Are we still on for Cabo?
Tomo Chien
February 26, 2026
Good morning. It’s Thursday, and these are the five USC, Los Angeles, and California stories you need to know for today.
1.
The deadly cartel violence in Mexico has USC students worried about the important stuff: spring break. Some are modifying their travel plans. Others are canceling their trips outright. “We’re, like, canceling it just to be safe just because we don’t know if the cartels are going to come to, like, Cancun," one junior said.
2.
Fun fact: USC operates a critical piece of internet infrastructure known as the B-Root, the virtual directory that connects you to the right website when you type a URL into your search bar. The school just received an undisclosed donation from the Public Interest Registry to continue its work.
3.
The FBI raided the home and office of Alberto Carvalho, the superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, yesterday. The raids were reportedly part of an investigation related to Carvalho and an embattled AI company that developed a chatbot for the district.
4.
Drama on the football team: Star USC wide receiver Ja’Kobi Lane publicly accused a Utah high schooler of stealing his cleats during a recruiting visit. Lane’s tweet earned 6 million views, and Brawley Tuitupou, the high schooler, later issued a blanket denial and said he has “a lot of respect for Ja’Kobi.”
5.
Several law enforcement agencies, including USC’s Department of Public Safety, staged an active-shooter drill yesterday at the Coliseum in preparation for the Olympics. But conspicuously missing from the photo roundup was anybody from DPS. “Where's USC public safety?” one Facebook commenter wrote. “Guarding the SWAT truck? Lol”
The deadline for our tuition-guessing competition is Sunday, but I strongly suggest submitting now in case USC posts the numbers early. I am thus far deeply disappointed by faculty turnout.
