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INSIDER

OAKLAND

FEMA vaccination sites to close as California ramps up shots

Officials said Friday, March 26, 2021, that the vaccine sites have provided nearly a half-million doses so far. The two sites in Oakland and Los Angeles opened in February for an eight-week pilot program that concludes on April 11. AdOfficials in the county and city of Los Angeles are in discussions about maintaining the site in some fashion, said Dr. Paul Simon, the chief science officer for Los Angeles County. “California’s commitment to equity is much more than just two vaccination sites," she said. It was updated on March 27, 2021 to correct that vaccination sites will close April 11, not April 15.

Oakland launches guaranteed pay plan for low-income people

The Oakland Resilient Families program has so far raised $6.75 million from private donors including Blue Meridian Partners, a national philanthropy group. “Direct investment in the community in response to systemic injustices isn't new.”The idea of a guaranteed income dates to the 18th century. “The fact that mayors are piloting (guaranteed income programs), using political capital to raise capital to allow their constituents to have basic necessities, is a policy failure," Tubbs said. “It's an admission that we need to do more.”It's unclear what a national guaranteed income program would look like. AdA form of guaranteed income could take effect for many parents this year as part of the latest federal stimulus package.

6 officials out of NCAA Tournament after 1 tests positive

The coliseum is one of six venues hosting NCAA Tournament games later this week. One referee tested positive for COVID-19, forcing him and five others who went out to dinner with him, out of the tournament. Though the NCAA brought plenty of backup referees, the mass departure served up yet another illustration of how things can go wrong. “It's not ever going to be perfect in a pandemic,” NCAA vice president Dan Gavitt said. Iona took its two tests in the same day, and Gavitt said the change had been OK'd by the NCAA medical advisory group and the local health department.

Man pleads guilty to deaths of 36 people in warehouse fire

FILE - In this Dec. 7, 2016, file photo is the front of The Ghost Ship warehouse damaged from a deadly fire in Oakland, Calif. Relatives of some of the 36 partygoers killed at a San Francisco Bay Area warehouse fire say prosecutors told them Derick Almena, who is accused of illegally converting the warehouse into a cluttered artists enclave, is expected to plead guilty later this month. The victims' relatives told the East Bay Times that Almena is expected to plead guilty to 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter on Jan. 22, 2021, ahead of his second trial. Derick Almena, 50, pleaded guilty to 36 counts of involuntary manslaughter in exchange for a 12-year sentence. The jury also found co-defendant Max Harris, who was the Ghost Ship's “creative director” and would collect rent, not guilty at the same trial.

Stephen Curry wants to stay with Warriors rest of his career

FILE - In this May 30, 2016, file photo, fans cheer as Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry yells after the Warriors beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the NBA basketball Western Conference finals in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot, File)SAN FRANCISCO – Stephen Curry wants to play until he’s 40, perhaps even beyond. And he wants it to be with the Golden State Warriors the entire way. “That was always the goal,” Curry said Monday on a Zoom call with reporters following the first day of training camp. Any time I say I want to play up to 40 she'll definitely give me a little look,” Curry said.

Facebook bans big 'Stop the Steal' group for sowing violence

OAKLAND, Calif. – Facebook on Thursday banned a large group called “Stop the Steal” that supporters of President Donald Trump were using to organize protests against the presidential vote count. Inside the groups, members and organizers tried to ensure they would get around Facebook's moderators and “trolls” who might report or mock them. “In line with the exceptional measures that we are taking during this period of heightened tension, we have removed the Group ‘Stop the Steal,’ which was creating real-world events," Facebook said in a statement. "The group was organized around the delegitimization of the election process, and we saw worrying calls for violence from some members of the group." As of Thursday afternoon, a copycat “Stop the Steal” group was growing steadily, nearing 13,000 members, and others were easily searchable on Facebook.

Insider Q&A: Google's Annie Jean-Baptiste on inclusion

ANSWER: We started product inclusion as what we call a 20% project, which means we get to spend 20% of our time doing something that we’re passionate about, even if it’s not our role. And the goal of product inclusion is just to make sure that we’re really building products for the world. We know that we’re designing for people who come from different places, different races, economic status and more. So we spent half a year educating our technical Googlers around what inclusive product design means. So we just got stuff out, anything that was alienating, but also proactively brought in the experiences of our underrepresented Googlers.

California girds for most dangerous fire weather of year

At a Saturday night briefing, utility officials said high winds were expected to arrive midday Sunday and reach 40 to 60 mph (64 to 97 kph) with higher gusts in the mountains. Four of the five largest fires in state history occurred since mid-August, when a massive series of lightning strikes sparked hundreds of fires. All of the largest fires have been fully or significantly contained. The combination of high winds, very low humidity and a parched landscape has the region on edge. A fire weather watch is in effect for much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties from late Sunday through Tuesday.

From Detroit to Oakland, pandemic threatens urban renewal

Before the coronavirus showed up, downtown Detroit was returning to its roots as a vibrant city center, motoring away from its past as the model of urban ruin. Now, with the coronavirus forcing many office workers to their homes in the suburbs, those who remain wonder if revitalization will ever return. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)DETROIT – Downtown Detroit was returning to its roots as a vibrant city center, motoring away from its past as the model of urban ruin. Then the pandemic showed up, emptying once-bustling streets and forcing many office workers to flee to their suburban homes. But the pandemic left downtown Oakland businesses that were accustomed to daytime customers in a financial drought.

5 takeaways from the government's lawsuit against Google

OAKLAND, Calif. – The Justice Department's lawsuit against Google alleging antitrust violations marks the government’s most significant attempt to protect competition since its groundbreaking case against Microsoft more than 20 years ago. The lawsuit claims Google has abused its dominance in online search and advertising to stifle competition and harm consumers. ___GOVERNMENT BRANDS GOOGLE A MONOPOLYAfter years of hemming and hawing over the matter, the U.S. government has now formally described Google as an illegal monopolist. Tuesday's lawsuit notes that back then, Google claimed Microsoft’s practices were anticompetitive, “and yet now, Google deploys the same playbook to sustain its own monopolies." But that's all digital ads — in search ads only, Google is by far the heavy, holding nearly three-quarters of the market.

Trump changes course, approves California relief for 6 fires

“Just got off the phone with President Trump who has approved our Major Disaster Declaration request. White House spokesman Judd Deere previously said California’s disaster declaration request “was not supported by the relevant data” needed for approval. Newsom asked for the major disaster declaration on Sept. 28 to cover fires in Fresno, Los Angeles, Madera, Mendocino, San Bernardino, San Diego and Siskiyou counties. The White House said Trump quickly approved wildfire relief that was supported by damage estimates. PG&E equipment is being examined in connection with the Zogg Fire in Northern California, and Southern California Edison equipment is under scrutiny in the Bobcat Fire near Los Angeles.

Why tech giants limited the spread of NY Post story on Biden

OAKLAND, Calif. – When Facebook and Twitter moved quickly this week to limit the spread of an unverified political story published by the conservative-leaning New York Post, it led to predictable cries of censorship from the right. But if social media titans aren’t careful, their attempts to clamp down on a story can amplify it further. For the first time in recent memory, the two social media platforms enforced rules against misinformation on a story from a mainstream media publication. Twitter, meanwhile, blocked users from tweeting out the link to the story and from sending it in private messages. In part because of this, and in part by the mere act of trying to limit the story, the tech platforms soon became the story, especially in conservative circles where purported bias from Big Tech is already a prime talking point.

Oakland, Portland sue over use of federal agents at protests

Marshals Service unlawfully deputized dozens of local Portland police officers as federal agents despite objections from city officials. The federal deputations have meant protesters arrested by local police could face federal charges, which generally carry stiffer penalties. The use of federal agents in these ways is a major shift in policy and threatens the independence of local law enforcement, according to the lawsuit. The complaint cites the anti-commandeering doctrine of the Tenth Amendment, which says that the federal government cannot require states or state officials to adopt or enforce federal law. The state of Oregon sued over allegations that federal agents swept up protesters in unmarked cars without identifying themselves.

YouTube follows Twitter and Facebook with QAnon crackdown

OAKLAND, Calif. – YouTube is following the lead of Twitter and Facebook, saying that it is taking more steps to limit QAnon and other baseless conspiracy theories that can lead to real-world violence. YouTube is the third of the major social platforms to announce policies intended rein in QAnon, a conspiracy theory they all helped spread. Twitter announced in July a crackdown on QAnon, though it did not ban its supporters from its platform. It did ban thousands of accounts associated with QAnon content and blocked URLs associated with it from being shared. Experts said the move shows that YouTube is taking threats around violent conspiracy theories seriously and recognizes the importance of limiting the spread of such conspiracies.

Power cut to thousands in California to prevent wildfires

Pacific Gas & Electric has cut power to portions of Northern California hoping to prevent wildfires during hot, windy weather throughout the region. Some restorations began Thursday afternoon, and by evening the number of customers without power was about 30,000, the utility said. Many in wine country north of San Francisco were feeling drained by what seems like a never-ending wildfire season in the region. ___This story has been corrected to show massive power outages happened in 2019, not 2018, and affected 2 million people, not 5 million. ___Associated Press writer Jocelyn Gecker in San Francisco also contributed to this story.

Facebook bans anti-vaccination ads but not antivax posts

OAKLAND, Calif. – Facebook says it will ban ads on its platform that discourage vaccinations — with an exception carved out for advocacy ads about government vaccine policies. The company already bans ads about vaccine “hoaxes," such as the false idea that vaccinations cause autism. The latest policy expands the ban to ads that discourage vaccines for any reason. And unpaid posts by people or groups that discourage vaccinations will also still be allowed — the new policy only includes paid advertisements. “Facebook by banning anti-vaccine ads is probably not banning more than half of the ads,” he said.

White Sox, Renteria agree to split after breakout season

Chicago White Sox manager Rick Renteria watches as players practice during a baseball workout in Oakland, Calif., Monday, Sept. 28, 2020. The White Sox are scheduled to play the Oakland Athletics in an American League wild-card playoff series starting Tuesday. The Chicago White Sox and their manager agreed to split following a disappointing finish to a breakout season in which they made the playoffs for the first time in 12 years. Chicago announced Monday that Renteria won't return after he led the White Sox to a 35-25 record in his pandemic-shortened fourth season. “Thank you to Ricky and Coop for everything they have done for White Sox organization," pitcher Dallas Keuchel tweeted.

Twitter tightens limits on candidates ahead of US election

The social platform will remove tweets that encourage violence or call for people to interfere with election results. Tweets that falsely claim a candidate has won will be labeled to direct users to the official U.S. election results page on Twitter. Beginning on Oct. 20, and at least through Election Week in the U.S., Twitter says it will also encourage people to add their own commentary to retweets. The changes come a day after Facebook announced similar new restrictions ahead of the election, which is less than three weeks away. Social media companies appear to be learning how to rapidly respond to existing and anticipated threats to the election process.

Facebook braces for contested election, voter intimidation

The ban will likely last for a week, though Facebook says it could run longer if necessary. And it plans to label posts that cast doubt on election results with links to official information. The changes — less than three weeks before Election Day and with voting happening already — show how quickly social media companies must respond to existing and anticipated threats to the election process. Facebook said it has been preparing for this election since 2016, when its platform was used by Russian agents trying to intervene with the U.S. political process. While Facebook and other social media companies have strengthened their policies and enforcement since, the threats to the election process have also gotten more sophisticated in that time.

Facebook says it will ban groups that openly support QAnon

OAKLAND, Calif. – Facebook said it will ban groups that openly support QAnon, the baseless conspiracy theory that paints President Donald Trump as a secret warrior against a supposed child-trafficking ring run by celebrities and “deep state” government officials. The company said Tuesday that it will remove Facebook pages, groups and Instagram accounts for “representing QAnon” — even if they don’t promote violence. Mentions of QAnon in a group focused on a different subject won't necessarily lead to a ban, Facebook said. It said it would only remove QAnon groups if they promote violence. Reddit, which began banning QAnon groups in 2018, was well ahead, and to date it has largely avoided having a notable QAnon presence on its platform.

No days off puts stress on pitchers in Division Series, LCS

(AP Photo/David Dermer)NEW YORK – Postseason games come at an unprecedented pace starting Monday in this year of the pandemic. Teams could play the Division Series over five straight days, take a single day off and then contest the League Championship Series on seven consecutive days. The last to pitch for seven straight days was San Francisco’s Steve Kline from July 31 to Aug. 6, 2007. The League Championship Series has had a 2-3-2 format since 1985, with days off between Games 2 and 3, then another between Games 5 and 6. To start twice in the Division Series, Game 1 pitchers would have to come back on three days' rest.

Pitchers already experiencing both extremes this postseason

It's been a feast-or-famine postseason on the pitcher's mound so far. Then there were teams like the Indians and Chicago White Sox, whose seasons are over in large part because of control problems that popped up at the worst possible time. The Atlanta-Cincinnati contest was the first postseason game to be scoreless after 11 innings. San Diego was only in that position because the Cardinals couldn't hold off the Padres' sluggers Thursday. The White Sox ended up using nine pitchers and Oakland used eight.

White Sox lose Jiménez, Crochet to injury in Game 3 vs A's

Jiménez returned to Chicago's lineup for the first time since Sept. 24 but left in the third inning with renewed discomfort in his sprained right foot. Jiménez hit a leadoff double before signaling to the bench that he needed a pinch-runner. Manager Rick Renteria was late writing his lineup waiting to see whether Jiménez could play. Crochet — the 11th overall pick in this year's amateur draft — relieved fellow rookie starter Dane Dunning in the first. Jiménez went through extensive baseball work Monday and still experienced soreness, keeping him out the initial two in the best-of-three round.