and urges the public to report them. Here’s the form
Here’s the Riverside County form
Here’s the San Bernardino County form
Here’s the San Diego County form
Here’s the Santa Barbara County form
Ignoring the racist language in property documents, some say, reinforces the legacy of segregation, while taking steps to remove restrictive covenant language is a way individuals and organizations can repudiate policies that sought to discriminate.
Topline:
Workers will begin removing the iconic Santa Monica Pier sign today for restoration.
Why now: It's part of the city's Pier Bridge Replacement Project, which will replace the bridge that connects the pier to Ocean Avenue.
The backstory: The sign has been on the Santa Monica Pier since 1941 and is listed on the California Register of Historical Resources. It will be sent to a company called YESCO, which is based in Las Vegas and, according to the city of Santa Monica, is nationally recognized for its work creating, maintaining and restoring neon signage.
What's next: The city says workers will set up equipment and start taking down the neon today. The top crown portion of the sign will come down Wednesday, and then the main sign itself on Thursday.
How to watch: If you want to watch, the city has set up two viewing areas — one at the southern edge of Palisades Park across from The Lobster restaurant and another at the corner of Ocean and Colorado avenues. The work will happen between 5 a.m. and 3 p.m. You can view a map here.
Large support from Latino voters helped President Donald Trump win the 2024 election. But according to recent numbers from the Associated Press, about 6 in 10 Hispanic voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of the presidency and more than 7 in 10 disapprove of his performance on the economy.
“ One hundred percent of Latinos are affected by the economic crisis that's afflicting everybody right now, especially working-class people, of which Latinos make up the largest share,” he said.
Party dealignment: The Latino shift away from Trump and the Republican Party does not mean a shift towards Democrats. “Latinos really do not have confidence in either party, and it's manifesting in wider and wider swings in how they're voting,” Madrid said. “They're rejecting the parties in power, they're rejecting establishment politics, and we're witnessing the rise of an emergent Latino populism."
Immigration enforcement isn't a top priority: Madrid pointed out that even with increased ICE raids, immigration only comes in as the fifth most concerning issue for Latino voters, and a third of those Latino voters are in favor of deportations.
Listen to the full conversation:
