State of the News 11/18/11

News Director Gabe Bullard hosted the weekly round up this week, and Devin Katayama got things rolling with a summary of the recommendations made by a consultant to the Metro Council regarding discretionary spending. The council contracted with Mountjoy Chilton Medley to review its policies and procedures in response to reports of questionable spending earlier this year.  Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky made heated statements this week to a Senate committee regarding stream protection in Appalachia; Erica Peterson described the flap.  Occupy Louisville had its two-month anniversary, and Devin Katayama brought us up to date on the people and the movement itself.  This week Louisville officials unveiled snow preparedness plans for the upcoming winter, and Katayama explained the new role of social media and online tools.Jere Downs of the Courier-Journal checked in from Los Angeles, where she is at the LA Auto Show, in part to cover theindustry response to the new 2013 Escape SUV, which will begin rolling off the Louisville Assembly Plant this spring, as well as industry trends in general.  We were also joined by CJ arts reporter Elizabeth Kramer for updates on the Louisville Orchestra labor dispute, and the Kentucky Opera's plans for weekend performances accompanied by piano and harpsichord.In the final segment, we spoke with author Michael L. Jones about his American Slaves Inc. story featured on the cover of this week’s LEO.  We also heard an environmental feature about people living near heavy industry sites and spoke with the reporter, Rebecca Williams of Michigan Radio; our own environmental reporter Erica Peterson sat in to explore parallels in Louisville.