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Our semi-regular column of media and politics notes, with other news and observations. From multiple sources and the LA Observed inbox.
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At the top
In over his head? President-elect Donald Trump is still making it up as he goes along, claiming without evidence in a tweet that he would have won the popular vote if "millions" had not voted illegally. California Secretary of State Alex Padilla responds to the "absurd" claim: "His reckless tweets are inappropriate and unbecoming of a president-elect." But still, Trump got the headlines. He's trailing by 2+ million votes. NYT, LAT, WSJMedia notes
Solid deep global reporting by the New York Times into Trump's many business entanglements and conflicts of interest around the world. The lead byline is former LA Times foreign correspondent Richard C. Paddock in Manila... Also NYT: In Trump, Breitbart's Steve Bannon found his vessel into real power... The NYT says it has netted 70,000 new subscribers since the election... Journalist Masha Gessen has spent years reporting on Vladimir Putin’s rule in Russia: U.S. journalists need to begin imagining the unimaginable...Also: Maneuvering a new reality for US journalism in CJR... Patrick Soon-Shiong, the wealthiest person in Los Angeles, spent the week before Thanksgiving buying up more shares of Tronc stock. He's now at 15.2 percent of the LA Times parent company... Participant Media is shuttering TakePart... Los Angeles Magazine is hosting a Tuesday press conference with mayoral spouse Amy Wakeland and philanthropist Austin Beutner to promote a new giving initiative.Politics notes
Three top Trump surrogates, led by spokeswoman Kellyanne Conway on Sunday's politics shows, disparaged Mitt Romney as a possible Secretary of State — and the weird part is it's unclear if they were speaking for the boss or trying to sway him.... Former Obama advisor David Axelrod tweeted "I have never, EVER, seen any aide to a POTUS or PEOTUS publicly try and box the boss in like this. Extraordinary."... Right-wing pundits Laura Ingraham and Monica Crowley are in the conversation for White House press secretary... Orange County congressman Dana Rohrabacher, a former LA reporter, is Putin's favorite congressman and in good graces with Trump, apparently... How Nancy Pelosi's daughter and Dianne Feinstein's granddaughter became part of the electoral college. LATPeople are talking about...
Joe Morgenstern, the Wall Street Journal and KCRW film critic, apologized by tweet for mistaking Dev Patel's past work for Kal Penn's in a review of "Lion."... Of the 4 reporters with bylines on the Fidel Castro obituaries in the NYT, LAT and WaPo, only one still works at the paper where it was published. One is dead. The LA Times piece is by Carol J. Williams, who left last year. The foreign editor called her then "possibly one of the most versatile foreign correspondents I have ever known." Hat tip: Amy Fiscus of the LA Times Washington bureau... A profile of Steve Wasserman (above) in the San Francisco Chronicle says the new head of Heyday Books is "a man of many, many words." He is former books editor of the LA Times... The LA judge who knocked down a lady dog-walker and the homicide detective who cheated to help him.
Media people doing stuff
Ann Louise Bardach revisited her 1994 Vanity Fair interview with Fidel Castro after his death for The Guardian... Tim Rutten, the former LA Times and Daily News columnist, is blogging about Trump including a chiding of religious leaders and this: With Trump the worst is yet to come... Bryan Chan, an editor on the online photo desk at the LA Times, is leaving after 19 years and moving to the county Hall of Administration as chief photographer for the Board of Supervisors. .. The NBCLA.com paid internship program is accepting applications... Thursday is the deadline to apply for USC Annenberg's Center for Health Journalism $1,000 California Fellowship stipend... Tap-O-Ween is an original all-new tap dancing show presented by students, guests and dance colleagues of LA Times education reporter Howard BlumeNotes on place
Lewis MacAdams stepped down as head of Friends of the LA River. LAT, KCRW
An Orange County Republican Party official and Trump campaign volunteer, Mary Young, posted on Facebook (in all caps, of course) that "I do not want any type of Muslims' in this country, period." OC Register
Air pollution hot spot in Paramount spurs calls for action on metal factory emissions. LAT
What went wrong at Sophia Amaoruso's Nasty Gal, the DTLA fashion company that is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy? Business of Fashion
Writer Marc Myers' love for the Capitol Records tower. JazzWax
The most spectacular spots for viewing the LA skyline. Los Angeles Magazine
Santa's Village near Lake Arrowhead reopens on Friday after 18 years. KPCC
Looking back 38 years to the murders of San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and elected supervisor Harvey Milk by former supervisor Dan White. NPR
The Rams lost in New Orleans 49-21 and are now 4-7 in their first season back in Los Angeles.
Selected tweets
Time for Kellyanne to take away the Twitter account again.
— David Ulin (@davidulin) November 28, 2016
Trump is not using Twitter to distract you from his agenda. Bannon & co. are using Trump to distract you from theirs.
— Brooklyn Spoke (@BrooklynSpoke) November 27, 2016
Government of the billionaire, by the billionaire and for the billionaire shall not perish from this earth https://t.co/qOQkVL9WCN
— Steven Strauss (@Steven_Strauss) November 23, 2016
Florence Henderson was a dear friend for so very many years & in my <3 forever. Love & hugs to her family. I'll miss u dearly #RIPFlorence
— Maureen McCormick (@MoMcCormick7) November 25, 2016
“I was closer to Ralph [Branca] than to any other Dodger," Vin Scully said. "I was grateful for his friendship and I grieve at his death."
— Kevin Roderick (@LAObserved) November 23, 2016
