LAYOFFS IN A MASSIVE COST-CUTTING MOVE, UC SAN DIEGO FAILED TO PROVIDE A FAIR TRIAL FOR A STUDENT CHARGED WITH SEXUAL ACCOUNT AND THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF THE CITY'S CROWN JEWEL IS CRUMBLING WILL THAT BALBOA PARK CONSERVANCY IS A BITTER? I AM MARK SAUER, KP AT -- KPBS ROUNDTABLE STARTS NOW. WELCOME TO OUR DISCUSSION OF THE WEEK'S TOP STORIES. I AM MARK SAUER AND JOINING ME AT THE KPBS ROUNDTABLE TODAY IS REPORTED DEAN CALBREATH OF THE SAN DIEGO DAILY TRANSCRIPT EXPECT WILL. GOOD TO SEE BACK AND TONY PERRY THAT IT WILL BE CHIEF FOR THE LOS ANGELES TIMES AND KPBS ARTS AND CULTURAL REPORTER ANGELA CARONE. GLAD TO HAVE YOU BACK ON TODAY. THE BIG NEWS THIS WEEK CAME FROM SAN DIEGO TECH GIANT QUALCOMM, A PERIOD OF RAPID GROWTH HALTED THIS YEAR AND QUALCOMM IS SUDDENLY ENGAGED IN MAJOR BELT-TIGHTENING. DEAN CALBREATH IS GOOD TO TELL US ALL ABOUT THAT BUT THERE IS A LITTLE BIT OF NEWS THAT WE WANT TO GET FIRST WITH THE DAILY TRANSCRIPT AND YOUR PAPER AFTER 130 YEARS I ANNOUNCED IT IS FOLDING. YES. IT DID. WE ARE ONE OF THE TOP -- ONE OF THE TOLD -- 10 OLDEST BUSINESSES IN SAN DIEGO, -- WHAT WAS THE FROM THE OWNERS OF WHAT THE REASON WAS? WELL, THE FROM OUR PUBLISHER -- HE WROTE A LETTER ABOUT THIS IS THAT IT WAS INCREASING OVERHEAD, HEALTHCARE COSTS, AND THE UNCERTAINTY OF WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE NEWS BUSINESS. NEW BUSINESS. HOW MANY FOLKS ARE HOW MANY IN THE NEWSROOM? THERE ARE ABOUT ONE DOZEN IN THE NEWSROOM. I COULD NOT GIVE THE NUMBERS FOR THE WHOLE BUSINESS. THEY HAVE GOT SOME PROPERTY DOWNTOWN? WHAT IS LIKELY TO HAPPEN THERE? THEY ARE LIKELY TO BE SOLVED. YEAH. I THINK THAT THEY ARE ALREADY REAL ESTATE -- INTEREST LOOKING AT THE BUILDING. ALL RIGHT. WELL, IT IS ANOTHER CASUALTY IN THE NEWS BUSINESS AND WE CERTAINLY HAVE BEEN SEEING THOSE OVER THE YEARS, ALL OF US DIRECTLY AFFECTED BY THOSE IN BOTH LUCK TO YOU AND ALL OF YOUR COLLEAGUES DOWN THERE. WE ARE GOING TO GET ONTO ANOTHER COMPANY, A MUCH BIGGER COMPANY HERE, QUALCOMM OF THE -- THIS WEEK THEY ANNOUNCED LAYOFFS. WE WILL GET TO THE WHY BEHIND ALL OF THAT BUT START OF SOCIAL SOFTWARE THE SPECIFICS ON THIS ANNOUNCEMENT WITH QUALCOMM. BUT THE SPECIFICS THAT THEY WERE GOING TO LAUGH 15% OF THEIR WORKFORCE WORLDWIDE, GOT ABOUT 31,000 PEOPLE, SO THAT TRANSLATES INTO ABOUT 4700 PEOPLE THAT WOULD BE LAID OFF, AND NOT ALL OF THEM IN SAN DIEGO, OF COURSE. ABOUT HALF MAYBE IN SAN DIEGO. YES. I THINK THAT THEY ARE STILL WORKING ON OUR. THEY ARE ALREADY -- A HUGE EMPLOYER HERE, SO IF THEY LOSE THAT AMOUNT OF MONEY, AMOUNT OF PEOPLE, THEY HAVE STILL GOT A SIGNIFICANT PRESENCE. THAT HAVING BEEN SAID, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THEY ARE THINKING OF DOING IS SPLITTING THE BUSINESS THAT DOES MICROCHIPS VERSUS OF THEIR R&D BUSINESS. AND THAT HAS BEEN DEBATED FOR A LONG TIME. THE MICROCHIP BUSINESS IS GOING KIND OF SOUTH THESE DAYS. FEWER SALES, AND ALSO, THEY ARE FACING ANTITRUST SUITS -- OF THE COLLUSION BETWEEN THESE TWO DIVISIONS AND EVERYTHING. EUROPEAN UNION HAS JUST JOINED A LAWSUIT THAT STARTED OUT IN SOUTH KOREA AND THEN WENT TO CHINA AND EVERYTHING OUT OF THE EUROPEAN UNION IS CHIMING IN. SO THIS HAS BEEN PROBLEMATIC FOR THEM. SO THERE ARE INVESTORS -- A BIG INVESTOR IN PARTICULAR THING BAD LET'S PUT THIS BUSINESS OFF. I WANT TO GET TO MORE ABOUT THAT AND SOME OF THE REASONS BEHIND THIS. I SHOULD DO A LITTLE HOUSEKEEPING HERE, FULL DISCLOSURE, QUALCOMM IRWIN JACOBS HAS LONG BEEN A MAJOR SUPPORTER OF KPBS SO THEY WERE AS WE SET OF THE OPEN A HIGHFLYING COMPANY IN RECENT YEARS AND OF THE SCREECHING TO A HALT BUT IT IS CERTAINLY SLOWED DOWN DRAMATICALLY. WHAT ARE THE MAJOR FACTORS BEHIND THIS DOWNTURN ? THERE IS A LOT OF GROWING COMPETITION, AND THEIR RVS LAWSUITS THAT HAVE MENTIONED THAT HAVE BEEN CROPPING UP, WHICH MEANS THAT ONCE A GOVERNMENT PREVAILS, FIRST IN SOUTH KOREA, THEN IN CHINA, THAT MEANS LESS REVENUE COMING IN FROM THAT AREA. SO REVENUES HAVE BEEN DECLINING, AND THEY HAVE BEEN DECLINING IN THE MICROCHIP BUSINESS IN GENERAL BECAUSE THERE ARE SO MANY MICROCHIPS OUT THERE THESE DAYS. YOU KNOW? AND QUALCOMM HAS COMPETITION FROM LOWER COST MANUFACTURERS. AND GO AHEAD AND LET. I HAVE SOME COMPANIES ARE CELL PHONE COMPANIES DOING IT IN HOUSE KNOW? DEVELOPING ABOUT MICROCHIPS AND SAMSUNG WAS DOING THAT AMOUNT HAS BECOME -- RIGHT. YES. AND SAMSUNG IS A BIG PLAYER HERE. AND THE LARGEST MICROCHIPS -- OF THE PRODUCER IN THE WORLD IS INTEL, SECOND-LARGEST IS SAMSUNG, THIRD-LARGEST IS QUALCOMM AND SAMSUNG IS TRYING TO BECOME EVEN THE LARGER NOW BY DOING A LOT MORE STUFF IN HOUSTON I WANT -- EVERYONE TOOK HIS HANDS OF THE CONTROLS -- THINGS AND STARTED GOING SOUTH? DOES IT NOT BOIL DOWN THAT WAY? QUALCOMM HAS HAD A HISTORY OF DEVELOPING BUSINESSES ABOUT IT DOES SPIN OFF. IT WANTS IT USED TO MANUFACTURE A CELL PHONE. THE ACTUAL CELL PHONES THEMSELVES. WHICH HAS GONE AWAY BY AGO. IT ONCE HAD THE OPERATIONS OF BRINGING IN CELL PHONE PROVIDERS, OFFERING SERVICES CHEAP, THAT WAS SPUN OFF AS LEAP WIRELESS WHICH NOW IS OWNED BY AT&T. SO IT HAS SPUN OFF THESE BUSINESSES BEFORE. THE QUESTION IS, WHETHER THIS SPINOFF MAKE SENSE. YOU TOUCHED -- IS THIS IS SORT OF A PACKET DRIVEN QUARTER TO QUARTER WHAT HILL RECORDS -- CALLS QUARTER TO QUARTER JOURNALISM -- CAPITALISM? OR IS THE DECLINE OF QUALCOMM A TREND THAT PROBABLY SEES NO CORRECTION? WELL, THERE IS THE THIRD POSSIBILITY THAT IT MAKES SENSE AND YET THEY ARE GOING TO RECOVER WHATEVER -- BUT THAT IS A REAL OPEN QUESTION FOR DEBATE RIGHT NOW. OF ONE INVESTOR -- YANA JANA PARTNERS IS SAYING THAT THEY NEED TO SPEND THIS OFF. THEY HAVE GAINED ENOUGH POWER TO CONVINCE THE BOARD TO PUT SOME OF THEIR MEMBERS ON THE BOARD, TO CONVINCE THEM TO SEE THINGS THEIR WAY. BUT THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO DO NOT -- DO NOT BUY THAT. YOU HAVE SEEN THAT WITH THE STOCK PRICES. THE STOCK PRICE IS NOW AT ITS LOWEST POINT IN A YEAR. I THINK BECAUSE OF THIS DISPUTE. IT HAS BEEN DRIVEN DOWN A LITTLE BIT BY THIS DISPUTE. WE STARTED BOILING UP AROUND APRIL OR SO. IS THAT THE END OF QUALCOMM IS A VERY GOOD FULL-TIME EMPLOYER? IS THE FUTURE NOW AS IT IS IN SOME OTHER INDUSTRIES? CONTRACTORS? SIX MONTH CONTRACT, NO BENEFITS, NO SECURITY? THEY ARE CUTTING SOME TOP -- GOODIES FOR THEM AS WELL. THEY ARE CUTTING CONTRACTORS AS PART OF THIS. THEY CALL THEM PART-TIME WORKERS, AND WE THINK OF PART-TIME WORKERS AS PEOPLE IN McDONALD'S OR SOMETHING BUT THEIR PART-TIME WORKERS MAKING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS AS CONSULTANTS. SO THEY ARE CUTTING SOME OF THOSE WORKERS. I DO NOT THINK THAT IT NECESSARILY MEANS OF THE END OF QUALCOMM BUT THERE IS SOME CONCERN -- BOTH FROM THE CRITICS OF THIS MOVE WHO THINK THAT THEY SHOULD BE KEEPING THEIR MICROCHIP BUSINESS, AS WELL AS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN PUSHING THIS MOVE WHO SAY THAT THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO PRESERVE THEM. I WANTED TO GET INTO THE IMPACT ON SAN DIEGO AND OF COURSE OUR AUDIENCE IS CONCERNED ABOUT THAT AND EVENING ADDITION OF KPBS LAST NIGHT AIR CONTROL OF NATIONAL UNIVERSITY TALKED ABOUT EMPLOYEES WILL BE LAID OFF AND WHAT THEY CAN EXPECT. LET'S HEAR THAT. THE TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE HAS SEEN ROBUST JOB GROWTH, LOTS OF HELP WANTED ADS, LOTS OF CONSTRAINTS IN TERMS OF THE LABOR FORCE, SAID THE PEOPLE THAT ARE GOING TO BE AFFECTED BY THIS LAYOFF ARE LIKELY GOING TO HAVE OTHER OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN SAN DIEGO OR EVEN JUST OUTSIDE, MAYBE IN THE REST OF CALIFORNIA. WHERE THEY WILL BE ABLE TO EARN JUST AS MUCH. DO YOU AGREE WITH THAT? ENGINEERS WILL LAND ON THEIR FEET? ARE THEY? PROBABLY. YET. THEY MIGHT NOT GET -- THE CUSHY POSITIONS THAT THEY CURRENTLY HAVE A BUT I THINK THAT THERE IS A LOT OF DEMAND FOR ENGINEERS OUT THERE. THEY WILL NOT BE LOOKING FOR JOBS IN JOURNALISM. I KNOW THAT. I WANTED TO TURN TO ANGELA -- AND QUALCOMM HAS BEEN A BENEFACTOR TO THE ARTS IN SAN DIEGO AND WE ARE GOING TO SEE SOME BELT-TIGHTENING THERE AS WELL? THAT IS MY QUESTION 14, SO MUCH OF WHAT I COVERS THE NONPROFIT SECTOR AND HOW WILL THIS PLAY OUT FOR QUALCOMM GIVING A LOT OF MONEY INTO THIS AND THEIR EMPLOYEES AT THE UPPER ECHELONS THAT ARE GOING TO BE LEAVING, GIVE A LOT OF MONEY. TO NONPROFITS AND PHILANTHROPY IN THIS TOPIC WHAT YOU THINK THAT THE IMPACT IS GOING TO BE? WELL, A LOT OF THE IMPACT ON PHILANTHROPY IS NOT GOING TO BE CHANGED BECAUSE A LOT OF IT IS SPECIFICALLY THE JACOBS FAMILY. SO THEY HAVE GOT THEIR OWN WELLS. THAT IS NOT GOING TO ALTER. RIGHT. THE QUESTION OF WHAT HAPPENS TO THEM AS A CORPORATE ENTITY, I THINK THAT RIGHT NOW, THEY ARE INTERESTED IN BELT-TIGHTENING AND I THINK THAT THAT MIGHT HAVE AN IMPACT ON -- PHILANTHROPIC WE SHOULD SAVE A COUPLE OF SECONDS LEFT -- STILL INORDINATELY POWERFUL PLAYER INTERNATIONALLY IN THIS FIELD. ABSOLUTELY. WE SHOULD NOT DISCOUNT THAT AND THIS MAY BE A HICCUP, A BUMP IN THE ROAD, AND THE COMEBACK LEANER AND MEANER. THEY HAVE DONE THIS KIND OF SPINOFFS BEFORE. THE QUESTION IS, IS THIS SPINOFF -- IT DOES THIS MAKE FINANCIAL SENSE? OKAY. ALL RIGHT. WE WILL SHIFT GEARS NOW, SEXUAL ASSAULT ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES AND SPURRED A CRACKDOWN BY ACADEMIC AUTHORITIES IN RECENT YEARS, CALIFORNIA EVEN PAST THE NATION'S FIRST YES MEANS YES LOT BUT NOW SUPERIOR COURT RULING IN SAN DIEGO MAY BOLSTER THOSE WHO SAY THAT SOME COLLEGES ARE GOING TO FAR TO PUNISH OF THE ACCUSED. START WITH THIS. UC SAN DIEGO, GIVE US THE HIGH POINTS OF WHAT HAPPENED TO 2014. SURE. MY COLLEAGUE TERESA WHO COVERS HIGHER EDUCATION FOR THE LA TIMES HAS BEEN COVERING THIS ISSUE AND CAME DOWN HERE FOR THIS A RATHER STARTLING SUPERIOR COURT DECISION IN WHICH HE AGREED WITH A YOUNG MAN WHO HAD -- KEEPING THE JUDGE. YES. THAT JUDGE AGREED WITH THE YOUNG MAN THAT SAID HE HAD BEEN TREATED UNFAIRLY, SUBJECTED TO A KANGAROO COURT AT UC SAN DIEGO WHEN HE WAS ACCUSED BY A WOMAN, A YOUNG WOMAN ON CAMPUS, THAT HE HAD BEEN SEEING, OF ASSAULTING HER. THEY SUSPENDED HIM. WHEN HE APPEALED, THEY SUSPENDED HIM SOME MORE AND HE SUED. AND AGILE PRESSMAN COME THE SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE AGREED THAT HIS RIGHTS WERE VIOLATED. AND THAT THERE WAS NO DUE PROCESS AND IT WAS A TOTALLY UNFAIR SYSTEM. THIS IS NOT THE ONLY PLACE, AGAIN, TERESA QUOTED SOMEONE A FROM THE NATIONAL WOMEN'S LAW CENTER WHO SAID, COLLEGES ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE STRUGGLING ON HOW TO BALANCE THE RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED AND THE RIGHTS OF SOMEONE TO BRING AN ACCUSATION IF THEY HAVE BEEN HARMED. WE HAVE SEEN CASES AT THIS CAMPUS, SAN DIEGO STATE, SEEN CASES AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO, DIFFERENT DETAILS AND DEALT WITH DIFFERENTLY, HAPPENING ACROSS THE COUNTRY, UNIVERSITIES ARE TRYING TO FIGURE THIS OUT, AND THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION IS PROBING COLLEGES, NUMBER OF CAMPUSES, STANFORD, TO SEE HOW THEY ARE DOING. ON THE OTHER HAND, THERE IS SOME A 40+ LAWSUIT BY MOSTLY MEN WHO FEEL THAT THEY WERE TREATED UNFAIRLY BY THE SYSTEMS. SO IT IS THE TOPIC, COMPLEX, CONTROVERSIAL, AND IT IS NOT GOING AWAY SOON. AND ANGELA, YOU DID A TWO PART SERIES FOR KPBS ABOUT , TONY MUCH OF THE CASES HERE AT SAN DIEGO STATE AND YOU FOCUSED ON ONE IN PARTICULAR HERE, AND NOBODY SAYS THAT THE SYSTEM IS PERFECT. IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO HANDLE THESE CASES. FIRST OF ALL, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE ELEMENTS THAT LEAD TO THESE AND SEXUAL ASSAULTS AND ACCUSATIONS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT AND BEAUTIFUL SITUATIONS THAT THESE YOUNG FOLKS FIND THEMSELVES IN? WELL, THERE IS -- I MEAN IT IS LIKE ON MANY COLLEGE CAMPUSES, THERE ARE PARTIES, THERE IS TRICKY, THERE IS KIND OF HOOKUP CULTURE. THEN, -- AND THEN, THERE IS THIS MISCOMMUNICATION, ASSAULTS TAKE PLACE -- KIDS ARE NOT VERY EXPERIENCED WITH RICKY OR SEXUAL OR RELATIONSHIPS EXPECT EXACTLY. FIRST TIME AWAY FROM HOME, AND THERE IS THE SPIRIT OF TIME CALLED THE RED ZONE ABOUT ESPECIALLY FOR FRESHMEN THAT FIRST COUPLE OF MONTHS OF SCHOOL, WHERE THAT GOES CAMPUS POLICE WILL SEE A SPIKE IN THESE KINDS OF ASSAULTS BECAUSE THEY ARE HOME AWAY FROM HOME FOR THE FIRST TIME, GOING TO PARTIES, AND THEY ARE INEXPERIENCED WITH ALCOHOL, AND THINGS HAPPEN. SO YEAH. IT IS A REAL PROBLEM. AND THESE -- WITNESSES HAVE BEEN TRICKY. THE WITNESSES HAVE ALL BEEN DRINKING. SOMETIMES PEOPLE DO REPORT RIGHT AWAY. BUT OTHER TIMES, IT CAN TAKE MONTHS FOR A YOUNG WOMAN OR A YOUNG MAN TO COMPORT AND SAY THAT THIS HAS HAPPENED TO THEM. I'M GLAD THAT YOU BROUGHT THAT UP BECAUSE IN THE LA TIMES REPORTING ON THIS, THEY NOTED THAT THE ACCUSER HERE IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE AT UCSD TOOK FOUR MONTHS TO FILE THE COMPLAINT WHICH YOU AS YOU SAY IS NOT THAT UNUSUAL, AND ALSO, THAT SOME WITNESSES WERE KIND OF ALL OVER THE MAP ON EXACTLY WHAT THEY SAW HAD HAPPENED. IN TERMS OF HOW MUCH OF DRINKING HAD GONE ON, WHO DID WHAT TO WHOM, AND WHERE -- THERE WERE THREE CAUSES OF ACTIONS AS I UNDERSTAND FROM THERESE -- FROM THE STORY. THE ADMINISTRATIVE INDIVIDUAL INVOLVED FOUND THEM UNSUBSTANTIATED BUT ON THE THIRD, HE FOUND THAT COMMENTED, THE YOUNG MAN HAD ASSAULTED THE YOUNG WOMAN. HE WAS NOT ALLOWED, DURING THIS PROCEEDING, TO QUESTION HIS ACCUSER. WHICH IS KIND OF A BASIC OF DUE PROCESS. HE WAS NOT ABLE TO -- SEE CERTAIN DOCUMENTS. OF THE QUESTION I GUESS IS, SHOULD THESE CASES BE HANDLED INTERNALLY AT THE UNIVERSITY? SHOULD YOU CALL IN THE COPS? RIGHT. IN THIS CASE, THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO, SEX COPS, WHO DEAL WITH THIS KIND OF THING IN ALL SORTS OF SETTINGS. SHOULD THEY BE BROUGHT IN? ANGELA HONG GOING TO GET TO YOUR TAKE ON THIS IN ONE CITY BUT IN THE REPORTING IN THE STORY THAT I MENTIONED FOR KPBS, YOU DID TALK BE A SKYPE WITH A JOKE ON THE POLICY DIRECTOR OF THE FOUNDATION FOR INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS IN EDUCATION ABOUT THE COLLEGE CAMPUSES, DEALING WITH US. LET'S HEAR WHAT HE SAID AND THEN GET BACK TO YOUR RESPONSE ON THAT. ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY ARE TRYING TO DO THIS, WITHOUT THE BENEFIT OF FORENSICS EVIDENCE, WITHOUT THE BENEFIT OF YEARS OF EXPERTISE, AND WITHOUT THE BENEFIT OF THE TOOLS THAT LAW ENFORCEMENT PROFESSIONALS AND COURTS BRING TO BEAR. TO SORT OUT THAT -- EXPECTING THEM TO DO THIS WELL IS CRAZY. ALL RIGHT. YOU ARE GOING TO ELABORATE ON THAT. WELL, I THINK THAT THERE ARE A NUMBER OF THINGS AND THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS THAT SCHOOLS ARE BEING FORCED BY THE FEDS TO DO THIS WORK. RIGHT? AND WHAT IT STARTED OUT AS IS KIND OF THIS WILL BE A TEACHABLE MOMENT, HOW TO HANDLE -- YEAH. AND WHAT HAS HAPPENED IS, AS OF THESE CASES NEVER GO TO CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS, NOW, THIS CAMPUS HEARINGS ARE THE PLACE WHERE ANY KIND OF PUNISHMENT ACTUALLY TAKES PLACE. IT IS EXPECTED TO TAKE PLACE. SO THEY ARE NOT EQUIPPED TO HANDLE IT. I THINK THAT THERE ARE SOME THINGS THAT THEY CAN DO TO IMPROVE THE PROCESS THAT THEY HAVE IN PLACE BUT TONY IS EXACTLY RIGHT. I MEAN, THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE CALLING FOR A REAL FORMALIZATION OF THE PROCESS, FOR THIS TO LOOK A LOT MORE LIKE A KIND OF CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS, WHERE THE TWO PARTIES EACH HAVE ATTORNEYS, WHERE SOME PEOPLE ARE SAYING, THE BURDEN OF PROOF SHOULD BE CHANGED IN A CRIMINAL COURT, THE BURDEN OF PROOF IS BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT AND WITHIN A COLLEGE CAMPUS HEARING IT IS A PREPONDERANCE OF EVIDENCE WHICH MEANS THE EVIDENCE SHOWED THAT MORE LIKELY THAN NOT THIS HAPPEN AND SOME SAY THAT THAT IS THAT VERY MUCH AGAINST THE ACCUSED MAY BE THE BURDEN OF PROOF SHOULD CHANGE. AT HARVARD, SOME 40 LAW PROFESSORS SIGNED A PROTEST, SAYING THAT THERE IS NO DUE PROCESS IN OUR SYSTEM. WHAT ARE WE DOING? WE ARE ON HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION THAT SHOULD DO BETTER AND THERE WERE SOME CHANGES MADE. I GUESS, LONG AGO, THERE WAS A PHRASE THAT SCHOOLS WERE -- IN LOCO PARENTIS, THAT IS TO SAY THAT THE PARENTS ARE NOT HERE AND WE ARE IN CHARGE AND PARENTS DO NOT RUN THINGS WITH DUE PROCESS BUT I THINK THAT THOSE DAYS ARE GONE AND NOW WE DO RUN THINGS WITH LAWYERS EVERYWHERE AT INVESTIGATORS FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. SO AGAIN, AS TERESA QUOTED SOMEONE FROM NATIONAL WOMEN'S LAW CENTER, STRUGGLING COLLEGES FROM COAST-TO-COAST, HOW DO YOU BALANCE OF THE RIGHTS? HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT? DEAL WITH LAWYERS AND THE COURTS? WE WILL SEE WHETHER THIS DECISION HERE BY THE JUDGE PRESSMAN AND THE UC SAN DIEGO CASE SETS -- NOT A LEGAL PRECEDENT, BUT RATHER GIVES AN INDICATION TWO OTHER JUDGES IN OTHER PLACES OR OTHER LITIGANTS IN OTHER PLACES, THAT THE DUE PROCESS HAS TO BE PART OF THIS PROCESS. BUT I THINK THAT THERE ARE THINGS THAT THE SCHOOLS CAN BE DOING TO IMPROVE THE PROCESS THAT THEY HAVE IN PLACE. SO CAMPUS INVESTIGATORS COULD GET MORE TRAINING. RIGHT? AND I THINK THAT THE THING THAT IS INTERESTING ABOUT THE UCSD CASES THAT THE WOMAN THAT INVESTIGATED IS AN ATTORNEY. AND SOMETIMES, THAT IS NOT ALWAYS THE CASE. SOMETIMES IT IS SOMEBODY WITH A PHD, SOMEONE WHO IS VERY -- YOU KNOW -- ADMINISTRATIVELY EXPERIENCE, BUT NOT NECESSARILY HAVE A LOT OF LEGAL BACKGROUND. MORE TRAINING FOR THE JUDICIAL OFFICERS WHO RUNS, PROFESSORS, PEOPLE FROM CAMPUS LIFE, MORE AND MORE TRAINING FOR THEM. MORE COMMUNICATION WITH BOTH PARTIES AND MORE TIMELY COMMUNICATION. WE HEAR TIME AND TIME AGAIN ABOUT HOW THEY ARE NOT GETTING THE INFORMATION THAT THEY NEED. LEFT IN THE DARK. RIGHT? AT ALL OF THESE -- THIS IS RELATIVELY NEW THAT THE SCHOOLS ARE UNDER THE GUN ON THIS ISSUE. SO THEY NEED -- THEY ARE TRYING TO PERFECT IT. THEY DO HAVE A ROLE. THEY CAN MOVE AND ACCUSED PERSON OUT OF THE CLASS SCHEDULE OF, SAY, THE VICTIM, UNTIL BISCUITS WORKS OUT. THERE ARE WAYS THAT THEY CAN APPROVE THE EXPENSE OF BOTH PARTIES UNTIL THEY FIGURE OUT WHAT IS GOING ON, UNTIL THEY FULLY INVESTIGATE. THAT YOU SAY THAT THEY ARE LOOKING AT -- ONCE IT WAS APPEAL THE COUPLE OF TIMES WITHIN THE HOUSE, THEY WERE LOOKING TO PUT HIM OUT LONG ENOUGH TO WHERE HE WOULD HAVE TO APPLY TO GET BACK IN. THAT WAS SUCH AN ODD DECISION. THE FACT THAT THEY MAY THAT AFTER AN APPEAL IS A KIND OF -- TO PUNISH HIM FOR APPEALING -- IT SEEMS OR IT WOULD SUGGEST -- I DO NOT KNOW IF THAT WOULD HAPPEN BUT THAT WAS AN ODD -- BUT WE HAVE SOMETHING -- ALL OF US WHO HAVE BEEN TO COLLEGE KNOW THAT DRINKING AND THAT MEN PRESENT THEIR ATTENTIONS ON UNWILLING WOMEN IS NOT NEW. IT HAS BEEN GOING ON A LONG TIME SO THEY ARE TRYING TO DEAL NOW IN THE MODERN WORLD WITH A SITUATION THAT HAS BEEN AROUND, MAYBE IN A LESSER DEGREE, BUT IT IS AROUND NOW AND GOOD LUCK ON ITS. WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON AND I'M SURE THAT WE WILL DO A LOT MORE STORIES ON THIS. THIS IS NOT AN ISSUE THAT IS GOING TO BE RESOLVED ANYTIME SOON. BALBOA PARK HAS FOR MORE THAN A CENTURY BEEN DESCRIBED AS THE JEWEL IN THE HEART OF SAN DIEGO. BUT NEGLECTED AND CAREWORN IT MIGHT BE BETTER DESCRIPTION THESE DAYS. PEELING PAINT, FALLING MOLDINGS, AND ANCIENT WATER MAIN SYSTEM ALL THE ATTENTION RIGHT NOW. THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO, THE PARK SLIM LORD HAS NEITHER THE MONEY NOR THE MEANS TO DEAL WITH EITHER REPAIRS AND SO ENTER THAT BALBOA PARK CONSERVANCY AND START BY TELLING US -- WHAT THE CONSERVANCY IS AND WHAT THEIR MISSION IS AND HOW LONG THEY HAVE BEEN AROUND. THE CONSERVANCY HAS BEEN AROUND FOR ABOUT FIVE YEARS AND THEY WERE SET UP TO BE THE PRIVATE ARM, THE CARETAKING ARM, OF THE CITY'S -- THE PRIVATE ARM TO CARE TAKE OF THE PARK ALONG WITH THE CITY. SAID THE CITY HAS PUBLIC DOLLARS, OBVIOUSLY, TO PUT INTO THE APARTMENT AND THEY ARE THE CITY'S LANDLORD AND -- THE CONSERVANCY IS TO RAISE MONEY -- PRIVATE DOLLARS TO BOTH IMPROVE THE PARK AND WORK TOWARDS IS SUSTAINABILITY. SO THEN, THEN FORMER MAYOR CHERRY SANDERS WHO ANNOUNCED IT IN 2010 AND WE CANNOT DO THIS -- WE HAVE GOT TO -- RIGHT. ELITE ON THE WEALTHY FOLKS AND TRY TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. DOES THE CITY JUST -- THERE IS NOT ENOUGH MONEY? WE LOVE THE PARK AND EVERYBODY CALLS IT THE JEWEL IS A SET OF THE UPPER THAT WE DO NOT WANT TO TAX AND SPEND EVERYTHING TO SAVE IT. WE KNOW THAT THE BUDGET CRISIS, ESPECIALLY AROUND THAT TIME IN THE RECESSION, SO THERE WAS NOT A LOT OF MONEY GOING AROUND FOR SURE BUT I THINK THAT THEY ALSO THOUGHT THAT IT WAS A GOOD IDEA, LOOKING TO WHAT OTHER CITIES WERE DOING. FOR EXAMPLE, THE CENTRAL PARK CONSERVANCY WAS A MODEL FOR THEM AS IT HAS BEEN FOR -- IN NEW YORK. LIGHT. NEW YORK -- AS IT HAS BEEN IN CITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY SETTING UP THESE CONSERVANCIES AND THIS IDEA OF THIS PUBLIC, PRIVATE PROP -- PARTNERSHIP IS IN VOGUE RIGHT NOW IN THE IDEAS THAT THE PRIVATE SIDE CAN MOVE DONORS AND THEIR PASSIONS TWO THINGS THAT NEED TO GET DONE IN THE PARK. MUNICIPAL DOLLARS, AS WE ALL KNOW, ARE LIMITED, THEY ARE STRETCH, THEY COME WITH LEGAL REQUIREMENTS. THEY ARE NOT ALWAYS THE ANSWER BUT I THINK THAT THE FEARS AROUND THESE PARTNERSHIPS IN THE CASE OF BALBOA PARK FOR EXAMPLE MAYBE SOMETHING LIKE, I HAVE HEARD PEOPLE SAY, WELL, IT IS GOING TO TURN INTO LIKE PETCO PARK WERE THERE WILL BE BILLBOARDS AND YOU HAVE -- [ LAUGHTER ] AND YOU WILL HAVE THE LOWLY PATHS. YOU KNOW? EVERYTHING WILL BE SPONSORED. SO WITHOUT THAT GOVERNMENT WATCHDOG, WHAT WILL THIS LOOK LIKE? YOU KNOW? I DON'T KNOW. BUT I THINK THAT IT IS STILL TOO EARLY TO TELL YOU KNOW HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR FIVE YEARS. IT IS EARLY TO TELL. YOU'RE RIGHT, PRIVATE/PUBLIC ARE IN VOGUE -- CENTRAL PARK IS THE GREATEST EXAMPLE. THERE IS A SAN DIEGO ABOUT THIS -- YOUR REARGUMENT CHAMPAGNE ASPIRATIONS BUT WE DO NOT WANT TO PAY MORE THAN A SIXPACK OF BEER., WE ARE LIBERTARIAN THEMEPARK AS I HAVE SAID MANY TIMES. YOUR WE GO AGAIN. DEPENDING ON THE KINDNESS OF OTHERS AND ARE RICH PEOPLE, ONE 800 -- CALL IRWIN JACOBS. YET. IT IS PITIFUL. IS IT NOT? A LARGER CITY TO BE AT THIS POINT? THIS IS NOT THE ONLY THING, THE STREETS, THE SAME, WE WILL FIX SOME OF THEM BUT LET'S NOT HAVE A BOND. LET'S NOT DO THAT. HE WE GO AGAIN. YOU KNOW? I ACTUALLY SPOKE WITH FOLKS AT THE CENTRAL PARK CONSERVANCY THIS MORNING FOR A LONG TIME AND WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THIS AND ONE OF THE NEW CEOS, THE CONSERVANCY, HAS SAID, THEY ARE GOING TO BE RAISING MONEY AROUND CERTAIN THINGS IN THE INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS, THE WATER MAIN SYSTEM FOR EXAMPLE, THAT IS THE KIND OF THING THAT THE CITY -- HE AND HIS WORDS, MOST CITIES TAKE ON THESE INTO STRUCTURED THINGS. THAT IS WHAT -- THAT WILL BE IN THEIR BALLPARK. WHATEVER. THEY WILL BE IN CHARGE OF THAT. BUT THE CONSERVANCY IN NEW YORK WAS TELLING ME -- CENTRAL PARK -- THEY WILL ACTUALLY NOT RELY ON THE CITY FOR A MUNICIPALITY TO RAISE MONEY FOR THEIR SEWER SYSTEM. THEY GO INTO DONORS FOR THAT BECAUSE THEY CANNOT RELY ON THE CITY SO IT IS NOT JUST US. BUT I KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN THERE IS SOME -- IS A GRANDIOSE -- WE COMPARE OURSELVES TO NEW YORK AND CENTRAL PARK AT THE DAKOTA LOOKING OVER CENTRAL PARK WITH A LOCAL AUTO AND THE REST OF THE -- MORE MONEY -- THEY DO. THOSE FOLKS. YES. I AM SURE THAT THEY ARE ON A LIST SOMEWHERE AND WE ARE TRYING TO SEDUCE THEM BUT REALLY. SPEAKING OF THE MONEY IN THE HEAD OF THE ORGANIZATION, YOU HAVE MENTIONED, TELL US HIS NAME. TOMMASO IS HIS NAME. HE IS SOMEWHERE? HE COMES FROM BUFFALO, ACTUALLY, AND HE TOOK OVER THE OLMSTED PARKS CONSERVANCY THERE AND ACTUALLY TURNED IT AROUND. I MEAN, IT WAS TONS OF GRAFFITI, BROWN LINES, THE WHOLE THING, AND AGAIN, PUBLIC/PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP AND HE -- THEY RAISE LOTS OF MONEY AND TRANSFORMED IT INTO MY MOTHER WAS LIVING AT THE OCEAN BUFFALO AT THE TIME AND SHE SAID THEY DID AMAZING WORK AND SO NOW HE IS HERE -- ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE SET OF THE OPENING, IT HAS TAKEN FIVE YEARS AND HE HAS NOT BEEN HERE THAT LONG BUT WE HAVE A CLIP FROM HIM FROM YOUR PIECE ABOUT WHAT THE DELIBERATE PACE IS ABOUT AND WHAT HIS PRIORITIES ARE. I HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH THE HISTORIC LANDSCAPES FOR A LONG TIME AND THEY ARE NEVER DONE. YOU ALWAYS HAVE SOMETHING THAT YOU NEED TO DO, ESPECIALLY LANDSCAPES ARE LIVING. THEY ARE CHANGING ALL THE TIME. PLANTS GROW, THEY DIE, THEY CHANGE. SO THERE IS ALWAYS A LOT OF VERY CAREFUL THINKING THAT HAS TO GO INTO EVERY PROJECT, AND THAT IS WHY, YOU KNOW, WE CANNOT RUSH INTO ANY PROJECT. IT HAS TO BE VERY CAREFULLY THOUGHT THROUGH. WE HAVE GOT ABOUT 90 SECONDS LEFT AND I WANTED TO ASK YOU -- OTHER PRIVATE GROUPS RAISING MONEY AND HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR A LONG TIME. HOW DO THEY PLAY INTO THE CONSERVANCY IN THIS NEWER GROUP? YES. SELECTOR FRIENDS OF BALBOA PARK FOR EXAMPLE, COMMUNITY OF 100, THEY ALSO RAISE PRIVATE DOLLARS FOR PROJECTS IN THE PARK AND THEY ARE ALL HOPING TO COLLABORATE. I MEAN, THEY HAVE TALKED A LOT ABOUT THAT THAT THEY ARE GOING TO PARTNER UP AND WE WILL SEE. BUT IT IS INTERESTING. THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE GROUPS, WHEN YOU ASK THEM, THEY WILL SAY THAT THEY ARE ALL VERY DIFFERENT BUT THEY ARE SUBTLE. SON OF BALBOA CENTENNIAL? REMEMBER HOW THAT ENDED UP? ONCE AGAIN TRYING FOR SOMETHING THAT IS IMPOSSIBLE? WELL, BUT THIS HAS TO HAPPEN TO THAT PARTY -- IT WOULD BE NICE -- THIS HAS TO HAPPEN. LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE SCOPE OF THE ESTIMATES RANGING AS HIGH AS $300 MILLION IN REPAIRS THAT ARE NEEDED? THEY RANGE AS HIGH AS SOME SAY $500 MILLION. SOME SAY BEYOND THAT. WOW. BUT IT IS DIFFICULT TO ACTUALLY PIN THAT DOWN. I HAVE ASKED TO SO MANY PEOPLE WHERE THAT NUMBER COMES FROM. THEY CAN TELL YOU. -- THEY CANNOT TELL YOU. I HAVE HEARD SOME PEOPLE SAY FROM WITHIN THE CITY THAT THAT NUMBER IS NOT EVEN CLOSE TO THAT. THAT IS HALF OF A FOOTBALL STADIUM. [ LAUGHTER ] I HAVE TRIED TO GET A LIST AND PUBLIC -- FILED MULTIPLE PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST TO GET A LIST INTERESTING ONE FROM 2009 BUT I CANNOT SEEM TO GET ENOUGH DATED ONES SO WE WILL SEE. REALLY QUICK, SOME SECONDS LEFT, ANY GOLD [ NULL ] -- A 300, 400, $500 MILLION GOAL FOR THE CONSERVANCY TO RAISE? THEY ARE RAISING $3 MILLION FOR THE BOTANICAL BUILDING, FOR THE BIG FIRST PROJECT, AND OBVIOUSLY BIG ICONIC BUILDING, GOOD FUNDRAISING PROJECT A -- THAT WILL GO FROM A THERE. ALL RIGHT. THAT DOES REV UP ANOTHER WEEK OF SCHOOL -- STORES AT THAT KPBS ROUNDTABLE AND I WOULD LIKE TO TAKE MY GUESS FROM THEM -- TONY PERRY THE LOS ANGELES TIMES AND ANGELA CARONE OF KPBS NEWS. REMINDER THAT ALL OF THE STORIES THAT WE DISCUSSED TODAY ARE AVAILABLE ON THE WEBSITE, KPBS.ORG. I AM MARK SAUER, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US TODAY ON THE ROUNDTABLE
Qualcomm's troubles
Qualcomm’s rapid growth screeched to at least a rapid slowdown this year, and the consequences are dramatic.
The San Diego company will layoff about 4,700 employees, most of them engineers, about 15 percent of its workforce.
The layoffs (and consideration of a possible restructuring) were spurred by Jana Partners, an activist Qualcomm investor. The slowdown seems to result from several factors: a big regulatory fine in China, increased competition, and Apple’s iPhone market-share gains, among others.
Jana also put pressure on Qualcomm for excessive spending, corporate governance and excessive executive pay. The major stockholder has also suggested that Qualcomm’s chip-design business, which generates the most revenue, become a separate company from its licensing arm, which generates the most profits.
And if these troubles weren't enough, Europe is now also looking into levying a big fine of its own on Qualcomm.
UC San Diego loses assault case
A San Diego Superior Court judge ruled last week in favor of a student accused of sexual assault at UC San Diego. The student had been sanctioned by the university.
The judge ruled in the lawsuit that UC San Diego prevented the student from confronting and cross-examining his accuser, failed to provide evidence of use of force, and therefore failed to provide him a fair trial. The university was ordered to drop its finding and all sanctions against the student.
There is concern nationwide about the fairness of such proceedings. Some believe the intensified crackdown on campus rape is not intense enough. Others say it has swung too far in favor of accusers.
More than 40 accused students nationwide have filed suit against their campuses for unfair hearings biased against the accused. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Education is investigating some 100 campuses for improper handling of sexual assault complaints, including eight in California.
A big job for Balboa Park Conservancy
With estimates ranging to more than $300 million, the costs to renovate and repair Balboa Park’s aging infrastructure are well beyond the city’s ability to handle.
Hence the establishment of the Balboa Park Conservancy in 2010, announced by then-Mayor Jerry Sanders. Based on New York’s Central Park Conservancy, the San Diego group’s job is to raise money for needed repairs.
Off to a slow start due to the troubles with the Plaza de Panama project and the ill-fated Centennial celebration, the conservancy has started to work in earnest with the hiring of Thomas Hererra-Mishler as executive director.
But the definition of “needed” repairs can change with what is most attractive to private donors. The park’s ancient water lines and sewer system cause great anxiety to the many museums that rely on them. But the conservancy has started with restoration of the iconic Botanical Building in the park's center.
The new executive director is undaunted by the challenge. Having run the Olmstead Parks Conservancy in Buffalo, he’s used to long lists of urgent needs. Questions remain as to how the new conservancy will integrate with the several fund-raising groups already in place, and who decides what will be done.