After Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced today that his company will add 3,000 contractors to review reported content, AirTalk looks into the effect violent content can make on those policing it. Plus, James Comey's hearing on Capitol Hill; why social awkwardness might not be so bad; an update on the Southern California housing market; and more.
FBI head James Comey dismisses role in Clinton’s election loss
In an interview yesterday, Hillary Clinton blamed her loss on several factors, including FBI Director Jim Comey’s disclosure of State Department emails on Anthony Weiner’s computer.
Comey’s testifying now on Capitol Hill. He’s defending his disclosures as equitable for Clinton and Trump, but said he’s mildly nauseous the Clinton probe might’ve affected the election.
Guests:
Sean T. Walsh, Republican political analyst and partner at Wilson Walsh George Ross Consulting in San Francisco; he is a former adviser to California Governors Pete Wilson and Arnold Schwarzenegger and a former White House staffer for Presidents Reagan and H.W. Bush
Caroline Heldman, associate professor of politics at Occidental College and co-author of "Rethinking Madam President: Are We Ready for a Woman in the White House?" (Lynne Rienner Pub, 2007)
The science behind social awkwardness - and why it’s not such a bad thing
More and more, it feels like people are coming to terms with a simple fact: most of us are, at least a little, socially awkward.
Researchers have found that the average person exhibits 32% of the characteristics associated with being socially awkward. But is that such a bad thing?
That’s one of the many questions that Ty Tashiro tackles in his new book, “Awkward: The Science of Why We’re Socially Awkward, and Why That’s Awesome.” Among other findings, Tashiro reveals why awkward people tend to avoid eye contact, and why awkward people feel more alienated now than they did decades ago.
But there’s a silver lining, Tashiro argues, as we move to embrace quirks to help everyone more comfortably navigate this complex world.
Guest:
Ty Tashiro, psychologist and author of “Awkward: The Science of Why We’re Socially Awkward, and Why That’s Awesome” (William Morrow/HarperCollins, 2017)
Discussing the psychological toll on reviewers of violent Facebook content
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced in a post today that his company will add 3,000 contractors to review reported content on the social media site.
As reported by TechCrunch, this move comes on the heels of several high profile news stories about people who’ve posted violent content to the site. But with more than 1 billion Facebook users, workers will have an arduous task filtering out hate speech, nudity and malicious acts.
So what kind of psychological toll does reviewing this content take?
Guest:
Josh Constine, editor-at-large for TechCrunch; he’s been following the story; he tweets
SoCal housing market continues to sizzle, are we headed for another bubble?
Southern California’s housing market is hot right now, but that’s bad news for anyone looking to buy.
Inventory is low, and prices are still climbing. Data from real estate tracking company CoreLogic shows Los Angeles County home sales in March of this year are up 8.5 percent compared to March last year and the median home price is $549,000, more than $40,000 more than the same time in 2016. Overall, Southern California saw a nearly 8 percent growth in home sales in comparing March of this year to last.
Are we heading for another real estate bubble? Or are we already in one? Plus, what does the current and future landscape of foreign money, especially from China, look like in Southern California?
Guests:
Daren Blomquist, senior vice president at Attom Data Solutions, an Irvine-based real estate information company; he tweets
Noor Menai, president of CTBC Bank in Los Angeles, which specializes in working with Chinese immigrant businesses; he tweets
The exact moment you fell in love with LA
The amazing weather, the best food scene in the world, the ethnic diversity - those are the reasons why a lot of people love Los Angeles.
AirTalk wants to drill a little deeper to hear whether there was an exact moment you fell in love with the city. Was it when you first saw Downtown engulfed in Magic Hour light? Did your first trip to the Griffith Observatory seal the deal? Or was it love at first sight?
Call 866-893-5722 to let us know.
AirTalk Extra: Watch Larry talk about the LA Riots in this new National Geographic doc
Larry took to the air the night of April 30, 1992 to talk to experts and AirTalk listeners about the unfolding L.A. Riots.
Larry is featured in “Riot,” a new National Geographic documentary on the 25th anniversary on the events. Watch the follow excerpts as Larry talks about being on the air that night with AirTalk listeners, and the impact of the riots on LA.
‘Riot’ airs Wednesday, May 3rd, at 10 p.m. (PT), on the National Geographic Channel.