Negotiations have stalled in a very public way between Time Warner Cable and CBS in their contract dispute. Which side will end up winning? Then, the GOP says it will boycott CNN if it airs a scheduled series on Hillary Clinton. And are 'childless cities' good or bad for the economy? Later, we'll talk about how LA can crack down on hit-and-runs and we'll discuss how a "Hyperloop" might work. Then, is In-N-Out over-rated? We'll talk about where you can find the best burger in LA.
CBS and Time Warner play brinksmanship games
Negotiations have stalled in a very public way between Time Warner Cable and CBS in their contract dispute. As of Friday, Time Warner blacked out CBS and all its affiliated channels in large markets including Los Angeles, New York and Dallas. It alleges the network is demanding huge fees for its programming - 600% of what the cable operator pays in retransmission fees to independent CBS affiliates elsewhere, according to Variety. CBS argues it is underpaid relative to its fanbase.
Which party has the greatest leverage? Does TW Cable have to dig in its heels to avoid fighting similar battles with other networks? Why have the negotiations become so hostile - with CBS characterizing TWC as "combative?"
Guest:
Alex Ben Block, Senior Editor, The Hollywood Reporter
GOP threatens to ban CNN and NBC from Republican primary debates if networks go ahead on Clinton specials
The Republican Party is threatening to boycott CNN and NBC if the stations don’t drop special programs on potential Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton. The boycott will include pulling the 2016 Republican primary debates from both stations. NBC has plans to air a miniseries with Diane Lane portraying Hillary Clinton, and CNN is producing a feature length documentary directed by Charles. H. Ferguson. Republican Party officials believe this move would be directly helping Hillary Clinton’s campaign objectives and promote her as a candidate. As mentioned in “Time Magazine,” Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, said in a letter to NBC and CNN that the programming essentially amounts to “political ads masked as unbiased entertainment.”
Should the GOP pull the debates from CNN and NBC? Should the stations also do specials on potential republican candidates? Are these special programs promoting Hillary Clinton’s potential campaign?
Guests:
Sean Spicer, Director of Communications, Republican National Committee
Aaron Blake, National politics reporter, The Washington Post
The childless city and its economic future
Think Manhattan or San Francisco and the images that come up are young, hip urbanites living life up. But author Joel Kotkin says cities shouldn't only be a playground for the young. He argues in a City Journal piece that in order for cities to continue to thrive economically and culturally, they must draw young families out of the suburbs and back to urban areas.
Which means they need to create affordable urban neighborhoods with good schools, safe streets, nice parks and more. Is this premise valid? Can the young, upwardly-mobile creative class sustain urban growth just as well? If you are married with kids, have you ever considered moving to a place like downtown Los Angeles?
Guests:
Joel Kotkin, who has co-written a piece titled “The Childless City” for the City Journal, a quarterly magazine put out by the Manhattan Institute. He is also the author of “The City: A Global History” (Modern Library, 2006)
Eric Klinenberg, Professor of Sociology at New York University, and author of “Going Solo: The Extraordinary Rise and Surprising Appeal of Living Alone” (Penguin 2012)
How can LA crack down on hit-and-runs accidents?
In 2012, the LA Weekly reported on an awfully high number of vehicular hit-and-run crashes in Los Angeles. The report said that the LAPD records about 20,000 hit-and-run incidents a year, 4,000 of which result in injury or death.
It also reported that 48 percent of all crashes in L.A. are hit-and-runs, compared with and 11 percent average across all U.S. cities. And despite those statistics, the report said, “There is no LAPD task force or organized city effort to address the problem.”
In response L.A. City Councilman Joe Buscaino introduced a motion calling for the LAPD to start addressing the problem, and the department then released its own report to the Police Commission and the Public Safety Committee.
The report took issue with the 48 percent figure, saying that the number was reached by calculations using only "reported collisions" and not "all collisions," and claimed that city's hit-and-run rate is actually comparable to other major metropolitan areas.
On July 26th the Public Safety Committee met to discuss the issue, with city council members, LAPD representatives, and bicycle and pedestrian safety advocates on hand.
Despite some reported pushback from LAPD Deputy Chief Michael Downing, the participants seemed to agree that hit-and-runs have not been adequately addressed before, and that they are not properly punished or even prioritized by law enforcement.
Now that the issue has been officially brought to motion, what will be done to curb hit-and-runs? What can be done?
Guest:
Joe Buscaino, LA City Councilman
Madeline Brozen, Program Director, UCLA Complete Streets Initiative
Can the hypothetical 'Hyperloop' make California high-speed rail history?
Imagine travelling from Los Angeles to San Francisco in about thirty minutes without the help of Scotty. Elon Musk, the inventive entrepreneur behind Tesla, SpaceX and PayPal, is envisioning a transportation tube he’s calling a “fifth mode of transportation.”
On August 12, he’ll reveal the alpha design for the project, then crowd-source ideas from anyone and everyone with a brilliant scientific mind.
Musk thinks he can make it happen for about $6 billion and with competitive ticket prices. His inspiration stems from his derision for California’s beleaguered high-speed rail project. He told Bloomberg Businessweek last year, “[T]he $60 billion bullet train they’re proposing in California would be the slowest bullet train in the world at the highest cost per mile.
They’re going for records in all the wrong ways.” Is this the paradigm shift we’ve been waiting for? How much do we know about how it would work? Why is Musk releasing the alpha design as open source rather than patenting it? Should officials with the high-speed rail project be paying attention?
Guest:
Alan Ohnsman, Bloomberg News reporter covering automotive and green transportation
Are In-N-Out burgers overrated or worth the hype? (Poll)
In-N-Out isn't just a hamburger joint for many Angelenos, it is a Southern California cultural institution and a source of pride. For those living outside of Los Angeles, it is a tourist attraction as worthy for a stopover as Disneyland. But not everyone thinks In-N-Out lives up to the hype. Case in point: A food critic for USA Today has just written a scathing review of the burger chain:
Despite its very passionate loyal following, the actual burgers at In-N-Out are not especially good. The very basic, thin fast-food patties housed in generic buns are nearly identical to those at McDonald's or Burger King.
"All the toppings are better than they would be at their main competitors, bearing in mind that it is fast food, so if you get a loaded burger you're getting a lot of value for your money," said food critic Larry Olmstead on AirTalk. "But if you're somebody who is more focused on the burger or orders it plain, I don't think In-N-Out stands out as well."
Are you an In-N-Out convert, or do you, too, find it a bit of a disappointment? With everything from Umami Burger to Five Guys in the city, what do you think is the best burger in Los Angeles?
KPCC's online polls are not scientific surveys of local or national opinion. Rather, they are designed as a way for our audience members to engage with each other and share their views. Let us know what you think on our Facebook page, facebook.com/kpcc, or in the comments below.
Guests:
Larry Olmsted, journalist and author behind the Great American Bites column for USAToday.com and a columnist for Forbes.com.
Ben Waters, co-founder of LAfoodie.com. Here is LaFoodie's list of the best burgers in Los Angeles.