Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
The Morning's Stories: Two Angles, One Funeral
()
First, when we said it was going to rain yesterday, we kind of lied. We got some bad intel. The showers are now not expected until tomorrow. We also should probably apologize to Seattlest for the crack we made about them and rain. This season, we have twice the waterfall as our northern friends so we'll just shut up about all that.
While the aftermath of the Devin Brown shooting is interesting all on its own, today we're most interested in how our two major local papers covered his funeral. Dana Bartholomew's piece for The Daily News reads oddly to us. The story quickly becomes about "the African-American community" responding to the situation which just seems weird as the reaction of the people in South Los Angeles has been far from unified. As Solomon Moore notes in his Los Angeles Times article (which we will get to soon), people in the community are "coming together" but not all with the same agenda or outlook. It also is strange to us that with all the spectacle surrounding the funeral, Bartholomew considers clothing as newsworthy. We can hear the unwritten "tsk tsk" when she (he?) writes "Some came dressed for a funeral; others wore T-shirts emblazoned with the boy's smiling face."
Haven't South LA funerals (not to mention other cities across the country) for young people featured people wearing silk-screened R.I.P tees for at least 20 years?
Support for LAist comes from
The Los Angeles Times piece is much more nuanced. Moore notes that this memorial service was the coming together of "Muslims and Christians and Jews, Bloods and Crips" and he finds more newsworthy than the common garb inside the church, the antics outside the building. The Black Riders Liberation Army performed military drills while wearing gas masks and a truck came pulling a trailer with a billboard that read "The Black American Slave Holocaust". Now that seems like true spectacle to us.
Diff'rent strokes for diff'rent papers, we guess.
Quick Notes:
- Topanga can be proud. A local short-haired pointer is one of the finalists at the Westminster Dog Show.
- We caught Mayor Hahn's ad this morning during "Good Day LA" but we didn't pay attention.
- There were some odd charges on our credit cards this week, so this fraud case seems particularly relavent.
- King/Drew finally has some good news.
- Juan Manuel Alvarez plead not guilty yesterday.
- If you are a service worker in the UC system, you're probably underpaid.
- And we were wondering who the current coach of the Lakers was; the Daily Breeze comes through with a profile on Frank Hamblen.
(photo courtesy of Paddy Patterson and flickr.com)
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
After rising for years, the number of residential installations in the city of Los Angeles began to drop in 2023. The city isn’t subject to recent changes in state incentives, but other factors may be contributing to the decline. -
The L.A. City Council approved the venue change Wednesday, which organizers say will save $12 million in infrastructure costs.
-
Taxes on the sale of some newer apartment buildings would be lowered under a plan by Sacramento lawmakers to partially rein in city Measure ULA.
-
The union representing the restaurant's workers announced Tuesday that The Pantry will welcome back patrons after suddenly shutting down six months ago.
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake.
-
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
Best of LAist