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LA Podcast

LA Podcast is a news and politics podcast for people who live in Los Angeles. We cover the news, policies, and major issues facing Los Angeles, a city which is both staggeringly complex and culturally oversimplified.
Regular hosts include Alissa Walker and Mike Bonin, alongside a variety of amazing co-hosts like Scott Frazier, Godfrey Plata, Loraine Lundquist, Marco Santana, Carla Hall, Memo Torres, Olga Lexell, Oscar Zarate, Sammy Roth, and many more.

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33 episodes
weekly
Avg 1 hr 1 min
English

Episodes 33

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#330
Monday · 57 min
Whirlwind Ramance
Alissa, Mike, and Marco commemorate major progressive victories at the federal, state, and city level, including the election of Nithya Raman as LA mayor. Big winners: LA’s new city attorney Marissa Roy, renters, socialism, a young and energized electorate. Big losers: Airbnb, the LA Police Protective League, the establishment, and people who don’t believe in a better tomorrow.
#329
November 2 · 1 hr 20 min
You Used to Call Me on My Illegal AI Bot Phone
Scott, Alissa, and David consider the challenges ahead for whomever is lucky (?) enough to be the next mayor of Los Angeles. Airbnb continues to pour millions of dollars into the city ahead of 2028. Alt-center PAC Thrive LA paid for an AI Nithya Raman hotline that’s almost certainly not legal. And do you have to pay your exorbitant DWP bill?
#328
October 26 · 56 min
Polls-tergeist
Mike, Kate, and Loraine unpack the long-awaited state report detailing the failures (and some successes) of the Eaton and Palisades fire responses. As Election Day rapidly approaches, a few last-minute endorsements (and some not-endorsements) shake up local races. And under First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, Trump’s DOJ is supposedly increasing election security by… arresting old men in their pajamas? Tell your friends, your acquaintances, and your frenemies — we are so close to reachi
#327
October 19 · 1 hr 5 min
Laughing All the Way to the Burbank
Alissa, Marco, and guest co-host Jess Craven discuss the likelihood of a blue wave at the national level and which local progressive districts are moving even more left. At the final mayoral debate, Nithya Raman invokes a troubling chapter of LAPD history. And while the Burbank airport quietly delivered a brand-new terminal, the LAX people mover suffered… “blast incidents”? We’re so close to reaching our 100 new paid subscriber goal! Help us cross the finish line at lapodcast.org
#326
October 12 · 1 hr 5 min
McDonnell's Not Lovin' It
Alissa, Mike, and guest co-host Yaqui Perez track LA’s latest mayoral race drama, including the question of whether LAPD chief Jim McDonnell should be replaced. Why is the LA police union opposing Measure FD, which would fund the fire department? And how long should someone be the mayor of Inglewood?
#325
October 5 · 1 hr 4 min
Who Wants to Tax a Billionaire?
Mike, Godfrey, and Mariel analyze the deep-pocketed players funding LA’s expensive mayoral race, and their motivations (spoiler alert: one wants new bike lanes). California billionaires are responding as one might expect to the possibility of a one-time wealth tax. And with ballots arriving now — voting early is so important! — a look at efforts to protect the polls.
#324
September 28 · 59 min
Make Every Vote County
Alissa, Godfrey, and guest co-host Robert Greene dig into the minutiae of ongoing county governance reform and our upcoming ballot measure alphabet soup. A new poll turns the mayoral race on its head: Councilmember Nithya Raman is now leading Karen Bass by double digits. And does Los Angeles have a weak mayor… or is it just a weak city?
#323
September 21 · 1 hr 5 min
LAHSA Cause
Alissa, Mike, and guest co-host Matthew Reagan of The LA Local dive into accountability, litigation, and federal assistance in Boyle Heights after the Lineage fire. LAHSA as we know it is over. And on the same day as a safe streets rally, five Angelenos are killed when a driver crashes an SUV into a Metro bus, then a news helicopter covering the crash also crashes. Only in LA? LA Podcast is only possible thanks to our paid subscribers. Our goal is 100 new subscribers by Election Day to cover ou
#322
September 14 · 59 min
Handle with Childcare
Mike, Memo, and guest co-host Faizah Malik look back on the 25th anniversary of 9/11 and its legacies, including the Department of Homeland Security, which recently decided they will not (yet) revoke Temporary Protected Status for Salvadorans. Then: childcare in Los Angeles is becoming more difficult and more expensive to find— but maybe a billionaire tax could help? LA Podcast is only possible thanks to our paid subscribers. Our goal is 100 new subscribers by Election Day to cover the show’s
#321
September 7 · 58 min
Don't Hate the Leia, Hate the Game
Scott, Alissa, and Sophie attempt to understand the Lucas Museum’s decade-long arrival in Expo Park and what “narrative art” actually means. Does this mean the La La Land optimism of 2016 LA is back? MacArthur Park hosts a picnic — and potentially a new fence? And more major endorsements in the mayoral race. LA Podcast is only possible thanks to our paid subscribers. Our goal is 100 new subscribers by election day (November 3rd!) to cover our show’s costs and keep producing weekly episodes. Si
#320
August 31 · 1 hr 7 min
Humid Beings
Alissa, Mike, and Olga discover that extreme humidity pairs nicely with our already-crumbling infrastructure. Luckily, social media is the key to fixing potholes! Controller Kenneth Mejia tries to demystify LA28’s finances. And will DSA-LA make an LA mayoral endorsement — and does it matter?
#319
August 24 · 1 hr 4 min
SOHA Me God
Mike, Godfrey, and Olga dissect the heated mayoral debate at the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association. Will LA see a Paramount Skydance Warner Brothers lot? Uber and Lyft drivers won the right to organize, making labor history. Then: you can file to run for LA County CEO starting next month, but what does this job actually entail?
#318
August 17 · 57 min
LA(Needs More)USD
Alissa, Godfrey, and Loraine go deep on LAUSD’s many changes and challenges as this new school year begins. LA’s City Council is set to make big shifts on how to address homelessness, but the hardest part might be getting everyone to agree. And what will actually get Angelenos out of their cars?
#317
August 10 · 57 min
Don’t Spray It’s Over
Alissa, Mike, and Marco say a requiem for the Graffiti Towers. Nithya Raman receives endorsements from some big players, including Kenneth Mejia’s corgis. In the wake of the Lineage environmental disaster, which still reeks, LA’s City Council votes for more environmental disasters. And who will be LA County’s first elected CEO?
#316
August 3 · 57 min
Another One Rides the Bus
Scott, Mike, and Olga convene a transportation sickos roundtable to discuss Metro’s State of the Agency, how the system fared during the World Cup, and big changes to the board’s structure. Will the LAX people mover ever open — and will anyone actually call it SkyLink? Then: Karen Bass’s sudden pivot on the Lineage disaster in a mayorship that has been defined by disasters.
#315
July 27 · 58 min
Wet Hot LA Summer
Mike, Godfrey, and guest co-host Carla Hall discuss the Sunset Boulevard sinkhole in West Hollywood. Then, the results of the 2026 homeless count are in. And Mayor Karen Bass’s informal advisor steps back.
#314
July 20 · 1 hr
All's Smell That Ends Smell
Alissa, Oscar, and guest co-host Rudy Espinoza discuss accelerating immigration enforcement activity in LA as ICE murders three people in one week nationwide. Then, how an unbearable stench, rats, flies, and extreme heat are impacting the Lineage fire aftermath. And as the 39-day tournament ends, reflections on what LA got wrong and right with the World Cup.
#313
July 13 · 56 min
Town Hall Your Fault
Alissa, Mike, and guest co-host Adam Conover take a look at the ongoing repercussions from the Lineage Logistics fire, an explosive town hall in Boyle Heights, and how the thawing cold storage warehouse has snowballed into a political nightmare. Then, what’s changed in Karen Bass’s mayoral campaign. And some bad (and also some good?) LAPD updates.
#312
July 6 · 59 min
Mistrial By Fire
Alissa, Godfrey, and Kate examine why the Palisades arson case ended in a mistrial, and how the feds biffed the prosecution. What you won’t see on the November ballot after LA City Council charter reforms go down in flames. Then, LA finally has a city service agreement with LA28, but human rights advocates are sounding alarms.
#311
June 29 · 1 hr
On Top of Cold Smoky
Alissa, Godfrey, and Loraine examine the public health impacts of the Lineage warehouse fire that burned in Boyle Heights for a week. LA’s council votes to end oil extraction (for the second time). LAUSD superintendent Alberto Carvalho resigns amid a federal investigation into an AI chatbot deal as the board dramatically reduces screen time for students. And yet another ULA backroom deal turns into a win for Howard Jarvis.

Showing 1–20 of 33 episodes