Newsletter: Today: Cyberspies at Work. Kanye’s Stump Speech.
I'm Davan Maharaj, editor of the Los Angeles Times. Here are some story lines I don't want you to miss today.
TOP STORIES
Spy Vs. Spy
Government personnel files. Insurance records. Airline passenger lists. What if someone were to put together hacked bits of information from all those sources? U.S. officials say foreign spy services, especially in China and Russia, are doing just that to target U.S. spies. What can be done to stop them?
In the Line of Fire
Police work has always been dangerous, but officers say recent attacks on law enforcement in the United States feel different – a byproduct, they say, of distrust and fear. “The general public has a perception that we may or may not be the good guys,†says one longtime Texas officer.
Kanye For President
At the MTV Video Music Awards in 2009, Kanye West famously interrupted Taylor Swift. This year, West didn’t have to interrupt anyone: He not only addressed the incident of six years ago, but also launched an unsolicited defense of artists and announced Kanye for president in 2020. Before you ponder First Lady Kim, consider this: West let slip that before he took the stage, he smoked something to take the edge off.
His Mind’s Eye
He was a neurology and psychiatry professor once called “the poet laureate of medicine.†His 1973 book “Awakenings†brought him fame and became a movie starring Robin Williams. He was a biker who charmed a group of Hells Angels. And when Oliver Sacks announced he had the cancer that was to take his life Sunday, he vowed to live his remaining days to the fullest.
Water Into Wine
In wine country, some people are thinking less about cabernet and more about salmon. Many Sonoma County residents are unhappy with the boom in vineyards, wineries and event centers. At the same time, there’s worry over the salmon population, in decline amid the drought and concerns over how much water the wine industry is actually using as it strives to be the nation’s first completely “sustainable†wine region by 2019.
CALIFORNIA
-- A federal appeals court will hear arguments Monday on the constitutionality of California's death penalty system.
-- After the deaths of two fans at a rave, Live Nation cancels one event and puts in place more safety precautions.
-- Juan Romero, the busboy who cradled a dying Robert F. Kennedy in 1968, has finally stepped out of the past. Columnist Steve Lopez checks in.
-- Architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne reviews the new Broad museum on Bunker Hill.
NATION-WORLD
-- Mt. McKinley will get back its original name, Denali.
-- A video of a violent scuffle between an Israeli soldier and a Palestinian child and his family fuels debate.
-- At a Macedonian way station, Syrian and other migrants focus on the path ahead.
-- How the Katrina survivors we reported on 10 years ago are doing now.
BUSINESS
-- The stock market's bumpy ride isn't over, experts say.
-- Can California's economy keep its momentum?
-- Taxpayers have never paid more for public worker pensions, but it's still not enough.
SPORTS
-- Big-spending Dodgers, smart-spending Giants meet in a key series starting Monday.
-- Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal talk about their bickering Lakers days on Shaq's podcast.
-- Helene Elliott: It's impossible to imagine the Dodgers without Vin Scully.
-- Gloves in the NFL are popular but still largely unregulated.
ENTERTAINMENT
-- Move over, superheroes: Lots of other summer films impressed us too.
-- "Hannibal" finale: Why Will Graham will live on for years to come.
-- Sasha Frere-Jones: How FKA twigs crashed the alphas-of-pop party.
-- Wes Craven, prolific director behind "A Nightmare on Elm Street" and "Scream" horror films, dies at 76.
WHAT OUR EDITORS ARE READING
-- A sampling of the late Oliver Sacks' reflections and conversations, compiled by the Atlantic.
-- The incredible life and haunting death of world traveler Harry Devert, as told in the Washington Post.
-- Which cultural touchstones are out of touch for incoming college freshmen? NPR makes us feel old.
ONLY IN L.A.
They call themselves BlacklistLA: a group of up to 300 runners who meet at 10 p.m. Mondays to go for a late-night jog and to admire street art in various parts of the city. And of course, they document it all on Instagram. Their motto: "The art of running for the love of Los Angeles."
Please send comments and ideas to Davan Maharaj.
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