The latest from the NCJ newsroom.

Big Backyard Visitors

Navigating living in proximity to a growing black bear population

By Griffin Mancuso

October 15, 2026

A black bear’s sense of smell is 2,100 times better than a human’s and seven times better than a bloodhound’s, according to the national bear education program Bearwise. A full-sized bear also eats thousands of calories per day and, leading up to hibernation, that number can […]

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Newsom Apologized to Tribes for Historic Harms, Vetoed 2 Bills that Would Have Empowered Them

By Melanie Henshaw

October 15, 2026

This story was originally published by ICT and CalMatters. Five days after signing a law formalizing a state apology for “harms and atrocities” against California’s […]

‘Wusatoumuduk: We Make It Burn’ Lights a Fire

By Tiggerbouncer Custodio

October 15, 2026

It has been quite a long while since I’ve seen a production that transcends conventional understanding of theater. Wusatoumuduk: We Make It Burn is one […]

Time in a Bottle

By Collin Yeo

October 15, 2026

I was recently driving up and down the coast a lot in the space of a few days, specifically the area between Arcata and Trinidad, mostly […]

A Very del Toro Spooky Season

By Jennifer Fumiko Cahill

October 15, 2026

Last week, I took advantage of the re-release of writer and director Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) in theaters to see it on the […]

A Memo from the Department of War

By Jennifer Fumiko Cahill

October 15, 2026

From the extremely large, solid oak desk of Secretary of War Peter Hegseth: Questions regarding the Pentagon’s plans to develop a High-T military are harshing […]