Capital & Main reports on critical issues related to the economy, energy & environment, civil rights and labor.
With a focus on California, our award-winning journalism seeks to make a difference.
Contracts for some 2,000 workers at Keck Hospital of USC and the USC Norris Cancer Hospital expired in April. Months later, the sides don’t even agree on the basics — especially on the subject of pay.
At Keck Medicine, which brings in almost half the university’s revenue, workers say their wages and benefits lag other large health systems.
During Colorado’s ‘ozone season,’ children and adults alike stay indoors.
Drilling wells near the suburbs could make it worse.
During Colorado’s ‘ozone season,’ children and adults alike stay indoors. Drilling wells near the suburbs could make it worse.
According to a recent report, to qualify for a mortgage on a mid-tier home in California, a buyer would need an annual income of roughly $235,000.
That’s two and a half times the median household income for 2022, the most recent year of data available.
To even scrape for a bottom-tier home in California, you’d need to make $140,000 a year to qualify for the mortgage, the state Legislative Analyst’s Office said.
That is a lot of numbers to tell a cold truth: Working-class Californians can’t afford homes.
Multiple efforts to boost housing construction are meant to bring home ownership back within reach. Meanwhile, workers can’t keep up.
Last October, California passed the nation’s strongest law to address the glut of oil and gas wells that are unplugged and ownerless, many leaking pollutants into the environment.
But in its first major test, California regulators sidestepped the law.
State regulators could have asked oil companies California Resources Corp. and Aera Energy for an estimated $2.4 billion to guarantee wells are plugged but decided they didn’t have the authority to do so.
Advocates say significant cuts to mental health and employment services highlight a failure to inform CalWorks recipients about available services.
Only 2% of surveyed parents were aware that immigration services were available to them.
Advocates say significant cuts to mental health and employment services highlight a failure to inform CalWorks recipients about available services.
"How we treat the least of us defines the rest of us."
Serving a life sentence, an incarcerated journalist has launched two prison newspapers and helped fellow inmates find self-worth and purpose.
Serving a life sentence, an incarcerated journalist has launched two prison newspapers and helped fellow inmates find self-worth and purpose.
Why does it matter? Because once reviewed, a stunningly high percentage of such denials are overturned, meaning the plans are ultimately forced to provide kids with the mental health services they need.
A Senate bill would immediately send urgent cases denied services to an independent review.
A former clean-energy investor who has worked with J.D. Vance said while all politicians are “chameleons to one degree or another,” it’s an unusual shift when it comes to climate science.
Trump’s VP pick flip-flopped on global warming as he rose in GOP politics, earning a zero score on climate from a leading environmental group.
West Virginia races could strengthen coal’s dominance and shape nation’s climate future.
West Virginia races could strengthen coal’s dominance and shape nation’s climate future.
New Mexico has some of the nation's toughest oil and gas regulations. Enforcing them is another matter.
With the EPA hamstrung by the Supreme Court and shaky state funding, New Mexico could face a future with reduced protections.
Though most Americans think the rich don’t pay their fair share, Republicans still want to lower their taxes.
Though most Americans think the rich don’t pay their fair share, conservatives still want to lower their taxes.
It was direct assistance — both federal stimulus payments and enhanced unemployment insurance — that led to the more dramatic drop in California poverty rates during the pandemic.
With the end of direct cash payments, poverty levels are moving up.
Rick Smith: "Donald Trump was horrible for organized labor. The people that he put into positions of power were horrible for organized labor."
Teamster, trucker and talk show host Rick Smith says Donald Trump isn’t a serious supporter of labor.
Generative AI is here and it poses an existential threat to creative artists. Two young creators probe the conflict between bots and humans in their new podcast “The Creative Code.”
https://capitalandmain.com/young-artists-worry-about-a-future-supplanted-by-artificial-intelligence
Advocates argue that the high prices charged by phone contractors used by ICE facilities obligate detainees to work in the facilities, which often pay as little as $1 per day.
https://capitalandmain.com/detained-immigrants-lose-a-lifeline-as-ice-ends-free-phone-time-program
State Republicans devastated unions, but union electoral power remains crucial to defeating Donald Trump.
State Republicans devastated unions, but union electoral power remains crucial to defeating Donald Trump.
Expensive per-minute fees make calls unaffordable for many migrant detainees, who can earn as little as $1 a day working in ICE facilities.
Expensive per-minute fees make calls unaffordable for many migrant detainees, who can earn as little as $1 a day working in ICE facilities.
REPORT: Tens of millions of people who live or work in the urban areas of America’s largest cities are exposed to significantly higher temperatures than those who live in suburban or rural areas.
Landscapes covered in concrete and asphalt, a lack of greenery and buildings that block air flow can make cities significantly hotter than surrounding areas.
JESSE KATZ: “Immigration is a huge part of this story. It’s the backdrop of MacArthur Park, of street vending, of the gang crime.”
In The Rent Collectors, Jesse Katz explores the saga of Giovanni Macedo through the lens of L.A.’s fabled park.
A plan for drilling 156 oil and gas wells near a Colorado Superfund site has driven suburban residents to action — and it's putting to the test the state's environmental rules.
A plan for drilling 156 oil and gas wells near a Superfund site has driven suburban residents to action.
CALIFORNIA BUDGET: Some key state programs will be maintained, but those without legal status remain ineligible for other anti-poverty programs.
Some key state programs will be maintained, but those without legal status remain ineligible for other anti-poverty programs.
Leimert’s Godfather leaves a legacy of Black permanence.
https://capitalandmain.com/a-lifelong-sika
Sika Dwimfo, known as the godfather of Leimert Park Village, leaves a legacy of Black permanence in Los Angeles.
Leimert’s Godfather leaves a legacy of Black permanence.
Gary Gerstle: British election is being watched by “authoritarians and democrats everywhere in the world” to see which side prevails, and that in the U.S., “a victory for Trump dramatically advances authoritarian rule.”
A parliamentary system, more disciplined parties and no electoral college have some advantages for democracy, says Cambridge-based U.S. historian Gary Gerstle.
When Uber and Lyft receive a safety report regarding a driver, they deactivate the driver’s account while they investigate the complaint, effectively banning them from work.
“Due process” for deactivations would include clear rules, guidelines and appeals before loss of income.
Living up to the name of an award-winning newsroom.
Capital & Main won 7 first-place prizes and 20 overall at the 66th annual Southern California Journalism Awards, one of the largest regional media
Group cooking and exercise classes help low-income Californians treat chronic conditions. The future of the state’s food-as-medicine pilot program is in the hands of state Legislators.
Group cooking and exercise classes help low-income Californians treat chronic conditions.
Fast-food workers don't always know the California laws designed to protect them in the workplace. A new initiative seeks to make know-your-rights training mandatory in L.A. and San Jose.
Workers push for mandatory training in L.A. and San Jose, where they meet industry resistance.
The 1985 Ellis Act blocks cities from preserving rent-controlled housing. Critics say it needs to go.
The 1985 Ellis Act blocks cities from preserving rent-controlled housing. Critics say it needs to go.
Project 2025's plan to gut climate policy and boost fossil fuels could set back global efforts for decades, say scientists and analysts.
Project 2025 plan to gut climate policy and boost fossil fuels could set back global efforts for decades, say scientists and analysts.
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The American media is in crisis at a time when we need independent, fact-based news more than ever. Here's one thing you can do right now to help sustain vital journalism: Buy a ticket or sponsorship for Capital & Main's 10th anniversary gala on June 6. I'm proud to serve on Capital & Main's advisory board. Over the past decade, they have become one of the nation's leading sources of reporting on the biggest challenges facing our country. From inequality to threats to democracy to climate change, Capital & Main is producing coverage that leads to real change. Please join me today in supporting Capital & Main. https://exposesawards.com/rsvp-here
The American media is in crisis at a time when we need independent, fact-based news more than ever. Here's one thing you can do right now to help sustain vital journalism: Buy a ticket or sponsorship for Capital & Main's 10th anniversary gala on June 6. I'm proud to serve on Capital & Main's advisory board. Over the past decade, they have become one of the nation's leading sources of reporting on the biggest challenges facing our country. From inequality to threats to democracy to climate change, Capital & Main is producing coverage that leads to real change. Please join me today in supporting Capital & Main. https://exposesawards.com/rsvp-here
The American media is in crisis at a time when we need independent, fact-based news more than ever. Here's one thing you can do right now to help sustain vital journalism: Buy a ticket or sponsorship for Capital & Main's 10th anniversary gala on June 6. I'm proud to serve on Capital & Main's advisory board. Over the past decade, they have become one of the nation's leading sources of reporting on the biggest challenges facing our country. From inequality to threats to democracy to climate change, Capital & Main is producing coverage that leads to real change. Please join me today in supporting Capital & Main. https://exposesawards.com/rsvp-here
The American media is in crisis at a time when we need independent, fact-based news more than ever. Here's one thing you can do right now to help sustain vital journalism: Buy a ticket or sponsorship for Capital & Main's 10th anniversary gala on June 6. I'm proud to serve on Capital & Main's advisory board. Over the past decade, they have become one of the nation's leading sources of reporting on the biggest challenges facing our country. From inequality to threats to democracy to climate change, Capital & Main is producing coverage that leads to real change. Please join me today in supporting Capital & Main. https://exposesawards.com/rsvp-here
Temecula residents with different agendas united this year to remove members who attacked teaching on race and LGBTQ+ topics. Some Black recall supporters say the community has failed for decades to fight racism. Story by Cerise Castle: https://capitalandmain.com/temecula-school-board-culture-warriors
Three years after Floyd’s death, a poet searches for meaning amid 400 years of Black dispossession. https://capitalandmain.com/george-floyd-black-deaths-and-lynchings-by-other-means
The fossil fuel industry wants everyone to believe that climate change is not man made. Ali Velshi breaks down how the industry has spent millions of dollars over the years to bury the link between greenhouse gases and climate change. Shout out to Capital & Main at 6:04.
The fossil fuel industry wants everyone to believe that climate change is not man made. Ali Velshi breaks down how the industry has spent millions of dollars over the years to bury the link between greenhouse gases and climate change. Shout out to Capital & Main at 6:04.
Farmworkers face multiple challenges to their health and well-being: the work is inherently dangerous, obtaining health insurance can be difficult or impossible, doctors, clinics and hospitals might be far from their homes and workers often cannot afford to take time off to see a doctor. Read the full series: https://capitalandmain.com/ill-harvest-series
Farmworkers face multiple challenges to their health and well-being: the work is inherently dangerous, obtaining health insurance can be difficult or impossible, doctors, clinics and hospitals might be far from their homes and workers often cannot afford to take time off to see a doctor. Read the full series: https://capitalandmain.com/ill-harvest-series
Farmworkers face multiple challenges to their health and well-being: the work is inherently dangerous, obtaining health insurance can be difficult or impossible, doctors, clinics and hospitals might be far from their homes and workers often cannot afford to take time off to see a doctor. Read the full series: https://capitalandmain.com/ill-harvest-series
Farmworkers face multiple challenges to their health and well-being: the work is inherently dangerous, obtaining health insurance can be difficult or impossible, doctors, clinics and hospitals might be far from their homes and workers often cannot afford to take time off to see a doctor. Read the full series: https://capitalandmain.com/ill-harvest-series
THE AMERICAN DREAM AND OTHER FAIRY TALES is the movie Disney doesn't want you to see. Now in theaters and on digital. #AmericanDreamDoc @amerdreamdoc on Twitter @americandreamdoc on Instagram @americandreamdoc on Facebook https://americandreamdoc.com/
A California law meant to ensure mental health patients receive therapy on a timely schedule, went into effect in July. Kaiser Permanente therapists say their strike is about complying with the law. https://capitalandmain.com/kaiser-therapists-strike-is-about-complying-with-the-law
Kaiser's Northern California mental health workers have been on strike since Aug. 15. Sacramento psychiatric social worker Jane Kostka says she and her 2,000 colleagues are striking because their patients are at risk.
More than 2,000 Kaiser Permanente mental health care workers in Northern California have begun an open-ended strike, calling on an increase staffing to shorten patient wait times.
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Capital & Main is an award-winning nonprofit publication that reports from California on the most pressing economic, environmental and social issues of our time. Winner of the 2016 Online Journalist of the Year prize from the Southern California Journalism Awards and a 2017 Best in the West award, Capital & Main has had stories co-published in more than 30 media outlets, from The Atlantic, Time, Reuters, The Guardian and Fast Company to The American Prospect, Grist, Slate and the Daily Beast. Working with top writers, editors and visual artists, we cover income inequality, climate change, the green economy, housing, health care, public education, immigration, race, and criminal justice. Capital & Main is a 501(c)3 tax exempt organization.
