Matthew Specktor, in his new memoir "The Golden Hour," offers a unique perspective on Hollywood's transformation — as both the son of legendary talent agent Fred Specktor and a thoughtful cultural observer. He explores how the movie industry shifted from a close-knit "family business," where art and commerce balanced, to today's corporate-dominated landscape. Specktor reflects on how this mirrors broader American cultural changes, the diminishing role of movies in our collective imagination, and what's lost when filmmaking becomes primarily about algorithms and franchises rather than human stories.

Adam Nagourney, a veteran New York Times reporter based in Los Angeles, wrote recently about whether the California Dream had become a mirage. Even as the state has grown into the world's fourth-largest economy, the promise of reinvention that defined the Golden State feels increasingly elusive. As young people flee, wildfires destroy neighborhoods, and a hostile White House turns its back, Nagourney believes California is still resilient and capable of that dream.

Joe Kloc spent nine years immersed with Richardson Bay's "anchor-outs," a community living on abandoned vessels just offshore from multimillion-dollar Sausalito homes. In his book "Lost at Sea," Kloc chronicles their struggles against the authorities and residents who ultimately dismantled the century-old floating community. Kloc captures the anchor-outs' resilience amid displacement, exploring what happens when society pushes its most vulnerable members to the margins.

Laurie Kirby, the founder of FestForums, brings insider expertise on what makes music festivals succeed. She explores California's vibrant festival scene from Coachella and Stagecoach to BottleRock and Outside Lands, examining how these events reflect the state's economic trends and cultural influence. She discusses how California's festivals function as economic indicators of changing consumer habits and whether the state's market has reached saturation.

Ben Fritz, who covers the entertainment industry for The Wall Street Journal, explores Hollywood's perfect storm of existential threats — empty theaters, streaming wars, production flight, artificial intelligence. If that wasn't enough, as Fritz has reported: audiences today seem to be rejecting both franchise tentpoles and original films. He discusses whether Hollywood can reinvent itself as it has done in the past and adapt to technological change while maintaining its global cultural influence and economic importance to California.

Erica Hellerstein's reporting for El Tímpano follows the story of Pedro Romero Perez, a survivor of the 2023 Half Moon Bay mass shooting that left seven people dead, including his brother Jose. The tragedy exposed deplorable conditions in San Mateo County's agricultural industry: farm workers earning less than minimum wage while living in shipping containers without running water. Perez, who survived five gunshot wounds, emerged as an unexpected voice for change through a lawsuit against his former employer.

Olaf Groth, a futurist and professor at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business, examines how global trade tensions, artificial intelligence advancements, and economic shifts are reshaping California's position in the world economy. He analyzes how intensifying tariff wars threaten the state's tech sector while driving up consumer prices. Groth explores AI's transformative effects on employment, the emerging defense-tech ecosystem, and California's strategic challenges as it navigates global trade pressures and growing climate vulnerabilities.

New York Times film critic Alissa Wilkinson discusses her new book, "We Tell Ourselves Stories: Joan Didion and the American Dream Machine," which explores the California author's prescient understanding of how entertainment would colonize American political life. Wilkinson examines Didion's work through the lens of a Hollywood insider and cultural critic, revealing how she anticipated our drift toward manufactured realities and endless performance — from Ronald Reagan's performative presidency to modern reality television-style governance.