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Lynn La

Newsletter Writer

Lynn La is the newsletter writer for CalMatters, focusing on California’s top political, policy and Capitol stories every weekday. She produces and curates WhatMatters, CalMatters’ flagship daily newsletter with more than 150,000 subscribers.    

In the newsletter, Lynn analyzes the state’s policy issues for a broader audience, through original reporting and by summarizing and compiling stories from CalMatters and other news sources. Recently, she has reported on bills to address California’s worsening fentanyl epidemic, tackle retail theft and legislate happiness. She also reveals more about lawmakers by interviewing them for an occasional series on first-term legislators in 2023 and new committee chairpersons in 2024. 

Through WhatMatters, Lynn also plays a crucial role in CalMatters election coverage, helping to keep track of daily developments in key campaigns, including legislative and congressional races and ballot measures.  

Prior to joining CalMatters in March 2023, she wrote for the education technology startup Guild and was a senior editor at CNET. She also covered public health at The Sacramento Bee as a Kaiser media fellow and was an intern reporter at Capitol Weekly. 

Lynn is based in the Bay Area. She graduated from UC Davis and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Other languages spoken: Vietnamese (basic)

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Latest Stories

Flanked by lawmakers and gun safety advocates, Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a press conference where he signed new gun legislation into law at the Capitol Annex Swing Space in Sacramento on Sept. 26, 2023. Photo by Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters
People wearing white jumpsuits and yellow safety vests gather up debris from a home destroyed during a wildfire.
A close-up of students holding black tablets at their desks.
A four-photo collage shows different moments from people’s lives: a couple sitting outdoors with a gift box, an older person smiling in a restaurant, a black-and-white portrait of someone seated at a desk, and an older person posing beside a fireplace with framed art and decorative objects.
A large crowd gathers on a city street holding Iranian and American flags. Several people at the front hold signs featuring photos of political figures and messages referencing Iran, while others raise peace signs and chant. Tall office buildings line the background, and traffic lights are visible above the crowd.
People stand at the steps of a school during a strike. The photo focuses on a person holding up their left hand in a fist while they hold a sign that reads "we can't wait" in Spanish with the other hand.
A person wearing a cap, sunglasses, and a plaid shirt crouches beside a roadside trailer device, holding a phone up to photograph or inspect its rear panel, with brush and dirt terrain in the background.
People walk along a pathway aligned with palm trees and with buildings on both sides at a school.
A damaged black sedan with crumpled front and side panels sits in the street after a collision, positioned near a red car while a police vehicle is parked nearby.
Audience members hold up blue and yellow campaign signs with an image of a bear alongside the words "Swalwell for Governor."

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