Newsmakers with JR
Notebook: A Political Plagiarism Mystery; Wussup with Mollie? Doomsday Looms for House Dems
Not since John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died on the same day -- July 4, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence...
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Newsmakers with JR
- Apr 1
Op-Ed: How Santa Barbara's Uncontested Elections Damage Democracy
By Wade Stewart Cowper A danger to democracy is hiding in plain sight right here in Santa Barbara County as voters prepare to cast...
Newsmakers with JR
- Mar 26
New Show: Questions Swirl Over Consultant Contracts; Homelessness Up; Water Supply Down
The estimated cost of a City Hall consulting contract for the State Street Master Plan Committee ballooned to $800,000 this week, as the...
Newsmakers with JR
- Mar 19
Panel: Supes Say No to Exxon; Racism Charges Again Roil SBUSD -- Plus, Rite Aid, Politics, Reform
Josh Molina and Nick Welsh join the genial host to break down Santa Barbara’s biggest local news stories, in a special week-in-review...
Newsmakers with JR
- Mar 12
Panel: SB Welcomes Back Cruise Ships; Cops Don Body Cameras; Stoker Scrambles Assembly Race
Pass the Red Bull, Maude, it looks like a dozy election season in Santa Barbara. As Friday's deadline passed to register to run for...
Newsmakers with JR
- Mar 10
Cannabis Tax Revenue Plummets 33 Percent Below SB County's Rosy Budget Forecast
By Melinda Burns Santa Barbara County's tax revenue from cannabis cultivation is projected to be only $12.4 million this fiscal year --...
Newsmakers with JR
- Mar 4
Panel: Local News and Local Angles. from Covid and Ukraine to DA, SBUSD, THC and Chik-fil-A
As critical Covid data markers sustained their downward trend this week, Ukraine replaced the pandemic as Global Topic A in Santa...
Newsmakers with JR
- Mar 4
Supes Roll Over for Cannabis Industry Yet Again -- Das Belittles Neighbors' Concerns on Pot Stench
By Melinda Burns The county Board of Supervisors this week expanded the burgeoning cannabis industry in the North County and Carpinteria...
Newsmakers with JR
- Mar 3
1-on-1: Joyce Dudley Won't Run Again; Endorses Asst. D.A.; Hits "Woke" Policy & "Pandering" Dems
Joyce Dudley will never forget the final words her late husband spoke to her three years ago. "Unfortunately, with the very untimely...
Newsmakers with JR
- Feb 26
LA Magazine Expunges Flawed Blockbuster Article on SB -- Vindication for Anthony Wagner
The "Friday news dump" is a time-honored method in the world of politics and media for entities to put out and lowball negative news...
Newsmakers with JR
- Feb 26
Panel: How SBUSD Botched Jr. High Hate Speech Episode - Plus Pot Scandal, IV Peeper, Attias Redux
Cary Matsuoka, the previous superintendent of the Santa Barbara Unified School District, was shown the door in 2020, after bungling...
Newsmakers with JR
- Feb 25
Pot Industry Puppets on Board of Supes Poised to Approve Another Sweetheart Deal for Cannabis
By Melinda Burns Under pressure from growers, the county Board of Supervisors is tinkering with the acreage caps in its cannabis...
Newsmakers with JR
- Feb 19
Panel: Montecito Dog Shocker, SB Housing Move, New Ty Warner Grift, Covid Unmasking Miasma
Every editor endowed with the authority to decide what goes on the cover of their publication knows the Front Page Golden Rule: You never...
Newsmakers with JR
- Feb 17
Three SB Supervisors in the Pot Industry's Pocket Ram Through Another Dodgy Cannabis Grow
By Melinda Burns On a 3-to-1 vote, the county Board of Supervisors approved zoning permits this week for a 24-acre cannabis “grow” on...
Newsmakers with JR
- Feb 11
Press Clips: A Look Behind the Scenes of Broadcast, as KCSB Celebrates 60 Years on the Air
It was a UCSB undergrad named Bill Harrison who launched KCSB-FM in 1962, a five-watt operation broadcast from his room in the Anacapa...
Newsmakers with JR
- Feb 10
Despite Odor Control Promises, Pot Critics Vow to Appeal Approvals for Well-Connected Carp Growers
By Melinda Burns The Santa Barbara County Planning Commission this month unanimously approved one of the largest and smelliest cannabis...
Newsmakers with JR
- Feb 5
Panel: New Tenant-Landlord Clashes Emerge as Council Eyes Rent Control; Can Capps Clear the Field?
Conflict between renters and landlords over economics and health and safety issues in Santa Barbara's tight housing market was Topic A on...
Newsmakers with JR
- Jan 29
Harbor Board Pushes for Early Cruise Ship Returns - Seriously? City Hall, Politics, RIP Gary Hart
The Omicron variant has triggered the highest case loads of the pandemic in Santa Barbara County, even as public health leaders suggest...
Newsmakers with JR
- Jan 27
As Growers Withdraw Buellton Pot Project Planners Bemoan "Original Sin" of County Ordinance
By Melinda Burns In a surprise move, the owners of El Dorado Farms on Highway 246 west of Buellton recently withdrew their proposal for...
Newsmakers with JR
- Jan 22
Covid Spike Sparks Nursing Shortage - and Strikes Our TV Panel; Alzheimer's Mess, City Hall, Elxn
In the most heroic act of journalism since George Smalley's horse took a bullet at Antietam, Nick Welsh showed up for duty on Newsmakers...