Latest in California

UPDATED, with MPA comment: A California state senator ripped the entertainment industry today after the bill he co-authored in response to last year’s fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins on the Rust set failed to get out of committee. "It's a powerful and ruthless industry,” Sen. Dave Cortese, a Silicon Valley Democrat…

“We've got a lot of virus circulating now. And it's on its way up,” said Santa Clara County Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody at a press briefing earlier this week. While case numbers are going up across the state, one region’s transmission levels are much higher than the rest: The Bay Area. The CDC’s color-coded “County…

In a spot likely soon to blanket local TV stations across the state, California Governor Gavin Newsom takes a walk through a grove of the state’s famous redwoods, using them as a metaphor for his campaign and the state of the state. “Over the last few years our redwood forests have suffered some of the worst fires…

Covid test positivity in California is up 47.6% in the past week, according to the California State data dashboard. One week ago, the 7-day daily test positivity rate was 2.1%. Today, it sits at 3.1%. That’s quite a jump for a metric that is averaged over seven days to account for daily fluctuations in data reporting…

DGA president Lesli Linka Glatter has appointed a new safety committee "to ensure that safety concerns remain at the forefront of our guild." Director Karen Gaviola  is the chair of the new committee. The move comes in the wake of the accidental shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and the wounding of…

After two-plus years of the Covid pandemic and drought, the largest fires in recorded history and a recall election in California, Governor Gavin Newsom left yesterday for two-weeks to Central and South America with his family. Bad timing. Numbers released by the state to the media today indicate that Covid test…

Just days after the Oscars telecast, California will lift its requirements that all attendees at indoor “mega events” — such as concerts, conventions and sporting events — state officials announced today. Those measures will still be strongly recommended. Indoor mega events are those with more than 1,000 attendees…

With declining Covid numbers across the West, California, Oregon and Washington announced today that they are moving together to update their masking guidance. After 11:59 p.m. on March 11, all three states will adopt new indoor mask policies and move from mask requirements to mask recommendations in schools. In…

The California Film Commission has selected 30 feature films to receive the next round of California tax credits – movies that the commission estimates will generate $1.17 billion in overall production spending in the state and create 4,564 jobs for crew members, 1,212 gigs for actors and more than 48,000 days of work…

“We have all come to understand what was not understood at the beginning of this crisis: that there is no end date, that there is not a moment where we declare victory,” said California Governor Gavin Newsom yesterday as he announced the state’s plan for the next phase of Covid. “Today is about turning a page, moving…

The State of California unveiled today its long-promised plan for dealing with the Covid crisis going forward. “We learn more about how to live with Covid-19,” reads the new plan and “California must support the ongoing ability of our state to adapt during the coming months and years.” The state’s top health official…

California Director of Health and Human Services Dr. Mark Ghaly on Monday confirmed that after tomorrow the state will “move from a requirement to a strong recommendation of indoor masking.” One place where masks will still be required: in the state’s schools. Ghaly said California’s “science-driven approach” would be…