UCLA in the News lists selected mentions of UCLA in the world’s news media. Some articles may require registration or a subscription. See more UCLA in the News.

First-time directors still have limited opportunities in Hollywood | Variety

A new study by UCLA Center for Scholars & Storytellers shows systemic discrimination and limited access to opportunities exist against first-time directors, with only 23.4% working on major feature films in the last 12 years. … “The results of this study are eye-opening. For underrepresented groups, there remain obstacles, structures and processes that stand in the way of getting that critical first shot. I’m encouraged that first-time directors get equal results, but they just need to be given equal opportunities,” said Dr. Yalda T. Uhls, founder of the [center].

California’s colossal snowpack has yet to melt | Los Angeles Times

This melt really is still just getting started,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UCLA. “I know that’s hard to believe, but we’re getting into May and the peak is probably yet to come.” (Swain was also quoted by the San Francisco Chronicle and the Bay Area News Group.)

Life expectancy decline points to impacts of incarceration | Medical Xpress

At least 6,182 people died in state and federal prisons in 2020, a 46% jump from the previous year, according to data recently released by researchers from the UCLA Law Behind Bars Data Project. … Some academic experts and activists said the trend also underscores the lasting health consequences of mass incarceration in a nation with roughly 2 million imprisoned or jailed people, one of the highest rates in the developed world.

Report finds one-third of Black Americans live in ‘cardiology deserts’ | STAT

Utibe Essien, an assistant professor of medicine at UCLA who researches health disparities, noted that research shows Black patients fare better under the care of Black doctors in particular, but there are also deep issues affecting the supply of Black doctors. In the South, where most of the cardiology desserts have been identified, there are likely greater disparities in wealth and educational opportunities, and thereby more barriers for Black people to become doctors in their communities, he said.

Restaurant plastic ban in unincorporated L.A. County | LAist

Plastic makes up the vast majority of L.A. County’s litter, according to research by UCLA commissioned by the county to help it write its plastics ordinance. And most plastic — more than 85% — isn’t recycled. Instead, it fills up landfills or ends up in the street and gets flushed into storm drains and ultimately the ocean, causing harmful and deadly consequences to ocean life. It also costs a lot for the public. According to that UCLA research, taxpayers foot the bill for around $420 million every year in beach cleanup and waste prevention efforts.

Dodger Stadium gondola a sign of larger development? | Los Angeles Times

A 2022 environmental impact report for the project estimates that 10,000 people would ride the gondola to each game by 2042. A report from transportation researchers at UCLA that same year questioned those projections. Using an existing array of transportation data to simulate “the individual choices that millions of travelers will make when something changes,” they came to different estimates.

KISS’ Paul Stanley on transgender acceptance versus kids transitioning | Los Angeles Times

A UCLA analysis in June 2022 estimated that more than 1.6 million people in the United States identify as transgender. The percentage of people ages 13 to 17 and 18 to 24 identifying as transgender was triple the percentage of people ages 25 to 64 and 65-plus identifying similarly.

Oklahoma bans gender-affirming care for minors | United Press International

Gov. Kevin Stitt has signed legislation banning gender-affirming care for minors, making it the latest Republican-led state to prohibit the administration of such medical care. … Estimates from the Williams Institute of UCLA states that there are roughly 2,600 transgender youth between the ages of 13 and 17 in Oklahoma.