People walk with groceries in plastic bags in Chinatown on March 28, 2007 in San Francisco, California.; Credit: David Paul Morris/Getty Images

In 2014, the California Legislature passed and Governor Jerry Brown signed more than 900 bills into law. The drought forced the Legislature into action and bills were passed to regulate groundwater for the first time and override homeowners associations that fined members for changing their lawns to drought-tolerant landscaping. California also became the first state to ban single-use plastic bags and the first state to create a “yes means yes” standard for sex between college students.

While there are several laws set to go into effect on January 1, 2015, there is also the question of what the priorities and focus of the Legislature will be this year. How will the Legislature spend its surplus budget money? Will a better economic outlook mean fewer bills passed? What should California’s Legislature be focusing on in 2015?

Guest:

Dan Walters, political columnist, Sacramento Bee

Ben Adler, Capital Bureau Chief at Capital Public Radio in Sacramento

Oscar Isaac plays Abel Morales in "A Most Violent Year."; Credit: AMostViolentYear.com

Patt Morrison and KPCC film critics Tim Cogshell and Henry Sheehan review this week’s releases, including “A Most Violent Year,” “The Woman in Black 2: The Angel of Death,” [REC]4: Apocalypse,” and more. TGI-Filmweek!

Guests:

Tim Cogshell, film critic for KPCC and Alt Film Guide

Henry Sheehan, film critic for KPCC and CriticsAGoGo.com

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, with their signature gesture.; Credit: Time/Craig Lassig/EPA

A new Obama biopic, “Southside With You,” is slated to explore Barack and Michelle’s beginnings in Chicago. The movie will focus on their first date around the city in 1989, a day that changed both of their lives forever. Tika Sumpter will play Michelle Obama (her maiden name is “Robinson”), and the role of Barack Obama has yet to be cast.

While the filming is set to begin in July in Chicago, there is a rich history of presidential movies gone by. From “Wilson” to “Sunrise At Campobello” to “The President’s Lady” and more, various presidents have been portrayed across the silver screen. Typically these movies are done after the current President’s tenure, sometimes as a reflection of a bygone era, and we will travel throughout the decades to see how such movies are received and how they could even shape a president’s legacy.

Are you excited to see a portrayal of the Obamas’ love story? Will this film have an impact on the President’s legacy, or will it be just another part of the cultural impact he leaves behind?

Guests:

Julian Zelizer, Professor of History and Public Affairs at Princeton University and the author of multiple books, including “Jimmy Carter” (Thorndike Press, 2010), and “The Presidency of George W. Bush: A First Historical Assessment” (Princeton University Press, 2010)  

Tim Cogshell, film critic for KPCC and Alt Film Guide

Henry Sheehan, film critic for KPCC and CriticsAGoGo.com

Director Mike Nichols.; Credit: AP/LOREY SEBASTIAN

Another year has come and gone, and with it comes a reflection on the film industry and how it has changed.

Part of that change comes from the people who have passed away and how their work will continue to be seen and enjoyed by future generations. Another part of that change comes from how the year has shaped film and how film has shaped the year.

From the Sony hack leading to a video-on-demand release of “The Interview” to the 12-years-in-the-making release of “Boyhood,” 2014 is sure to influence the shape of 2015 in film. How did 2014 change film for you?

Guests:

Tim Cogshell, film critic for KPCC and Alt Film Guide

Henry Sheehan, film critic for KPCC and CriticsAGoGo.com

Ellar Coltrane stars as Mason in Richard Linklater's "Boyhood."; Credit: IFC Films

Another year has come and gone, and with it comes a reflection on the film industry and how it has changed. Part of that change comes from the people who have passed away and how their work will continue to be seen and enjoyed by future generations. Another part of that change comes from how the year has shaped film and how film has shaped the year.

From the Sony hack leading to a video-on-demand release of “The Interview” to the 12-years-in-the-making release of “Boyhood,” 2014 is sure to influence the shape of 2015 in film. How did 2014 change film for you?

Guests:

Tim Cogshell, film critic for KPCC and Alt Film Guide

Henry Sheehan, film critic for KPCC and CriticsAGoGo.com

US President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama attend the Commander-in-Chief's Ball, honoring US service members and their families, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center on January 21, 2013 in Washington, DC.; Credit: JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images

A new Obama biopic, “Southside With You,” is slated to explore Barack and Michelle’s beginnings in Chicago. The movie will focus on their first date around the city in 1989, a day that changed both of their lives forever. Tika Sumpter will play Michelle Obama (her maiden name is “Robinson”), and the role of Barack Obama has yet to be cast.

While the filming is set to begin in July in Chicago, there is a rich history of presidential movies gone by. From “Wilson” to “Sunrise At Campobello” to “The President’s Lady” and more, various presidents have been portrayed across the silver screen. Typically these movies are done after the current President’s tenure, sometimes as a reflection of a bygone era, and we will travel throughout the decades to see how such movies are received and how they could even shape a president’s legacy.

Are you excited to see a portrayal of the Obamas’ love story? Will this film have an impact on the President’s legacy, or will it be just another part of the cultural impact he leaves behind?

Guests: 

Julian Zelizer, Professor of History and Public Affairs at Princeton University and the author of multiple books, including “Jimmy Carter” (Thorndike Press, 2010), and “The Presidency of George W. Bush: A First Historical Assessment” (Princeton University Press, 2010)  

Tim Cogshell, film critic for KPCC and Alt Film Guide

Henry Sheehan, film critic for KPCC and CriticsAGoGo.com

Manager John Farrell #53 of the Boston Red Sox argues an obstruction call with Home Plate Umpire Dana DeMuth #32 in the ninth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals during Game Three of the 2013 World Series at Busch Stadium on October 26, 2013 in St Louis, Missouri. ; Credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images

*()!@, %#^&, @$$, )!-$*&%^, or even ~*@(\&$#?<!+ - how do we understand profanity in the context of the English language? Jonathon Green, author of "The Vulgar Tongue," explores the history of English slang and how it has evolved into an essential, versatile part of the common vocabulary.

A lexicographer by trade and the author of "Green's Dictionary of Slang," Green defends profane words as a part of our cultural history. These terms that have become embedded in the vernacular often cover profane themes such as sex, drugs and crime that have originated everywhere from sporting arenas to tightly-knit ethnic communities. By looking at how the use of these words has changed over hundreds of years, from British beggar books to modern times, "The Vulgar Tongue" adds to the history of profanity and celebrates its impact on our language and culture. How do you view the place of profanity and vulgarity in language and culture? Does slang erode English, or does it make the language richer?

Guest:

Jonathon Green, British lexicographer of slang and writer on the history of alternative cultures. His latest book is "The Vulgar Tongue: Green's History of Slang” (Oxford University Press)

Sofia Schugar, left, Natalie Sharp, Lenox Peterson and Isabel Annino stop at the domestic violence awareness table at Occidental College to write phrases in support of sexual assault awareness on campus.; Credit: Benjamin Brayfield/KPCC

The way California collegiates “hook up” was changed with the stroke of a pen this past September, the moment Governor Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 967 into law.

Known widely as the “affirmative consent” bill, the new legislation requires all California colleges and universities to radically alter campus policies toward sexual activity. Effective as of yesterday, sexual encounters must be agreed upon explicitly by both parties, before any intimacy takes place. In short, anything short of “yes” means “no.” While the bill was met with resistance by parties who claimed the law was too rigid, most women’s groups (both on campus and off) see the law as a win, expressing hope that the change in policy will result in fewer sexual assaults on college campuses.

But as college acceptance letters begin showing up in mailboxes, thousands of parents are facing the same tricky question: “How do I talk to my college-bound student about consent?” Think of it as “the talk” 2.0.

A roundtable of child raising experts join Pat Morrison to tackle these tricky questions on sexual consent.

How do you speak to your college-bound teen about sex, in light of the new consent law? How are the responsibilities of boys and girls different? Can you teach empathy in one sitting, or does it take longer-term efforts to raise a considerate young man or woman?

Guests:

Michael Josephson, founder of the Josephson Institute of Ethics

Michael Thompson, Ph.D., child and family psychologist, NYT Bestselling Author and co-author of Raising Cain

Elizabeth Schroeder, Ph.D., sexual education expert

Ex-governor Mario Cuomo at the American Museum of Natural History on November 3, 2009 in New York City. ; Credit: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

He served three terms as governor of New York; after seeing the state through so many of its most tempestuous times, he became a liberal icon and democratic rallying point. Last night, the legacy of gubernatorial legend Mario Cuomo came to a close, when he passed away at his home in Manhattan at the age of 82.

Rising to prominence at a time when liberal policies were widely defamed, Adam Nagourney with the New York Times says Cuomo forever endeared himself to democrats after “challenging Ronald Reagan at the height of his presidency with an expansive and affirmative view of government and a message of compassion, tinged by the Roman Catholicism that was central to Mr. Cuomo’s identity.” Cuomo’s unrestrained demeanor and dedication to liberal principles led democratic leaders to press him twice to run for president; Cuomo declined each time.

The political landscape in the nation has changed considerably since Cuomo’s heyday, and while liberal ideals are more widely accepted across the political landscape, the nation’s most recent elections indicate an increasingly more powerful GOP will continue to challenge the continuance of many policies that Cuomo championed over three decades ago.

Today on AirTalk, we examine the impact that Mario Cuomo has had on American politics, and discuss the challenges faced by both parties in light of the recent election.

Does any other democratic politician have as much influence as Cuomo? What does the future look like for American politics in 2015, when Washington seems increasingly polarized?

Guests:

Ken Rudin, host of the radio show, Ken Rudin’s Political Junkie

David Mark,  former senior editor at Politico, co-author of "Dog Whistles, Walk-Backs, and Washington Handshakes: Decoding the Jargon, Slang and Bluster of American Political Speech" (ForeEdge, 2014).

Former Long Beach Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell became the first non-LASD member to head of the department in 100 years. McDonnell was sworn in on December 1 as Los Angeles County’s 32nd Sheriff.; Credit: Maya Sugarman/KPCC

After beating former Undersheriff Paul Tanaka in November’s election, former Long Beach Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell became the first non-LASD member to head of the department in 100 years. He was sworn in on December 1st as Los Angeles County’s 32nd Sheriff, and called for a fresh start for a department that has been entwined in controversy for the last several years. Allegations of deputies beating and humiliating inmates, the convictions of several deputies for obstructing an FBI investigation into the jail, and general low morale have plagued the LASD in recent years.

However, McDonnell has promised that change is coming to the LASD, and it will include more transparency, better accountability for LASD employees, enhanced crime prevention, and managerial evaluations. He has also said he wants to rebuild the run-down building that houses the Men’s Central Jail.

McDonnell rose through the ranks at the Los Angeles Police Department before leaving to become the chief of police in Long Beach, where he is credited with helping lower violent crime rates, reduce gang violence, and improving community relations with police. At the LAPD, he held every rank except chief of police and served as second in command to Bill Bratton, who is now the Commissioner of the New York Police Department. McDonnell is a native of Boston, Massachusetts.

Guest:

Jim McDonnell, Sheriff of Los Angeles County

LG Electronics MobileComm USA Brand Marketing Senior Manager Frank Lee speaks about the LG G Flex 2 smartphone at a press event at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center for the 2015 International CES on January 5, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada. CES, the world's largest annual consumer technology trade show, runs from January 7-10 and is expected to feature 3,200 exhibitors showing off their latest products and services to about 150,000 attendees. ; Credit: David Becker/Getty Images

For gearheads and tech geeks, the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas is their Comic Con. The show, which opens on Tuesday, January 6th, features a convention center full of the latest gizmos and gadgets, a preview of new tech that will come out later this year, and even a little sampling of some of the tech that is still a ways down the road.

In years past, new TVs have dominated the more exciting announcements, and in 2015, that trend continues. Manufacturers are pushing the new 4K Ultra High Definition TVs this year as companies like Netflix, Amazon, and YouTube playing a few titles in 4K resolution with more to come. Drone tech, wearable tech, virtual reality headsets, new developments in wireless audio, and new car tech are also expected to make a big splash at the show, which will run until Friday, January 9th.

Guests: 

Lindsey Turrentine, editor-in-chief of CNET.com

Jeremy Kaplan, editor-in-chief of DigitalTrends.com

Adult film actress Jessie Lee (L) and adult film actress and director Joanna Angel arrive at the 29th annual Adult Video News Awards Show at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino January 21, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada.; Credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Statistics on pornography consumption are sketchy at best, thanks to unreliable self-reporting. What we do know is the business of porn, especially on the web, has been booming, which means many Americans must be clicking and watching. Google data from 2013 shows that monthly page views (pvs) of some of the top porn sites approach Wikipedia-hit proportions: PornHub, 2.5 billion pvs; YouPorn, 2.1 billion pvs; Tube 8, 970 million pvs; and LiveJasmin, 710 million pvs.

As Salon reported, in comparison, Wikipedia gets about 8 billion pvs. Just thirty years ago, folks had to leave their bedrooms or basements to seek out adult videos or Hustler magazines at video stores and newsstands. Today’s in-your-face ubiquity inspired the movie "Don Jon" about a young man so addicted to porn it interferes with his relationships. Perhaps inspired by that film some German researchers published a recent study associating higher porn consumption with the decline of marriage in the U.S.

Is that too far a stretch? How has porn impacted your sex life? What advice do you need about navigating this terrain with your partner(s)?

Guests:

Marty Klein, Ph.D., Marriage & Family Therapist; Author "Sexual Intelligence: What we really want from sex and how to get it" @DrMartyKlein

Elizabeth Schroeder, Ed. D., Sexuality Education expert

California Gov. Jerry Brown speaks during an portrait unveiling ceremony in the Rotunda of the State Capitol on September 8, 2014 in Sacramento, California.; Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

It’s inauguration day for California Governor Jerry Brown, and true to his thrifty tendencies, his speech is also this year’s state of the state address. Brown is the only governor to serve four terms in office, and with term limits enacted after his first stint as governor 40 years ago, it’s a milestone unlikely to be repeated.

“The state budget is finally balanced -- more precariously than I’d like -- but balanced,” Brown said early in the speech, in a nod to his biggest accomplishment in his third term. The Governor then touched on education, touting its move toward decentralization, the impact to health care through Covered California, prison changes through realignment and ballot measures that scale back of the three strikes laws, water and the environment, and drivers licences now being issued to undocumented residents.

Looking ahead, Brown cited pre-funding state employee pensions and funding repairs for roads and highways, and new environmental targets to combat climate change as top of his agenda. Among those targets, moving 50% of electricity generation to renewable sources, up from the existing goal of one third, and cutting fossil fuel use in cars in half.

Guests:

Adolfo Guzman-Lopez, KPCC’s Education Correspondent

Ben Adler, Capitol Bureau Chief at Capitol Public Radio

File: In this image released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on April 19, 2013, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19-years-old, a suspect in the Boston Marathon bombing is seen. ; Credit: Handout/Getty Images

Over the next three days, nearly 1,200 people will be called to sit a Boston federal courtroom, as the jury selection process for one of the most high-profile cases in decades commences. The defendant, Dzhokar Tsarnaev, faces more than 30 charges related to the explosions from the two bombs as well as the three deaths and hundreds more injuries that occurred at the Boston Marathon nearly two years ago. With the marathon attacks still fresh in the minds of so many Bostonians, the next few days are crucial to the whole trial, as attorneys for the prosecution and defense work to find the right jurors.

For that very reason Tsarnaev’s lawyers have attempted to get the trial moved from Boston, arguing that finding impartial jurors there would be impossible--they cited the case of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, whose trial was moved to Denver--however their requests were denied. If convicted, Tsarnaev could face the death penalty, which increases the pressure on jury selection. Trial consultant Richard Gabriel tells KPCC that the challenges faced by defense attorneys are threefold:

• First you must find an impartial jury. Nearly everyone in Boston was affected by the manhunt or the bombing, so this will be difficult.
• Second is finding a juror who hasn’t been exposed to too much pre-trial publicity, which poses another considerable challenge.
• Finally, attorneys must find people who are qualified and also willing to sit on the jury for the next three to four months.

A sample of the questions jurors will face can be found on the Boston Globe.

Today on AirTalk, Larry Mantle will discuss the less obvious factors that go into jury selection, and examine the unique challenges attorneys will face throughout the trial.

Guest: 

Richard Gabriel, trial consultant and author of “Acquittal”

St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke addresses the media during a press conference at the Russell Training Center on January 17, 2012 in Earth City, Missouri. ; Credit: Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

Football fans in Los Angeles haven’t had a team to call their own in over 20 years. The Raiders and Rams both relocated in 1994. More than a dozen stadium proposals have cropped up in the intervening years to try and draw the NFL back. Two of them gained the necessary political and environmental approvals: Ed Roski’s plan for a stadium in the City of Industry, and an AEG development in Downtown Los Angeles. Neither came to fruition. Now, fast forward to 2015. Enter St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who is teaming up with the owners of the former Hollywood Park site and planing to build a stadium in Inglewood.

Kroenke made his fortune in real estate before becoming a team owner, buying a 40% stake in the Rams when they moved to St Louis in 1995. He snapped up 60 acres of land adjacent to the Forum in Inglewood in 2014, and is now partnering with the nearly 300 acre Hollywood Park site to develop an 80,000 seat stadium, a performance venue, in addition to retail, hotel and office spaces.  

LA has long been the place teams threaten to move when dissatisfied with aging stadium facilities, in an effort to wring more money or development from home cities. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has said that no teams may relocate in 2015, so a possible move to LA would be on hold until at least 2016.

Is this new proposal proof that the Rams are ready to return to LA? Or is it just another move to push St Louis and other cities toward providing their teams with more and better financing?

Does LA need a football team? And, if you’re a fan, which team would you like to see make the move?

Guest:

Vincent Bonsignore, sports columnist at the LA Daily News

; Credit: Photo by Ross Cidlowski via Flickr Creative Commons

Sports fans on a budget can rejoice with Dish’s new streaming service offering all of ESPN for $20 a month.  The satellite provider announced the new service dubbed Sling TV at the Consumer Electronics Show yesterday, happening in Las Vegas this week.

Appealing to more than just sports fans, Sling TV will also include 10 other channels including the Travel Channel, CNN and Food Network plus more at additional fees.

Sound too good to be true?

Recode mentions the drawbacks:  Unlike Netflix or Hulu, Sling TV only works on one device at a time and the service doesn’t offer local broadcast stations or networks. Watching on an actual TV may take a few steps since it’s not being offered on Apple TV because of its strict interface rules.

Dish will be joining the ranks of Sony, HBO and Showtime who also have forthcoming Internet streaming services who are all desperately trying to get back the growing number of “cable-cutters.” The New York Times reports that the number of American households paying for Internet rather than cable subscriptions increased 16 percent in the last two years.  

Will you make the switch? How big of an impact does streaming really have on the cable business?

Guest:

Cecilia Kang, staff writer covering the business of media and entertainment for the Washington Post

Defending Beef: The Case for Sustainable Meat Production by Nicolette Hahn Niman

It has long been the belief of environmentalists that livestock, cattle especially, are the scourge of the earth, polluting air and water, eroding soil, and destroying wildlife populations. The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization even said in a 2007 report that livestock were the single largest contributor to human-generated climate-change emissions.

In her book, ‘Defending Beef: The Case for Sustainable Meat Production,’ environmental lawyer and vegetarian turned cattle rancher Nicolette Hahn Niman makes the case that cattle are not as bad for the Earth as they are made out to be. Ms. Niman joins AirTalk to discuss her book and what led her from practicing environmental law to raising cattle in California.

Guest:

Nicolette Hahn Niman, author of “Defending Beef: The Case for Sustainable Meat Production”

"Hall of Mirrors: The Great Depression, The Great Recession, and the Uses - and Misuses - of History" by Barry Eichengreen

As the economic collapse of the last decade begins to fade from view, there are two questions scholars continue to ask: what are the lessons to learn from the crisis, and have we implemented them to avoid the next one? In his new book, "Hall of Mirrors: The Great Depression, The Great Recession, and the Uses - And Misuses - of History," Berkeley Professor Barry Eichengreen examines the history of both the Great Depression and the Great Recession as well as the policy lessons the country should take from them.

As one might expect, many similarities exist between the two crises: a housing boom, the advent of new financial instruments and forms of lending, Ponzi schemes, an increase in the general population's investment in the stock market, problematic monetary policy, and more.

The lead-up to each crisis, while contextually different, had many of the same properties. Yet because of our experience with the Great Depression, the fundamental restructuring of the financial system and the lessons learned about fiscal and monetary policies held for over half a century, and the difference between the crises lay in the response. Eichengreen proposes that our success in root-and-branch reform after the Great Depression hindered another effort at radical reform after the Great Recession, leading to a system that has exacerbated many of the structural issues that caused the latter economic downturn. The key is which lessons to take from history and how to correctly use (and not misuse) them.

Have the problems that led to the Great Recession been resolved? With the stock market booming and the economy as a whole growing, can fundamental reform be done?

Guest:

Barry Eichengreen, Author, “Hall of Mirrors: The Great Depression, The Great Recession, and the Uses- and Misuses-of History;” (Oxford University Press, January 2015); George C. Pardee and Helen N. Pardee Professor of Economics and Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley

Dr. Jason Greenspan (L) and emergency room nurse Junizar Manansala care for a patient in the ER of Mission Community Hospital where doctors held a press conference outside on a class action lawsuit against the state of California by a coalition of emergency room physicians claiming that without additional funding, the entire emergency healthcare system is on the verge of collapse on January 28, 2009 in Panorama City, California. ; Credit: David McNew/Getty Images

With the new year comes a new step for the Affordable Care Act: doctors who treat Medicaid patients will see a smaller paycheck. One of the key ways the health care law provided insurance to more people was by relaxing the restrictions on who can qualify for government-sponsored health care programs.  Doctors get a pretty good reimbursement for treating patients on Medicare, like elderly Americans and people with disabilities, a little over $45 for a straightforward visit. In contrast, lower income people who receive Medicaid (or Medi-Cal in California), net doctors just $18 a visit.

Lawmakers were worried that doctors wouldn’t want to take Medi-Cal insurance, so they boosted the pay for doctors to smooth over the transition. That changes this year. An analysis by the Urban Institute finds that doctors will receive 58.8% less than last year for treating Medi-Cal patients.

The expansion of Medi-Cal has insured 2.2 million more Californians. With lower rates, many advocates are concerned that primary care physicians will stop seeing Medi-Cal patients. Meanwhile, physicians and patient advocates agree that the subsidy was so complicated, that many doctors didn’t succeed in receiving the better reimbursements for the two years they were available. Maintaining the subsidies -- which, like all Medicaid costs, are split between the state and federal governments -- would cost $1.8 billion per year.

What will health care access look like in California this year? And how will doctors react?

Guests:

Christopher Perrone, researcher at the California HealthCare Foundation who has studied Medi-Cal access

Dr. Richard Thorp, a primary care physician in Paradise, California (near Chico) and former president of the California Medical Association

A worker inspects cabernet sauvignon wine grapes at the Stags' Leap Winery September 27, 2004 in Napa, California. ; Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Wine producers globally have to change harvest patterns to maintain the sugars and acids in chardonnay, pinot noir and the like, according to a new study. Kimberly Nicholas, study author and wine consultant, said flavors of your favorite wines are changing already. Unusually high temperatures in France, Spain and Italy mean greater grape yields and faster growth, which leads to vineyards struggling over the right time to pick before the sugars rises too sharply and the acidity drops too precipitously.

What does it mean for California wine production (and Oregon and Washington for that matter)? After all, who wants to face global warming without a bottle of wine handy.

Guest:

Kimberly Nicholas, Associate Professor of Sustainability Science at Lund University in Sweden; Nicholas’ family has a small vineyard in Sonoma County, growing Cabernet grapes