A friendly debate on who will win Super Bowl XLIX, Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez introduces employee rights for cheerleaders, Disney's first Hispanic princess.
The argument for - and against - the Keystone XL Pipeline
The Keystone XL Pipeline would take crude oil from the tar sands in Canada through Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska and connect to existing pipelines that carry oil to refineries on the Gulf Coast.
The Senate on Thursday night passed a bill forcing its approval, even though President Obama has threatened to veto it. The House approved a similar bill earlier.
The argument over the pipeline has gotten increasingly heated over the last five years and as, Coral Davenport writes in the New York Times, "has become a proxy for far broader fights over climate change, energy and the economy."
Environmentalist have seized on it, and attacked the project, arguing the process of extracting oil form the Canadian tar sands is expensive and energy intensive. Those in favor say the Keystone XL will create a lot of jobs and pump billions into the economy.
Davenport says there is a little truth to each argument but that most experts agree that the effects, should the pipeline happen, will be negligible when it comes to the job market or climate change.
Boy Scouts settle Santa Barbara sex abuse case
A 20-year-old man who says he was molested by a Scout volunteer as a teen has settled with the Boy Scouts of America.
CA bill would protect NFL cheerleaders under state wage law
For all the money spent on stadiums and salaries for players and coaches in the NFL, very little money goes to the cheerleaders on the sidelines. Teams often don't consider them employees, and many don't even make minimum wage.
California Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, a former college-level cheerleader herself, introduced legislation yesterday that would require professional sports teams to provide cheerleaders with the same rights and benefits as other employees.
Disney reveals first Hispanic princess, Princess Elena of Avalor
For years, Disney has been criticized for not addressing diversity in its animated characters, especially their princesses.
So when headlines emerged Thursday that the Mouse House was introducing its first Hispanic princess, there was a lot of rejoicing.
Well, now it turns out, she may not quite be Latina after all. Disney has not specified that Princess Elena is Hispanic, but rather that she's "inspired by diverse Latin cultures and folklore."
Wendy Carrillo, writer for The Flama, the first digital network for English-speaking Hispanic millennials, explains more.
What do you think of Disney's Elena of Avalor? Comment below!
KPCC's Rebecca Plevin answers your measles questions
We've been following the measles outbreak that started at the Disney theme parks last month, and the number of cases keep ticking up.
Last week, we solicited audience questions about the measles. This week, KPCC's health reporter and resident measles expert Rebecca Plevin answers some of them.
Should you avoid your physician's office if you have a child who's too young to be vaccinated?
It is true that measles is extremely contagious. Experts say that measles can linger in the air for an hour or two after an infectious person has left the room. Dr. Eric Handler, who's the Orange County public health officer, says it's fine to take your kids to the doctor because agencies have been telling people that if they thing they or their child has measles. Individuals should call the doctor first and let them them know that they will be coming. Then, most primary care doctors should have protocols in place to separate the people who are suspected cases of measles from the general population.
Should you avoid flying or going to crowded places if you have a baby?
In this case Dr. Handler says that measles is circulating around Orange County, circulating around a lot of Southern California communities right now so anywhere that's enclosed and crowded is a measles risk for infants who are too young to be vaccinated and other people who are unvaccinated.
What about if your child just has one of their MMR shots. Should they stay away from Disneyland if they haven't had their second shot?
Last week, the state epidemiologist said anyone who's unvaccinated should avoid Disneyland and other crowded places. If you're vaccinated, you should be fine. But with one dose of the MMR shot, the vaccine is considered to be about 95 percent effective. And a clarification about the shots: Most kids get their first dose at 12 to 15 months. A child can get the second dose four weeks after that, but it's usually given before the youngster starts kindergarten, sometime between ages 4 and 6.
What's the difference in symptoms and severity experienced by vaccinated children versus unvaccinated children who come down with the measles?
The classic symptoms of the measles are fever, runny nose, cough and red eyes. A few days later, people develop a rash that starts at the head and travels downward. The disease can become severe.
Among kids under age 5, 30 percent will be hospitalized. About one child out of every 1,000 who gets measles will develop encephalitis, or swelling of the brain. And for every 1,000 kids who get it, one or two will die. But among kids and adults who are vaccinated? Dr. Handler told me their symptoms are milder, and they're not as infectious. He says people who were vaccinated, and contracted measles, are not passing the disease onto others.
If you're vaccinated, can you carry the virus on your clothes or hair to other those who are not vaccinated?
Dr. Handler says, yes, that's possible, but measles is most infectious when it's airborne. So unvaccinated people are more likely to contract the disease from people who are already infectious.
Check out Rebecca's measles FAQ for additional information and where to get vaccinated.
Do you have questions we haven't answered? Let us know in the comments, on our Facebook page or on Twitter (@KPCC or @TakeTwo).
Disturbing new data on LA County’s unsolved homicides
Almost half of homicide cases go unsolved in Los Angeles County, leaving family members and loved ones with few answers to their grief.
The numbers have been revealed as part of the Getting Away with Murder project by the L.A. News Group. Reporters gathered and examined murder cases committed in L.A. County from January 2000 to December 2010.
But it's the personal stories that really bring the severity of the unsolved crimes to light, like Margaret Gutierrez-Ramirez. Her son, Tony, was shot and killed at a party in 2002. He was 17.
"I wanted to committ suicide when Tony died. It was so hard. And nobody knows. Everybody can say, 'I feel for you,' or I've had people say, 'You're still mourning? It's been 12 years!' and I'm like, you don't understand," she told reporters.
Frank Girardot is a senior editor with the L.A. News Group, which includes the L.A. Daily News and Pasadena Star News. He joins Take Two with more.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS:
What inspired you and your colleagues to take on this gruesome subject?
"Well the voice you just heard – Margaret Gutierrez Ramirez – is actually the inspiration for much of the project, especially her son Tony. About three years ago she sent me a series of text messages, unsolicited, describing her pain and her family's pain at Tony’s death. Tony was a good kid, teenager, wrestler in high school, went to a party in a neighborhood near his own. Things got out of hand at the party. Tony was leaving the party and ran into some guys who were intent on killing people, and unfortunately Tony died. One of the striking things that his mother said at that time was she didn’t know if she should have taught her son to duck and cover. So that happened in 2002 and she reached out to me nearly a decade later, and police had no answers about her son, whom she called Lil Tony. She asked me if I would look into it and I said sure. When I did, I realized, there must be a lot of Lil Tonys out there. Well, it turns out that between 2000 and 2010, there's 4,682 Lil Tonys and Lil Michaels and Lil Antonias. The scope of unsolved murder in Los Angeles County is astounding."
Each case is an individual case, an individual story with a real human being. But as you looked at all of these numbers broadly, what were some of the themes that emerged to you?
"We found out a couple of things. No. 1 I think, and critically, was that people of color, Latinos and blacks, are far less likely to have their homicide cases solved than whites or even Asians. We found that men were less likely to have their murders solved than women, and that police departments handled homicides in a variety of different ways. Some were very adamant that they weren't going to close a case until there was a prosecution. Others, like the Los Angeles Police Department specifically, were more willing to close cases for what they called 'other reasons.' And those other reasons can range from they're identified a suspect who's dead to they've identified a suspect who’s in Mexico. So there's all these themes in this data that's running through it, but the main theme is that there are all these grieving families out there in search of an answer, and they haven't really been able to grasp on to anything that will give them comfort or hope."
What are some things that keep a homicide from being resolved?
"Well, police and experts will tell you that witness participation is critical. And in a lot of these gang cases, and the gang cases make up the bulk of these unsolved homicides, witnesses are reluctant to participate, and because of that reluctance, police are never able to put together a case. If you don't have a witness, how can you say who did it?"
Missing Mexican students declared dead, families skeptical
Mexico has announced 43 missing students were killed, and the government has halted the search for them. Daniel Hernandez of VICE explains more.
Dr. Mae Jemison wants to inspire kids to learn and explore
Ahead of her Feb. 1 appearance at Forest Lawn, Dr. Mae Jemison, the first woman of color in space, talks about the space shuttle Endeavor, inspiring young minds and figuring out how to send humans to other star systems.
Ecuador makes history with Super Bowl ad
This Superbowl Sunday, if you can take a break from the action, you might be surprised to see a commercial promoting tourism in Ecuador among the countless beer and car ads.
It's the first time a foreign country airs a tourism commercial during the Super Bowl. The ad cost the Andean nation $3.8 million, but it expects it will increase tourism from the U.S.
Maria Cecilia Arboleda, the counsel for the Ecuadorian Consulate in Los Angeles, said one destination tourist should visit are the Galapagos Islands.
Anti-domestic abuse ad to air during Super Bowl Sunday
The NFL has come under fire lately for not taking the issue of domestic abuse among its players seriously.
Now the league says it wants to buck that perception so they're donating some of their airtime this Superbowl Sunday to an anti-domestic violence public service announcement.
One of the ads airing this Sunday comes from the No More, a public awareness campaign focused on ending domestic violence and sexual assault.
Ultraviolet, a women's advocacy group, has also put out an online campaign about domestic abuse and football. This one not so subtle
Rama Yelkur, Dean of the College of Business and Management at Saginaw State University in Michigan, said this is a good time for the NFL to make good on past incidents the audience didn't agree with.
Weekend on the cheap: Taylor Swift, Super Bowl Sunday and a bowling alley bike crawl
Many of us will be watching the big game Sunday but there's plenty to do if that's not your thing.
We’re joined by KPCC’s social media producer,
, who writes a weekly column on cheap events happening in SoCal and she’s here to help us plan our weekend.
To read her full weekend guide of fun and almost-free things to do, click here.
Correction: We previously reported that Golden Road Brewing is opening up its back room, Chloe's. It will not be open to the public Super Bowl Sunday. We regret the error.
'Boogaloo and Graham': 2 boys, 2 chickens, one Oscar nod
Everybody likes to talk about who’ll win Best Picture at the Oscars, but what about those unsung cinematic heroes who make movies less than 40 minutes long?
One such film is the Oscar-nominated "Boogaloo and Graham," directed by Michael Lennox. Set in 1970s Belfast, the story focuses on two young boys, Jamesy and Malachy (played by Riley Hamilton and Aaron Lynch), and their beloved pet chickens, Boogaloo and Graham.
Boogaloo and Graham Trailer from Out of Orbit on Vimeo.
Director Michael Lennox joined Take Two for a conversation about the film.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS:
You broke an unwritten Hollywood rule that says avoid kids and animals. You made it work, but how much work was it?
"Whenever you're working with children and animals your expectations sort of go out the window, you don't really know what to expect. But I can honestly say one hundred percent, it was the most enjoyable shoot I'd ever been on... the chickens were great, they did what they were told. The kids are non-actors so with that you get a sense of innocence and naturalness on the screen, and when it works it just really is a treasure."
I was going to ask how much experience the kids had... It looks [like] they're seasoned, veteran child actors. But they had no experience?
"Yeah well especially the younger one Riley [Hamilton], I actually found him in a kickboxing gym. Because sometimes over in Northern Ireland, I auditioned a lot of kids and they go to stage school and sometimes that doesn't work particularly well for the screen.
So I went into this kickboxing club and saw Riley arguing with his mother at the side, and he told her in no uncertain terms, this is how my evening is going to work out. And I just said that's him, that's the kid, whatever he is doing, it is right there right in front of me. So I just said to him, 'Do you want to be in a movie?' And he turned around to me and was like, 'Well how many days am I going to get off school?' That was his contract, and I was like, 'You get four days off.' And he just looked at me and goes, 'That's a deal.' [laughs] So it was just, who he was as an individual is exactly the character in the script. So my job was just to let him run free and do his thing."
What was it about the script that got you interested?
"Well Ronan Blaney, who wrote the script... he actually penned it two years ago. And I just found it extremely funny and charming, but also poignant. The Troubles in Northern Ireland was a very important historical event, and I thought this story was a different take on it. And hopefully it's a universal story. You know what I mean, there's conflict all over the world. But for me, it was the sort of small stories which happen behind closed doors about family, and the sort of madness of family life that sort of happens in any conflict... And Ronan, I think his script with the charm and humor, just seemed to represent that. And it was a dream for me as a director to get a chance to do it."