A look at Al-Mourabitoun, the terrorist network claiming responsibility for the Mali attack; the deal with GMO salmon; takeaways from KPCC's "Officer Involved" investigative project and TGI-FilmWeek
As hostages are rescued, Mali situation remains unresolved
Al-Mourabitoun, a militant jihadist group affiliated with al-Qaeda, has claimed responsibility for the attack on the Radisson Blu Hotel in Bamako, Mali today.
The number of fatalities varies from source to source. Reuters reports at least 27 are dead. At one time, 170 guests and around 30 employees were being held inside the Radisson.
Reports are that no more hostages are being held. However, special operations forces are reported to be engaging with terrorists in the hotel.
We hear from a reporter on the ground and talk with a terrorism analyst about the relationship between al-Qaeda and its affiliates in West Africa.
Guests:
, a journalist based in Bamako, Mali who has been reporting on the hostage situation for CNN and other media outlets
Chris Chivvis, Author of the forthcoming book “The French War on Al Qa’ida in Africa” (Cambridge University Press; November 27, 2015); Associate Director of the International Security and Defense Policy Center and a Senior Political Scientist at the RAND Corporation
‘Frankenfish’ gets FDA approval, puts consumer and environmental groups at odds
Ending a battle for approval that lasted for two decades, the FDA has approved a genetically-modified type of salmon for sale on store shelves, making it the first time the agency has approved a genetically-modified animal for sale to consumers.
What’s so special about this kind of salmon, you ask? It grows twice as fast as its non-genetically modified counterpart.
25 years ago, a Massachusetts-based lab called AquaBounty created a new gene to inject into fertilized salmon eggs, which speeds up their growth rate and means less time from egg to dinner plate. They’ve been trying ever since to get government approval for the gene.
The FDA says science and a comprehensive review informed their decision and that the fish is as safe and nutritious to eat as regular salmon. It will require the fish to be raised in contained, land-based tanks in Panama and Canada that will be inspected regularly.
Consumer and environmental groups have spoken out against the FDA’s decision, and some have even said they plan to sue the FDA to block its approval of the salmon.
Concerns are that approval of one GMO animal for sale could open the door for approvals of other GMO products. Others worry about the environmental impact that would occur if the GMO salmon were to escape into ocean waters and mated with wild Atlantic salmon.
Guests:
Gregory Jaffe, biotechnology project director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest
Michael Hansen, senior scientist with Consumers Union
‘Officer Involved’ reporters weigh in on solutions for shootings
It’s been ten days since KPCC released the results of our ‘Officer Involved’ investigation examining police-involved shootings in Los Angeles County.
Our reporters, editors, and data journalists spent months combing through statistics and official documents in order to create a database of every officer-involved shooting in L.A. County from 2010-2014.
Since then we’ve spoken with cops, criminologists, prosecutors, victims, and countless other stakeholders in the discussion about community policing. On AirTalk, we tackled issues like the reasons why African-Americans are shot at a rate three times higher than their population in Los Angeles County, and why officer-involved shootings often prove difficult for prosecutors to bring to court.
Our investigation may be winding down, but the discussion about community policing and how law enforcement and civilians coexist continues across the country. As we continue our own dialogue on community policing in Southern California, we’re looking at issues like how police can better utilize different, non-lethal forms of force such as TASERS, or what kinds of additional training would be useful for officers to learn more about things like de-escalation techniques and detecting implicit bias?
We often hear law enforcement suggest that if people would follow orders, they wouldn’t get shot. How much of the burden is on civilians to help police do their jobs more effectively? What are the ways we can continue to improve community policing?
Few at KPCC worked longer or harder on ‘Officer Involved’ than KPCC’s Annie Gilbertson and Frank Stoltze. They’ll join Larry today to talk about how we can apply what we’ve learned.
On Monday, November 30 at 7:30 p.m., the KPCC journalists on the project will share what they learned and open up a public discussion about this important issue. You can join them at the Japanese American National Museum in downtown L.A. RSVP for free at KPCC.org/forum
Guests:
Annie Gilbertson, KPCC investigative reporter
Frank Stoltze, KPCC criminal justice and public safety correspondent
FilmWeek: ‘The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2,’ ‘Carol’ and more
Larry Mantle and KPCC film critics Peter Rainer and Lael Loewenstein review this weekend’s new movie releases including the final part of “The Hunger Games” series, the heralded indie “Carol” starring Cate Blanchett, a promising Christmas comedy, “The Night Before,” and more. TGI-Filmweek!
Guests:
Lael Loewenstein, film critic for KPCC
Peter Rainer, film critic for KPCC and the Christian Science Monitor
Christy Lemire, host of YouTube’s “What the Flick?”
New biography delves into the life of scene-stealer Walter Brennan
Walter Brennan was one of Hollywood’s most memorable Hollywood character actors.
But more so than his scene-stealing turns, it was his distinctive voice that audiences young and old will remember, a voice that has come to symbolize the genre of the American Western.
Brennan played the career-defining role of Grandpa in “The Real McCoys,” but his life was much more than the sum of his contributions to the movie industry.
Author Carl Rollyson includes hundreds of personal stories retold by Brennan's family and friends in the western icon's first published biography.
Guest:
Carl Rollyson, author of “A Real American Character: The Life of Walter Brennan” (University Press of Mississipi, 2015)