Examining Fallout At NPR Following Editor’s Essay Criticizing Coverage
Recently longtime NPR business desk editor Uri Berliner penned an essay for the news website The Free Press criticizing his employers overall coverage in recent years, saying the “network lost its way when it started telling listeners how to think”. The essay was published April 9, in the days following Berliner has spoken with the New York Times, NewsNation and most recently NPR about his essay, backlash he’s received publicly, as well as NPRs internal reaction. In an interview with NPRs David Folkenflik, whom Berliner has helped edit in the past, it was revealed Berliner was suspended for 5 days without pay beginning Friday April 12. NPR also threatened to fire Berliner in a formal rebuke letter which it is calling a “final warning”. On Wednesday Berliner resigned from NPR, a day before his suspension was scheduled to end.
Here to talk about NPR, Uri Berliner, and the public media fallout is David Folkenflik, media correspondent for NPR News. His recent piece for NPR is titled ‘NPR suspends veteran editor as it grapples with his public criticism’. Have questions about the state of public media, NPR, or how NPR has reacted to Uri Berliner’s comments? Give us a call at 866-893-5722 or email us at atcomments@laist.com.
LA County Board Approves Overhaul Of Apartment Inspections And Code Enforcement
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has unanimously voted to increase apartment inspections and withhold rent payments from negligent landlords, a vote that comes years after initial plans to overhaul enforcement of healthy housing standards were first introduced. The 5-0 vote Tuesday sets up a Rental Housing Habitability Program to inspect all apartments in unincorporated parts of L.A. County at least once every four years, a significant change from previous standards. Landlords who repeatedly fail to fix code violations could have their properties placed into a Rent Escrow Account Program until they make repairs. Joining us today on AirTalk to discuss the overhaul is LAist housing reporter, David Wagner, Senior Vice President of Public Affairs for the California Apartment Association, Fred Sutton and director of organizing and advocacy at SAJE, Oscar Zarate.
Read the full LAist story here.
Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall Will Continue Operating, Stakeholders Comment
A state board that oversees correctional facilities decided last Thursday to allow Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall in Downey to continue to house incarcerated young people; the Board of State and Community Corrections’s evaluation was that the juvenile hall had met the minimum requirements on staffing levels and safety checks. In making the decision, the Board of State and Community Corrections also found that the Los Angeles County Probation Department's efforts to meet use-of-force training and other requirements were improving. This follows the state regulatory body’s notice in February that the correctional hall would need to close if these demands weren’t met.
Today on AirTalk, we update listeners on how the juvenile hall got to this point with LAist mental health reporter Robert Garrova. We also hear from Jonathan Byrd, 2nd Vice President & Chief Steward for the L.A. County Deputy Probation Officers' Union, and Milinda Kakani, Youth Justice Director for Children's Defense Fund – California.
With files from LAist; read Robert’s latest story here.
We reached out to the L.A. County Probation Office, but they were unable to provide a representative to join the program.
What Would America Look Like With A Parliament?
The challenges facing American democracy are all-too apparent these days: our deeply polarized two-party system has led to legislative gridlock that only serves to drive Republicans and Democrats further and further apart. According to constitutional law professor Maxwell L. Stearns, we’re in a constitutional crisis. But, he argues, it doesn’t have to be this way. In his new book, Parliamentary America: The Least Radical Means of Radically Repairing Our Broken Democracy, he proposes three constitutional amendments that would bring America in line with successful democracies around the world by introducing a parliamentary system of government to the House of Representatives. The changes he advocates for would bring about a multi-party system, where people could vote for candidates who better align with their values, and elected representatives would form governing coalitions. This, he says, would yield a more moderate, less polarized political body which could work to negotiate and compromise. Joining us to discuss his new book is Maxwell L. Stearns, professor of law at the University of Maryland’s Carey School of Law.
