Good morning. It’s Tuesday, July 14.
- DMV cites concerns of possible widespread cheating.
- Oakland street has been overtaken by sex traffickers.
- And California mounts challenge to Paramount megadeal.
Statewide
1.
In recent weeks, the California’s Department of Motor Vehicles ordered roughly 11,000 driver’s license holders to retake their written exams or risk losing their licenses, leaving many recipients scratching their heads. The agency cited “testing anomalies,” without elaborating. After state lawmakers sent letters demanding an explanation, however, the DMV is now saying more: a review found evidence of widespread cheating. Several cases were even referred to law enforcement for prosecution, it said. S.F. Chronicle
2.
Organizers of a ballot measure that would require Californians to show government ID before voting have pitched it as a bipartisan reform. But financial disclosures revealed that its backing has predominantly come from supporters of President Trump. They include Palmer Luckey, Nicole Shanahan, and the Winklevoss brothers. Mike Madrid, a Republican consultant, said the proposition is really about boosting GOP turnout. “The Winklevoss twins and the venture capitalists don’t care about voter ID,” he said. “They care about a Republican Congress.” Sacramento Bee
- Californians will decide 14 statewide propositions in November. The Los Angeles Times has a rundown.
3.
Three new satellites have now joined the fight against wildfires in California. Launched last week from Vandenberg Space Force Base, FireSat is the first satellite constellation designed specifically for fire detection. They use advanced thermal sensors capable of detecting small fires even through smoke and clouds. Emergency officials hope the granular data will help firefighters catch ignitions before they have a chance to develop into major disasters. Gizmodo
4.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation on Monday creating state rebates of $3,500 on new electric vehicles for first-time buyers. The move follows the Trump administration’s decision last year to kill a federal credit. The California rebate has a catch, however. It favors companies whose corporate management and staff were based in the state as of January 1, 2026. That notably does not include Tesla, now headquartered in Texas, whose owner Elon Musk has become a strident adversary of the state’s Democratic leadership. electrek
Northern California
5.
Oakland’s International Boulevard, sometimes known as “the Blade,” is the Bay Area’s most notorious corridor for street prostitution. But neighbors and merchants say the trade has never been so rampant as it is now. Dozens of women and girls in plastic platform heels and stringy lingerie loiter along the street, waving at passing cars. “Their neighborhood is no longer theirs,” said Oakland Council Member Charlene Wang. “It belongs to the sex industry.” The San Francisco Chronicle’s Kate Talerico investigated why Oakland has allowed sex traffickers to take over the Blade.
- “She got her a customer.” A vlogger took a bike tour of International Boulevard.
6.
Elise Stengle, a hairstylist in San Francisco, charges $95 for a haircut, leading many clients to presume she is doing well financially. But she cannot afford the city. That’s why she moved to Eugene, Oregon. Stengle boards a flight to San Francisco once or twice a month and packs in a month’s worth of appointments into marathon work stretches. It’s basic math, she said: “It’s still cheaper for me to have a mortgage in Eugene and fly twice a month than it would be for me to probably live in a cardboard box on the street here. It’s ridiculous.” S.F. Standard
7.
A recent cover story in the Atlantic declared, “The end of reading is here,” citing a sharp decline in the share of Americans who regularly read for pleasure. But in San Francisco, commonly ranked among the most literate American cities, readers are easy to find. In a photo story, Mission Local asked the open-air readers of Dolores Park about their books. They were lost in works on love, “the absurdity of everything,” Nipsey Hussle, and lesbian life in 1990s San Francisco.
8.
The backlash against Meta’s camera-equipped glasses is leading even tech enthusiasts to reconsider the product. Critics call them “pervert glasses.” Will Kujawa, a freelance video producer, said he posted online about buying a pair: “I saw all these comments about ‘If you wear those glasses you’re basically a predator or a creep,’ and I was like, ‘Oh, maybe it’s not a good idea to have those.'” engadget | Wall Street Journal
9.
The Diablo Range, stretching along the edge of the Bay Area, encompasses some of the largest remaining wild places in California. Bay Nature once wrote: “As in Patagonia or the Atacama Desert, there’s a sense of time immemorial inside the Diablo Range. The winding back roads, the ribbons of light in the creeks, the piles of fallen sycamore leaves, the cows grazing in pastoral meadows contribute to a sense of beguiling permanence.”
The Diablo foothills just featured in the 2026 International Aerial Photographer of the Year competition. Chengming Liu was honored for his picture of the hills at their greenest after a winter of abundant rain, above. The Atlantic
Southern California
10.
A coalition of states led by California sued to block Paramount’s blockbuster acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery on Monday, arguing that it would “extinguish” competition. Rob Bonta, California’s attorney general, also warned of another danger. “This merger will mean fewer journalists informing the electorate,” he said, referring to CNN, a Warner property. David Ellison, Paramount’s owner, has assured President Trump that he would make sweeping changes to the news network, a frequent target of the president’s ire. On Sunday, Trump told CNN’s Jake Tapper, “We’re trying to have CNN go in a normal path.” NPR | CNN
- Paramount was said to be considering moving its headquarters out of California over the litigation. The considerations “may just be a show of brinkmanship,” Semafor reported.
11.
The Trump administration’s reopening of a Santa Barbara oil pipeline over the objections of local officials has infuriated residents of a region prized for its gorgeous beaches. The pipeline had been dormant since 2015, when a rupture caused one of the worst oil spills in state history, releasing more than 100,000 gallons of oil along the coast. On a hillside trail near Santa Barbara, an ominous sign on an orange pillar has joined the tableau of cliffs, songbirds, and bright blue sea. It reads, “Warning: Crude Oil Pipeline.” N.Y. Times
12.
Last week’s announcement that Tilly Norwood, an artificial intelligence creation, would star in an upcoming feature film has sparked a debate in Hollywood about what exactly Norwood is. Some have objected to the digital character being referred to as “she” or “her.” Others reject the idea that Norwood could be an actor at all. Stephen Galloway, the former executive editor of the Hollywood Reporter, said Norwood occupies an uncomfortable middle ground. “Yes, it’s a kind of performance,” he said. “Tilly isn’t an actor and yet it is a performance. It’s a strange paradox.” L.A. Times
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