Happy to share I was named Online Journalist of the Year at this year's @lapressclub.bsky.social awards. My news photography and ICE-related immigration reporting also received first place honors.

Took my Hasselblad backpacking again

Koreatown, Los Angeles the moment Mexico scored their goal against South Korea.

It doesn’t sound true, but I’m really grateful to share that my work for @capitalandmain.bsky.social earned 16 finalist placings at this year’s California Journalism Awards. Thanks so much for the recognition @cnpa.bsky.social

A few shots from a week reporting in Imperial Valley

Eco brutalist building (apartment?) in central Quito

Last year, I broke the news that $400,000 raised for the survivors of a fatal 2022 fire in the Bronx had never been spent. All the money has now reached the survivors. My story: nysfocus.com/2026/05/15/b...

“I believe data centers, the only place that they exist, is in hell.” — Calipatria Mayor Michael Luellen inewsource.org/2026/05/13/d... via @philipsalata.bsky.social

Wherever they turn, residents in and around Santa Fe Springs, California, contend with toxic hazards. capitalandmain.com/california-h...

Former Hollywood bailiff Sonia Montejano is running to be Sheriff of LA County. She wants to eliminate deputy gangs, approve more concealed carry permits and bring in the National Guard to fill vacancies. Check out my interview with her on my YouTube channel. youtu.be/ezmRDfzhAgM?...

I tried to talk to Brendan Corbett, Alex Villanueva’s assistant sheriff about his campaign for Sheriff of LA County. It did not go well.

Early indications suggest that the rental housing lost in the Eaton fire is unlikely to be rebuilt at the same level of affordability as what came before. capitalandmain.com/fire-recover...

Thank you @nytimes.com for alerting me of the Meg Gala

"What she said 'I smoke 'cause I'm hoping for an early death and I need to cling to something.'" www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-tk...

The effects of the war — which is costing the U.S. between $500 million to more than $1 billion a day — are being felt throughout the economy, upending the lives of millions of Americans. capitalandmain.com/as-the-u-s-s...

I blogged!!! aaroncantu.ghost.io/newsletter/a...

The drying Colorado River has an Indigenous tribe worried about the viability of their farmland and cultural identity. Quechans have improved their water efficiency in order to help sustain the river, but President Trump cut funds for those restoration projects last year. youtube.com/shorts/60N1H...

Fuel made from Russian oil is surging into California, even though such sales help pay for that nation’s ongoing war with Ukraine

🚨 California is buying fuel made from Russian oil. 🚨 Check out this huge new story from @aaroncantu.bsky.social capitalandmain.com/as-prices-cl...

This was foreseeable. In 2000, when gasoline prices hit a record, California recommended several steps it could have taken to lessen dependence on foreign oil sources. The state didn't act. Full story here: capitalandmain.com/as-prices-cl...

ICE is arresting delivery drivers at a San Diego military base. According to an attorney interviewed by Kate Morrissey, military police at the gates call ICE on any driver who is not a citizen or green card holder, even if they have permission to be in the country. capitalandmain.com/ice-has-arre...

A new report from the University of California shows that the state's decision to raise the minimum wage for fast food workers to $20/hr didn’t hurt jobs, or raise prices much. Data from over 2,000 restaurants shows that the $20/hr minimum wage didn’t reduce employment. /1

If you think this is the first time Trump has clashed with the Catholic Church, read my article from last year: capitalandmain.com/trumps-war-o...

Data centers & lithium extraction projects look set to increase their water use in Imperial County as the Colorado River, the region’s only water source, is drying up. Meanwhile, farmers – the area’s largest water users – are anxious about a drier future.

Oil companies ExxonMobil, Empire Petroleum and their subsidiaries engaged in accounting fraud that could cost the state nearly $200 million, a lawsuit filed in New Mexico District Court alleges. capitalandmain.com/oil-companie...

A #NM court case could change how states deal with oil & gas well transfers and the growing orphan well crisis Big co's often sell low-profit wells to smaller co's that squeeze what oil they can but don't don't have $$ for the inevitable cleanup Enter: state fraud law @capitalandmain.bsky.social

AI data center developer Sebastian Rucci at his home near Palm Springs.

Agriculture uses 97% of Imperial Valley’s water supply. Experts say dwindling water levels in the Colorado River will require farmers in the region to significantly cut back on their use to keep the river system from collapsing.

Some images from my latest reporting for @capitalandmain.bsky.social about how the drying Colorado River threatens Imperial Valley's future.

Second story in this series from @jeremotographs.bsky.social looks at the high stakes of access to the Colorado River in Imperial Valley, as farmers, lithium companies and data centers all vie for access to its dwindling waters: capitalandmain.com/a-drying-col...

Communities across Imperial Valley are now contemplating what dwindling water resources might mean for their region and for the rest of the country, which relies heavily on the region’s water-intensive farms for winter vegetables. capitalandmain.com/a-drying-col...

A Drying Colorado River Threatens Imperial Valley's Future. My latest for @capitalandmain.bsky.social explores how declining water resources imperil the region's agriculture, emerging industries, residents and indigenous tribes. I also took all the photos. capitalandmain.com/a-drying-col...

'The state’s forests will dry out a month earlier than usual...Gleick said, which increases the risk of wildfires. “It could be a very bad fire year...rivers + streams are going to dry out sooner, + that has bad implications for natural ecosystems + our fisheries.”'

Some photos I made for @aaroncantu.bsky.social’s story about broken lithium promises in Imperial Valley for @capitalandmain.bsky.social

Check out Aaron's awesome reporting

NEW STORY! In 2023 @gavinnewsom.bsky.social stood on a vast landscape in Imperial Valley, declaring California's lithium revolution had arrived. But now the plans are mired by fighting, the feds are trying to kill renewables, and AI, not EVs, reigns. What's next? capitalandmain.com/newsom-promi...

This is the first in Imperial Divide, a series by @capitalandmain.bsky.social exploring competition over energy, public health and economic growth in one of California's poorest and most Latino counties. Also contributing is @jeremotographs.bsky.social, who took the incredible photos in the story.

NEW from me: After major pressure from the Teamsters union both at the shop floor and in NLRB-mediated negotiations, Amazon has agreed to stop retaliating against workers for exercising their right to strike. "This is a huge win for us," shop floor organizer Josh Black said.

Imperial Valley residents protesting the development of a data center just chanted the developer out of the County Board of Supervisors meeting.

Breaking News: Israel said it planned to expand the territory it controls in Lebanon, suggesting it might remain there beyond the fighting.

A recent college graduate was crossing the border from Tijuana to San Diego with a friend on vacation for Memorial Day weekend in 2010 when she heard a man screaming for help in Spanish.

As the leftist son of a Venezuelan Jewish mother and an ardently Zionist/anti-socialist Cuban & Jewish father, these past few years of American foreign policy feel like they were meticulously designed to make my family life as unbearable as possible.

As Los Angeles gears up for a surge of tourists for this year’s FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Olympics, vacation rental giant Airbnb is urging the city of Los Angeles to legalize thousands of new short-term rentals.

If Trump both: A. Thinks he’s “the chosen one” & B. Not getting into heaven, does that mean he thinks he’s the Antichrist?

I’m excited to help @shoton35mm.bsky.social launch LA Taco’s much needed investigative reporting desk. We’re already scheming on a couple of stories and I can’t wait to share what we find. Your donations support my work and LA Taco’s future investigations that are in the pipeline.

Agents with the Department of Homeland Security who have shot and killed people have histories of making racist, sexist remarks or celebrating violence new from me for @capitalandmain.bsky.social capitalandmain.com/agents-in-ic...

I can’t wait for companies to lower their prices now that tariffs are ending even though they have trained consumers to pay the higher prices. They’ll surely lower prices, right? RIGHT?!

How long until the New York Times publishes a sympathetic article like: The Mental Health Crisis inside ICE: How Federal Agents are Bringing the Frontline Battles Home. And then a follow up article like: A Cold Trip? How Ayahuasca is Helping ICE Agents Heal from their Trauma.

Film got exposed in transport. Pretty interesting results.

On a reporting trip to Imperial County, trying to work on my black and white photography.