Discourse

The running joke among Angelenos is that New York loves to think about L.A., but L.A. never thinks about New York. To slightly modify the Sandler line: We disagree. Though, admittedly, it’s because we feel the punchline would hit harder with a little more specificity. New York media obsesses over L.A. (our trends and lifestyle), and, with a few exceptions, there isn’t much L.A. media left who care — or who have ever cared, really — to put L.A. in its proper context. The result is we are forced to suffer through the 360-­plus hours (by our count) that one paper of record spent traversing the city in search of the perfect L.A. “insider” experiences. We are subjected to a legacy fashion magazine’s learnings from a week spent drinking Hailey Bieber’s Erewhon Skin Glaze smoothie every day. On the flipside, the streets are missing out on the most essential information: Which K­town BCD Tofu House is the best? (Not Manhattan.) Which Roberta’s hits more? (Not Culver City or anywhere that isn’t Bushwick.) Why is there a Levain in Larchmont? A Shake Shack in Silver Lake? (And Bed–Stuy for that matter.) What should we make of Los Tacos No.t­-1986?

There are plenty of people doing the work. We won’t call out our faves — the friends of the brand know who they are. But there are traces of people moving different everywhere — from the person-­on-­the-­street interviewers making sense of onomatopoeias to the critics giving their weekly close reads (in newsletters and on podcasts) of the dining and deluxe cultural trends of our times.

What connects the stewards of The Discourse is genuine inquiry — and that they don’t be out here acting brand­-new. The authenticity police are accessories to this A and B conversation. True institutional knowledge is about care, not cops. There is an exchange happening free from the gaze of the fugazi. Allow us to give you a sneak peek. Issue 20 is “Discourse.” The New York issue, if you’re reading between the lines. The songbirds are ready to chime in. Miguel and Misty Copeland can speak to what comes next when you’ve been paying your dues for a minute. June Ambrose has more insights into the fashion game than can fit in an interview.

When it comes to New York and L.A., there isn’t so much a f— the other side as there is an unflinching love of where one is at in the present. To that effect, we asked Haley Mlotek, Thora Siemsen and Jason Parham to share some notes on leaving — testimonials of what it means to remain a part of somewhere even when you’re not physically there.

The Discourse, after all, is about putting down roots. It’s about inhabiting a space — your own. The grass is never greener; it’s unsustainable. No sense in longing for the myth of the other. As Kurupt memorably noted: “We like ouuurs, cuz. Ouuursss! We don’t have a problem with you guys.” This issue is about existing in concert. If you must live in a dystopia, whether urban or suburban, the least you could do is tap in. We promise: The Discourse opens up the moment you say, “What’s good?”

Ian F. Blair
Editor in Chief

Image logo by Sonya Sombreuil For The Times