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Curated news, notes and observations most weekdays from LA Observed.
The state Senate’s ethics panel was briefed behind closed doors Monday by an independent counsel on his investigation into misconduct allegations involving Sen. Ronald S. Calderon. LAT
Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas fired back with a letter over a Daily News editorial that he says took as fact "spurious reports from a competing newspaper." DN
Mayor Eric Garcetti previewed the State of the Union speech last night on Tavis Smiley. HuffPost Politics
The City Council’s Arts, Parks, Health, Aging and River Committee asked for a report on whether it should restrict the consumption of energy drinks by city workers and require signs at retail stores warning of side effects. DN
Los Angeles International Airport handled more than 17.8 million foreign travelers in 2013, a record for the West Coast gateway that struggled for years to recover that portion of its market. LAT
Judging by the early success of another federal program in Los Angeles, Promise Neighborhoods, the impact of Promise Zones could be significant and enormously positive in Los Angeles. LAT
Quentin Tarantino filed a lawsuit against Gawker for posting links to a site that hosted a script he did not want in the public eye, and Gawker responded that the script is news. Gawker, Deadline Hollywood
KCRW general manager Jennifer Ferro on "Press Play" host Madeleine Brand: "She's the friend you wish you had. She's super-smart, she's funny, and she knows what's going on, whether it's in music or books or film." LAT Company Town
From the mayor:
On behalf of a grateful city, welcome back to the radio, @TheMadBrand
— Eric Garcetti (@ericgarcetti) January 22, 2014Matthew Garrahan, Los Angeles correspondent for the Financial Times, has been named the paper's global media editor and will relocate to New York. FT
Nate Silver regarding FiveThirtyEight: "We're going to have a lot of fun in exploring everything from baseball to burritos....We've hired 15 amazing journalists so far, and we're actively interviewing candidates for several open positions." Status update
The Knight Foundation announced a new $1 million program of grants to help nonprofit digital news operations toward sustainability. Nieman Lab
Chuck Cecil and his long-running show "Swingin' Years" are leaving KKJZ and will be online only. LAT
Los Angeles police officers are being trained to use combat-style trauma kits to help victims of gunshot wounds and other emergencies. AP
A jury has found that LAPD officer Daniel Bunch used excessive force in the fatal shooting of an unarmed man and awarded $750,000 in damages to the man's son. LAT
Cachuma Lake in Santa Barbara County is dangerously low in another drought, down to 39 percent of capacity. (The Times headline writer clearly has never been there: "a crystalline mountain resource...") LAT
Father Gregory Boyle on funding Homeboy Industries: "if we were a shelter for abandoned puppies we'd be endowed by now. But we're a place of second chances for gang members and felons. It's a tough sell, but a good bet." LAT/Steve Lopez
What is contained in the secret handbook for Oakland Raiders cheerleaders. LAT
Saw "Her." In future L.A. there is massive rail network, writers paid enough to live in swanky apts. LAT still in business. Love fairy tales
— Peter Hong (@PHongPolitico) January 27, 2014Lutosławski's 101st birthday today. And I'm listening to Kiss at Dodger Stadium.
— Esa-Pekka Salonen (@esapekkasalonen) January 26, 2014