Los Angeles Rams To Play In A Hometown Super Bowl After 20-17 NFC Championship Victory Over The San Francisco 49ers
The Los Angeles Rams were down double digits to in-state rivals the San Francisco 49ers as they entered the fourth quarter in Sunday’s NFC Championship game. However, three scoring drives and a big defensive stand turned the tide for the Rams, as they roared back to a 20-17 victory, and secured a spot in Super Bowl LVI on Sunday, February 13, at SoFi Stadium. After 54 consecutive Super Bowls without an NFL team playing in its home stadium, the Rams are now the second team to do it in two seasons, after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers broke the streak last year. The Rams will face the Cincinnati Bengals, who defeated the Kansas City Chiefs in an overtime thriller Sunday to win the AFC Championship. The Super Bowl will also be a face off between two starting quarterbacks who were both No. 1 overall picks: the Bengals’ Joe Burrow and the Rams’ Matthew Stafford.A lot of fun storylines to watch! Today on AirTalk, Larry breaks down Sunday’s championship games and looks ahead to the Super Bowl with Gary Klein, Rams staff writer for The Los Angeles Times and Tyler Dragon, reporter covering the NFL for USA Today’s Sports+.
With files from the Associated Press
Angel Stadium Land Sale Embroiled In Legal Challenges. What’s The Latest?
The land sale of Angel Stadium in Anaheim is up against a couple legal challenges that have the potential to sink the deal. A lawsuit filed on behalf of the People’s Homeless Task Force argues the city violated state law when negotiating aspects of the deal behind closed doors. Another challenge to the sale filed in December comes from the state housing agency. It argues the city violated another state law requiring the sale first be offered to affordable housing developers. Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu has defended the sale process. Today on AirTalk, Larry talks with Alicia Robinson, reporter for the Orange County Register and Jose Moreno, Anaheim city councilmember representing District 3, about where things stand and where they go from here.
We reached out to Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu’s office, but they declined an interview, citing the pending legal proceedings. The office shared a statement, which can be found in full here. It contradicts claims made by Councilmember Moreno in our interview regarding the decision-making process.
What The Ongoing Spotify/Joe Rogan Saga Means For The Music And On Demand Audio Industries
Following protests of Spotify kicked off by Neil Young over the spread of COVID-19 vaccine misinformation, the music streaming service said that it will add content advisories before podcasts discussing the virus.
In a post Sunday, Spotify chief executive Daniel Ek laid out more transparent platform rules given the backlash stirred by Young, who on Wednesday had his music removed from Spotify after the tech giant declined to get rid of episodes of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” which has been criticized for spreading virus misinformation. Ek said that the advisories will link to Spotify's fact-based COVID-19 hub in what he described as a “new effort to combat misinformation.” It will roll out in the coming days, Ek said. He did not specifically reference Rogan or Young. Rogan responded to the fallout on Sunday, saying in a video on Instagram that he was only seeking to have conversations on his podcast with people who have “differing opinions.” Rogan additionally welcomed the idea of adding advisories before podcasts related to COVID-19.
On Friday, Joni Mitchell said she is seeking to remove all of her music from Spotify in solidarity with Young. Earlier, hundreds of scientists, professors and public health experts asked Spotify to remove a Dec. 31 episode from “The Joe Rogan Experience” in which he featured Dr. Robert Malone, an infectious-disease specialist who has been banned from Twitter for spreading COVID-19 misinformation.
Today on AirTalk, Larry is joined by USC clinical professor of music industry Marc Goldstein and associate professor of law at Colorado University Kristelia Garcia to talk about Spotify's response, and what's next for the company and Rogan.
With files from the Associated Press
COVID-19 AMA: Moderna Vaccine Approval, Effectiveness Of Boosters, Cases Continue Decline, And More
In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with the director of Infectious Disease and Prevention at Huntington Hospital in Pasadena, Dr. Kimberly Shriner.
Topics today include:
- Moderna announces full U.S. approval for its COVID-19 vaccine
- New C.D.C. data shows the effectiveness of boosters
- L.A. County’s daily coronavirus cases continue dramatic decline, but death rate remains high
- Optimism at L.A. County’s nursing homes as coronavirus surge declines
- People who are boosted against COVID-19 will be exempt from San Francisco’s mask mandate in certain group settings
- New clues about who will develop Long COVID
- Omicron pushes health authorities toward learning to live with COVID-19
- Opinion: What we can learn from how the 1918 pandemic ended
Esports’ Popularity Is Exploding -- How Pro Sports Are Marketing To A New Generation Of Fans And Why A Career In Esports Isn’t Just A Pipe Dream Anymore
Earlier this month on AirTalk, we looked at the declining trend in youth sports participation and talked about some of the factors behind it, including increased interest among Gen Z in gaming and esports and the declining interest in watching pro sports. Leagues like the NBA and the NFL know the future of fandom for their sports relies heavily on being able to make fans out of Gen Zers before they become adults, and are trying to market to those potential fans on the digital platforms where they live, like Twitch, YouTube and Instagram. But while some parents might be horrified at the idea of their teenager saying they want to pursue a career in esports, the industry is evolving and there are an exponentially increasing number of opportunities in esports that don’t require you to be a professional gamer.
Today on AirTalk, we’ll speak with Emory University Marketing Professor Michael Lewis and Oklahoma University Director of Esports Michael Aguilar about why esports is exploding in popularity among Gen Z, how professional sports teams are trying to market to Gen Z on the digital platforms they frequent to try and make them fans and how the esports industry is growing into a viable career option beyond being a professional gamer.