What a candidate's media strategies reveal, minority entrepreneurs capitalize on what could be a tremendous market for pot, immersive VR's influence on decision making.
Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump's media strategies say a lot about the candidates
Over the past two weeks, Hillary Clinton has made just two public appearances. Donald Trump has made nine.
It's been about 270 days since Clinton last held a press conference. In that time, Trump has held 17.
Each campaign has a plan for getting their candidate to the White House: both involve traditional and digital media.
But what they do and how they do it reveals a lot about the nature of the presidential contenders. For a look at the strategies, Take Two spoke to David Karpf. He's an associate professor of media and public affairs at George Washington University.
Press the blue play button above to hear the full interview.
Helping minorities cash in on the pot biz: It's 'not just selling weed'
This fall, California votes on whether to legalize recreational marijuana.
And if Prop 64 passes-- that's the Adult Use of Marijuana Act-- Virgil Grant wants to make sure minorities like himself will benefit.
That's why he co-founded the California Minority Alliance. Its goal is to help minority entrepreneurs start businesses in the marijuana industry.
Grant got into the medical marijuana business early on, but there haven't been many others who've done the same.
"You have 186 pre-ICO licenses in the city of Los Angeles," Grant says. "And you have three African Americans who own three out of the 186."
Pre-ICO licenses are ones for medical marijuana dispensaries that were set up before Los Angeles passed an Interim Control Ordinance (ICO) in 2007 that prohibited any new medical marijuana dispensaries from opening in the city.
One big reason why more minorities haven't gotten into the marijuana industry already, Grant says, is because the traditional relationship between minorities and pot hasn't been a positive one.
According to the American Civil Liberties Union, while black and white people use pot in equal measure, African Americans are four times more likely to be arrested for pot possession.
For people who are interested in getting involved in the marijuana business now, Grant says there are a whole host of opportunities to get involved in-- from cultivation and manufacturing to ancillary businesses like web design and carpentry.
"When I say it's an industry, it's an industry," Grant says. "It's not just selling weed. Those days are over with."
To hear the full interview with Virgil Grant, click the blue player above.
The secret life of 'argots': 'Languages' created to exclude the general population
Here in Los Angeles, we're a diverse community and as a result, there's a variety of languages from all over the world you'll probably recognize, spoken throughout our streets.
But what if there were 'secret languages' meant to pass off as normal speech to exclude a larger group? Throughout history, there's evidence of 'anti-languages' or argots from underground societies but because they are shrouded in secrecy....documenting them has been difficult.
Lauren Collister, a sociolinguist at the University of Pittsburgh spoke to Take Two's A Martinez via Skype and explained what an 'Argot' is, examples of them and how they're studied.
To hear the full interview, click the blue play button above.
The toxic algae that's making rivers and lakes unsafe for dogs
Something to bear in mind if you are traveling with your dog this Labor Day weekend: Please, be very careful if your pooch likes to swim.
Here in California, an algae toxin known for killing animals within 20 to 30 minutes of exposure, has been detected in several lakes and rivers across the state.
For more, Beverley Anderson-Abbs, an environmental scientist for the State Water Resources Board, spoke with Take Two host Alex Cohen.
To hear the full interview, click the blue play button above.
Los Angeles Eco-Village aims for growth with new building
There's a city block in Koreatown that's unlike any other part of Los Angeles.
The people who live there are dedicated to reinventing how Angelenos live in the city, and they do that by living cooperatively and ecologically.
The Los Angeles Eco-Village has been around since 1993, and it's about to grow. The group is in the process of buying another adjacent building—an auto shop—and transforming it into a mixed-use building with business on the street level and "permanently affordable" apartments on the floors above. The community is meant to be car-free and they practice other environmentally friendly ways of living, including organic gardening.
It's all part of their mission: to demonstrate how to live sustainably and affordably in Los Angeles.
A Martinez spoke to Lois Arkin, one of the co-founders of the LA Eco-Village.
Click the blue audio interview to hear the full interview.
Can a Virtual Reality experience change how we make decisions?
Virtual Reality or VR devices like Google’s Oculus Rift and Samsung’s Gear VR are on their way to becoming on par with products like the video game console or even, the smartphone. The immersive experience of virtual reality tech can be an entertaining novelty, but could what we experience virtually effect us on a deeper level?
Real life experiences have a big influence on who we are, which leads some scientists to ask, can a virtual experience also change us?
For a look at some of the experimental applications of Virtual Reality, Take Two’s Alex Cohen spoke with Grace Ahn, Communications and Advertising Professor at the University of Georgia. She discussed her research on how a virtual reality experience can inform the decisions we make.
To hear the full interview click the blue play button above.
This dream metro map made CurbedLA drool
This November, LA County voters will vote on Measure M, also known as the Los Angeles Traffic Improvement Plan.
It would extend the half-cent sales tax that's currently funding transportation projects in the county. If passed, it's estimated to generate more than $850 million dollars a year. That's enough to make some public transit riders dream about how we'll get around LA in the future.
Adam Linder, a public transportation enthusiast, put his metro dreams in map form -- and it caught the attention of Curbed LA, which dubbed its detail "mesmerizing."
After that we was so inspired he drew up another dream map for 2090.
Heading up the California Coast? Check out AP's guide to nerd nirvana in Silicon Valley
It's Labor Day weekend. If you are heading out on a road trip, you might want to take some photographs of your trips - a couple of selfies to post on that Instagram feed of yours.
If you are headed to the San Francisco Bay Area, the AP's Mike Liedtke has a couple of suggestions for good photo ops, and they aren't the usual suspects. It's pretty much a tourist's guide to nerd Nirvana in Silicon Valley.
He joined Alex Cohen to talk about it.
To hear the whole interview, please click on the blue player above.
The Dish: For authentic Italian subs, head to Cortina's in Anaheim
Orange County is pretty well known for great, authentic Vietnamese, Mexican and Middle Eastern food.
Authentic Italian doesn't quite make the list, but that's what makes Cortina's Italian Market in Anaheim such a great find.
The family-owned deli has been around since 1963, serving up pizza, pasta and Italian sub sandwiches.
For the latest installment in our food series Summer Dish, we got a tutorial on one of Cortina's most popular sandwiches, the Cortina's Special, with co-owner Patrick DiDodo.
What you'll need to recreate the Cortina's Special at home:
- A fresh-baked Italian sub roll (Patrick notes: "none of that spongy stuff")
- Italian dressing
- Cotto salami
- Mortadella
- Capicola
- Provolone cheese
- Dry salami
- Shredded lettuce
- Tomatoes
- Onions
- Pepperocinis
Cortina's Italian Market & Pizzeria
2175 W Orange Avenue
Anaheim, CA 92804
Cortina's Italian Eatery
964 North Batavia Street
Orange, CA 92867
Summer concert series: Spend some time 'on the Green' at Newport Beach
All summer long, we've been bringing you all the best concert series from around Southern California. We've heard the soulful sounds from LACMA's jazz series, gone international with Skirball's sunset concerts and listened to music under the stars at 'Once Upon A Canyon Night' with LA environmental non-profit, Tree People.
We conclude the series today in Orange County. The final concert of Newport Beach's series 'Concerts on the Green' is next weekend - September 11th, but it will be back next summer.
For more on the line-up, unique venue and what's coming up next in the series, Lynn Selich, Newport Beach Arts Commission Chair, spoke to Take Two host Alex Cohen about the series.
To hear the full segment, click the blue play button above.