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May 26, 2005
S-p-e-l-l-i-n-g B-e-e
In tomorrow's Star we'll introduce you to Kendra Yoshinaga of Thousand Oaks. The 11-year-old, who is home schooled, is heading to Washington D.C. tomorrow for the 78th annual Scripps National Spelling Bee. Kendra also represented Ventra County in last year's Bee, tying for 27th place nationally. Staff writer Erinn Hutkin (ehutkin@VenturaCountyStar.com) has the story staff photographer Juan Carlo has the photos.
Also in tomorrow's Star we'll have coverage by Sacramento bureau chieff Timm Herdt (therdt@VenturaCountyStar.com) on the California Transportation Commission decision expected today on the creative financing plan to pay for expansion of Lewis Road in Camarillo from the 101 to California State University-Channel Islands.
Another local story tomorrow that might make its way to Page One, is by business writer Gretchen Macchiarella (gmacchairella@VenturaCountyStar.com) who talked to local economists and investors for ideas on what you should do with your money in an economy that has the experts scratching their heads.
And there's a lot to look at off the wires for Page One: Senate vote may come today on controversial U.N. ambassador-designee John Bolton; the Iraqi government says it will surround Baghdad with 40,000 soldiers to halt the ongoing insurgent violence; and President Bush says he'll give millions of dollars directly to the Palestinian Authority.
Posted by John Moore at 10:01 AM
May 25, 2005
What does it mean?
We were talking about "American Idol" at our 9 a.m. budget meeting this morning. We plan to report on who wins for tomorrow's paper. But we also know that many of you (and almost all of you who really care) will know who won by the time The Star arrives before dawn tomorrow.
So we spent much of our time talking about how we want to frame tomorrow's story. Here are some of the points we are looking at:
What does it mean to win "American Idol"? What does it mean that, after four years, we're still caught up in this? Why do we care? Is it just like the Super Bowl, but with a different audience demographic? What's the future of the show? What's the impact of the show?
Our staff is bouncing around those questions ... and others ... right now to find the angle we'll use for tomorrow's coverage.
Also for tomorrow's Page One, Sacramento bureau chief Timm Herdt (therdt@VenturaCountyStar.com) will cover and explain "suspense day" in the state Legislature. Today the Appropriations Committee of the Assembly will vote on 450 bills in a single day, killing many, rewriting some, gutting others and giving the green light for a few. Timm tells us how it happens, and why, and what happens to legislation of interest to Ventura County.
Today, Stephanie Hoops (shoops@VenturaCountyStar.com) is covering the memorial service for Judge Robert Bradley. That may make it to Page One tomorrow.
It's a big day for national/international news (in addition to "American Idol"): Senate approves the nomination of Priscilla Owen to the U.S. Court of Appeals; debate on stem cell research moves from the House to the Senate; a Amnesty International study terms the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay "the gulag of our time"; and U.S. forces are conducting another major crackdown on insurgents in Iraq.
Posted by John Moore at 10:35 AM
May 24, 2005
Summer travel
In advance of Memorial Day weekend, we're planning to run our annual summer travel package in tomorrow's Star. We'll look at where folks are planning to go this summer, how they're going to get there and how much it's going to cost (now that gas is firmly stuck at around $2.50 a gallon). Staff writer Zeke Barlow (zbarlow@VenturaCountyStar.com) is putting the story together for us. Graphics Director Brian Snyder is putting together a graphic to go along with it.
Staff writer Stephanie Hoops (shoops@VenturaCountyStar.com) is examining the situation at Magic Mountain amusement park, which has been hit by two consecutive weekends of violence. The big park in nearby Valencia had its share of problems in the past.
Also today we receive the latest housing sales numbers from the California Association of Realtors. And ... it's a record ... again. Business writer Gretchen Macchiarella (gmacchiarella@VenturaCountyStar.com) has the first look at it online.
Then, what we're looking at off the wire for Page One tomorrow includes: The latest from the Senate as it votes on President Bush's judicial nominees, the House debate on stem cell research, and reports from Iraq that al-Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has been wounded.
Posted by John Moore at 10:38 AM
May 23, 2005
Talk amongst yourselves
Comments have been restored to the Ventura County Star website. But this time they're coming with some stronger rules and guards to stem the tide of abuse that brought down the Comments last week.
And they're coming with the hope that users will continue to step up and strike down the trolls and other offenders.
Here's what we did:
All comments are routed through our online registration system. A script attaches the registered name to the comment. It also allows us to identify the email address that was used in registration. (And thanks to our friends at our sister newspaper Naples Daily News for doing this for us.)
That allows us to contact via email anyone who files objectionable comments. If they persist, we can block their registration in addition to blocking their IP address.
If we send them a warning and find their email is phony, then we ban them for violating the Terms of Service.
It also creates a self-regulating factor for many of us. By forcing people to use registered names (which should be their real names), we invoke the "Mama's listening" rule: Don't say anything you wouldn't want your mother to hear.
We've also attached a basic profanity filter which will allow comments to be posted, but replaces the growing list of profanity with asterisks.
And we are encouraging, imploring and, yes, empowering readers to police themselves. We're asking them to contact us immediately if they find objectionable posts. And we are still investigating the model of volunteer moderators (maybe not as extensive as Slashdot).
We recognize that the persistent ones can find a way around the wall. At least now they'll have to work at it a little harder. We've committed to devoting some initial staff time in the coming weeks to monitor the comments. We'll work hard at keeping them away. Our hope is that we'll spend less time doing that and more time working to grow and enhance the site.
The goal remains the same: Create a home for civil discourse stemming from today's news. We don't want to control the discussion; we want to make it open and free flowing and comfortable for everyone to participate.
Will this work? We don't know. But it's worth us trying.
We do know that today one of the early returnees wrote:
"I am so pleased that the editors of the STAR have finally cracked down on the use of this web site for productive comments. ...
Hallelujah! "
That was followed a short while later by this response from a different poster:
"Your comment had nothing to do with the article. If you are happy with the new format then you should send an email direct to the Star. In doing so, you'll avoid stirring up the pot, which it would seem was the intention of your post."
Go forth and comment.
Posted by John Moore at 01:51 PM
Hot and getting hotter
The hot weather is here. In editors' minds that means the 3 Bs: beaches, barbecues and brushfires. That's what's on our minds for Page One for tomorrow. There were several small brush fires over the weekend in Ventura County. Fire officials today are doing a training exercise in the La Canada area. Staff writer Maria Gonzalez (mgonzalez@VenturaCountyStar.com) is talking with local officials on what they expect for the fire season that's here sooner than anyone wanted.
In the same vein, staff writer Zeke Barlow (zbarlow@VenturaCountyStar.com) is reporting on a plan in the Los Padres National Forest to aggressivly clear out underbrush beginning in the fall. Up to 8,000 acres may be burned or cleared, mostly near homes or recreational areas.
In may not make Page One, but The Star will have a big package on "American Idol" on the Arts&Living page tomorrow. A local panel of AI watchers rates the two finalists and tells us who they think will win.
We'll look to Washington for wire stories for tomorrow's Page One. The Supreme Court, nearing the end of its term, has rejected a death sentence appeal by Mexican citizen on death row in Texas; accepted a New Hampshire abortion case, which won't be decided until next year; and ruled that the government could force beef producers to pay for the government-run marketing campaign.
We'll also set you up for tomorrow's scheduled historic vote in the Senate on judicial nominees.
Posted by John Moore at 10:40 AM
May 20, 2005
Stand down
The Army is taking today off from recruiting and sending all its recruiters through training in the wake of accusations that some of them lied to recruits and used improper recruiting methods. Staff writer Erinn Hutkin (ehutkin@VenturaCountyStar.com) is checking with area schools and recruiters and teens about what's been going on at our high school campuses. We'll look at her story for tomorrow's Page One of The Star. The whistle was blown, by the way, by a high school journalist in my old hometown of Arvada, Colorado.
Also on Page One tomorrow, we'll have a story about the very successful California Lutheran University capital campaign. Education writer John Scheibe (jscheibe@VenturaCountyStar.com) says the school raiseds $90 million in the campaign. The goal was $40 million.
And our Sports department is down in Los Angeles tonight for the opening game of the Los Angeles vs. Los Angeles baseball series. The Angels are at the Dodgers for the first time since the Angeles changed their name.
Speaking of baseball, look for a great package in our Sunday paper by sports writer David Lassen (dlassen@VenturaCountyStar.com) about Sparky Anderson, the former baseball manager and longtime Thousand Oaks resident.
Posted by John Moore at 12:08 PM
May 19, 2005
College graduation day
It's graduation day at Ventura County's three community colleges. We will be covering each graduation (as we do nearly all graduations in the county) for tomorrow's editions. Packaged with the graduation stories we're still trying to put together the look at the impact on the college budget from the revised state budget plan announced last week. We know that community colleges statewide are to get more money; we just don't know how much is coming here, and how it will be spent.
It's Day 1 of the Star Wars phenomenon. We're talking to people who went to the opening day showing of the blockbuster and see if the movie is living up to all the hype.
And staff writer Sylvia Moore (smoore@VenturaCountyStar.com) talks with members of the local base closing task force to find out their plans for combatting the personnel cuts recommended by the Pentagon for Naval Base Ventura County.
Of the wires, we continue to watch the rancorous debate in the Senate over judicial nominees, the continuing debate in Washington over cracking down on steroid use in professional sports and the latest out of Iraq.
Posted by John Moore at 10:08 AM
May 18, 2005
Comments on hiatus
Today we stopped live, unmoderated comments on the stories on our website.
It's a response to the abuse of the comments and, quite honestly, no one here involved in the decision is happy about having to do it. But it had to be done.
We started the comments in January, attaching them to all of the stories on our website and giving everyone a chance to comment in real time to the issues, and to each other.
It was a great conversation.
With no publicity, readers found the comments. Less than two weeks after starting the Comments, we published the breaking story about the tiger being shot in Moorpark. The story was on the website by 8:30 a.m. By noon we had more than 200 comments; more than 750 after two days.
So we kept it up. Wonderful conversations ensued. Readers began talking with each other, offering opinions, raising the bar of discourse in the county. They were voices we didn't normally hear from. The comments made many of us a little nervous. They were a little raw for our taste; language and opinions that we don't normally see in print. But they were real. For awhile.
Very quickly, race become the common theme on many of the topic threads. Whether it was a school award or a crime, it seemed that the comments quickly devolved into a discussion of race and immigration. That didn't make us happy. We know that much of that is triggered by talk radio and its incessant blaming of societal problems on race. But it also showed what these readers were interested in talking about. So we let it run, deleting the comments that were profane or defamatory.
But in the past few weeks, we've noticed a surge in the abuse of comments. First there was a group of regular commenters who often posted cogent remarks; but just as often tried to incite others just for fun with outrageous statements. And that spurred comments that quickly went off the mark and over the line. And they often used the comments for their own personal chat room.
The viciousness of the comments began to escalate. We found more and more of our time was being spent moderating the comments. With comments posted on dozens of stories, it ate up much of our day.
And it also showed the unfortunate underbelly of the Internet. The anonymity offered by the Internet on comments like this seems to encourage people to say the meanest, ugliest things about other people. You know that many of those comments would never be made in person.
It's sad.
It's particularly sad for us because pulling the plug as we did today prohibits the majority of our readers from the opportunity to have lively, invigorating conversations with each other about news and issues. Those conversations were hugely enlightening to us and, we hope, to our readers. We marveled at the civil discourse.
So we're looking at ways to return comments that allow for the apparent controls that our readers need and don't require us to hire a fulltime babysitter to monitor the comments. We want to bring them back. We hope we can do it.
Posted by John Moore at 11:20 AM
Star Wars is here
It's Star Wars night. As we speak, ticket holders are already in line at various Ventura County theatres anticipating the midnight showing. For tomorrow's editions, we will have a Page One story talking to parents about the peer pressure among kids to see it, and how they're handling the PG-13 rating, particularly for the youngest Star Wars fans.
But that's not all.
The Arts&Living section has a story on John Williams, the composer for all the Star Wars movies. And Time Out tomorrow has a two-page spread on the movies, giving highlights of the previous episodes ... in case you missed them.
We also will be inviting you to come online and give us your rating of the film and your review.
Then, for Friday's editions, we'll cover opening night.
Also tomorrow, we're taking a looking at a recent study that found that 40 percent of workers ages 21 to 30 have not started saving for their retirement. We talk to them and to financial planners.
And, off the wires, we'll be following the debate in the Senate today on the nomination of two federal judges, follows on the historic election of a new mayor in Los Angeles, the continuing congressional hearings on controlling steroids in sports, and the latest from Iraq.
Posted by John Moore at 11:13 AM
May 16, 2005
Week of the Sith
The last Star Wars movie opens this week. For tomorrow's paper, staff writer Kim Lamb Gregory (kgregory@venturacountystar.com) looks at the predictions that this could be the biggest movie opening -- ever. We'll also let you know who's going to be showing the movie and when in Ventura County.
Also for tomorrow's Page One, education writer John Scheibe (jscheibe@VenturaCountyStar.com) is trying to determine the impact of additional state funding on the Ventura County Community College District budget. The governor said Friday that community colleges will get $83 million more next year than anticipated. How much of that will land in VCCCD's budget, and how it will be spent are questions John is trying to get answered today.
We will also follow on the Supreme Court decision today that basically opens up the country for wine sales. Many states had restricted the importation of wine. Now you will be able to ship those California wines anywhere. Business writer Jim McLain (jmclain@VenturaCountyStar.com) will be talking to local and regional wineries on what this means for them.
And we'll be looking for other stories off the wires, including the ongoing fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Posted by John Moore at 10:39 AM
May 13, 2005
Brac, brac, brac
That's our story for the day: the impact of the base closing and realignment recommendations on Naval Base Ventura County. The base isn't closing; but it's going to end up losing more than 2,000 jobs. Economists tell us that kind of direct job loss leads to an indirect loss of another 2,000 jobs. We have reporters pulling all this together as we speak. The story's are already online. And today we sent a reporter and photographer to China Lake, where many of our jobs will be relocated. That story will appear in Sunday's Star.
Also tomorrow, we'll have the story on the county's plan to add a five-story medical clinic to the Ventura County Medical Center. We should have this exclusive story on the website by early afternoon.
Our Thousand Oaks city reporter Grace Lee (glee@VenturaCountyStar.com) continues to follow the resignation of City Manager Phil Gatch. She'll report tomorrow on the financial package Gatch will receive when he leaves.
And ... in other news ... as they say ... today Gov. Arnold Schwarzenneger will announce his revised budget proposals. We'll have the details tomorrow and what it means for us.
There are slow news days. And then there's today.
Posted by John Moore at 11:54 AM
May 12, 2005
Taking the long way home
One of the least known road closures stemming from the January storms was Highway 33 out of Lockwood Valley. Residents in that far corner of Ventura County found themselves having to go over to Interstate 5 to head to work -- turning an 80-minute commute into a 150-minute commute. But Caltrans says the road is finally ready for traffic. Staff writer Charles Levin (clevin@VenturaCountyStar.com) visited the road work and talked to the residents in that remote corner of our world in a story for tomorrow's Page One.
Sacramento bureau chief Timm Herdt (therdt@VenturaCountyStar.com) is covering Controller Steve Westly's push today against the federal energy bill. Westly, of course, is also angling for the Democratic nomination for governor next year.
And remember that story about the CDs in the libraries and schools? Read it yet in your morning paper? I didn't think so. It's still on our schedule, still ready to go, still waiting for the right moment to publish it.
Off the wires, we'll be following the Senate committee vote on U.N. ambassador nominee John Bolton and the latest from Iraq.
Posted by John Moore at 10:04 AM
May 11, 2005
Honoring Nancy
The political elite of the nation -- including President and Mrs. Bush -- will lay down their partisan swords tonight in Washington D.C. to honor Nancy Reagan for a lifetime of work. The affair is a fund-raiser for the Air Force One Pavilion now under construction at the Reagan library in Simi Valley. Star Washington correspondent Michael Collins (collinsm@shns.com) will be in attendance at the Ronald Reagan Building and writing the story for tomorrow's Page One. That topped the list at our 9 a.m. news budget meeting this morning of potential A1 stories.
We will also be checking out a new report being released today that says California's superpower economic status is threatened by cuts in college funding in the state. Education writer John Scheibe (jscheibe@VenturaCountyStar.com) is checking out the report, also trying to determine if there are any biases in the prepartion of the study.
We still have available (after holding for several days) the story about free CDs that are flooding libraries and schools in the county, courtesy of a settlement in a music price fixing case. This is the kind of story, by the way, that newspapers love to have available: interesting, a good read and no specific time hook. That allows us to push it along on our news budget until we find a "slower" news day.
Naval Base Ventura County is unveiling a demonstration desalinization facility at the base today. Staff writer Raul Hernandez (rhernandez@VenturaCountyStar.com) will be there to learn about the new science involved in this project and how it differs from past (failed) desalinization efforts in California.
Ventura High School senior Dallas Woodburn, who recently received the Julius Gius Scholarship from The Star, is in line today to get national recognition for her amazing high school career. We'll have the story tomorrow.
About 1,500 Ventura residents face a power outage Thursday. But it's not your normal outage. Southern California Edison says it's going to pull the plug on them for about 20 hours for an extensive repair task. The outage includes a 104-unit seniors-only complex. Staff writer Kevin Clerici (kclerici@VenturaCountyStar.com) will try to figure out today why it's happening and how residents can cope without electricity for almost a full day -- particularly those who may have health issues and need electric-driven help such as respirators or emergency phones.
And, off the wires, we're following the newest car bombings in Iraq and the anti-U.S. demonstrations in Afghanistan, as well as the latest in the mass killings in Riverside County and the deaths of the two school girls in Illinois.
Posted by John Moore at 09:59 AM
May 10, 2005
Next step on school unification
A vote is expected this evening by the Ventura County Committee on School District Organization on whether to move forward on the effort to unify Camarillo schools in a single district. At our morning news budget meeting today, this looked like one of the potential Page One stories for tomorrow. Currently the high schools there are part of the Oxnard high school district. Staff writer Erinn Hutkin (ehutkin@VenturaCountyStar.com) is covering the meeting for us.
Among the other local stories we're following today:
Staff writer Zeke Barlow (zbarlow@VenturaCountyStar.com) has the story we held from last week on the glut of free CDs flooding area libraries and schools, courtesy of an anti-trust settlement.
Sacramento bureau chief Timm Herdt (therdt@VenturaCountyStar.com) is examining efforts by the labor-backed Alliance for a Better California to place a couple of ballot initiatives on the next ballot.
Education writer John Scheibe (jscheibe@VenturaCountyStar.com) is chasing reports that the new president of Ventura College may be named tonight at the community college district board meeting.
And business writer Gretchen Macchiarella (gmacchiarella@VenturaCountyStar.com) is exploring a positive trend for new college graduates: they're finding more available jobs at better pay.
And options for Page One off the wire include: President Bush's speech in Tbilisi, Georgia; Senate passage of a highway spending bill that may draw the president's first veto; continuing U.S. sweeps against insurgents in Iraq; the followup on the deaths of two second-grade girls in Illinois; and the latest on the base closing process leading up to Friday's possible announcement of the base hit list.
Posted by John Moore at 10:14 AM
May 09, 2005
La Conchita revisted
It's been four months since the mountainside slid into the beach community of La Conchita. Those who survived that day are living with the disaster and it's impacts. Some are physical. Some are psychological. All are real. Staff writer Zeke Barlow (zbarlow@VenturaCountyStar.com) revists La Conchita.
Also on tap for Page One tomorrow is an advance on a big Washington D.C. fundraiser planned for Wednesday night. Staff writer Jean Ortiz (jortiz@VenturaCountyStar.com) writes about the dinner honoring Nancy Reagan and her accomplishments. All the heavy hitters from the Washington scene -- both Republican and Democrat -- are expected at the dinner, where tickets start at $1,500 each and tables range from $50,000 to $100,000. Proceeds go to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation which is footing the fill for completion of the Air Force One pavilion at the Simi Valley library.
Off the wire, we're checking out the Newsweek top 1,000 high school survey, which includes some interesting placement of Ventura County schools; the annual Texas traffic student; President Bush's visit to Russia; and the latest from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Posted by John Moore at 10:00 AM
May 06, 2005
Read it here first
If you are a Star Wars fan -- even if you're not -- you might be interested in the latest Star Wars movie: "Episode III -- Revenege of the Sith." It won't open until May 19 (tickets are already for sale at some Ventura County theatres) but our Brett Johnson (bjohnson@VenturaCountyStar.com), one of our features writers, got an early viewing. His review will appear in tomorrow's Star. No hint on what he thinks. Well. Maybe a little one: He's checking out the office thesaurus for synonyms for "wow."
Also on Page One tomorrow we're planning coverage of the CIF meeting today where the governing board of high school athletics in California will debate adopting a new bylaw banning steroids. Sports writer Derry Eads (deads@VenturaCountyStar.com) is on the scene and will be reporting.
Then off the wire, there are a number of stories we're talking about for page one: The latest report out of Mexico that Mexicans living aborad sent $4 billion home in the first quarter of this year, a 20 percent increase over the same period a year ago; the annual report on babyi names, showing that Jacob and Emily have a lock in the No. 1 spot on that list; and more on Anna Ayala, the woman who reported finding the finger in the Wendy's chili.
Posted by John Moore at 11:34 AM
May 05, 2005
Disneyland at 50
Today is the first day of Disneyland's 18-month celebration of its 50th anniversary (most of us who turn 50 are happy to keep the celebration to under an hour). Staff writer Stephanie Hoops (shoops@VenturaCountyStar.com) is on the scene today for the festivities and will bring you a report in tomorrow's Star. We're planning additional coverage of Disneyland -- an icon in our lives in Southern California -- and are looking for your stories about your adventures at Adventureland, or elsewhere at Disneyland. If you want to share your stories send us an email at: feedback@VenturaCountyStar.com.
The sound of music is echoing through schools and libraries in Ventura County thanks to anti-trust settlement between states and the music industry over price fixing. The music industry agreed to distributed about $75 million in CDs nationwide. And the tunes are arriving: Jessica Simpson, Cypress Hill, Linda Ronstadt, Wu-Tang Clan. Staff writer Zeke Barlow (zbarlow@VenturaCountyStar.com) finds out what the libraries and schools are planing to due with the tunes.
Off the wire, we'll watch for continuing coverage out of Iraq and we'll be following the election in Great Britain.
Posted by John Moore at 09:46 AM
May 04, 2005
Good day for news
Actually, what Managing Editor Rich Luna said at our 9 a.m. budget meeting was that it's a "good day for news to break."
There are a couple of interesting stories on the horizon for the day, but it's a day where we wouldn't mind news happening.
Locally, we're going to take a look at Cinco de Mayo. Staff writer Angelica Martinez (amartinez@VenturaCountyStar.com) will examine a little of the history (it's NOT Mexico's Independence Day) and how the day has been hijacked by U.S. business community to create parties.
We're also working on a story about the impact of community college budget cuts on Latino students. The cuts, obviously, affect all students, but studies show that 3 out of 4 Latino college students in California start their college careers in community colleges. Education writer John Scheibe (jscheibe@VenturaCountyStar.com) is writing that piece.
Those of you who read yesterday's blog may have gone looking for the story about the new electronic's store coming to the county. Well, we didn't get all the returned calls we wanted and held the story. It should run tomorrow.
Off the wires, we're following the arrest of a Pentagon analyst on charges he passed classified information about U.S. forces in Iraq to a pro-Israel group. And we'll take a look at an investigative piece offered by The Associated Press that shows that hundreds of foster children were enrolled in studies testing AIDS drugs over the past 20 years, without the basic protection afforded by federal and state law of those who join research projects.
Posted by John Moore at 10:02 AM
May 03, 2005
Danger on the freeways
For Page One tomorrow, we're working on an update on the freeway shootings in Southern California. Staff writer Maria Gonzalez (mgonzalez@VenturaCountyStar.com) is looking at this huge public safety issue. The California Highway Patrol is trying to put it into perspective, but eight shootings in two months have stirred public concern. We'll talk to some of you, the folks who drive the freeways, in addition to law enforcement and psychologists.
Also for tomorrow, we visit "The Moving Wall," a half-size replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial that's been touring the country for 20 years. In this, the 30th anniversary of the fall of Saigon, the replica wall is on display in Santa Barbara, its only Southern California stop this year. Staff writer Zeke Barlow (zbarlow@VenturaCountyStar.com) toured the wall and talked to visitors.
Sssh. This is one that you have to promise not to pass along. It seems that a well-known electronics chain store known for its wide selection is moving into Ventura County for the first time. It's going to be located at the Market Place shopping center next to Costco in Oxnard. Business writer Jim McLain (jmclain@VenturaCountyStar.com) has it on very reliable sources that this store ... which must remain nameless, but starts with the letter "F" ... will be open by Thanksgiving, just in time for the Christmas rush. Jim will have the scoop tomorrow.
We're also going to be in Santa Paula today. There's a parade, complete with a marching band and big crowds. Oh, and there are stars there, too. It's all for the filming of a movie, "Mr. Woodcock," starring Billy Bob Thornton, Susan Sarandon, Seann William Scott and Amy Poehler. The parade will move up and down Main Street all day until they get it right.
Off the wires, we'll consider today's swearing in of Iraq's first democratically elected government.
Posted by John Moore at 10:28 AM
May 02, 2005
Waiting on the injunction
Looks like the top local news story of the day will again be the Oxnard gang injunction. Today's the deadline for injunction opponents to appeal the judge's decision to make the injunction against Colonia Chiques permanent. If there's no appeal, then the injunction becomes permanent. Staff writer Marjorie Hernandez (mhernandez@VenturaCountyStar.com) continues to be our lead reporter on the story. On Sunday, The Star had an editorial regarding the injunction that has elicited some fascinating conversations from readers under the comments section. They're worth your reading.
The other story that stirred interest this morning at our news budget meeting was the Wall Street Journal piece from this morning that Univision, the Spanish-language broadcaster based in Los Angeles, is frequently No. 1 in attracting 18- to 34-year-old viewers in prime time this year, beating the Big Four: ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. It's a fascinating story and we're talking about how we want to play it for you in tomorrow's paper.
The other wire story up for discussion this morning was the freeway shootings on the 405 and 210 freeways over the weekend. There have been a series of them recently and, of course, many of us spend a great deal of time on those LA freeways. Again, we're talking about how we want to frame that story for you.
Locally, we have two candidates for Page One tomorrow. One is a piece by education writer John Scheibe (jscheibe@VenturaCountyStar.com) on the rising costs of college textbooks ... students pay an average of $900 a year according to one study. He looks at the impact, particularly for our community college students who are also faced with increased fees in recent years.
And Sacramento bureau chief Timm Herdt (therdt@VenturaCountyStar.com) will report on the annual update in population. Don't know yet what the Ventura County numbers will be ... they'll be released today by the Department of Finace.
Also off the wire, we'll probably look to the guilty plea from this morning by Pfc. Lyndie English in the Abu Graib prison scandal.
Posted by John Moore at 10:13 AM
