Activists in Pasadena and Inglewood are pushing rent control initiatives in order to quell LA's persistent rent spikes. KPCC's Josie Huang lays out the story as AirTalk guests debate its pro's and con's. We also examine popular dating app Bumble's foray into online business networking; delve into why the DOJ believes Harvard University to be discriminating against Asian-Americans; and more.
Is a career comeback possible for Louis C.K., Bill O’Reilly, Charlie Rose?
News elder statesman Charlie Rose became the latest powerful man to fall from grace over sexual misconduct allegations.
Eight women spoke to the Washington Post about their experiences of harassment while working for Rose.
As claims of workplace sexual harassment multiply, could media and TV personalities like Louis C.K., Bill O’Reilly and others ever contemplate a comeback?
Guest:
Jeremy Barr, reporter for The Hollywood Reporter who covers media and politics; he tweets
A popular dating app wants to give women more control in job networking
Dating app Bumble is branching out into professional networking – with an extra safety measure to prevent the kind of sexual harassment found on other networking sites like LinkedIn.
The new feature, Bumble Bizz, allows users to make a professional profile with their career aspirations and past jobs to find possible connections in their area. Just like Bumble’s dating feature, if a man and a woman both swipe right and match on Bumble Bizz, only the woman can start the conversation. If the match is between two people of the same sex, either party can message first.
This is not Bumble’s first excursion out of the dating app territory. In March 2016, it launched Bumble BFF to help its users meet new, platonic friends in their geographical location rather than romantic partners.
Still, Bumble’s move to serve as a tool for a user’s personal and professional lives is intriguing. As more high-profile allegations of sexual harassment come out every day, often from women seeking mentorship from prominent men in their field, could Bumble Bizz make networking safer for women? Or will its primary identity as a dating app further blur the line between who is a professional contact and who is a romantic prospect?
Guests:
Meghna Virick, director of the School of Management at San Jose State University’s Lucas College of Business
Fred Feinberg, professor of marketing at University of Michigan; he researches dating sites and dating apps
DOJ investigating Harvard affirmative action policies against Asian-Americans
The Department of Justice is officially investigating Harvard’s admission practices after multiple complaints filed against the university alleging discrimination against Asian-American applicants.
The complaints were filed in 2014 and alleged that Harvard disadvantages Asian students by putting a cap on how many they admit, which they say violates civil rights laws.
Affirmative action proponents have pushed back, arguing that the policies actually benefit Asian students and that Asian-Americans should ally themselves with minority groups that support affirmative action to ensure diversity.
In the past Harvard has stated that its admissions protocols are in line with legal precedent.
Are Harvard’s admissions policies disadvantaging Asian students? What does the investigation mean for the future of affirmative action?
Guests:
Melissa Korn, higher education reporter for The Wall Street Journal; she tweets
Ilya Shapiro, senior fellow in constitutional studies at the libertarian Cato Institute and editor-in-chief of the Cato Supreme Court Review; he tweets
Paul Watanabe, Ph.D., professor of political science and director at the Institute for Asian American Studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston
Pasadena, Inglewood want rent control. But is that the best way to control high rents?
Amidst the backdrop of the housing crisis and rising rents, activists in Inglewood and Pasadena have decided to present their respective cities’ voters with rent control initiatives.
As reported by KPCC’s Josie Huang, activists in Inglewood filed a petition for a ballot initiative in October, saying that without rent control their community members will not be able to afford housing.
Developers are pushing back, arguing that the solution to the housing crisis is to build more housing – and that rent control dissuades developers from creating more units.
Activists in other cities are following similar paths, with those in Long Beach aiming to re-file a petition in a few weeks and Glendale activists planning to put an initiative on the 2018 ballot.
As neighborhoods gentrify and rents go up, what is the best solution for keeping communities intact? What about to solve the housing crisis and create more units? Can housing problems be addressed alongside rent control?
Guests:
Josie Huang, KPCC correspondent covering housing and changing neighborhoods; she’s been following the story
J.W. Mason, assistant professor of economics at John Jay College, CUNY and fellow at the Roosevelt Institute, national public policy think-tank where his research includes the evolution of household debt and changing role of financial markets in business debt
Fred Sutton, director of Government Affairs at the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles, an advocacy organization for the multifamily housing industry