There was one post where I learned that several sites were locking information about the fires behind paywalls. Commenter went to 3 or 4 sites before finding one they could actually read.
Don't they have paid firefighters for the rich and volunteers for everyone else? I think I remember hearing about Oprah's property being protected first when Hawaii was burning last. I would expect something similar in California. Money talks.
Most of firefighters in California, at least those fighting wildfires, are prison inmates, which is constitutionally slave labour.
It's not volunteers actually, it's prisoners being used as forced labor https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jan/08/la-wildfires-incarcerated-firefighters
That is all true, but I think OP is talking about news channels monetizing wildfire
