Month: January 2026

In the wake of the fatal shooting of a Minnesota mother by an immigration agent this month, House Democrats have filed articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

These lawmakers are on the right track, but they need not have waited so long. Throughout her year at the Department of Homeland Security, Noem has shown disregard for judicial and congressional authority, and she has misled the American people. Her leadership is endangering the country. She should be removed from office before she can do more of the same and worse.

As secretary, Noem has displayed a troubling pattern of unethical behavior. Her infamous photo op last March, posing in front of detainees in El Salvador’s CECOT prison, was not just grotesque; it may have violated Geneva Convention provisions against the public exploitation of prisoners.

In October, Noem ordered a video blaming Democrats for the government shutdown to be played at airports nationwide. This was in direct conflict with the Hatch Act, which restricts federal employees from engaging in partisan political activity.

In November, the nonprofit newsroom ProPublica reported that a company tied to Noem got money from $220-million Homeland Security ad contracts in a secret, no-bid process.

None of these instances reflect sound judgment by the person charged with keeping our country safe.

Noem does not seem to respect the judicial branch. She defied a federal judge by not turning around deportation flights to El Salvador last March. Her agents in Chicago have used chemical sprays on protesters multiple times despite a court order forbidding them from doing so. Speaking on “Meet the Press” in November, Noem said, “We’ll continue to do the right thing, continue to work and protect Americans, no matter what radical judge comes out and tries to stop us.” These actions, coupled with her own words, reveal an unacceptable disdain for our constitutional system of checks and balances.

Under Noem, officials from the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement have flouted congressional authority. Members of Congress have for months been denied their lawful right to inspect detention facilities in Minnesota, New Jersey, Florida and California. Such oversight is critical to protecting the well-being of detainees, especially because the department gutted its own watchdog agencies.

Noem has also made false or misleading statements to Congress, the press and the public. She made so many derogatory remarks about Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Maryland man deported by mistake to El Salvador, that a federal judge rebuked her for inflammatory comments. Noem has often declared that ICE does not detain or deport U.S. citizens, even though it does. ProPublica has, in fact, documented more than 170 cases of Americans detained by immigration agents. And although Noem likes to repeat that ICE agents are going after “the worst of the worst,” internal agency data show that they have arrested nearly 75,000 people with no criminal records.

When summoned before a congressional committee in December, Noem struck a defiant tone. “I will consider your asking me to resign as an endorsement of my work,” she told one lawmaker. However, this was before the killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis. Now the public appears to have lost confidence in Noem, whose job approval recently slipped to 36%.

True, Noem was appointed by President Trump to execute his aggressive immigration enforcement agenda. Anyone else put in the role would probably also have carried out these policies.

It is how Noem has carried out her responsibilities that demonstrates unfitness for her job — not only pursuing the president’s agenda but also racking up a body count, defying the law and lying.

She is also failing at the most basic functions of her role. Consider that, under her leadership, FEMA has been widely faulted for responding too slowly to natural disasters in Texas and North Carolina. Or that Noem has allowed department social media accounts to feature white nationalist memes and questionable messaging, including recruitment posts saying, “Want to deport illegals with your absolute boys?”

Noem’s tenure has already had grave consequences. Thirty-two people died in ICE custody in 2025, making it the agency’s deadliest year in more than two decades. During Trump’s second term, immigration agents have shot at people at least 16 times.

Americans need a Homeland Security secretary who will follow the law, respect Congress and tell the truth to the public. Kristi Noem is not that person. Under her, the department is harming citizens, not protecting them. Lawmakers should press her impeachment forward and remove her from office — unless she has the decency to resign first.

Raul A. Reyes is an immigration attorney and television commentator in New York City. X: @RaulAReyes Instagram: @raulareyes1

This essay is excerpted from culture writer Chuck Klosterman’s new book, “Football.”

Television defined the last half of the twentieth century, outperforming all other mass media combined.

This was already understood by the onset of the 1970s, prompting countless network executives to kill themselves in the hope of creating something impeccably suited for sitting in front of an electromagnetic box and remaining there for as long as possible. This typically entailed thoughtful consideration over the content of TV: what a program was about, how it was written, and what personalities were involved. But what’s even more critical, and far harder to manufacture, is the form of the program: the pacing, the visual construction, and the way the watcher experiences whatever they happen to be watching. How a person thinks about television is a manifestation of its content; how a person feels about television is a manifestation of its form. And there’s simply never been a TV product more formally successful than televised football. This was an accident. But it turns out you can’t design something on purpose that’s superior to the way televised football naturally occurs.

I realize I’m making an aesthetic argument many will not accept, particularly if they start from the position that football games are boring, meaningless, or both. The merits of televised football as a formal spectacle are immaterial to someone who hates the thing being televised, in the same way the harmonic simplicity of Miles Davis is immaterial to someone who hates jazz. Appreciating the TV experience of football requires some casual interest in the game itself. But what makes the TV experience of football so remarkable is how “casual interest” is more than enough to generate an illogically deep level of satisfaction. The way football is broadcast manages to obliterate any difference between an informal consumer and a face-painting fanatic. This is due to many factors, the most critical being that football is always, always, always better on television than it is in person. The televised experience is so superior to the in‑person experience that most people watching a football game live are mentally converting what they’re seeing into its TV equivalent, without even trying.

The only sport universally understood to be better when watched in person is hockey. In the same way football is always better on TV, hockey is always better live. With almost every other sport, the difference is debatable. Baseball is sometimes better in person, because it’s nice to sit outside in the summer (the weather and the park have more influence than the game). Basketball becomes more compelling if you sit close to the court and less compelling if you’re in the rafters, though the prime seats in any NBA arena tend to provide ticket holders with the same viewpoint they’d get from a TV broadcast. Live tennis and live golf offer details that can’t be captured on television, but there are rules of decorum and big potential for monotony. Soccer is exclusively about atmosphere and identity, so the experience of being in the crowd and the experience of the game itself are only nominally associated, in the same way going to see the Grateful Dead in the late 1980s was only nominally about music. Live boxing and live auto racing deliver palpable electricity with subpar sightlines. In all of these non‑football examples, the debate boils down to how effectively the televised depiction of an event can translate its in‑person actuality, which is why hockey is an outlier (the ambient feeling of bodies colliding with plexiglass is not digitally transferrable). Televised football is an outlier to an even greater extent, and for a much stranger reason: The TV experience doesn’t translate the live experience at all, in any way. The game happening in the physical world only exists to facilitate the broadcast version of the game, even if the game is not being televised. Here again, it must be reiterated: Football is a purely mediated experience, even when there is no media involved. It’s not just that you can see a game better when you watch it on television. Television is the only way you can see it at all.

Football fans attend football games for lots of different reasons. However, one of the expressed reasons can never be “A desire to see what’s really happening.” If that was someone’s true desire, they would stay home and watch it on TV. No one inside a football stadium — including the coaches on the sideline and the players on the field— can see the game with the consistent clarity of a person watching remotely. The announcers have the game happening directly in front of them and still watch the action on TV monitors, in part because they want their commentary to match what the home viewer is seeing but mostly because the camera is the perspective that matters.

And even when there is no camera, our minds insert one.

By now, it’s difficult to find any football game that isn’t being filmed by someone. When CBS broadcast Super Bowl LVIII in 2024, the network utilized 165 cameras. When Super Bowl I was broadcast in 1967 (on two competing networks at the same time), the total number of cameras was 11. This is now unthinkable. Show up at a random Pop Warner football game in rural Idaho, and you might find 22 different parents recording the action on 22 different camera phones. When I played high school football in the 1980s, not even the state championship was broadcast by any local station; today, most regular‑season high school games in every state can be streamed live, sometimes with a multi-camera professionalism on par with the broadcast of Super Bowl I. A camera‑free event has become rarer than the alternative. But the mental phenomenon I’m describing has little to do with how videography has expanded. The mentally inserted “camera” is not a machine. It is a way of seeing. It’s a type of forced perspective, invented by cameras and normalized through the omnipresence of television. In other realms of existence, such a phenomenon would be bad, since what I’m describing is a kind of psychological fascism. It is, technically, a form of mind control. Yet in this one particular instance, it benefits both the sport and the audience. With football, the psychology of fascism works.

Author Chuck Klosterman

(Joanna Ceciliani)

Visualize, for a moment, a capacity crowd at Michigan Stadium, the third‑largest sports venue on earth. Imagine the Michigan Wolverines are playing the Ohio State Buckeyes, with 107,601 people in the stands. Those 107,601 people are all seeing the event in a unique way, because every individual seat is in a unique location. All 107,601 sight lines are personal. Throughout the game, the ball moves up and down the field, and — every so often — a play will happen directly in front of a handful of fans coincidentally located in the ideal spot to see the action. Perhaps a woman’s seat is in the tenth row of section 15, located in the westerly corner of the south end zone: If an Ohio State receiver runs a fade pattern and catches the ball over his shoulder in front of the southwest pylon, that ticket holder will witness the reception with an unmatched lucidity. No one else will experience that extemporaneous moment like the woman in that particular seat. However, this solitary play is probably the only time when that will be true. There will be 179 other plays throughout the game, none of which will unequivocally cater to the singular view of this specific woman in this specific location. And what will happen during those other 179 plays is a bypassing of consciousness: The woman will see a play from her unique vantage point and automatically reframe what she saw into the way it would appear on television. She will watch the play from where she is sitting, but she will process the play from the standard TV perspective of a wide‑angle camera stationed in the press box at midfield. What she sees with her eyes will not be what she sees with her mind.

“But that’s not true,” you say. “That’s not how it is for me.” And maybe it’s not. There are exceptions to everything. Maybe your mind doesn’t work like this. Maybe you’ve attended three football games a week for twenty years without ever owning a television. Maybe your visual relationship with the world is completely authentic and unchanged by technology. I can’t crawl inside your skull and prove you wrong. But this is how it works for most people, including most who insist it does not. The visual imprinting of television is more overpowering than the visual imprinting of life; a TV screen presents an enclosed reality inside the preexisting reality of your house, and that manufactured reality overwrites both your memory and your imagination. Think of the primary setting from an old multi-camera sitcom (Jerry’s apartment on “Seinfeld,” the living room on “The Big Bang Theory,” the bar from “Cheers”). The standard shot of the set is ingrained in your memory and can be instantly recalled, but try to imagine physically entering that set through a different door and meandering around, without referencing the original image and triangulating where everything is supposed to be. Think of a real place or a historical event you’ve only experienced through film (the streets of 1950s San Francisco in “Vertigo,” West Baltimore as depicted on “The Wire,” the invasion of Normandy as seen in “Saving Private Ryan”). How difficult is it to now reimagine these places or events in a manner unlike the fake images you’ve seen only a few times? If you’re still skeptical, try this test: Host a party in your home and prop up your smartphone in an inconspicuous corner. Film 20 minutes of the party while you mingle with various guests. Rewatch that footage once a week for a month. At the end of the month, try to mentally reconstruct interactions from the party that aren’t anywhere on the recording. Try to visualize how the party looked, but from a different angle. You may be alarmed to realize your own unrecorded memories are locked into the perspective of wherever you placed your phone.

“But that’s not how football on TV works at all,” you say in response. “Football is seen from multiple angles that constantly shift. A few paragraphs ago, you noted that CBS used 165 different cameras for the Super Bowl. Football is better on TV, but not for the reason you claim. It’s better on television because there isn’t one static view.”

That’s a valid response, and it might feel true on a moment‑to‑moment basis. A controversial play might be replayed from seven different angles in the span of thirty seconds. It can even be argued that the standard camera view of a TV football game is the worst camera angle available. During the college football playoffs, ESPN’s family of networks will sometimes show the same game on multiple channels, with one channel broadcasting the whole affair from the Skycam camera. This is a remote camera hovering above and behind the line of scrimmage, replicating the perspective one sees in a video game. Coaches call this the “All‑22” view, because all 22 players on the field are simultaneously observable. It’s the camera angle coordinators use for film study, and — when it’s available — it’s the way I prefer to watch football. The Skycam allows the viewer to see how the defense is aligned, to follow pass patterns as they develop, and to (almost) see the game the way it’s seen by the quarterback. In terms of absorbing what’s transpiring, it’s vastly superior to the traditional mid‑ field perspective from the press box. Yet even as I’m watching the Skycam view, I can sense what’s happening inside my brain: I’m unconsciously converting what I see into the classic sideline sight line, even though that’s an inferior shot. I prefer the Skycam, but I understand what I’m seeing through the limited perspective of the most traditional camera angle: a master shot that (a) exclusively fixates on the location of the ball, (b) doesn’t include every involved player, and (c) provides no sense of depth or spacing. It’s an inadequacy that should be a death blow.

But like I keep saying: Football is different. These are the flaws that make the magic.

Copyright © 2026 by Charles Klosterman. Published by Penguin Press, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.

Klosterman is the bestselling author of nine nonfiction books (including “The Nineties” and “Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs”), two novels (“Downtown Owl” and “The Visible Man”) and the short story collection “Raised in Captivity.” He was raised in rural North Dakota and now lives in Portland, Ore.

Whenever I travel back to Oklahoma to see family, one question I almost certainly get is: How’s the drought?

Hikers are arguably more aware than most Angelenos of how the drought is. How many of us have wanted to take a fun adventure in the mountains only to discover stagnant puddles and a rock wall of moss where a waterfall once flowed?

That is not today’s reality though. For the first time in 25 years, California is free of drought!

This news comes with multiple caveats, namely how human-caused climate change is continuing to shift California’s weather cycles in concerning ways. But two things can be true at once, and the rain that Mother Nature offers is still its own kind of blessing.

“This is certainly a less destructive weather winter than last year was and than many of the drought years were, so it’s OK to take that breather and to acknowledge that, right now, things are doing OK,” UC climate scientist Daniel Swain said in a recent story on drought.

Around L.A., we are blessed with a multitude of hikes that feature rivers and waterfalls. I chose the three hikes below because they’re in different regions of L.A. County and because they’re less-crowded water-themed hikes when compared to spots like Trail Canyon, Sturtevant or Escondido Falls.

The sun sets on the hillsides surrounding Zuma and Trancas Canyons in the Santa Monica Mountains.

(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)

A few tips before we dive in:

• Wear hiking shoes or boots that are water-resistant or waterproof; not only will it add to your safety but also ensure you don’t clog up the trail for others behind you.
• Bring trekking poles for better balance at water crossings.
• At a water crossing, test a rock or log with your trekking pole before stepping on it; water crossings are often created by other hikers, so there’s no reason to assume the path through the river is safe.
• Before crossing a river or stream, assess whether the trail is taking you to the best place to cross; although we want to stay on trail, sometimes off trail is a better, safer option to cross.
• Do not cross a swift river or creek if you feel unsafe; we’ve lost hikers to drownings in the San Gabriel River in recent seasons.

I hope you have a beautiful time in our local mountains. With California free of drought conditions, we might just break Instagram with the number of waterfall selfies flowing out of our state.

Zuma Creek flows alongside part of the Backbone Trail, west of the Kanan Road trailhead.

(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)

1. Upper Zuma Falls via Backbone Trail
Distance: 6.2 miles
Elevation gained: About 900 feet
Difficulty: Moderate
Dogs allowed? Yes
Accessible alternative: Solstice Canyon Road

The Upper Zuma Falls via Backbone Trail is a 4.4- to 6.4-mile journey, depending on your route, where you’ll cross Zuma Creek via a well-maintained bridge and experience Upper Zuma Falls, a seasonal waterfall that features a varying number of cascades depending on rainfall.

To begin, you’ll park at a paved lot just north of a tunnel on Kanan Dume Road. (Fun fact: The Backbone Trail, a 67-mile trek through the Santa Monica Mountains, crosses over this tunnel!) The trailhead is on the west side of the lot. This is part of the aforementioned Backbone Trail.

The first .7 miles of the trail runs parallel to the road before taking hikers northwest through the canyon.

This trail will likely only get more beautiful, as it already has several blooming ceanothus shrubs and trees with white and purple-blue blooms, along with hummingbird sage, chaparral currant and lupine, which isn’t yet blooming.

If you notice a shrub with clusters of bright yellow flowers, you might have spotted a California barberry. “We are not likely to see barberry plants anywhere else in the Santa Monica Mountains,” hiking guru Milt McAuley wrote in one of his trail books.

Upper Zuma Falls, a seasonal waterfall in the Santa Monica Mountains.

(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)

Just under two miles in, you should spot the falls to the north. The official trail does not take you to the falls. Instead, you will, about 2.1 miles in, take a short, steep user-generated path north off the Backbone Trail. It’s OK to skip this part if you’d like to just admire the falls from a distance.

I found the unofficial path to the waterfall fairly well-maintained until I got closest to the waterfall, and the brush was much thicker. If you choose to take this excursion, I’d recommend wearing hiking pants. On my walk back from the waterfall, I was greeted by a cacophony of frogs ribbiting at dusk. That remains one of my favorite sounds of our natural world.

From the turnoff to the waterfall, you could either turn around or continue onward. Many users will turn at just under three miles in and take the Zuma Ridge Motorway about a third of a mile up to Encinal Canyon Road. You could also, if you’ve downloaded the map or have a paper copy, continue on the Backbone Trail. Regardless, you will be treated to lush flora and fauna and, given the rainfall, probably some mushrooms.

The waterfall in Placerita Canyon as seen on April 1, 2025.

(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)

2. Placerita Canyon and Waterfall Trail

Distance: 4.7 miles out and back
Elevation gained: 650 feet
Difficulty: Moderate
Dogs allowed? Yes
Accessible alternative: Placerita Nature Center Loop

The Placerita Canyon and Waterfall Trail is a 4.7-mile out-and-back adventure that combines two trails in Placerita Canyon State Park. You’ll travel through an east/west-running canyon, shaded by oak woodlands as you listen to the water run along Placerita Creek. If you’re a history buff, consider taking the paved path near the parking lot to check out the Oak of the Golden Dream, the first authenticated gold discovery in California by colonizers.

To start your hike, you’ll take the trailhead just south of the Placerita Canyon Nature Center. The trail will follow the creek as it takes you past large coast live oaks and healthy thickets of California sagebrush (one of my favorite smells of our local mountains).

Savor that. Because just before the 1.5-mile marker, you’ll catch a whiff of a putrid odor that’ll make you wonder whether you’ve stumbled upon a gas leak. Kind of! Ahead, you’ll discover two small pools of bubbling goop next to the trail.

“This very rare geologic feature of translucent petroleum has been filtered by nature,” the sign reads. Scientists think this white oil originated deep within the earth, traveled along the San Gabriel fault zone and was filtered through several layers of sediment. Decades ago, residents would pour it into their Ford Model Ts for fuel, according to the sign.

Less than a mile from here, you’ll reach the end of Canyon Trail. You’ll find several picnic tables and usually a few portable toilets. This is a great place to take a break and also do some birding. When I visited a few weeks ago, a small bird flitted around me, hoping I’d drop some bread. (Don’t feed them, no matter how cute they are.)

Coast live oaks along the Canyon Trail in Placerita Canyon State Park.

(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)

If you have kids younger than 7, I’d advise sticking to the Canyon Trail. The Waterfall Trail includes a few challenging technical features, including a spot where you must hike up a rocky, root-covered segment.

If continuing on, you’ll take the Waterfall Trail south just over half a mile. You will gain about 250 feet in elevation. The closer you get to the waterfall, the easier it is to lose the trail. Consider downloading the map beforehand so you don’t end up like me, cussing alone in the woods. (It’s a great visual though.)

The waterfall is an estimated 25 feet, the average height of a two-story building. Another one of nature’s stunners!

The West Fork of the San Gabriel River.

(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)

3. West Fork National Scenic Bikeway

Distance: 14 miles out and back
Elevation gained: About 900 feet
Difficulty: On the easier end of moderate
Dogs allowed? Yes
Accessible alternative: N/A, as this is accessible

The West Fork National Scenic Bikeway is a seven-mile paved path that runs alongside the West Fork of the San Gabriel River. This crystal-clear waterway is home to multiple species of fish, including rainbow trout and the (adorable) arroyo chub. The first time I visited the West Fork National Scenic Bikeway, I was gobsmacked to find a well-paved pathway in the middle of the forest.

To start your hike, you’ll park at the West Fork day-use parking lot off State Highway 39. This lot can fill up on the weekends. The U.S. Forest Service recommends you arrive early or later in the afternoon to avoid crowds.

If using a wheelchair to hike, I’d recommend parking just before the day-use lot at a smaller parking area. The gate for the trail is here, and you can avoid stairs and other obstacles by parking here instead.

A seasonal waterfall next to the West Fork National Scenic Bikeway.

(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)

From the lot, the trail meanders seven miles alongside the river, shaded by sycamore, white alder and willow trees, and it will take you as far west as the Cogswell Dam. Seasonal waterfalls flow alongside the trail, sometimes off the sides of the mountain. I’d recommend traveling as far down the path as you feel up to. There’s no reason to finish all seven miles if you’d prefer to hike a bit before relaxing along the river, listening to its gentle whoosh as you enjoy a moment without cellphone reception.

Keep an eye out for California newts along the trail, as they’re popular here. If you spot this large salamander, though, don’t pick it up! Not only is it rude, as that little guy probably had its own plans for the day, but also its skin secretes a neurotoxin that can cause illness, and in extreme cases, paralysis and death.

The Glenn Camp Campground is near the end of the trail and provides a great spot to eat snacks, relax and maybe even take a nap. It also makes for an easy bikepacking trip.

🦎💦⛰️

Regardless of where you go, I hope you have a fun, safe trip. Feel free to reply to this newsletter if you’re reading The Wild in your inbox with your thoughts about your favorite water-themed hikes!

3 things to do

Environmental educator Jason Wise, right, and his students present their invasive plant salad, foraged on a hike through L.A.

(Jason Wise)

1. Channel your inner goat in Elysian Park
Environmental educator Jason Wise will host an Eat the Weeds! workshop from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Elysian Park. Participants will take an easy hike where they’ll learn about edible native and invasive plants growing in the park. Along the way, students will gather invasive edible plants and then prepare and eat a wild, foraged, hyper-locally sourced salad. There is a suggested donation to join the class. Register at eventbrite.com.

2. Have ‘Sew’ much fun hiking in L.A.
Clothing designer Angel Gentle will host a Hike + Sew event at 8 a.m. Friday at Elysian Park. Guests are encouraged to bring their sewing machine or supplies for hand sewing. The group will leave the parking lot at 8:15 a.m. Participants should bring their own water, food and supplies. $10 suggested donation. Register at partiful.com.

3. Learn about planting native trees near Agoura Hills
The National Park Service and Santa Monica Mountains Fund need volunteers from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday to help restore a portion of Cheeseboro Canyon with native plants. The canyon burned in the 2018 Woolsey fire, and staff and volunteers have worked since to replant oaks and other native plants in the area. Sign up at eventbrite.com.

The must-read

A foggy view from the scenic trail in Sycamore Canyon.

(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)

If you’re dreaming of a summer camping trip near one of California’s beaches, now’s the time to start planning. As Times staff writer Christopher Reynolds points out in his recent piece, “Statewide, California’s campground system continues to open most campsites for online reservations at 8 a.m., six months ahead of the stay, on a rolling basis.” That means if you’d like to take a mid-July trip to Point Mugu State Park, you’ll want to make reservations ASAP to camp at Sycamore Canyon and Thornhill Broome Campground, the latter of which allows you to camp on the beach. It is one of the most popular state park campgrounds, which Reynolds lays out in his piece.

Happy adventuring,

P.S.

Did you know there are plans to build a forest in downtown L.A.? Using the Miyawaki method, Gloria Molina Grand Park staff and volunteers will start installing a forest from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jan. 31. According to this article, “The Miyawaki method, developed by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki, is an innovative approach to afforestation that mimics natural forest ecosystems. This technique involves planting a diverse mix of native species very closely together, which accelerates growth and enhances biodiversity.” The plan is to transform 650 feet into a native ecosystem. To learn more, visit the park’s Instagram page. I might see you there!

For more insider tips on Southern California’s beaches, trails and parks, check out past editions of The Wild. And to view this newsletter in your browser, click here.

Hill 350, a strategic high point on the Thailand-Cambodia border, was fiercely contested in fighting last year. Thai forces say they secured it weeks ago, unlocking a ceasefire that is now holding — though tensions remain high and the area stays heavily fortified.

Donald Trump officially launched his “Board of Peace,” offering a vision of Gaza that sees Hamas disarmed and real estate developments based on “free market economy principles.”

Brad Pitt in the movie “F1.”

(Warner Bros. Pictures)

Nominating this popcorn trifle for best picture is silly, but at least it didn’t get a screenplay nod for a script that’s simply: See Brad Pitt go, go, go. Still, I’ll admit that I recommended this rumbler to everyone who wanted an excuse to speed to the multiplex. (I elbowed my uncle, a hobbyist racer, to go see it a half-dozen times.) Not once in ‘F1’ does it feel like we’re invested in Pitt’s bizarrely constructed character, a throwback fossil with jokey Gen-Z tattoos. The movie is fueled by pure star power and you can’t fault Oscar voters for huffing its fumes.

WASHINGTON — Federal immigration officers are asserting sweeping power to forcibly enter people’s homes without a judge’s warrant, according to an internal Immigration and Customs Enforcement memo obtained by the Associated Press, marking a sharp reversal of longstanding guidance meant to respect constitutional limits on government searches.

The memo authorizes ICE officers to use force to enter a residence based solely on a more narrow administrative warrant to arrest someone with a final order of removal, a move that advocates say collides with 4th Amendment protections and upends years of advice given to immigrant communities.

The shift comes as the Trump administration dramatically expands immigration arrests nationwide, deploying thousands of officers under a mass deportation campaign that is already reshaping enforcement tactics in cities such as Minneapolis.

For years, immigrant advocates, legal aid groups and local governments have urged people not to open their doors to immigration agents unless they are shown a warrant signed by a judge. That guidance is rooted in Supreme Court rulings that generally prohibit law enforcement from entering a home without judicial approval. The ICE directive directly undercuts that advice at a time when arrests are accelerating under the administration’s immigration crackdown.

The memo itself has not been widely shared within the agency, according to a whistleblower complaint, but its contents have been used to train new ICE officers who are being deployed into cities and towns to implement the president’s immigration crackdown. New ICE hires and those still in training are being told to follow the memo’s guidance instead of written training materials that actually contradict the memo, according to the whistleblower disclosure.

It is unclear how broadly the directive has been applied in immigration enforcement operations. The Associated Press witnessed ICE officers ramming through the front door of the home of a Liberian man, Garrison Gibson, with a deportation order from 2023 in Minneapolis on Jan. 11, wearing heavy tactical gear and with their rifles drawn.

Documents reviewed by the AP revealed that the agents only had an administrative warrant — meaning there was no judge who authorized the raid on private property.

The change is almost certain to meet legal challenges and stiff criticism from advocacy groups and immigrant-friendly state and local governments that have spent years successfully urging people not to open their doors unless ICE shows them a warrant signed by a judge.

The Associated Press obtained the memo and whistleblower complaint from an official in Congress, who shared it on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive documents. The AP verified the authenticity of the accounts in the complaint.

The memo, signed by the acting director of ICE, Todd Lyons, and dated May 12, 2025, says: “Although the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has not historically relied on administrative warrants alone to arrest aliens subject to final orders of removal in their place of residence, the DHS Office of the General Counsel has recently determined that the U.S. Constitution, the Immigration and Nationality Act, and the immigration regulations do not prohibit relying on administrative warrants for this purpose.”

The memo does not detail how that determination was made nor what its legal repercussions might be.

Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said in an emailed statement to the AP that everyone the department serves with an administrative warrant has already had “full due process and a final order of removal.”

She said the officers issuing those warrants have also found probable cause for the person’s arrest. She said the Supreme Court and Congress have “recognized the propriety of administrative warrants in cases of immigration enforcement,” without elaborating. McLaughlin did not respond to questions about whether ICE officers entered a person’s home since the memo was issued, relying solely on an administrative warrant and if so, how often.

Recent arrests shine a light on tactics

Whistleblower Aid, a nonprofit legal organization that assists workers exposing wrongdoings, said in the whistleblower complaint obtained by the Associated Press that it represents two anonymous U.S. government officials “disclosing a secretive — and seemingly unconstitutional — policy directive.”

A wave of recent high-profile arrests, many unfolding at private homes and businesses and captured on video, has placed a spotlight on immigration arrest tactics, including officers’ use of proper warrants.

Most immigration arrests are carried out under administrative warrants, internal documents issued by immigration authorities that authorize the arrest of a specific individual but do not permit officers to forcibly enter private homes or other non-public spaces without consent. Only warrants signed by judges carry that authority.

All law enforcement operations — including those conducted by ICE and Customs and Border Protection — are governed by the 4th Amendment of the Constitution, which protects all people in the country from unreasonable searches and seizures.

People can legally refuse federal immigration agents entry into private property if the agents only have an administrative warrant, with some limited exceptions.

Memo shown to ‘select’ officials

The memo says ICE officers can forcibly enter homes and arrest immigrants using just a signed administrative warrant known as an I-205 if they have a final order of removal issued by an immigration judge, the Board of Immigration Appeals or a district judge or magistrate judge.

The memo says officers must first knock on the door and share who they are and why they’re at the residence. They’re limited in the hours they can go into the home — after 6 a.m. and before 10 p.m. The people inside must be given a “reasonable chance to act lawfully.” But if that doesn’t work, the memo says, they can use force to go in.

“Should the alien refuse admittance, ICE officers and agents should use only a necessary and reasonable amount of force to enter the alien’s residence, following proper notification of the officer or agent’s authority and intent to enter,” the memo reads.

The memo is addressed to all ICE personnel. But it has been shown only to “select DHS officials” who then shared it with some employees who were told to read it and return it, Whistleblower Aid wrote in the disclosure.

One of the two whistleblowers was allowed to view the memo only in the presence of a supervisor and then had to give it back. That person was not allowed to take notes. A whistleblower was able to access the document and lawfully disclose it to Congress, Whistleblower Aid said.

Although the memo was issued in May, David Kligerman, senior vice president and special counsel at Whistleblower Aid, said it took time for its clients to find a “safe and legal path to disclose it to lawmakers and the American people.”

Santana writes for the Associated Press.

Welsh Fire have signed former England international Chris Woakes for the 2026 season of The Hundred.

The 36-year-old is a one-day and T20 World Cup winner described by Welsh Fire as “one of the most respected all-rounders in world cricket”.

Woakes had signed for the Fire last year but was unable to make an appearance after dislocating his shoulder in his last ever Test match against India in August.

With over 300 international wickets and experience in franchise leagues across the world, Welsh Fire will be hoping the white-ball veteran helps turn the side’s fortunes around after a tough few years.

Woakes said: “I’m absolutely delighted to return to Welsh Fire for this year’s Hundred campaign.

“I was gutted not to be able to take to the field last year in Wales due to the shoulder injury, but I’m really excited to be coming back and to play in front of Welsh Fire fans.”

Despite his vast experience across white-ball competitions, Woakes has only played three games in The Hundred – for Birmingham Phoenix in 2023.

Welsh Fire men’s head coach Michael Hussey said: “Chris is a world-class cricketer and a fantastic addition to our group.

“His experience, professionalism and ability to influence games with both bat and ball will be invaluable for us, both on and off the field.”

Woakes follows Phil Salt, Rachin Ravindra and Marco Jansen in becoming Welsh Fire’s fourth and final direct signing.

An auction will take place in March where the franchises will bid for players to determine their final squads for the 2026 edition of the competition.

Jan. 22 (UPI) — The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights said Venezuela continues to carry out a systematic pattern of politically motivated arbitrary detentions, accompanied by serious violations of due process and the human rights of people deprived of liberty.

Gloria Monique de Mees, the commission’s special rapporteur for Venezuela, said before the Organization of American States Permanent Council in Washington on Wednesday that the group has information that indicates “clandestine detention centers” still are operating in the country.

“The persistence of these facilities highlights the structural nature of the violations and the absence of effective institutional oversight,” de Mees said, according to a report by Infobae.

Despite the release of some political prisoners by the interim government of Delcy Rodriguez after the Jan. 3 capture of Nicolas Maduro in a U.S. military operation, the human rights situation in Venezuela remains alarming, the commission said. Its members have not been able to visit the country since 2002.

During the session, the United States called for the “unconditional release” of the 1,000 political prisoners it estimates are being held in Venezuelan jails.

“Approximately 1,000 people remain unjustly detained,” U.S. Ambassador Leandro Rizzuto said during the OAS session convened to address the issue of political prisoners, according to El Mercurio Online.

He said the United States “urges the unconditional release of all unjustly detained political prisoners.”

U.S. pressure after Rodriguez becoming interim president led to authorities agreeing to release political prisoners. However, families and human rights groups in Venezuela say the process has been slow and lacks transparency.

According to the human rights group Foro Penal, 777 political prisoners were held in Venezuela as of Monday. Only 143 have been freed from incarceration, but they remain subject to criminal proceedings and severe restrictions, which the commission said do not amount to full releases.

More than 18,700 political detentions have been recorded since 2014, according to the group.

According to a report presented to the OAS by rights agency Commissioner Stuardo Ralon, criminal law is being used as a tool of persecution and control through abusive pretrial detention, indefinite postponement of hearings, frequent changes of prosecutors and lack of access to effective legal defense.

The commission also warned about deplorable detention conditions, including isolation, incommunicado detention, lack of medical care, limited access to drinking water and food, prolonged restrictions on family visits, and reports of torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, without effective investigations by the state.

The commission stressed the human impact of these practices, which affect not only detainees but also their families, including children, and cause lasting physical and psychological harm.

The rights group reiterated its call for the immediate and unrestricted release of all people detained for political reasons, an end to the use of the criminal justice system as a tool of repression, guarantees of an independent judiciary and the investigation and punishment of torture and ill-treatment.

Manchester United have said midfielder Casemiro will leave the club when his contract expires at the end of this season.

The 33-year-old joined from Real Madrid for £70m in 2022 and has made 146 appearances.

He scored the opening goal in the 2023 Carabao Cup final win over Newcastle as Manchester United finished third in the Premier League in his first season.

But last year he was mentioned by new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe who said some players were “not good enough” and “overpaid”.

The Brazil international said: “I will carry Manchester United with me throughout my entire life.

“It is not time to say goodbye; there are many more memories to create during the next four months.

“We still have a lot to fight for together; my complete focus will, as always, remain on giving my everything to help our club to succeed.”

IT was a showbiz scandal that shocked the world: esteemed actor Dominic West was seen with his arms around his stunning young co-star Lily James, before gently nuzzling her neck as they frolicked in Rome.

The photos would spark one of the most awkward photo ops of the past decade when Dominic and wife, Catherine Fitzgerald, stood on their doorstep with a handwritten note to announce that their marriage would weather the infidelity storm. But six years on, we can reveal how his aristocrat wife really felt about his dalliance with the young starlet 20 years his junior – and the impact it had on their marriage.

Catherine, who married Dominic in 2010, was thrust into the spotlight when her husband, 56, became embroiled in a scandal with his then 32-year-old co-star Lily James while filming The Pursuit of Love in 2020.

The actor, who famously said “women should be more indulgent of affairs”, had been playing Lily’s father on screen when they were caught off-screen in romantic clinches.

Photos which emerged of the couple riding around the city of love on an electric scooter before canoodling on a restaurant terrace were a sting to his devoted wife.

Back in the UK, Catherine, 54, who was born into vast wealth, was working on her passion projects – she runs a garden design company with famed landscape architect Mark Lutyen and also owns Glin Castle, her family’s 14th-century ancestral home in Ireland.

As the photos were published, a media frenzy began and Dominic flew home for crisis talks with his wife.

Dominic said sorry at the time for embarrassing her and they all moved on.

Insider

In an unprecedented move, the couple then staged a bizarre photo opportunity outside the family home in Wiltshire.

Holding up a piece of paper that read: “Our marriage is strong, and we’re very much still together”, Catherine appeared unfazed while Dominic – described by Piers Morgan as looking like “the cat who got the cream” – stood grinning alongside her.

At the time, it was said that Catherine was left “humiliated”, with sources claiming Dominic had confessed to “having feelings” for the actress.

But the mother-of-four stayed by Dominic’s side, with sources telling us she is “the glue that holds the family together away from the cameras”.

The insider told us: “Dominic said sorry at the time for embarrassing her, and they all moved on.”

Dominic, who had first worked with Lily in 2011 on stage in Sheffield, is said to have stopped contact with Lily to save his marriage, leaving a bitter taste in the mouth.

Our source continues: “Lily was left feeling hurt by his betrayal and disappointed that she was painted as the scarlet woman and hung out to dry.”

Six years on, Lily is currently single following her split from musician Michael Shuman. She saw in the New Year surrounded by friends in Mexico.

Dominic, meanwhile, was busy recording a podcast – Gyles Brandreth’s Rosebud – in which he opened up about his eldest daughter Martha’s mother, Polly Astor. The interview raised eyebrows.

He was asked if the end of his relationship in 2002 was “one of the big sadnesses” or “shames” of his life.

He replied: “I suppose so, yes. I suppose I wish my eldest daughter had had some of the advantages or some of the security that my others have had.

“I think I was too young. I was 28.”

I hurt Polly very badly, but at the time I wasn’t ready to settle down.

Dominic on split from Polly

He quickly backtracked and admitted it had actually just come “at the wrong time”.

Speaking about his roles as a father and partner, he said: “It was terrible because it was all me. I wanted out. I hurt Polly very badly, but at the time, I wasn’t ready to settle down.

“I was doing films all over the place and didn’t want to be tied down. Then I got The Wire.”

In another interview about the split, he previously admitted: “Martha was about three when Polly and I split up, and The Wire was very much a part of it. Women were extremely important to me, and I wanted to be selfish for a bit longer. I wanted to play the field, I suppose.”

From there, Dominic’s career went from strength to strength – and by 2002, he had started dating Catherine. 

Dominic and Catherine share four children together – daughter Dora, 14, Senan, 12, Francis, 11, and seven-year-old Christabel. 

The Crown star gushed to British Vogue in 2015: “I think I have a really good marriage, mainly because my wife is so cool and I adore her and we have all these kids.

It’s daft to kick someone out over a fling.

Dominic on affairs

“The mistake people might make, if I may be so bold, is expecting so much of a marriage and hoping that there can be perfection.”

His attitude towards marriage raised eyebrows, but it wasn’t until a year later that his relationship really came under scrutiny. 

In 2016, he said: “I think women should be more indulgent of affairs. I really do. It’s daft to kick someone out over a fling. Isn’t it? Everyone should turn a blind eye to men’s behaviour between the ages of 40 and 50. Let it all blow over.”

He also said that monogamy was “not the necessarily natural way to be, therefore there will always be adultery and intrigue about it”.

And Dominic’s wife certainly seemed to be on the same page when his relationship with Lily came under the spotlight. 

Speaking about the Lily James scandal in 2024, Dominic admitted it was “deeply stressful” for his wife and children, though the couple have since found humour in the situation.

In an interview with The Sunday Times, Dominic, who played Prince Charles in seasons five and six of The Crown, said: “I hesitate to speak on my wife’s behalf because it was obviously horrible, particularly for her. But we do joke about it sometimes. Because whenever we went out together, the papers would always say we were ‘putting on a show of unity’.

“Even if we’d just been rowing about parking the car or whatever, even if that couldn’t be further from the truth.

“And so when we go out, we do sort of say, ‘Shall we go out and have a show of unity up in London?’”

He added: “It was an absurd situation. It was deeply stressful for my wife and my kids, but there were lighter moments. That was the best that came out of it, really.”

Rekindled romance

Catherine and Dominic had actually met and dated years before they got together when they were both undergraduates at Trinity College Dublin.

Catherine told the Belfast Telegraph: “We went out together for six months, and we had great fun. He actually came to my 21st [in Northern Ireland], then he left, and we split up.

“Our best friend was also at Trinity with us. We all went on to have separate lives, but were linked through our best friend, Dominic Geraghty, also an actor.

“And I went to Wisley and did all this garden stuff and retrained. Then, when Dominic was doing The Wire, we met again through our friend Dominic; I was 32 then. I feel so lucky.”

Catherine was previously married to Viscount Lambton, the 7th Earl of Durham, in 1995, but the pair divorced in 2002 before she rekindled her romance with Dominic.

In a bizarre twist of fate, Martha’s mum, Polly, went on to date Dominic Geraghty, and all four of them remained close.

It sounds like it could be something from a romcom – and fortunately, Dominic is the perfect person to play the lead.

DAVOS, Switzerland — President Trump on Thursday inaugurated his Board of Peace to lead efforts at maintaining a ceasefire in Israel’s war with Hamas, insisting that “everyone wants to be a part” of the body he said could eventually rival the United Nations — despite many U.S. allies opting not to participate.

The new peace board was initially envisioned as a small group of world leaders overseeing the ceasefire, but it has morphed into something far more ambitious — and skepticism about its membership and mandate has led some countries usually closest to Washington to take a pass.

In a speech at the World Economic Forum, Trump sought to create momentum for a project to map out a future of the war-torn Gaza Strip that has been overshadowed this week, first by his threats to seize Greenland, then by a dramatic retreat from that push.

“This isn’t the United States, this is for the world,” he said, adding, “I think we can spread it out to other things as we succeed in Gaza.”

The event featured Ali Shaath, the head of a new, future technocratic government in Gaza, announcing that the Rafah border crossing will open in both directions next week. That’s after Israel said in early December it would open the crossing, which runs between Gaza and Egypt, but has yet to do so.

Shaath, an engineer and former Palestinian Authority official from Gaza, is overseeing the Palestinian committee set to govern the territory under U.S. supervision.

Trump tried not to let those not participating ruin his unveiling party, saying 59 countries had signed onto the board — even though heads of state, top diplomats and other officials from only 19 countries plus the U.S. actually attended the event. He told the group, ranging from Azerbaijan to Paraguay to Hungary, “You’re the most powerful people in the world.”

Trump has spoken about the board replacing some U.N. functions and perhaps even making that entire body obsolete one day. But he was more conciliatory in his remarks on the sidelines of the forum in the Swiss alps.

“We’ll do it in conjunction with the United Nations,” Trump said, even as he denigrated the U.N. for doing what he said wasn’t enough to calm some conflicts around the globe.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said some countries’ leaders have indicated they plan to join but still require approval from their parliaments.

Why some countries aren’t participating

Big questions remain, however, about what the eventual board will look like.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country is still consulting with Moscow’s “strategic partners” before deciding to commit. The Russian was hosting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday in Moscow.

Others are asking why Putin and other authoritarian leaders had even been invited to join. Britain’s foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, said her country wasn’t signing on “because this is about a legal treaty that raises much broader issues.”

“And we do also have concerns about President Putin being part of something which is talking about peace, when we have still not seen any signs from Putin that there will be a commitment to peace in Ukraine,” she told the BBC.

Norway and Sweden have indicated they won’t participate. France declined after its officials stressed that while they support the Gaza peace plan, they were concerned the board could seek to replace the U.N.

Canada, Ukraine, China and the executive arm of the European Union also haven’t committed. Trump calling off the steep tariffs he threatened over Greenland could ease some allies’ reluctance, but the issue is still far from settled.

The Kremlin said Thursday that Putin plans to discuss his proposal to send $1 billion to the Board of Peace and use it for humanitarian purposes during his talks with Abbas — if Russia can use of those assets the U.S. had previously blocked.

Others voice reservations

The idea for the Board of Peace was first laid out in Trump’s 20-point Gaza ceasefire plan and even was endorsed by the U.N. Security Council.

But an Arab diplomat in a European capital said that Middle Eastern governments coordinated their response to Trump’s invitation to join the Board of Peace and that it was crafted to limit the acceptance to the Gaza plan as mandated by the U.N. Security Council.

Speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the matter more freely, the diplomat said the announced acceptance is “preliminary” and that the charter presented by the U.S. administration contradicts in some parts the United Nations’ mission. The diplomat also said that other major powers are unlikely to support the board in its current form.

Months into the ceasefire, Gaza’s more than 2 million Palestinians continue to suffer the humanitarian crisis unleashed by more than two years of war. And violence in Gaza continues.

Key to the truce continuing to hold is the disarming of Hamas, something that the militant group that has controlled the Palestinian territory since 2007 has refused to do, despite Israel seeing it as non-negotiable. Trump on Thursday repeated his frequent warnings that the group will have to disarm or face dire consequences.

He also said the war in Gaza “is really coming to an end” while conceding, “We have little fires that we’ll put out. But they’re little,” and they had been “giant, giant, massive fires.”

Iran looms large

Trump’s push for peace also comes after he threatened military action this month against Iran as it carried out a violent crackdown against some of the largest street protests in years, killing thousands of people.

Trump, for the time being, has signaled he won’t carry out any new strikes on Iran after he said he received assurances that the Islamic government would not carry out the planned hangings of more than 800 protesters.

But Trump also made the case that his tough approach to Tehran — including strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities in June last year — was critical to the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal coalescing.

Zelensky announces discussions involving U.S., Russia and Ukraine

Trump also spoke behind closed doors for about an hour with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and called the discussion “very good” without mentioning major breakthroughs. Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner are expected in Moscow for talks aimed at ending Russia’s nearly 4-year-old war in Ukraine.

Zelensky later addressed the Davos forum and said there would be two days of trilateral meetings involving the U.S., Ukraine and Russia in the United Arab Emirates starting Friday — following the U.S. talks in Moscow.

“Russians have to be ready for compromises because, you know, everybody has to be ready, not only Ukraine, and this is important for us,” Zelensky said.

Boak, Madhani and Weissert write for the Associated Press. Madhani and Weissert reported from Washington. AP writer Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.

Long Beach’s bet on the Olympics to help reshape its economy has attracted at least one sportswear company to the port city.

Speedo’s parent company, Pentland Brands, plans to move its North American headquarters from Orange County to Long Beach, which has emerged as a hub for aquatic sports for the upcoming Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

The privately held, U.K.-based company that manages a portfolio of fashion and sportswear brands — including outdoor gear brand Berghaus and cycling apparel brand Endura — plans to move to a 25,000-square-foot facility at Aero Long Beach this summer.

Pentland Brands’ North American headquarters has since 2015 been located in a 69,000-square-foot office in Cypress, a company spokesperson said in an email.

The company cited the Olympics as a driving factor in its decision to move.

“Being based in Long Beach places Speedo — a brand trusted by swimmers on the world stage — at the heart of one of the world’s most anticipated sporting events,” the company said in a statement.

Bo Martinez, the city’s economic development director, said in a statement that Pentland’s relocation to Long Beach is “a powerful vote of confidence” that strengthens the city’s efforts to “diversify the local economy, create more high-quality jobs and build an ecosystem where creative, forward-thinking companies can thrive.”

Pentland Brands’ Long Beach facility, which will accommodate more than 130 employees, is expected to include a dedicated Speedo showroom, open office space and rooms for product design, according to the statement.

Long Beach will host 11 sporting events during the 2028 Olympics, which are scheduled to run July 14 through July 30, according to an April statement from the city.

Many are water sports, including coastal rowing, open-water swimming, beach volleyball, sailing, artistic swimming and water polo. Also on the lineup are non-water sports such as sport climbing, handball and target shooting.

Events will be spread across seven venues, including temporary buildings as well as the Long Beach Arena, which hosted events during the 1984 Olympics, and Marine Stadium, built for the rowing events of the 1932 Olympics.

Long Beach will also host seven events for the 2028 Paralympics, scheduled to take place from Aug. 15 to Aug. 27, according to the city’s website.

Long Beach Councilman Daryl Supernaw said in an email to The Times he was “thrilled” for the company behind Speedo to move into his district, which encompasses neighborhoods around the Long Beach Airport.

“It is an ideal company to help diversify our economy and [reinforce] the City’s long history in aquatics,” Supernaw wrote.

Long Beach in 2023 unveiled plans to spend over $900 million on infrastructure over the next five years, with about $200 million earmarked for Olympics-focused projects.

Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson told The Times in 2024 that he considered the Olympics an opportunity for his city, which has long relied on oil revenue, to “build a new economy.”

Pentland Brands is a division of the Pentland Group, which was founded in the 1930s as the Liverpool Shoe Co.

In the 1990s, Pentland acquired Speedo International and Speedo Australia. In a move to consolidate the global swimwear brand, the company bought Speedo North America from apparel company PVH Corp. for $170 million ahead of the Tokyo Summer Olympics that were postponed to 2021.

Speedo is a major Olympic sponsor and has partnerships with the national swimming governing bodies in the U.S., Canada, China and Australia, among others.

The Australian swimwear brand traces its origins to 1928, when Scottish immigrant Alexander MacRae produced a sleeveless Racerback swimsuit.

Speedo’s tight-fitting suits sparked a brief controversy at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, when a complaint was filed about Australian swimmer Clare Dennis’ exposed shoulders, according to the Daily Telegraph. The complaint was dismissed and the teenager went on to win gold in the 200-meter breaststroke.

Torbjørn “Thor” Pedersen, a Danish adventurer who set off on his journey in 2013, was faced with an array of issues, including conflicts, visa problems, convincing ships to give him passage, and, notably, a global pandemic

A man who visited every country on Earth without boarding a single plane has revealed the one destination he truly yearns for. Torbjørn “Thor” Pedersen, a Danish explorer who embarked on his quest in 2013, originally believed the mammoth undertaking would require just three or four years, but it turned into the beginning of an almost decade-long odyssey.

Throughout his expedition, Torbjørn reached all 197 nations acknowledged by the United Nations plus several with limited recognition, totalling 203 destinations visited.

What distinguishes Torbjørn’s accomplishment from other globe-trotting endeavours is his commitment to reaching every nation without air travel, though predictably, this came with considerable obstacles.

Despite his professional background in logistics and shipping, “nothing quite prepared” Torbjørn for the hurdles that awaited, including conflicts, visa complications, persuading vessels to grant him passage, and crucially, a worldwide pandemic.

During this challenging time, with borders shuttered due to the Covid crisis, Torbjørn found himself marooned in his most cherished location for two years, yet this allowed him to develop “real friendships”.

Speaking to Business Traveller Middle East recently, when pressed to identify the destination he’d “return to tomorrow” given the chance, he responded: ” Hong Kong. I was there long enough to form real friendships and get a deep understanding of (the place) – its culture, its landscape, and everything it has to offer.

“And then the project had to continue, and I was yanked out of it. I miss Hong Kong.”

Hong Kong isn’t classed as a sovereign country, but rather a special administrative region of China, a status the former British colony acquired in 1997 following the end of the UK’s 99-year lease of the New Territories.

Its governance falls under the concept of “one country, two systems”, which involves China consenting to grant the territory a “high degree of autonomy”, according to the BBC.

Hong Kong is renowned for its bustling markets, shopping, temples, dim sum, and East-meets-West culture, alongside sights such as Victoria Peak, The Big Buddha (an enormous bronze statue on Lantau Island), and its spectacular skyline.

The territory also boasts the 800m-long Central-Mid-Levels escalator and walkway system, which has the reputation of being the world’s longest outdoor escalator system.

Discussing his quest previously, Torbjørn explained: “I got wind that no one in history has gone to every country in the world completely without flying and I was caught up in the idea that I might have my shot at doing something remarkable.

“The idea was to do it with public transport wherever possible so that means hundreds of buses, trains and ferries then you ask if you can get on someone’s fishing boat or a container ship.

“I have to spend a minimum of 24 hours in a country. What I do isn’t tourism, it’s like running a marathon or going to the moon, it’s an accomplishment.”

Jan. 22 (UPI) — Ecuador and Colombia have initiated a tariff dispute after a decision by Ecuador’s government to impose a 30% duty on imports from Colombia, a move Quito justified on grounds of border security concerns and a persistent trade imbalance.

Colombia responded swiftly, suspending electricity exports to Ecuador and announcing equivalent tariffs on an initial list of 20 Ecuadorian products, escalating tensions between the two Andean neighbors.

Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa said Wednesday that the 30% tariff would apply to certain Colombian imports starting Feb. 1, citing what he described as a lack of reciprocity and insufficient security cooperation by the government of Colombian President Gustavo Petro.

The measure will remain in force “until there is a real commitment to jointly confront drug trafficking and illegal mining along the border,” Noboa said in a post on X.

Noboa contended that Ecuador has made “real efforts of cooperation” with Colombia, despite running a trade deficit that he said exceeds $1 billion annually. He added that those efforts have not been met with comparable actions by the Colombian side.

The sectors most affected by the 30% tariff are expected to be those with the highest share of bilateral trade, including electricity, pharmaceuticals for human use, certain food products, cane sugars, jet fuel, vehicles and unroasted coffee.

Colombia’s Minister of Trade, Industry and Tourism Diana Marcela Morales Rojas said the 30% tariff Colombia will apply to 20 products imported from Ecuador is a temporary instrument aimed at restoring balance to bilateral trade conditions.

“In the government of President Gustavo Petro, we have strengthened the state’s institutional capacity to act in a technical and proportional manner, in accordance with existing regulations, when the rules governing trade between countries are altered,” Morales said, according to local outlet El Colombiano.

As part of the escalating dispute, Colombia’s Ministry of Mines and Energy announced Thursday the suspension of International Electricity Transactions with Ecuador, arguing the decision was necessary to guarantee domestic energy supply.

The ministry said the move responds to climate variability and projections of reduced firm energy availability in Colombia’s national interconnected system, factors it said increase risks to the country’s energy security.

“The duty of the state is to ensure, above all, that Colombian households, industry and essential services have secure and reliable energy,” said Energy and Mines Minister Edwin Palma Egea, according to Ecuadorian daily El Universo. He described the suspension as “a responsible, preventive and sovereign decision.”

The suspension is indefinite. Palma said Colombia rejects “unilateral measures imposed by the neighboring country,” but expressed confidence that diplomatic channels and open dialogue could quickly resolve the differences.

“When energy security conditions are restored and a framework of trust and good faith between both countries is rebuilt, Colombia will be willing to resume electricity exchanges,” he said. “Integration cannot be built at the expense of sovereignty or the well-being of our people.”

Ecuador relies on Colombian electricity imports to supplement its largely hydroelectric power system, particularly during periods of reduced rainfall that affect river flows and reservoir levels.

In response to the electricity suspension, Ecuador announced it will impose new tariffs on transporting Colombian crude oil through one of its pipelines.

In a post on X, Ecuador’s Minister of Environment and Energy Inés Manzano said that “the transport tariff for Colombian crude through the OCP pipeline will reflect the reciprocity received in the case of electricity.”

She added that Ecuador is prioritizing border security, its trade balance and its energy security.

These measures add to earlier restrictions along the border. Since Dec. 24, Ecuador has limited cross-border transit for security reasons, keeping open only two official crossings with Colombia and Peru.

Contestants of The Traitors are filmed at the iconic gothic castle in the Scottish Highlands, but after the cameras stop rolling, they’re taken to an airport hotel 40 minutes down the road

The Traitors is one of the most popular TV shows, set against the spectacular backdrop of the Scottish Highlands, with a luxurious gothic castle and sprawling grounds. Yet it turns out the contestants don’t actually stay in the castle, or nearby for that matter, but instead are whisked away in a 4×4 to an airport hotel.

By day, the iconic Ardross Castle is used as a retreat for the contestants, a place where they unite for breakfast, eat lunch after a gruelling outdoor task, discuss tactics in the drawing room, and gather around the dreaded round table for another banishment. By night, and away from the glamour of the lavish 19th-century castle and candlelit driveway, the stars of The Traitors depart one by one and return to their accommodation.

During their time on the hit BBC show, the players stay at The Courtyard by Marriott hotel at Inverness Airport. The functional chain four-star hotel is nestled near the airport runway and about 40 minutes from the scenic Ardross Castle, which is used only for filming.

The average rate for a stay at the Courtyard by Marriott is around £53 per person, per night. Inside its facilities are a restaurant, fitness centre, meeting space, a convenience store, and a business centre.

The host of the US version of The Traitors, Alan Cumming, previously revealed an insight into the practical accommodation. He told The Daily Beast: “They all stayed in the airport hotel in Inverness airport. How glamorous – you come to Scotland, and you stay in the Inverness airport hotel.”

Meanwhile, TV presenter and former Traitors star, Jonathon Ross, was more than happy with the hotel during his time on the show. Underneath a post on the official X account for The Traitors, he wrote: “It’s a very nice hotel and the food is good. No complaints.” To which The Traitors account replied: “Good to know.”

Following this, one fan asked on the post: “Did you have to drive back to the castle in the evening to do the turret bit?” Jonathon responded: “No. We wait there until all the Faithfuls have left.”

The choice of accommodation is said to be down to practicality rather than luxury, as insiders reveal the hotel was chosen because it’s big enough to accommodate both cast and production staff. Additionally, it crucially allows the production team to keep participants separated and monitored when off-camera.

Host Claudia Winkleman revealed that all contestants return to their individual rooms directly after filming and cannot interact with each other or anyone outside the game in order to preserve the game.

The hotel has a glowing 4.3 rating out of 5 on TripAdvisor and 250 reviews. One guest wrote: “I stay regularly at this hotel. Yesterday the staff had to work really hard under pressure after many flight cancellations due to bad weather at the airport.

“The staff in the bar, restaurant, reception and housekeeping remained upbeat and efficient with a changing set of guests, accommodating their needs of all types. Emma and the f and b team did well to get everyone fed and watered! Well done.”

Another happier traveller shared: “Stayed at this hotel on several occasions and every stay has been great. Staff are very friendly and food is good. The rooms are modern and very comfortable.”

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Sudan have completed a major prisoner exchange following a recent diplomatic meeting. The border town of the Aru territory in the DRC serves as a haven for numerous South Sudanese refugees escaping the civil conflict in their homeland.

In August 2025, the French humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reported that over 33,000 South Sudanese refugees had been documented on the Congolese side of the border.

The DRC government said the bilateral meeting was held to reinforce security cooperation and the permanent exchange of intelligence between the two countries. The two delegations agreed to exchange detainees as a strong gesture of peace.

“There have been problems: a South Sudanese soldier entered our country through Aguruba, and finally, he was bogged down in mud and got lost. His colleagues came to search for him, and that is when his colleagues, before returning, took hostage a soldier of the Republican Guard and a policeman. Before that, they had already taken a village chief hostage. Fortunately, the chief of the chiefdom has spoken with the commissioner and the village chief was returned,” Richard Mbambi, the police administrator of the Aru territory, revealed.

 “But the soldiers, on leaving, I think they received orders from their superiors, took an element of the Republican guard and an element of the police, and that is what made us agree with the commissioner that we should meet in order to resolve the problem. We brought the soldier who was held in detention and another South Sudanese who had been arrested. We have just returned them to the commissioner, who has also returned the soldier and policeman who were taken on that day,” he added.

The South Sudanese delegation, led by the commissioner of Morobo district, emphasised that the meeting was significant to strengthening coexistence and peace between the neighbouring countries.

“Today, we have met with your authorities to resolve the situation which is going on between us. We must resolve our differences, we must put in efforts so that we no longer return to situations that have already taken place,” said Charles Dhata, the South Sudanese commissioner.

The security situation at the border between the two countries in the Aru territory remains bleak, as many refugees are fleeing the civil war atrocities in South Sudan. Various sources have reported instances of looting in several local communities within Congolese territory, carried out by rogue elements of the South Sudanese security forces and some individuals disguised as refugees. Discussions during the meeting addressed these concerns.

In December 2025, more than 40,000 South Sudanese refugees were relocated to sites with potable water, schools, and health facilities, with the support of the National Commission for Refugees of the MSF and local authorities.  

Police administrator Richard stressed the importance of exchanging intelligence between the two countries. This exchange aims to address differences and enhance security in two regions.

“The recommendations that we have made are notably that we must meet from time to time, at least every quarter, so that there are exchanges between the authorities of the territory,” he said.

NOMINATIONS for the Brit Awards 2026 have been announced, and it looks set to be a glorious year for the girls.

Olivia Dean and Lola Young are in the running for five gongs each, while a whopping 70 per cent of the nominees are women – the most in the event’s history.

When are the Brit Awards 2026?

The Brit Awards 2026 will take place on Saturday, February 28, 2026.

To watch the ceremony on telly, viewers can tune in to ITV1 at 8pm.

Fans can vote for Song of the Year and International Song of the Year via WhatsApp from 12pm on January 30 to 6pm on February 13.

Who has been nominated for the Brit Awards 2026?

ARTIST OF THE YEAR

read more on the brits 2026

BRIT HIT

BRITs 2026 host confirmed as awards bash moves to Manchester for the first time

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ALBUM OF THE YEAR

• Dave – The Boy Who Played The Harp
• Lily Allen – West End Girl
• Olivia Dean – The Art Of Loving
• Sam Fender – People Watching
• Wolf Alice – The Clearing

SONG OF THE YEAR

• Calvin Harris & Clementine Douglas – Blessings
• Chrystal & Notion – The Days (Notion Remix)
• Cynthia Erivo ft. Ariana Grande – Defying Gravity
• Ed Sheeran – Azizam
• Fred Again, Skepta & Plaqueboymax – Victory Lap
• Lewis Capaldi – Survive
• Lola Young – Messy
• Myles Smith – Nice To Meet You
• Olivia Dean – Man I Need
• Raye – Where Is My Husband!
• Sam Fender & Olivia Dean – Rein Me In
• Skye Newman – Family Matters

GROUP OF THE YEAR

• The Last Dinner Party
• Pulp
• Sleep Token
• Wet Leg
• Wolf Alice

BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST

• Barry Can’t Swim
• EsDeeKid
• Jim Legxacy
• Lola Young
• Skye Newman

ALTERNATIVE/ROCK ACT

• Blood Orange
• Lola Young
• Sam Fender
• Wet Leg
• Wolf Alice

POP ACT

• Jade
• Lily Allen
• Lola Young
• Olivia Dean
• Raye

HIP HOP/GRIME/RAP ACT

• Central Cee
• Dave
• Jim Legxacy
• Little Simz
• Loyle Carner

R&B ACT

• Jim Legxacy
• Kwn
• Mabel
• Sasha Keable
• Sault

DANCE ACT

• Calvin Harris & Clementine Douglas
• FKA Twigs
• Fred Again, Skepta & Plaqueboymax
• PinkPantheress
• Sammy Virji

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST OF THE YEAR

• Bad Bunny
• Chappell Roan
• CMAT
• Doechii
• Lady Gaga
• Rosalia
• Sabrina Carpenter
• Sombr
• Taylor Swift
• Tyler The Creator

INTERNATIONAL SONG OF THE YEAR

• Alex Warren – Ordinary
• Chappell Roan – Pink Pony Club
• Disco Lines & Tinashe – No Broke Boys
• Gigi Perez – Sailor Song
• Gracie Abrams – That’s So True
• HUNTR/X – Golden
• Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – Die With A Smile
• Ravyn Lenae – Love Me Not
• Rose & Bruno Mars – APT.
• Sabrina Carpenter – Manchild
• Sombr – Undressed
• Taylor Swift – The Fate Of Ophelia

INTERNATIONAL GROUP

• Geese
• Haim
• HUNTR/X
• Tame Impala
• Turnstile

Where is the event taking place?

As part of a new strategy move, Manchester is becoming the home of the ceremony.

The city’s Co-Op Live is hosting the awards in 2026 and 2027.

It’s the first time in the Brits’ nearly 50-year history that the ceremony will be held outside of London.

How much are tickets to the show?

Tickets to the Brit Awards 2026 sold out rapidly after going on sale in early December 2025.

Standard seated tickets started at £109.95, excluding fees, and were available via Ticketmaster and the official Brits website.

Tickets were limited to four per household, with standing available only for those aged 16 and over, while under-14s must be accompanied by an adult.

Who is performing on the night?

Olivia Dean is the first artist confirmed to perform at the Brit Awards 2026.

She’s nominated for Artist and Album of the Year for The Art of Loving, as well as Song of the Year twice and Pop Act.

Olivia said: “It feels crazy to have five nominations. It’s very surreal and I’m still processing it.”

IF you’ve ever wondered where the biggest hotel in Europe is you might be surprised to learn that it’s right here in the UK.

The Royal National Hotel, is in the heart of Bloomsbury and has a whopping 1,630 rooms across eight floors – making it the largest in Europe by room number.

Run by Imperial London Hotels, the Royal National Hotel is an ideal spot for London tourists as it’s a two-minute walk from Russell Square station.

It’s 15-minutes from Soho so easy access to theatres, and a short tube journey away from King’s Cross and Euston.

There’s a choice of rooms for all from a cosy single to double rooms, twins and even triple rooms.

For a bit more space, check out the standard plus rooms, family rooms which sleep three or the standard plus family room.

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All rooms come with an en-suite, free Wi-Fi, TV, radio as well as tea and coffee making facilities.

You can book on a room only basis, or a bed and breakfast basis which comes with an unlimited buffet.

When it comes to eating, the Royal National Hotel has ‘The London Pub’ which is a ‘modern twist on the traditional British pub’.

It has local craft beers and ales, as well as a large selection of small plates to sharers.

For lighter bites, the hotel also has Blooms Coffee & Pizza which is open from 7am with pastries and coffee.

At 12pm it serves up sandwiches, salads and stone-baked pizzas.

The hotel gets rave reviews too, one wrote on Tripadvisor: “More than five stars for our stay! Location is wonderful, it was a brilliantly comfortable room and all the staff were excellent.”

Another said: “Our short stay at the hotel was absolutely perfect. The location couldn’t be better really easy to get around the city and just a quick trip to St. Pancras for the Eurostar.”

A one-night stay in a single or double room starts from £99 per night in January.

A standard plus family room that sleeps up to three people can be booked from £119 in January.

The hotel currently has an offer which takes 30 per cent off a Sunday stay when you choose a long weekend in London.

Or book direct to get 20 per cent off your stay.

Another popular hotel run by Imperial London Hotels is the President Hotel, also in Bloomsbury.

It was made famous back in 1963 by The Beatles when they used it as their London base during their rise to fame – at this point the hotel had just opened and it was brand new.

The legendary band known for hits like ‘Hey Jude’ and ‘Let it Be’, even had a pillow fight in room 444.

There were then plenty of famous photos of the band taken around Russell Square.

One of the most well-known shots is referred to as the ‘shish-kebab’ and was taken on September 12, 1963.

A single and double room in the President Hotel start from £119 per night in January.

A twin room with an extra bed sleeping up to three people can be booked from £139 in January.

For more London hotels, Travel Reporter Cyann Fielding found the best value all inclusive central London hotel – with free food AND alcohol for £55pp a night.

And here are the 10 best-rated hotels in London on Tripadvisor – with stays from £30pp per night.

A 5-year-old boy arriving home from preschool in Minnesota was taken by federal agents along with his father to a detention facility in Texas, school officials and the family’s lawyer said, making him the latest child caught up in the immigration enforcement surge that has riled the Twin Cities in recent weeks.

Federal agents took Liam Conejo Ramos from a running car while it was in the family’s driveway on Tuesday afternoon, Columbia Heights Public Schools Superintendent Zena Stenvik said during a news conference Wednesday. The officers then told him to knock on the door to his suburban Minneapolis home to see if other people were inside, “essentially using a 5-year-old as bait,” she said.

Stenvik said the family has an active asylum case and has not been ordered to leave the country.

“Why detain a 5-year-old?” she asked. “You cannot tell me that this child is going to be classified as a violent criminal.”

Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement that “ICE did NOT target a child.”

She said Immigration and Customs Enforcement was conducting an operation to arrest the child’s father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, who McLaughlin said is from Ecuador and in the U.S. illegally. He fled on foot without the boy, she said.

“For the child’s safety, one of our ICE officers remained with the child while the other officers apprehended Conejo Arias,” McLaughlin said, adding that parents are given the choice to be removed with their children or have them placed with a person of their choosing.

Stenvik said another adult who lives at the home was outside when the father and son were taken, but agents wouldn’t leave Liam with that person. DHS didn’t immediately to respond an email Thursday asking if Conejo Arias had asked to keep his son with him.

Liam and his father were being held in a family holding cell in Texas, Marc Prokosch, the family’s lawyer, said during the news conference.

“Every step of their immigration process has been doing what they’ve been asked to do,” Prokosch said of the family’s asylum claim. “So this is just cruelty.”

Minnesota has become a major focus of immigration sweeps by DHS-led agencies. Greg Bovino, a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol official who has been the face of the crackdowns in Minneapolis and other cities, said 3,000 “of some of the most dangerous offenders” have been arrested in Minnesota in the last six weeks.

Julia Decker, policy director at the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, said advocates have no way of knowing whether the government’s arrest numbers and descriptions of the people in custody are accurate.

Liam is the fourth student from Columbia Heights Public Schools who has been detained by ICE in recent weeks, said Stenvik. A 17-year-old student was taken Tuesday while heading to school, and a 10-year-old and a 17-year-old have also been taken, she said.

The district is made up of five schools and about 3,400 students from pre-K to 12th grade, according to its website. The majority of the students come from immigrant families, according to Stenvik.

She said they’ve noticed their attendance drop over the past two weeks, including one day where they had about one-third of their students out from school.

Ella Sullivan, Liam’s teacher, described him as “kind and loving.”

“His classmates miss him,” she said. “And all I want is for him to be safe and back here.”

Golden writes for the Associated Press. AP reporter Kathy McCormack contributed to this story.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell and it’s time for our annual Dodgers Dugout Dodgers Hall of Fame voting.

I get dozens of emails every season from fans who want to know why their favorite Dodger isn’t in the Hall of Fame. Which got me thinking (always a dangerous proposition), what if we had a Dodgers Dugout Dodgers Hall of Fame, as selected by the readers? We started it in 2022 and so far, readers have voted 16 people into the Hall. It’s time to vote again.

The way it works: Below you will see a list of candidates divided into two groups, players and nonplayers.

In the players’ category, you can vote for up to 10 players. You don’t have to vote for 10, you can vote for any number up to and including 10. Your vote should depend on what the player did on and off the field only as a Dodger. The rest of his career doesn’t count, which is why you won’t see someone such as Frank Robinson listed. And you can consider the entirety of his Dodgers career. For example, Manny Mota was a good player and has spent years as a Dodgers coach and a humanitarian. You can consider all of that when you vote. And remember this is the Dodgers Hall of Fame, so there might be some people considerably worthy of being in a Dodgers Hall of Fame who fall short of the Baseball Hall of Fame in your mind.

In the nonplayers category, you can vote for up to three.

To recap, you can vote for up to 10 people on the players ballot, and three on the non-players ballot, meaning you could vote for 13 people total if you desire. But no more than 10 players and three non-players.

Whoever is named on at least 75% of the ballots will be elected. The eight people receiving the fewest votes will be dropped from future ballots for at least the next two years. Active players or active non-players are not eligible.

How do you vote? For the players ballot, click here. For the nonplayers ballot, click here. Or you can email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. You have until Feb. 1 to vote. Results will be announced soon after that.

I tried to compile a ballot that had players representing each era of Dodgers baseball. I’m sure there’s a player or two you think should have been on the ballot. Send that player’s name along and he might be included in next year’s ballot. And it’s possible the player you are thinking of has already been on the ballot, but dropped off due to lack of support.

Before we get to the ballot, let’s review previous results.

2025 inductee

Don Sutton, named on 75.7% of ballots

2024 inductees

Walter O’Malley, 79.4%
Pee Wee Reese, 76.3%

2022 inductees

Tommy Lasorda, 87.7%
Walt Alston, 86.5%
Fernando Valenzuela, 80.6%
Maury Wills, 76.6%
Gil Hodges, 75.3%
Orel Hershiser, 75.1%
Branch Rickey, 72.1%

Note: In 2022 you had to be named on only 65% of the ballots to be inducted. It has been 75% all other years.

2021 inductees

Sandy Koufax, 95.6%
Vin Scully, 92.7%
Don Drysdale, 90%
Jackie Robinson, 88.9%
Roy Campanella, 84.7%
Duke Snider, 78.2%

How the rest of the 2025 ballot fared:

Jaime Jarrín, 65.8%
Peter O’Malley, 65.1%
Steve Garvey, 64.4%
Don Newcombe, 62.1%
Ron Cey, 61.6%
Mike Piazza, 50.3%
Dusty Baker, 47.7%
Davey Lopes, 47.1%
Manny Mota, 46.7%
Red Barber, 45.4%
Carl Erskine, 42.9%
Tommy Davis, 42.5%
Kirk Gibson, 40.6%
Jim Gilliam, 40.5%
Mike Scioscia, 39.7%
Johnny Podres, 36.7%
Ross Porter, 35.3%
Willie Davis, 33.9%
Buzzie Bavasi, 32.1%
Eric Karros, 30.1%
Jerry Doggett, 29.8%
Bill Russell, 29.5%
Zack Wheat, 28.9%
Eric Gagne, 28.2%
Carl Furillo, 27.9%
*Rick Honeycutt, 26.7%
John Roseboro, 26.1%
Pedro Guerrero, 25.3%
Dazzy Vance, 23.3%
Tommy John, 23.3%
Andre Ethier, 23.1%

Bottom 12, eliminated from at least next two ballots

Helen Dell, 22.7%
Adrián Beltré, 21.4%
Steve Yeager, 20.6%
Leo Durocher, 18%
*-Ned Colletti, 12.9%
*-Steve Sax, 10.8%
*-Casey Stengel, 5.2%
*-Red Adams, 4.7%
*-Jim Lefebvre, 3.8%
*-Billy Cox, 3.6%
*-Cookie Lavagetto, 2.6%
*-Monty Basgall, 0.8%

*-first time on ballot.

The Dodgers Dugout Dodgers Hall of Fame

Listed in order of percentage:

Sandy Koufax, 2021 (95.6%)
Vin Scully, 2021 (92.7%)
Don Drysdale, 2021 (90%)
Jackie Robinson, 2021 (88.9%)
Tommy Lasorda, 2022 (87.7%)
Walt Alston, 2022 (86.5%)
Roy Campanella, 2021 (84.7%)
Fernando Valenzuela, 2022 (80.6%)
Walter O’Malley, 2024 (79.4%)
Duke Snider, 2021 (78.2%)
Maury Wills, 2022 (76.6%)
Pee Wee Reese, 2024 (76.3%)
Don Sutton, 2025 (75.7%)
Gil Hodges, 2022 (75.3%)
Orel Hershiser, 2021 (75.1%)
Branch Rickey, 2022 (72.1%)

Note: In 2022, you had to be named on only 65% of the ballots to be inducted. It has been 75% all other years.

The 2026 ballot

Players

Vote for no more than 10 players. Vote here or email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. Click on the player’s stats to be taken to his overall career stats. If you don’t wish to read all the comments, scroll to the bottom where you will see just a straight list of candidates without comments. But I worked hard on these, so throw me a bone, will ya?

Dusty Baker (1976 to 1983, .281/.343/.437): Baker is one of the most loved Dodgers since they moved to L.A. He was a very good player and part of the group of four Dodgers who hit at least 30 homers in 1977, becoming the first team to do that. Baker did it on the final day of the season, homering off of Houston ace and Dodger nemesis J.R. Richard in the sixth inning. Baker finished fourth in MVP voting in 1980, when he hit .294 with 29 homers and 97 RBIs. He hit .320 in strike-shortened 1981 and .300 in 1982.

Ron Cey (1971 to 1982, .264/.359/.445): Cey is almost criminally underrated by those who grew up outside of L.A. He was good for 20-30 homers, 70-90 walks and 80-100 RBIs every year and played a solid third base. He was a direct contemporary of Mike Schmidt, so he often got overlooked when it came to discussing the best third basemen during his era. But the Dodgers made four World Series with Cey as the starting third baseman, and he played a huge part in the team getting there each time.

Tommy Davis (1959 to 1966, .304/.338/.441): Davis put together one of the greatest seasons in Dodgers history in 1962, when he hit .346 (leading the league) with 27 doubles, 27 homers, 120 runs scored and a league-leading 153 RBIs. He followed that up in 1963 by leading the league in hitting again with a .326 average. Those were the only two batting titles in L.A. Dodger history until Trea Turner won a title in 2021. Those seasons are even more impressive when you consider that Dodger Stadium was an extreme pitcher’s park in those days.

Willie Davis (1960 to 1973, .279/.312/.413): Davis was an outstanding defensive player who led the NL in triples twice (1962 with 10 and 1970 with 16) and whose offensive numbers don’t look as impressive as they should because he played during one of the biggest pitcher’s eras in baseball history. His best season was probably 1969, when he hit .311 with 23 doubles, eight triples and 11 homers, or it could have been 1962, when he hit .285 with 18 doubles, 10 triples and 21 homers, or 1971, when he hit .309 with 33 doubles, 10 triples and 10 homers. He didn’t walk much and had moderate power, but he caught everything hit to him (except for that one game in the 1966 World Series, but let’s not get into that). He is still the L.A. Dodgers career leader in runs (1,004), hits (2,091) and triples (110).

Carl Erskine (1948 to 1959, 122-78, 4.00 ERA): “Oisk” is what he was called, and “Oisk” was known for his big overhand curve. But what I love about Erskine is he became a staunch supporter of Jackie Robinson from the day Erskine joined the team as a rookie in 1948, one year after Robinson broke the color barrier. At one point during the 1948 season, Erskine left the clubhouse after a game to talk to Rachel Robinson and Jackie Robinson Jr. Fans filed by and stared at this white man talking to these two Black people. Some didn’t care. Some were taken aback. Some shook their head. The next day, Jackie came up to Erskine and thanked him for talking to his family in the open, which was quite a thing for a rookie to do in those days. He said, “You know, you stopped out there in front of all those fans and talked with Rachel and little Jack.” Erskine replied, “Hey Jackie, you can congratulate me on a well-pitched game, but not for that.” In 2005, he wrote a book titled “What I Learned From Jackie Robinson.”

Andre Ethier (2006 to 2017, .285/.359/.436): On Dec. 13, 2005, the Dodgers made one of their best trades ever when they sent Milton Bradley and Antonio Perez to Oakland for Ethier, who became their starting right fielder for the next 10 seasons and put himself on many all-time top 10 lists in L.A. Dodgers history. You knew what you were going to get from Ethier every season: A .280-.290 average with about 20 homers and 80 RBIs. He was the first Dodger to have at least 30 doubles in seven consecutive seasons, made the All-Star team twice and won a Gold Glove.

Carl Furillo (1946 to 1960, .299/.355/.458): “The Reading Rifle” led the NL in batting average at .344 in 1953, the second of his two All-Star seasons with the Dodgers. He finished sixth in MVP voting in 1949 when he hit .322 with 27 doubles, 10 triples, 18 homers and 106 RBIs. He was a good fielder with a great arm, racking up 24 assists in 1951, more than earning his nickname. He was a steady player for the Dodgers for years and played in seven World Series, including the 1955 and 1959 title teams.

Eric Gagné (1999 to 2006, 25-21, 3.27 ERA, 161 saves): Gagne was a failed starter who came out of nowhere to seize the closing job in spring training in 2002. He converted 84 consecutive saves at one point, and few people left Dodgers games early when Gagne was the closer because they wanted to see him pitch. He was dominant and won the Cy Young Award in 2003. Then injuries derailed him and he pitched little in 2005 and 2006. He was with the Brewers when he was named in the Mitchell Report as a player linked to human growth hormone use. His tenure ended with the Dodgers 20 years ago, but it seems like a million years ago for some reason.

Steve Garvey (1969 to 1982, .301/.337/.459): Do I really need to write a lot about Garvey? One of the most popular Dodgers in history. But history hasn’t been kind to him, as many of the newer analytic numbers have downgraded him on offense. But, the importance of knowing every season that your first baseman was going to hit .300 with 100 RBIs can’t be overstated. He was named NL MVP in 1974 and finished in the top six in voting five times. He also made eight All-Star teams and won four Gold Gloves.

Kirk Gibson (1988 to 1990, .264/.353/.433): There are Dodgers with better numbers not on this ballot, but he makes the list because he turned the Dodgers from losers to winners in an incredible 1988 season, when he seemed to get every clutch hit the team needed, especially when he hit that amazing pinch-hit home run in Game 1 of the World Series. It’s up to you to decide if one miraculous season is enough to make him a Dodgers Hall of Famer.

Jim Gilliam (1953 to 1966, .265/.360/.355): It seemed that every season Jim Gilliam would be on the bench, squeezed out of the lineup by a hot rookie or flashy newcomer, then by the end of April, either the new player would be a bust or an injury would open a spot and Gilliam would end the season as the starting second baseman. Or starting third baseman. Or starting left fielder. But let me recount a story Vin Scully told me about Gilliam for my book: “I was introducing the team, and I would introduce, ‘So and so is the shortstop’ and so on, and I introduced Jim as ‘Jim Gilliam, baseball player.’ He was one of the smartest players. I remember Walter Alston saying that Jim never missed a sign. Never. Like anyone else, you are going to drop a ball, you are going to make an error, but Jim never made a mental mistake. And on the base paths, he’d go from first to third all the time. He always did the right thing. He was very quiet and not at all ‘on,’ but he was a consummate baseball player. He was married in St. Louis, and the team bus stopped at the reception while the photographer was taking pictures. Jim said to the photographer, ‘One more.’ The photographer took it and Jim got on the bus and we went to Busch Stadium.” The Dodgers retired Gilliam’s No. 19 shortly after he died after the 1978 season.

Pedro Guerrero (1978 to 1988, .309/.381/.512): You can make an argument that Guerrero is the best hitter in Dodgers history. He is fifth in OPS+ and had at least 1,000 more plate appearances than the four people ahead of him on the list. He hit .320 in 1985, then blew out his knee on an ill-advised slide in spring training of 1986. He came back in 1987 to hit .338. He had power, hitting 30-plus homers three times (back when that really meant something) and had a good eye at the plate. Defensively, however, he was brutal. He was not a good fielder at third, and hated playing there, but you have to give him credit for going out there whenever he was asked.

Tommy John (1972-78, 87-42, 2.97 ERA): After being a mainstay of the rotation in 1972-73, John was on his way to a career year in 1974 (13-3, 2.59 ERA) when he tore a ligament in his elbow. It always meant the end of a pitcher’s career, but John agreed to undergo a first of its kind surgery, taking a ligament from a different part of his body to replace the one in his elbow. He came back in 1976 to win 10 games, then went 20-7 with a 2.78 ERA in 1977, finishing second in Cy Young voting. He was almost as good in 1978 and went 3-1 with a 2.08 ERA in six postseason starts with L.A. Since then, hundreds of pitchers have had the surgery now named after him.

Eric Karros (1991 to 2002, .268/.325/.454): Karros had an interesting career. He is the all-time L.A. Dodgers home run leader, yet rarely gets mentioned when the subject is all-time great Dodgers. He led the league in only two categories in his career (games played in 1997 and double plays grounded into in 1996). He never made an All-Star team. He was often overshadowed by Mike Piazza. But he rarely got hurt and was good for 25-30 homers every season.

*-Joe Kelly (2019-21, 2023-24, 9-5, 3.72 ERA, 3 saves): Kelly is remembered for two things with the Dodgers: His Mariachi jacket, and not being afraid to hit an Astros batter or two after the sign-stealing scandal. After the Astros cheated to win the 2017 World Series, the Dodgers didn’t face them again until 2020. Kelly decided someone had to pay a price. The game was uneventful through five innings, and then Kelly decided to shake things up. After retiring Jose Altuve on a popup, he had a 3-0 count against Alex Bregman when his next pitch, ball four, flew behind Bregman’s head. The next batter, Michael Brantley, wasn’t on the 2017 Astros. Kelly threw him three pitches, none particularly close to him, and got him to ground to first. When Kelly covered first base in an attempt to complete a double play, he got annoyed when Brantley’s foot clipped his leg. Kelly glared at Brantley and suddenly, from the Astros dugout, someone shouted “just get on the mound, little … “ The … represents a word we can’t use in a family newsletter.

The next batter: Yuli Gurriel. With a 2-0 count, a Kelly pitch went well inside, sending Gurriel sprawling. He walked Gurriel on the next pitch. That brought us to the main event: Carlos Correa.

Correa was the most vocal Astro to defend their title after the sign-stealing was discovered. He was particularly pointed in his comments toward the Dodgers. Kelly started with a pitch that made Correa duck. He seemed none too happy. The at-bat continued and Kelly struck Correa out with a breaking ball in the dirt.

And then the fun began. Correa chirped at Kelly. Kelly, according to Astros manager Dusty Baker, said “Nice swing ….” Kelly made a pouty face at Correa, who started walking toward the Dodger dugout. The benches cleared. No punches were thrown. The game resumed and nothing much interesting happened after that, other than the Dodgers winning, 5-2.

But, on social media, Kelly became one of the most loved Dodgers of all time. He still is. So that puts him on the ballot.

Of course, Kelly is also known for hitting Dodger Hanley Ramirez in the ribs with a pitch, which pretty much ended the Dodgers’ postseason. He talks about that here.

*-Clayton Kershaw (2008-25, 223-96, 2.53 ERA): What can I say that I haven’t already written over the last 10 years? We can quibble over his postseason stats all day, but he’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer with the only question being how many people leave him off their ballot.

Davey Lopes (1972 to 1981, .262/.349/.380): There were certainly more prolific base stealers in baseball history, but there may have never been a better base stealer than Lopes. In 1975, he led the NL with 77 steals and was caught only 12 times. In 1976, he led with 63 steals and was caught only 10 times. At the age of 40, he stole 47 bases and was caught only four times. Admittedly, that was with the Cubs, so it doesn’t count for our purposes, but it’s my favorite Lopes stat. My favorite thing Lopes always did with this: He was often batting behind the pitcher, and when the pitcher made an out, particularly if he had to run hard on a ground ball, Lopes was a master of taking his time getting to the batter’s box, allowing the pitcher a little extra time to recuperate. Lopes would reach the batter’s box and see that he “forgot” to knock off the weighted donut off the bat, so he’d return to the on-deck circle to do so. Or he’d go back for a little extra pine tar. It was always a lot of fun to watch.

Manny Mota (1969 to 1980, 1982, .315/.374/.391): To think of Mota as only a pinch-hitter is a mistake. He hit .305 in 124 games with the Dodgers in 1970 and .323 in 118 games with the team in 1972. He made the All-Star team in 1973, when he hit .314. But pinch-hitting is what made him famous. Mota set the record (since surpassed) for most career pinch hits in 1979 when he collected his 145th. He seemed to be able to get a hit whenever he wanted to. Eighteen players have at least 100 pinch-hits in their career. Mota is the only one with a .300 average in such situations. After retiring for good as a player, he became a coach for the Dodgers and remains active in the organization to this day.

Don Newcombe (1949 to 1951, 1954-1958, 123-66, 3.51 ERA): Newcombe could have been a two-way player if the Dodgers would have let him. In 1956, he went 27-7 with a 3.06 ERA in 38 games, 36 starts and 268 innings with 15 complete games. At the plate, he hit .234 with six doubles, two homers and 16 RBIs. He won the Cy Young and MVP awards after the season. He was rookie of the year in 1949 and was the first player to win all three major baseball awards. He went 20-5 during the Dodgers’ World Series championship season in 1955. That year, he hit .259 with nine doubles, seven homers and 23 RBIs. How good a hitter was Newcombe? He pinch-hit 88 times in his career. Newcombe struggled with alcoholism for years but became sober in 1967 and worked for the Dodgers for years, helping athletes and others across the country in their struggles with sobriety. “What I have done after my baseball career and being able to help people with their lives and getting their lives back on track and they become human beings again means more to me than all the things I did in baseball,” Newcombe said in 2008.

Mike Piazza (1992 to 1998, .331/.394/.572): The best-hitting catcher in baseball history was an All-Star every full season with the Dodgers and finished as the MVP runner-up two consecutive seasons. His best season was 1997, when he hit .362 with 32 doubles, 40 homers and 124 RBIs in 152 games. He wasn’t much defensively, but not as bad as people said, and the less said about his trade to Florida in 1998, the better.

Johnny Podres (1953 to 1955, 1957-66, 136-104, 3.66 ERA): Podres pitched for four of the Dodgers’ World Series title teams (1955, 1959, 1963 and 1965, though he didn’t pitch in the ’65 World Series) and was MVP of the 1955 World Series, the first title for the Dodgers, when he went 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA, good for two complete-game victories over the New York Yankees, including a 2-0 shutout in the decisive Game 7. He was often overlooked on the team, overshadowed by Koufax or Newcombe or Drysdale, but he was a key pitcher for the team for 12 years.

John Roseboro (1957 to 1967, .251/.327/.382): Roseboro made five All-Star teams with the Dodgers and won two Gold Gloves. He was the starting catcher on three World Series title teams and when people mention the great Dodgers pitching staffs of the 1960s, they seldom mention who was catcher for all those great pitchers. It was Roseboro.

Bill Russell (1969 to 1986, .263/.310/.338): Russell was a converted outfielder who went on to become one of the longest-tenured Dodgers in history, second all-time in games played for the team with 2,181, trailing Zack Wheat (2,322). If there is one word to describe Russell, it’s “steady.” He never was the best shortstop in the NL, and was never the worst. He never led the league in anything, made the All-Star team three times, seldom struck out, didn’t have a lot of power. But he went out there every day and rarely cost his team a game, and also was known among fans as the best clutch hitter on the team. He replaced Lasorda as manager in 1996 and was fired in 1998 during the infamous Fox era.

Mike Scioscia (1980 to 1992, .259/.344/.356): Scioscia was with the Dodgers for 13 seasons, never won a Gold Glove, never led the league in any offensive category and made only two All-Star teams. But what he did can’t be understated: He gave you above average play almost every season for 13 seasons. You never had to worry about the position when Scioscia was there, and he hit one of the most important home runs in Dodgers history when he connected off Dwight Gooden in Game 4 of the 1988 NLCS.

Dazzy Vance (1922 to 1932, 1935, 3.17 ERA): Vance was the first true ace the Dodgers had and is still one of the greatest pitchers in their history. He led the league in wins twice, in ERA three times and in strikeouts seven consecutive seasons. Vance’s actual first name was Arthur, but he was called “Dazzy” because of his dazzling fastball. You can read more about him here.

Zack Wheat (1909 to 1926, .317/.367/.450): The most unappreciated great player in Dodger history. Wheat was just relentless at the plate, hitting over .300 every year with mid-range power. He hit .375 in 1923 and 1924. He is still the team’s all-time leader in several offensive categories. He was beloved in Brooklyn and served as a mentor for several young Dodgers, including future manager Casey Stengel. “I never knew him to refuse help to another player, were he a Dodger or even a Giant,” Stengel said. “And I never saw him really angry and I never heard him use cuss words.” Read more about Wheat here.

*-Alex Wood (2015-18, 2020, 31-21, 3.54 ERA): Wood went 16-3 with a 2.72 ERA in 2017, but never quite reached those heights again. He was the one guy who thought there was something fishy going on with the Astros in the 2017 World Series and had catcher Austin Barnes changes signals after every batter when someone was on base during Game 4. He gave up only one run and one hit in 5.2 innings for the only Dodgers’ victory in Houston. He was a valuable member of three Dodgers World Series teams, winning one with them in 2020, pitching four innings of shutout relief over two games.

Steve Yeager (1972 to 1985, .229/.299/.358): Yeager was one of the best defensive catchers in history who had the misfortune of being a direct contemporary of the best defensive catcher in history, Johnny Bench. Otherwise, Yeager would have multiple Gold Gloves. His best season offensively was 1977, when he .256 with 21 doubles and 16 homers. Dodger fans remember how he blocked the plate, becoming an almost impenetrable wall whenever a runner tried to score and Yeager had the ball.

Nonplayers

Vote for no more than three. Vote here or email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com.

Red Barber: Barber was a Dodgers broadcaster from 1939 to 1953 and mentored a young Scully. His folksy style and catchphrases made him one of the most famous announcers in the U.S. Among his phrases: “They’re tearin’ up the pea patch,” “Can of corn,” “Sittin’ in the catbird seat,” “Tighter than a new pair of shoes on a rainy day.”

Buzzie Bavasi (former general manager): In Bavasi’s 18 years as the team’s GM, the Dodgers won eight NL pennants (1952, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1959, 1963, 1965 and 1966) and four World Series titles (1955, 1959, 1963 and 1965).

Jerry Doggett: Called games in Brooklyn and Los Angeles from 1956 to 1987, and was a key part of the memorable Vin Scully-Jerry Doggett-Ross Porter broadcasting trio.

Rick Honeycutt: Honeycutt pitched for the Dodgers from 1983-87 and went 33-45 with a 3.58 ERA. The Dodgers traded Dave Stewart and Ricky Wright to acquire him and got Tim Belcher when they dealt him away. But he’s mainly here for his long tenure a pitching coach, from 2006-19, under four different managers. He and Ron Perranoski hold the record for most years as Dodgers pitching coach.

Jaime Jarrín: The longtime Spanish language broadcaster for the Dodgers, who started with the team in 1959 and retired after the 2022 season. In 1998, Jarrín received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame. In February 1998, Jarrín was the first recipient of the Southern California Broadcaster Assn.’s President’s Award. He also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame that year.

Peter O’Malley: O’Malley was team president starting in 1970 and became team owner in 1979 until he sold the Dodgers in 1998. Many fans consider the Peter O’Malley era to be the golden age for the L.A. Dodgers.

Ross Porter: Dodgers broadcaster from 1977 to 2004. On Aug. 23, 1989, Porter set a major league record for broadcasting 22 straight innings on radio by himself in a six-hour, 14 minute game against the Expos in Montreal. Also hosted the postgame “Dodger Talk” on the radio for many years and contributed the “Ask Ross Porter” segment to this newsletter for several years. Currently answers reader questions at his Ross Porter Sports Facebook page.

*-new to ballot this year.

Here is the ballot without comments:

Players (vote for no more than 10)

Dusty Baker
Ron Cey
Tommy Davis
Willie Davis
Carl Erskine
Andre Ethier
Carl Furillo
Eric Gagné
Steve Garvey
Kirk Gibson
Jim Gilliam
Pedro Guerrero
Tommy John
Eric Karros
*-Joe Kelly
*-Clayton Kershaw
Davey Lopes
Manny Mota
Don Newcombe
Mike Piazza
Johnny Podres
John Roseboro
Bill Russell
Mike Scioscia
Dazzy Vance
Zack Wheat
*-Alex Wood
Steve Yeager

Non-players (vote for no more than three)

Red Barber
Buzzie Bavasi
Jerry Doggett
Rick Honeycutt
Jaime Jarrín
Peter O’Malley
Ross Porter

*-new to the ballot

My ballot

There are four people should definitely be in: Clayton Kershaw, Dazzy Vance, Zack Wheat and Jaime Jarrín. Vance and Wheat played 100 years ago, yes, but they were outstanding players and should be in. It would be like someone starting a Dodgers Hall of Fame 100 years from now and not including Duke Snider and Don Drysdale. Kershaw is one of the greatest Dodgers of all time. And Jarrín was the Spanish-language broadcaster for the team for more than half a century and helped open them to a new market.

If you don’t vote for those four, no one is going to yell at you, but it’s hard to justify putting 10 (or four) on the ballot ahead of them.

And finally

Clayton Kershaw comes out of a regular-season game for the final time. Watch and listen here.

Until next time…

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.