Headlines From The Times

We repeat our episode from last year on Cinco de Mayo because it’s that good. Axios reporter Russell Contreras takes us to the forgotten history of the holiday that’s more American than Mexican, and offers a case for why we should celebrate it. Read the transcript here. Host: Gustavo ArellanoGuests: Axios reporter Russell ContrerasMore reading:If it’s Cinco de Mayo, the cooking should be MexicanOp-Ed: Cinco de Mayo -- a truly Mexican American holidayFive ways to celebrate Cinco de Mayo at home

On June 7, voters in Los Angeles will elect their preferred candidates in the primary. A couple of races — the mayor’s seat, L.A. County Sheriff, a possible recall of Dist. Atty. George Gascón — are earning national attention against a backdrop of voters angry with what they think is out-of-control crime and homelessness.Today, we air a live panel on all this and more, originally held during the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. Read the full transcript here.Host: Gustavo ArellanoGuests: L.A. Times columnist Erika D. Smith, L.A. Times mayor’s race reporter Julia Wick, and L.A. Times sheriff’s department reporter Alene Tchekmedyian.More reading:Rick Caruso’s campaign spending tops $23 million in L.A. mayor’s raceColumn: Sheriff Villanueva acts like he’s above the law in L.A. County. What if he’s right?First eyewitness account of Sheriff Villanueva lying in a cover-up revealed in filing 

In this installment of the podcast “Border City” from our sister paper, the San Diego Union-Tribune, longtime border reporter Sandra Dibble talks about what it was like covering the assassination of a police chief in Tijuana and the arrest of a powerful drug suspect.She also moonlights as an opera singer in Tijuana, puts on a concert for friends from both sides of the border and navigates living a binational life after 9/11, which changed the flow of traffic from one side of the border to the other.Read the full transcript here.Host: Sandra DibbleMore reading:Listen to all the “Border City” episodes

Streaming services were one of the few winners from the pandemic, especially Netflix. But the pandemic’s binge boom seems to have burst.Today, the winners and losers in the streaming wars and how providers are handling the post-quarantine subscriber drop. Read the transcript. Host: Gustavo ArellanoGuests: L.A. Times film business reporter Ryan FaughnderMore reading:After Netflix’s week from hell, why streaming is becoming more like ‘just TV’Same-day streaming film releases are ‘dead,’ cinema group leader saysLayoffs at Netflix have some staffers questioning company strategy and culture

After South L.A. erupted in anger 30 years ago, government officials promised to end the community’s economic disparity once and for all, and invest. It’s a promise that many residents say remains unfulfilled. But is that finally going to change?Today, Part Two of our L.A. riots anniversary coverage will focus on the Crenshaw Line, a light-rail system that some South L.A. leaders say will help the neighborhood improve — and others fear will bring gentrification. Read the transcript. Host: Gustavo ArellanoGuests: L.A. Times business reporter Samantha MasunagaMore reading:Facing schedule delays, L.A. Metro seeks $120 million more for Crenshaw LineMeet six artists making the public art you’ll soon see on Metro’s Crenshaw/LAX LineOpinion: The Crenshaw Line is a start, but L.A.'s most transit-dependent neighborhoods need more options

April 29, 1992. A date that forever changed Los Angeles. Six days of chaos erupted after the acquittal of four police officers in the videotaped beating of Rodney King, an unarmed Black motorist. This is the first of two episodes on the 30th anniversary of the L.A. riots.Today, Black, Latino and Asian communities reflect on the uprising. We also discuss the racial reckoning of the L.A. Times newsroom in its aftermath. Read the transcript. Host: Gustavo ArellanoGuests: L.A. Times columnists Sandy Banks and Frank ShyongMore reading:Column: What we got wrong about Black and Korean communities after the L.A. riotsColumn: He was murdered during the L.A. riots. We can’t forget Latinos like himThe damage went deep

For more than a decade, #BlackTwitter — a community of millions that has harnessed the power of the social media platform to create real-world change — has been a cultural phenomenon. But with Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter, many Black activists fret for the future of the space they created and say they might not stick around to see what changes the platform’s new owner will make.Today, how Twitter’s influential Black community is reacting to the controversial new leader — and where Black online social activism might thrive next. Read the full transcript here.Host: Gustavo ArellanoGuests: L.A. Times columnist Erika D. SmithMore reading:Column: With Elon Musk in charge, it’s the beginning of the end for #BlackTwitterElon Musk reaches $44-billion deal to buy TwitterBlack Tesla employees describe a culture of racism: ‘I was at my breaking point’

Menthol-flavored cigarettes have been controversial for decades, and the Food and Drug Administration is weighing a national ban on them. But tobacco companies are not a fan of losing out on millions of dollars with that possible move. So they’ve enlisted leaders in a community that has long been the biggest consumer of menthols: Black people.Read the show transcript here.Host: Gustavo ArellanoGuests: L.A. Times medical investigations reporter Emily Baumgaertner, and Ben Stockton of the Bureau of Investigative Journalism.More reading:How Big Tobacco used George Floyd and Eric Garner to stoke fear among Black smokersAddicted to menthol: Big Tobacco’s targeting of Black communities could soon endOp-Ed: Big Tobacco helped destroy Black Americans’ health. Banning menthols could help improve it

As Russia’s war against Ukraine enters its third month, ordinary Ukrainians continue to upend their lives to protect their homeland. Today, we’ll hear the stories of three Ukrainians who came to the aid of their country in its hour of greatest need.Read the full transcript here.Host: Gustavo ArellanoGuests: L.A. Times foreign correspondent Kate LinthicumMore reading:Full coverage of the war in UkraineUkraine war heroes: A student spiriting supplies to soldiers. A DJ answering calls about the missingUkrainian citizens trapped as Russia attacks hospitals, schools and refuses evacuations

The strict lockdowns and zero-tolerance COVID policies that were once praised for keeping China largely infection-free; they’re back. And they’re now pushing people to their limits.Today, how the recent lockdown in Shanghai is testing China’s zero tolerance strategy, and what it means for the country’s communist government. Read the full transcript here.Host: Gustavo ArellanoGuests: L.A. Times China correspondent Stephanie YangMore reading:Strain of Shanghai’s COVID lockdown tests China’s zero tolerance resolveHuman toll from Shanghai lockdown fuels public frustration‘It’s a nightmare’: Hong Kong runs low on coffins as Omicron exacts deadly toll