Take Back the Times: L.A. Times California Section Is Improving

When the daily L.A. Times and New York Times are delivered at my house early each morning, I've found myself of late looking at the California Section of the L.A. Times first.

Of course, at my age, the obituaries are interesting, and they are in that section. But the fact is, the section is improving, with a mix of good stories, columns and beats that are working out. It's encouraging that, at last, after seven years of Tribune ownership, the paper seems to be doing something right. And it is showcasing a local staff that has always had many smarts.

For one thing, the editors have been moving state columnist George Skelton out from way inside the section, where John Carroll first stuck him when he was editor, to Page 1 of the section. Skelton's columns are a highly sophisticated look at what is happening in California politics, and recently he has had particularly excellent coverage of the state budget fight, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's fractious relations with legislative Republicans, and, yesterday, a very good column on the proposed antiwar measure that may go on the February 5 primary ballot in what Skelton views as the unlikely event that Schwarzenegger goes along with the partisan Democratic push for it in the Legislature.

If you would like to continue reading Ken Reich, click on the link below.

L.A. Times California Section Is Improving