In the past several months, the LA Times has been rattled by plagiarism allegations, staff uprisings, fired editors and publisher, retaliatory bosses, allegations of severe wage discrimination, unethical reporters, and ridiculous unforced errors like this. In October, executive editor Norman Pearlstein “stepped down”. Now, besieged on all sides by critics demanding the paper actually reflect the city it’s supposed to represent, things have passed the point of mere turbulence at LA’s only county-wide newspaper—but then again, they’ve always been a mess for the local paper of record.
And while now the paper’s faults are being centered by the public, little has changed in their output over the past year. (What has changed is their readership, which has started paying more attention to local politics and the local journalists covering the city.)
The truth is, the Times has always existed to promote and defend ruling class interests; the publication is neither designed nor equipped to serve marginalized communities in LA, let alone to cover the material struggles of working class Angelenos accurately or in good faith. Corruption and concealed interests have always seeped into our local pages. This is most striking in how they report on real estate, policing, politics, race, and sports—all areas of interest here at NOlympics, where we argue that the local press has been working openly with centers of power since its inception. It’s no accident that so many of California’s landmark mansions (and castles) were once owned by the state’s most powerful publishing dynasties.
Their purview is to uphold the status quo, and this taints every article they run. There are dramatic examples, where the LA Times crosses the line into full-blown PR work, like with the Staples Center controversy or Arash Markazi blatantly copy-pasting press releases (his mistake being “not changing the words enough,” according to his editor). But there are subtler, more insidious versions of this happening daily. And this is not just limited to the Real Estate listings—this bias bleeds through the entire paper, from the editorial pages into “hard reporting.”
With source material spanning decades, we thumbed through the LA Times archives and examined how the paper has framed poor neighborhoods as they’re being gentrified. We then compared their language to that being used by the real estate interests themselves (i.e. what’s on the developer’s websites, their actual “PR”) and found the phrases indistinguishable. If we’re going to speak openly and honestly about poverty and housing—and generate solutions—we must probe who has been allowed to moderate and frame the ‘public conversations’ on community destruction. Then we must consider what is gained and lost, and by whom, when those in power are deemed our city’s publication of record.
So, can you tell which is which? Are these quotes from a real estate website or the Los Angeles Times?
Who is selling rose-tinted visions of gentrification’s benefits and who is wholesale omitting the poor community members being erased by development?
Which is newspaper journalism and which is unbridled PR speak? Is there even a meaningful difference?
Having watched downtown’s recent developments — and contributed with such projects as One Santa Fe and the 6th Street Bridge —[architect] is quick to accept the fluid nature of the city, citing decades of transformation driven by economic need.
For years, [developers have sought to] transform the derelict and often dangerous housing project into a mixed-income community of up to 1,800 stylish new apartments, along with chain stores and new streetscapes.
[The entrepreneur] named his company LIVWRK, a shortening of “live-work,” because he believes neighborhoods thrive best when they are home to commercial and residential uses that engage people day and night.
An L-shaped brick and timber loft building, the property is ideally situated to capture the [neighborhood’s] quickly expanding demand for loft office and retail space.
The [development] will have a landscaped public plaza with open seating and free events such as concerts. Food will be sold at multiple price points including “a $10 lunch,” [the developer said]. “It has something for everyone.” [The architect] said they are “hopefully creating a good public space for the future, for the whole community.”
While the COVID-19 pandemic has certainly slowed down activity, the impending arrival of the new NFL stadium and Crenshaw/LAX Line has heightened developer interest in the South Los Angeles neighborhood.
The elongated 8-acre site near the Burbank Metrolink rail station will include public amenities such as a gallery, a landscaped sidewalk with outdoor seating and protected bicycle lanes along Front Street. Elevators and a staircase will help pedestrians cross from Front Street to downtown Burbank on the Magnolia Boulevard bridge over the freeway.
[The development] is a 4.4-acre mixed-use development in the rapidly revitalizing “New Ninth” district of Los Angeles, just steps from one of America’s most prestigious universities and several world-class attractions. [The Development] is poised to become the epicenter of awesomeness that brings together hotel, student housing, multifamily, retail, dining and creative office spaces.
“It’s one of the best neighborhoods left,” said [the Developer], who is planning a mixed-used complex on Adams Boulevard, where he can purchase land for around $80 a square foot, compared with $500 a square foot downtown.
A neighborhood with rented scooters is a neighborhood with interesting things to see or buy or otherwise enjoy. Scooters lying randomly about confirm an area’s openness and livability, and they reflect an assumption by residents and visitors alike that here is a place worth exploring at ground level. Scooters, when they are a problem, are a problem of abundance. Inglewood has never had any problems of abundance.
“Sidewalks at risk of caving in are being reinforced. And, with much community input, [Bringing Back Broadway has] come up with a blueprint for Broadway's future. Included is an arts center, where artists could live, teach, create and display their work. Sidewalks would be widened and parking added, along with lighting and outdoor spots for people to gather.”
[The Developer] is listening to community feedback and has already increased the amount of open space proposed. Beyond housing, there would be outdoor dining and a town square where people could shop at a farmer’s market, ice skate during the winter or watch movies on summer nights.
How did you do?
Try one of our earlier quizzes on the LA Times or Eric Garcetti. Check out our Guide on How To Report on the Olympics for more on LA’s desertified media ecosystem and entrenched political landscape. Support our partners producing autonomous local news media at KNOCK LA and join the LA Tenants Union.