- Newsmaker: A federal court this afternoon is expected to release the physicist Wen Ho Lee, who's been in custody for nine months since he was fired by the Los Alamos Nuclear Weapons Lab and charged with 59 counts of illegally copying secrets. We talk with Steve Schwartz, publisher of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
- Reporter's Notebook: Retailers that have stores in California are supposed to collect state and local sales tax on their Internet business, too. Many do-but many don't, including some big-time booksellers. Democrats in the legislature this year agreed to close the loophole, and sent a bill to Governor Davis. But he's expected to defy his own party, side with Republicans, and veto the legislation. We talk with Andy Ross, owner of Cody's Books, a justly famous independent business, near UC Berkeley.
SAG strike prospects, impact
The actors' strike against commercial advertisers is costing Los Angeles at least a million dollars a day. That's more than 90 million so far in a strike that's lasted almost six months. Among those hurting are agents, recording studios, post-production facilities, editors, film processors and equipment renters. With talks scheduled to resume the day after tomorrow, we'll hear from an actor who's out of work, get an update on the prospects for peace, and ask, how come the LA Times hasn't devoted more space to an issue arguably more important to the region's economy than the much talked-about janitors' strike?