Following the first CA gubernatorial debate, we dig into what stood out

Following the first CA gubernatorial debate, we dig into what stood out

A televised debate among six leading candidates for California governor on Wednesday underscored sharp partisan divides on issues from homelessness to taxes, while the Democrats sought to distinguish themselves from each other in a chaotic race with no clear leader. It’s the first time in a generation that California has a wide-open contest for the heavily Democratic state’s highest office, with more than 50 names on the ballot. Mail ballots are scheduled to go to voters early next month in advance of the June 2 primary election. Joining us to recap the debate is Rob Stutzman, Republican political consultant and president of Stutzman Public Affairs, and Sara Sadhwani, assistant politics professor at Pomona College. We also want to hear from you: What candidate impressed you most? Who were you disappointed by? Give us a call at 866-893-5722, or email atcomments@laist.com.

New book digs into the rise of family influencers

Scroll through any social media app and you will come across images of happy families with adorable children. The internet loves these images so much that some families have turned to full time content creation as a way to make money. Child influencers can make their families millions of dollars a year, but have few of the protections that child actors enjoy. While some states, including California, have moved to provide child influencers some protections, the industry remains largely unregulated even as influencing has become a multibillion dollar industry. In her new book, Like, Follow, Subscribe: Influencer Kids and the Cost of a Childhood Online (Gallery Books, 2026), author Fortesa Latifi traces the rise of family blogging, from humble text-based blogs to the multi-platform juggernaut accounts of today. She joins Larry Mantle today to discuss her new book.

The latest on beleaguered homelessness services agency LAHSA

Auditors are flagging major problems with the handling of tax dollars by the L.A. Homeless Services Authority. The failures surround poor bookkeeping and accounting of taxpayer money at the agency — which spent over $800 million in public funds last fiscal year. The issues emerged despite previous audits flagging serious oversight problems in prior years. The latest audit was conducted by an outside firm hired by the agency to meet federal requirements. The agency’s financial statements initially included “significant” inaccurate amounts that needed to be adjusted late in the audit process, auditors found in their review of LAHSA’s last fiscal year that ended in June 2025. The findings are from the federally-required “single audit,” a draft of which was presented to LAHSA’s audit committee on Monday. It found the inaccuracies stemmed from a "significant deficiency” in LAHSA’s “internal controls,” which are supposed to safeguard against financial inaccuracies and fraud. For more on this, we are joined by Nick Gerda, LAist watchdog correspondent.

With files from LAist.

Can saving birds save us?

Judging from the popularity of LAist’s stories on Big Bear bald eagles Jackie and Shadow (who just welcomed two chicks!), LAist lovers are bird lovers so everyone should be very happy to hear that bird conservation efforts are allowing some bird populations not just to recover but to thrive. Author and bird migration researcher Scott Weidensaul traveled the world from the edge of a Ukrainian war zone to an island in the Pacific to tell the story of these remarkable resurgences and the human coalitions that created them. He joins AirTalk today to discuss his new book The Return of the Oystercatcher: Saving Birds to Save the Planet (W. W. Norton, 2026) and the lessons we can all learn from conversation efforts.

TV Talk: ‘Half Man,’ Kevin,’ America’s Culinary Cup,’ and more!

Have you felt completely overwhelmed when deciding what new show to watch these days? Us too. There’s just so much content out there between network TV and numerous streaming platforms. Each week, we will try to break through the noise with TV watchers who can point us to the must-sees and steer us clear of the shows that maybe don’t live up to the hype. This week, listeners will get the latest scoop on what’s worth watching withKathryn VanArendonk, television critic for Vulture and Roxana Hadadi, television critic for Vulture.
TV Shows:

• Half Man [Limited Series] (HBO MAX)
• Kevin [Season 1] (Prime Video)
• This Is a Gardening Show [limited series] (Netflix)
• Abbott Elementary [season 5 finale] (ABC)
• Ramy Youssef: In Love (HBO MAX)
• Nikki Glaser: Good Girl (Hulu)
• Top Chef [Season 23] (Bravo | Hulu)
• America’s Culinary Cup [Season 23] (CBS)
• The Pitt [FINALE SEASON 2] (HBO Max)