Morning Buzz

Morning Buzz: Tax hikes and a Twitter embarrassment

Politics and government

The City Council today will take up three other possible tax hikes in addition to the half-cent sales tax increase proposed yesterday by Council President Herb Wesson. LAT

Gov. Brown speaks to a Town Hall Los Angeles luncheon in the Gold Room of the Biltmore at 12:30 p.m.

The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn. has eight full-time employees, an annual budget of more than $5.7 million and critics say its endorsements are "often for sale to the highest bidder." LAT

Richard Riordan's pension reform proposal received its official title and summary from the City Attorney and will begin accepting signatures on Friday. The Save Los Angeles campaign press secretary is John Schwada. The title: New Defined Contribution Plan; Amendment to Existing Retirement Plans. Initiative Charter Amendment.

Riordan's measure would cost the city "nearly an additional billion dollars in the next decade...[and] may lead the City to bankruptcy," the police union says. LAPPL Blog

DA candidates Alan Jackson and Jackie Lacey appeared jointly on "Which Way, LA" but they refused to debate and could not hear each other's answers to Warren Olney's questions. KCRW

City controller candidate Cary Brazeman runs a full-page ad in the LA Times today urging voters to support Measure J.

Mac Taylor, the state's Legislative Analyst, talks to Patt Morrison. LAT op-ed

UCLA announced it will go smoke-free in April. UCLA Newsroom


Media and media people

comfortably-smug.jpgThe Twitter user ComfortablySnug who made up and tweeted numerous false reports of scary Sandy storm damage was identified as Shashank Tripathi, a hedge fund analyst and campaign manager for a Republican House candidate in New York. Once exposed, Tripathi apologized on Twitter and resigned from the campaign. BuzzFeed, Romenesko

The Atlantic compared Sandy photos to decide which were fakes. Atlantic

USC professor Carol Muske-Dukes isn't happy that KPCC took Patt Morrison off the daily air — and she called to complain. Huffington Post

The LA Times reported an 11.9 percent increase in average weekday print and digital circulation, to 641,369, over last September. Via internal memo

Times editor Davan Maharaj accepted an honorary degree over the weekend at the University of the West Indies. Fishbowl LA


More

A driver suspected of trying to run down an LAPD officer in the parking lot of a Trader Joe's in Sherman Oaks escaped after officers fired at his pickup. City News Service

Another California surfer was bitten by a shark, this time in Eureka in Humboldt County. The 25-year-old man survived. Times-Standard

The Arroyo Seco Foundation says it has obtained $3.3 million in state funding to improve water reliability and environmental conditions in Hahamongna Canyon. ASF

The Lakers opened their season with a loss to Dallas and bad reviews.

The Dodgers signed relief pitcher Brandon League to a new three-year contract to stay with the team.


More by Kevin Roderick:
'In on merit' at USC
Read the memo: LA Times hires again
Read the memo: LA Times losing big on search traffic
Google taking over LA's deadest shopping mall
Gustavo Arellano, many others join LA Times staff
Recent Morning Buzz stories on LA Observed:
Thursday news and notes
A little bit of mid-week reading
A few links from a few different places
Let's talk about anything but the weather
A few links from here and there
A couple of links from a couple of places
A bit of news from a few places
Morning Buzz: Wednesday 4.16.14