Remember in April 2018 when Patrick Soon-Shiong bought the L.A. Times and promptly announced that he was moving the headquarters from the historic building at First and Spring, which Tribune Media sold to Canadian real estate developers Onni Group in 2016, to El Freaking Segundo because Onni had proposed to jack up their rent by one million dollars per month? And soon thereafter Executive Editor Norman Pearlstine attempted to assuage everyone’s fears by telling the Columbia Journalism Review stuff like this:
… we are keeping a presence downtown. We will have an office with several dozen seats in it, and I would expect we’d probably have a pretty senior editor here responsible for it. Secondly, without taking away from the importance of physical location of where your desk is, it’s more important to talk about where your reporters are.
But recently I laid my hands on a big pile of emails between Times reporters and the LAPD’s Media Relations Division. You can browse these here on Archive.Org, and there is a ton of interesting stuff in there, although it’s mostly if not wholly off-topic for this blog. And there is also this email conversation from July 2018 between LA Times police reporter Cindy Chang and Media Relations commander in chief Patricia Sandoval. And this tells a slightly different story than Norman Pearlstine’s Pollyannaistic whiggery!1
From: Chang, Cindy
Sent: Monday, July 02, 2018 10:36 AM
To: Patricia Sandoval <25981@lapd.online>
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein <n5373@lapd.online>
Subject: press office at LAPD
Hi Trish,
There’s a press office on the first floor of PAB, correct? As we’re moving to El Segundo, we’re trying to tabulate the office space available in the agencies we cover. Our downtown bureau won’t have many seats, so other options will be helpful.
I’m off the early part of this week. Would it be possible to see the space later this week or next week?
Cindy Chang
Staff writer, Los Angeles Times
cindv.chanq@latimes.com
213.237.7016
And turn the page for the rest of the story!
From: Patricia Sandoval <25981@lapd.online>
Sent: Monday, July 2, 2018 10:40:04 AM
To: Chang, Cindy
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein
Subject: RE: press office at LAPD
Cindy,
City News has a small office on our first floor.
Thank you,
Trish
PATRICIA A. SANDOVAL, Captain
Commanding Officer
Media Relations Division
(213)486-5910
From: Chang, Cindy
Sent: Monday, July 2, 2018 10:41:15 AM
To: Patricia Sandoval
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein
Subject: Re: press office at LAPD
Thanks, is it just for City News or is there room for others?
From: Patricia Sandoval
Sent: Monday, July 2, 2018 11:17 AM
To: Chang, Cindy
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein
Subject: Re: press office at LAPD
Cindy., it’s only for City News.
Patricia Sandoval, Captain
Commanding Officer
Media Relations Division
(213) 486-5910
From: Chang, Cindy
Sent: Thursday, July 05, 2018 10:37 AM
To: Patricia Sandoval
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein
Subject: RE: press office at LAPD
Hi Trish,
Richard Winton says there are three desks in the LAPD press room. That wouldn’t be all for City News, then, would it?
Cindy Chang
Staff writer, Los Angeles Times
cindv.chanq@latimes.com
213.237.7016
From: Patricia Sandoval
Sent: Thursday, July 5, 2018 10:40 AM
To: Chang, Cindy
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein
Subject: RE: press office at LAPD
Cindy,
I am checking into this.
Thank you,
Trish
PATRICIA A. SANDOVAL, Captain
Commanding Officer
Media Relations Division
(213)486-5910
From: Chang, Cindy
Sent: Thursday, July 05, 2018 10:41 AM
To: Patricia Sandoval
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein
Subject: RE: press office at LAPD
I appreciate it. Thanks. We are asking at all the downtown agencies we cover to see what press room space is available.
From: Patricia Sandoval
Sent: Monday, July 9, 2018 2:24 PM
To: Chang, Cindy
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein; Chris Ramirez
Subject: RE: press office at LAPD
Hi Cindy,
We met with City News today and checked out the office space. This office is very small and can be used as a “Stop In” location where you can write a story, catch up on your e-mail or charge your phone every so often, but it is not a space that can be occupied on a daily basis. This “Stop In” location is offered to all news reporters, but is not to be used as a personal office for extended periods.
Are the LA Times reporters still planning to utilize the office space on 5th Street and ??
Thank you,
Trish
PATRICIA A. SANDOVAL, Captain
Commanding Officer
Media Relations Division
(213)486-5910
From: Chang, Cindy
Sent: Monday, July 09, 2018 2:33 PM
To: Patricia Sandoval
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein; Chris Ramirez
Subject: RE: press office at LAPD
Hi Trish,
Thank you, yes, it would be helpful to a stop-in space. We will have a downtown office at 5 th and Spring, where I will be based, but there aren’t many desks there, so most reporters will be in El Segundo.
Could I stop by sometime and take a look? We can discuss more details at that time.
By the way, have you tried the new cafeteria in the L.A. Times building? It’s much more expensive without offering better food!
Cindy Chang
Staff writer, Los Angeles Times
cindv.chanq@latimes.com
213.237.7016
From: Patricia Sandoval
Sent: Monday, July 9, 2018 2:36 PM
To: Chang, Cindy
Cc: Joshua Rubenstein; Chris Ramirez
Subject: RE: press office at LAPD
HI Cindy,
Sure, we can absolutely meet and check out the space. I have not tried the new cafeteria food yet. I will have to try it soon though.
Thank you,
Trish
PATRICIA A. SANDOVAL, Captain
Commanding Officer
Media Relations Division
(213)486-5910
Image of Patrick Soon-Shiong is ©2019 MichaelKohlhaas.Org and take a look-see at this PSS over here!
- I actually do understand that this whole post is entirely inconsequential, but it amuses me, which is the main point of this damn blog. Also, not a bad way to provide a link to the email release.
