Today on AirTalk, we update you on the latest COVID-19 news and answer your questions. Also on the show, we break down Joe Biden's latest executive orders on immigration; discuss the latest news surrounding Gamestop stocks and Reddit; and more.
COVID-19 AMA: Super Bowl Super Spreaders, Equity In Vaccine Rollout And More
In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with Dr. Kimberly Shriner of Huntington Hospital.
Topics today include:
L.A. officials warn against Super Bowl super spreaders
How equitable is California’s vaccine rollout?
Some L.A. firefighters are reluctant to get vaccinated. Should officials be incentivizing the shot for people who don’t want the vaccine, or moving on to people in other tiers who do want them?
U.K. variant in Southern California
Variant from Brazil found in some U.S. cities
Russia’s vaccine said to be about 91 percent effective
Antidepressant might be helpful in treating COVID-19
Guest:
Kimberly Shriner, M.D., infectious disease specialist at Huntington Hospital in Pasadena
Pranksters Once Again Struck The Hollywood Sign. What Are Your Favorite Pranks?
LAPD arrested six people yesterday for strategically unfurling tarps down the Hollywood sign, with a “B” thrown over the “W” and a dash over the D to spell: “HOLLYBOOB.”
The participants reportedly claimed that they altered the sign to raise breast cancer awareness, but most Angelenos received the stunt in a decidedly sillier manner. It’s not the first time the sign has been altered— most recently, in 2017, the sign was changed by a local artist to read “HOLLYWEED” in celebration of California’s recreational marijuana legalization. Sign manipulation is even a part of Hollywood’s pop culture renderings. In the popular adult animation “BoJack Horseman,” a character steals the sign’s “D” to spell “HOLLYWOO,” a pronunciation the series’ characters keep up for the remainder of the show.
Today on AirTalk, we’re hearing more about your favorite pranks. Have you pulled off one that you’re still laughing about? We want to hear from you! Give us a call at 866-893-5722 or comment below.
Guest:
Mike Roe, KPCC arts and entertainment reporter; he tweets
President Biden Signs Executive Actions Addressing Family Separation, Immigration
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced steps to address harm to thousands of families that were separated at the U.S.-Mexico border, expanding efforts to quickly undo relentless changes to immigration policy over the last four years.
President Joe Biden planned to sign orders on family separation, border security, and legal immigration, bringing to nine the number of executive actions on immigration during his first two weeks in office. Details were thin, but the moves aim to reverse many of former President Donald Trump’s policies to deter immigration, both legal and illegal.
Alejandro Mayorkas, whose nomination as Homeland Security secretary awaits Senate confirmation, will lead a task force on family separation, focused largely on reuniting parents and children who remain apart. It is unclear how many, but about 5,500 children have been identified in court documents as having been separated during Trump’s presidency, including about 600 whose parents have yet to be found by a court-appointed committee.
With files from the Associated Press
Guests:
Priscilla Alvarez, politics reporter for CNN; she tweets
Bill Hing, professor of law and migration studies at the University of San Francisco
From Reddit to Robinhood: Individual Investors Hunt for Shorted Stocks
The online followers of Reddit’s WallStreetBets forum joined forces last week to cause big losses for established hedge funds. Following the advice of Keith Gill, a former marketing employee of a life insurance company, forum members flocked to investment apps like Robinhood to buy shares of companies like GameStop and AMC whose stocks had been shorted by Wall Street.
Many first-time investors were empowered to participate because the scheme provided a reprieve from the isolating nature of the pandemic, as well as the easy access to buying and selling stocks made possible through smartphone apps. Because individual investors caused GameStop’s stock to surge, many Wall Street investors who had placed wagers that the stock would fall lost significant amounts of money.
We speak with Jim Angel, an associate professor of finance at Georgetown University, about how the recent influx of individual investors from Reddit could affect the future of the stock market. Questions? Call us at 866-893-5722.
Guests:
Katie Greifeld, markets reporter for Bloomberg who’s been following this; she tweets
James ‘Jim’ Angel, associate professor of finance at Georgetown University; he tweets
As Lockdown Nears Year Mark, We Look Back At The Impact Of Diminished Physical Touch
We’ve all given up a lot this year, whether it’s our ability to move freely outside, our privacy or financial stability.
Touch may seem like it’s low down on the list of sacrifices the pandemic has forced us to make, but human touch is vitally important to our physical and mental wellbeing. As reported on in The Guardian, human beings have evolved to need touch, especially in times of high stress. And yet the pandemic has meant that many of us have given up both intimate and casual forms of touch, and those who are locked down alone haven’t hugged or touched anyone in almost a year.
We dive into the health implications. Plus, we want to hear from you - how has your relationship to human touch altered in the last year?
Guests:
Katalin Gothard M.D., professor of physiology, neurology and neuroscience at the University of Arizona Health Sciences; she is the principal investigator of the Gothard Lab, where she leads a team of neuroscientists and trainees studying the brain activity that underlies emotional and social behaviors
Marian L. Houser, communication studies professor at Texas State University and co-founder of Living Mental Wellness, a holistic mental wellness training program