Today, we talk with attorney Kenneth Feinberg on how he will decide what GM switch victims' lives are wort. Then, ousted Dov Charney hints at a fight for control of American Apparel. Plus, soccer's rising in the U.S., but can it break into the big leagues? Mosquito-borne Chikingunya virus spreading to the Americas, Brazilian hip-hop artist Emicida captures youth culture in Sao Paulo and much more.
Will ousted Dov Charney fight for control of American Apparel?
Seems that Dov Charney, the former head of American Apparel, has a few more tricks up his sleeve.
Recently the company's board of directors voted to replace him, because of allegations of misconduct. Now representatives for Charney disclosed yesterday that he's spent more than $19 million to buy more shares in the company, almost doubling his share of the company. Industry insiders believe that he is gearing up for a fight for control of the company.
Matt Townsend is a reporter for Bloomberg and he's been writing about it, and we asked him about Charney and what he might be able to do.
How Kenneth Feinberg will decide what GM switch victims' lives are worth
Earlier this week, GM announced its plan to compensate the injured and families of those killed in accidents linked to Chevrolet Cobalts with defective ignition switches.
About 150,000 of those recalled vehicles were registered in California, and in some cases payouts could reach up to several million dollars per victim. But how do you put a price tag on pain and suffering, or a life lost due to a company's mistake?
In GM's case, the company turned to attorney Kenneth Feinberg. In the past, Feinberg also managed compensation funds for the victims of 9/11, the BP Gulf oil spill, and the Boston Marathon bombing.
He joins Take Two's Alex Cohen to explain how he's become the guy to determine who gets what after a tragedy or accident.
6 members of LA County Sheriff Dept. found guilty of obstruction in FBI case
On Tuesday, six current and former members of the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department were found guilty of obstructing justice during an FBI investigation in inmate abuse in the city's jail system.
They now face up to 15 years in federal prison. Back in May, a jury was hung on whether or not a seventh member of the department was guilty of the same crime. With Tuesday's victory, prosecutors could move forward with further investigation.
Miriam Krinsky is the executive director of L.A. County's Citizens' Commission on Jail Violence. She joins us to talk about what Tuesday's verdict means and looks ahead to the future of the sheriffs department.
Newly discovered building remains may be linked to old LA Times offices
Construction and development towards the expansion of Grand Park in downtown Los Angeles found a possible link to Los Angeles a century ago.
Workers recently uncovered parts of a building structure near the old Los Angeles Times building of the late 19th and early 20th century. The building was destroyed in 1910 after a pro-union militant set a bomb nearby that detonated hours after the planned time. The bomb started a massive fire that took the lives of 21 people and left the Los Angeles Times offices in ruin.
Nathan Masters, a writer with USC Libraries specializing in Los Angeles history, joins us to share his perspective on whether or not the remains are from the old building and what the L.A. Times buildings at 1st and Broadway can tell us about the past.
You can view more pictures of the old Los Angeles Times building site shot by Hunter Kerhart.
Quest for California fireworks tax fizzles out
It's nearly July 4th, and all across the state, people are stocking up on fireworks.
Those fireworks could have become more expensive, due to a tax increase Governor Brown had pushed as part of his budget plan. But, as the California Report's Scott Detrow reports, the proposal drew some political fireworks of its own and then fizzled out.
Sports Roundup: World Cup, Barry Bonds, Dodgers and more
Will the United States slip into a 4-year soccer slumber? Barry Bonds gets one more swing at the Justice Department and will the sun set on Chicago's Wrigley Field? For the answers to these burning sports questions we turn to ESPN writers Andy and Brian Kamenetzky.
The U.S. and Belgium played a thriller yesterday but the Americans fell 2-1 to end their World Cup run. Goalie Tim Howard was the big star with 16 saves. Did Americans have a fun summer fling with soccer or is this the start of a lasting and meaningful relationship?
U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann did warn everyone that they would not win the World Cup. But was their stay in Brazil a success?
Remember Barry Bonds? Baseball's single season and all-time homerun leader? He's back with plans to take another swing...just not on the field.
The Justice Dept. spent $120 million chasing after Bonds and only got an obstruction of justice conviction. They also went after Roger Clemens and got nothing on him as he was found not guilty on six counts of lying to Congress about using steroids. Looking back, was it worth it?
After a sleepy April and May, the Dodgers woke up in June and are jockeying with the Giants for first place in the National League West. How have the Dodgers done it?
The Chicago Cubs have long been America's lovable losers. They haven't won a World Series in over a century and Brian, Red Sox slugger David Ortiz thinks he knows why?
Soccer's rising in the US, but can it break into the big leagues?
The U.S. may be out of the World Cup, but the team's exciting run brought renewed attention to soccer here. For the time being, other sports such as basketball and football still retain top billing, both with fans and commercial interests.
But could that change?
Perhaps the strongest indicator is growth in the country's professional soccer league.
"I think it's fair to say that Major League Soccer is booming," Mike Woitalla, executive editor of Soccer America magazine, said on Take Two. "There are 19 teams now and they're going to be up to 21 in 2015."
That growth also extends to the business side.
"Attendance is averaging about 18,000 and almost half the teams are being valued around $100 million," says Woitalla. "That's the kind of money that new franchises are paying to get in the league."
Some big name signings — French player Thierre Henry, Brazilian star Kaká and the return to the U.S. of American players Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley after stints in Europe — a growing, younger audience and a recent big TV deal with Fox, ESPN and Univision all add up for a bright future, says Woitalla.
Still, the sport still lags behind other traditionally-popular sports like basketball and football. As journalist Rick Newman writes, both a financial and cultural divide could hold soccer back from breaking out after the World Cup. He points out that an NFL team is still worth 17 times as much as a professional soccer team, despite the $100 million figure.
Whether soccer can really compete in the big leagues will take time to see.
"It has to be attractive, it has to be entertaining," says Woitalla. "It has to offer something that the other sports don't."
Buses carrying migrants to Murietta processing center met by protesters
Since October of last year, more than 52,000 unaccompanied children have been detained while attempting to enter the U.S. Some of those recently apprehended were flown to San Diego yesterday by the Department Homeland Security.
As they were driven to a processing center in Murietta, a small San Diego suburb, they were met by crowds of protestors. For more on the events that unfolded, we're joined by KPBS's Mark Sauer
First Lady Evolution: Role model and sex symbol?
We expect our first lady to be a regal, a maternal figure and to present herself in a business-like manner, but also be someone we can relate to.
But do we really want her to be herself? Mexico's first lady, Angelica Rivera, has caused a stir for doing just that, in striking a decidedly declarative — some call "sexy" — pose on the cover of this month's Marie Claire for Latin America.
The Washington Post's Fashion Critic Robin Givhan joins Take Two to talk about first ladies' evolving roles and how their public personas are changing.
App Chat: How to play laser tag with your iPhone on July 4
It's going to be warm and sunny July 4th weekend, and with the holiday falling on a Friday, it's a great opportunity to take a long weekend and spend it outdoors.
Whether that means hiking a mountain or hiking to Space Mountain, there are apps out there to help you make the most out of Independence Day. Yes patriots, it's time for App Chat with Take Two's Jacob Margolis.
This fun app turns whatever space you're in, into a virtual laser tag arena. Fire up the app and pair up with two or three other foes and it puts you into an arena with obstacles that you have to move your little guy around to shoot at other people.
While you're navigating on the screen, you're also running around in real life shooting at people with your phone. If the digital bullet hits them, it takes down their health. To dodge bullets from other players you simply move in real life
It's free and it turns a park space into a load of fun. The downside? I wish that the bullets moved faster so that it was a bit more refined.
This app lets you discover what sort of outdoor activities are around you. The back story is that two friends were driving across the U.S. and wanted to do outdoorsy things, but didn't have any good/reliable way to do so. They decided to make this app and began to source local knowledge about each place.
There are more than 70 things in their app for Los Angeles. So, let's say you're in Pasadena and you're interested in going hiking. You plug in those fields and it pulls up a trail up to Mt. Lukens, which is the highest point in the city of Los Angeles.
The app tells you where the hike is, where it starts and it provides some local knowledge. For instance, that the trail that leads up to Lukens is often used as training for people who want to go climb Mt. Whitney.
It also covers things like mountain biking, fishing, where to get food, where to go paddle boarding.
The downside is that it isn't extensive enough yet. The stuff on there looks fun, but there are some big holes. If you want to fill those holes you can also check out the app All Trails, if it's just local trails you're looking for.
This is a recipe management app that lets you clip recipes from the web, create shopping lists and schedule meals for different days of the week. It's great for planning for the 4th of July. If you pay for the different services on different platforms, you can sync the recipes to your iPad, iPhone and computer. It's become a life saving program that's kept me organized.
With this app you can input your steak's description, including thickness and how you want it done. Everything's illustrated with pictures. You can even set multiple timers for multiple steaks.
Shrimp farming in Thailand often comes at the cost of human lives
Shrimp is the most popular seafood consumed in the United States, but until recently, little has been known in detail about human rights violations in Thailand involving fisheries linked to shrimp production.
Workers have been enslaved, forced to work long hours under inhumane conditions, and beaten or killed for their refusal or rebellion.
Felicity Lawrence is a special correspondent for The Guardian and took part in a six month investigation on the inhumane treatment of enslaved workers in Thailand. She joins us to share her findings and what consumers can do to help.
Brazilian hip-hop artist Emicida captures youth culture in Sao Paulo
Brazil is known for great soccer, great beaches and samba music.
Now the artist Emicida is putting Brazilian hip-hop on the world map as well, raising hot topics such as poverty, wealth and social progress in his music. One of his latest songs is called, "Levante e Anda," ("Get Up, Stand Up"), and the video opens with a shot of a barefoot child sitting on a soccer ball on a dirt field.
"It's a biographical song about Emicida and his brother growing up in the ghetto of Sao Paulo," says reporter Lucia Duncan, who recently interviewed Emicida in his recording studios. "The lyrics talk about the importance of having a dream and a plan to get ahead in life."
For Emicida, much of his plan has to do with harnessing the possibilities of new technology in order to reach a broader audience.
"In Brazil in the last 10 years we've seen that the Internet is different than TV. You decide what you want to consume," he says in Portuguese. "And this has revolutionized hip-hop. It has revolutionized ghetto culture in general."
Emicida and his brother's record label, Laboritorio Fantasma, is an example of a more independent and more entrepreneurial-minded form of hip-hop that's emerging in Brazil, says Duncan.
"The hip-hop scene in Sao Paulo is in the process of reinventing itself," Duncan told Take Two. Brazilian hip-hop used to copy the sound from the U.S., but is now starting to introduce other elements, such as funk or samba, and open up to provide a platform for female artists.
For Emicida, this progress is linked to addressing a long history of social ills in his country, Brazil, such as slavery and exclusion. But that takes time.
"We've got a 500-year-history of cruelty, lots of inequality," he says. "We can't fix all that in 15 or 10 years."
How the Internet is driving a music biz boom in Latin America
The music scene in Brazil and across Latin America right now is experiencing huge growth. The region once considered a backwater when it comes to the music business is now a hotbed of activity.
For more, we're joined by Justino Aguila, associate editor of Latin and special features at Billboard Magazine.