The underground press of the Sixties is often described as self-indulgent; critics said it “trampled the tenets of accuracy and fairness,” while the mainstream media of the era is often portrayed as bland and cautious, and as practicing a phony objectivity. That was not true of the newspaper landscape in Los Angeles. The LA Times was firmly and loudly right-wing, while the LA Free Press (the “Freep”), the first underground paper of the era, and the most successful, was often a voice of reason, albeit a passionate one. A simple comparison of the coverage of the 1965 Watts uprising reveals a great deal.. . .
Excerpt from “Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties,” continued at the LA Review of Books HERE
Verso Books and the LA Review of Books: Mike Davis, Jon Wiener and Tom Lutz talk about “Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties”
Please join us for the virtual book launch of Mike Davis and Jon Wiener’s new book, Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties. Joining Davis and Wiener in conversation is Tom Lutz, founder and editor-in-chief of Los Angeles Review of Books and author, most recently, of Born Slippy. They will discuss Set the Night on Fire and its many resonances for urban communities today, the recent effects of COVID-19 on Los Angeles, and take live questions from the audience.
Sponsored by Verso Books, Los Angeles Review of Books, and The Democratic Socialists of America Los Angeles.
What the Pentagon Knew about the Coronavirus—in 2017: Ken Klippenstein, plus Amy Wilentz on Jared and Laila Lalami on “The Other Americans”
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The Military Knew Years Ago That a Coronavirus Was Coming. The Pentagon warned the White House about a shortage of ventilators, face masks, and hospital beds in 2017, according to a document obtained by Ken Klippenstein, The Nation’s Washington Correspondent – but of course Trump ignored the warning.
Also: Jared Kusher has a new job on the White House coronavirus task force—and Ivanka is at home, reading “The Odyssey” and playing the guitar. Amy Wilentz comments – she’s our Chief Jared Correspondent.
Plus: Nation columnist Laila Lalami talk about her novel “The Other Americans”–it’s about the suspicious death of a Moroccan immigrant in a small town in California. It’s a family saga, a murder mystery, and a love story. And it’s out now in paperback. 4-3-2020
John Nichols: Wisconsin votes–or tries to; plus Bob Edelman on Cold War Sports and Laila Lalami
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Republicans forced Wisconsin to go ahead with an election on Tuesday, despite the coronavirus, after rejecting the proposals to extend voting by mail. John Nichols reports — he says it’s a frightening example of what they will try to do in November to reduce the Democratic vote.
Also: The Cold War was fought in many ways: it was a traditional political and military confrontation, but it was also a cultural contest, on a global scale –
and one of the most important arenas in the cultural contest was sports. historian Robert Edelman explains: he’s co-editor of the new book The Whole World Was Watching: Sport in the Cold War.”
Plus: Nation columnist Laila Lalami talks about her novel “The Other Americans.” it’s about the suspicious death of a Moroccan immigrant in a small town in California. It’s a family saga, a murder mystery, and a love story. And it’s out now in paperback. 4-10-2020
Mike Davis: Science v. Politics of the Coronavirus; plus Rebecca Solnit on Becoming a Feminist
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Mike Davis talks about who gets forgotten in a pandemic—and about the political, and economic, obstacles to making faster progress on effective anti-viral medication and a vaccine. Mike is the author of many books, including City of Quartz and The Monster at Our Door: The Global Threat of Avian Flu.
Also: Rebecca Solnit talks about how she became a feminist, and a writer—in San Francisco in the eighties, “the queerest city in the world.” Her new book, a memoir of sorts, is Recollections of My Nonexistence. 4/2/20
Republicans and the Virus Economy: Harold Meyerson; plus E.J. Dionne, Katha Pollitt & Gail Collins
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Harold Meyerson reports that Republicans in the Senate voted against expanded unemployment benefits almost unanimously. And the bailout support for big banks and corporations has many fewer restrictions than the small business funding support. But moments of crisis are also moments of opportunity, and number one on the Dem’s list should be Medicare for All.
Also: E. J. Dionne, the Washington Post columnist, talks about what it’s going to take to beat Trump in the Age of the Coronavirus – his new book is called “Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates Can Unite to Save Our Country.”
Also, Katha Pollitt has some advice about how to spend all those hours at home – watching movies on TV — and reading the classics.
And finally, the great Gail Gollins of the New York Times op-ed page talks about the adventures of older women. Her book, “No Stopping us Now,” is out in paperback. 4/2/20
E.J. Dionne: The Coronavirus and the election; plus Melina Abdullah on Black Lives Matter and Katha Pollitt on “Contagion”
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What’s our strategy for beating Trump in November? Is the Coronavirus making that easier, or harder? E.J. Dionne analyzes the effect of the virus on politics – he’s a columnist for the Washington Post, and his new book is Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates can Unite to Save Our Country.
Also: How the coronavirus is changing the issues, and the tactics, of Black Lives Matter – a conversation with Melina Abdullah, one of the founders of the LA chapter and a professor of Pan-African Studies at Cal State LA.
Plus: Katha Pollitt has some recommendations about what to watch, and read, during those days at home, starting with the classics–Defoe’s “Journal of the Plague Year” and “The Decameron” by Boccaccio. 3/25/20
What’s Wrong in the Economic Stimulus: David Dayen, plus Paul Krugman and Rebecca Solnit
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David Dayen of The American Prospect analyzes all the ways the economic stimulus bill passed by the Senate rewards the big corporations and doesn’t do enough, or won’t work well enough, for the unemployed, small businesses, and everybody hoping to receive a direct payment. David writes “Unsanitized” daily at Prospect.org.
Also: Paul Krugman, the New York Times columnist and Nobel-prize winning economist, says that we don’t have an easy way of responding to the economic threats posed by the corona-virus, and that Trump’s preoccupation with the stock market is a big mistake.
And we have 20 minutes without Trump: a conversation with Rebecca Solnit about how she became a writer and a feminist, growing up in San Francisco in the eighties. her new book, a memoir, is called “Recollections of my Nonexistence.” 3/26/20
Black Lives Matter in the Age of Coronavirus: Melina Abdullah
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Melina Abdullah, a founder of Black Lives Matter in Los Angeles (she’s also Professor of Pan-African Studies at Cal State LA), talks about how the coronavirus raises new issues for Black Lives Matter–while the old ones remain vital–and how it also changes the forms for organizing protest. Also: the campaign to defeat Jackie Lacey as District Attorney in LA. 3-19-2020
Paul Krugman: The Coronavirus and the Economic Crisis; plus John Nichols on elections and Amy Wilentz on the Kushners and the Coronavirus
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Paul Krugman, the New York Times columnist and Nobel Prize winning economist, says we don’t have an easy way of responding to the economic threats posed by the coronavirus, and Trump’s preoccupation with the stock market is a big mistake. Krugman’s new book is Arguing with Zombies: Economics, Politics, and the Fight for a Better Future.
Also: we’ll talk about the Republican senators who say paid sick leave for people with the coronavirus will “make workers lazy”—that’s what Ron Johnson says, he represents Wisconsin, and we’ll talk about that with our man in Madison, John Nichols. John also examines everything that went wrong with Tuesday’s elections, and talks about what we must do to ensure there’s no postponement of the November election.
And we’ll also talk about the Kushners and the coronavirus: Jared has been working in some unusual ways, and there’s also virus news about Ivanka and Don Junior. Amy Wilentz reports—she’s our Chief Jared Correspondent. 3/18/2020
About
Living in the USA
Talking about politics, thinking about the Left.
The podcast “Living in the USA” is the online version of “Living in the USA” at KPFK radio, hosted by Jon Wiener and broadcast live Thursdays at 4pm at 90.7FM in LA, also streaming live at www.kpfk.org
New episodes posted every Thursday afternoon, at livingintheusapod.com