About Us
California news. Straight to the point.
onLACA is an independent digital news platform covering the stories shaping Los Angeles and California — from government and politics to business, public safety, the economy and the issues affecting everyday life.
We believe local news should do more than repeat press releases and talking points. We dig deeper, ask questions, follow the money and provide context so our audience can decide for themselves what matters.
What we cover
Our reporting focuses on the issues with the greatest impact on Southern California and the state, including:
Los Angeles and California government — City Hall, Sacramento, elections, legislation, taxes, spending and the decisions made by public officials.
Business and the economy — Jobs, companies, housing, taxes, regulation, consumer issues and California’s changing business climate.
California Exodus Watch — Our continuing coverage of businesses, jobs, investment, productions and residents leaving California — along with California Expansion Watch, tracking companies that are moving in, expanding operations, investing and creating jobs here.
Crime and public safety — Crime trends, major cases, courts, law enforcement and policies affecting the safety of California communities.
Accountability — Government spending, homelessness, public programs and promises made by elected officials. We follow stories after the news conference is over.
Breaking and developing news — Important stories from across Los Angeles, Southern California and the state, delivered quickly and without unnecessary filler.
Built for the way people consume news today
onLACA combines traditional journalism with modern digital storytelling.
Our coverage is produced for streaming, video, audio, social media and onLACA.com. Stories are designed to be informative without requiring an hour of your time to understand what happened and why it matters.
We don’t assume our audience has been following a story for weeks. We provide the background and context needed to understand today’s development — then get to the point.
Experienced journalism. Independent voice.
onLACA was founded by veteran television and radio journalist Jeff Vaughn, whose career in broadcast journalism spans more than three decades, Vaughn has reported and anchored major stories across the country, including decades of coverage in Los Angeles and Southern California. That newsroom experience is at the foundation of onLACA: verify the facts, provide context, ask the questions viewers and readers would ask themselves, and make complicated stories understandable.
Drew Hayes serves as Chief Content Officer for onLACA. A veteran Los Angeles and national news/talk radio executive, Hayes has held leadership roles at KABC Los Angeles, WLS Chicago and WMAL Washington, D.C. He also leads Drew Hayes Media.
Together, Vaughn and Hayes bring decades of newsroom, programming and broadcast leadership to onLACA — combining traditional journalistic standards with a digital-first approach to California news.
Why onLACA?
The media landscape has changed dramatically. Local newsrooms have shrunk. Audiences are increasingly getting their news on phones, streaming platforms and social media rather than waiting for a traditional newscast.
onLACA was created for that new reality.
We can move quickly without abandoning journalistic standards. We can spend time on stories that might otherwise receive little attention. And because we’re independent, our editorial decisions aren’t dictated by the format or time constraints of a traditional television newscast.
Our goal is simple : Find the story. Verify the facts. Provide the context. Ask the questions. Get to the point.
That’s onLACA. Los Angeles. California. News that matters.