Kqeds Forum

In a long-awaited move, San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin filed charges against a police officer who fatally shot a man in 2017 after a car chase. The shooting happened nearly three years ago, well before Boudin took office, but has been seen as a pivotal case for Boudin, who campaigned on a promise to hold police accountable for brutality and killings. Boudin’s office said the charges against former San Francisco Police Department Officer Chris Samayoa are the first homicide prosecution against a law enforcement officer in the city’s history. We talk with Boudin about the case and his broader vision for police accountability.

California has seen an uptick in COVID-19 cases since the end of October, as well as an increase in hospitalizations. The state coronavirus test positivity rate is now above five percent, yet that's relatively low when compared to much of the rest of the country. While California hospitals still have capacity, other parts of the nation are already strained, some overwhelmed, by this latest surge. We'll talk to Ed Yong, science writer for the Atlantic, about preparations hospitals are making and what front line workers face.

California’s unemployment agency has been under scrutiny ever since claims surged as the pandemic took a toll on jobs. Criticism has revolved around outdated technology, claims backlogs and a revamped customer help center still unable to accommodate all the calls. Most recently, the Employment Development Department sent out 38 million pieces of mail containing social security numbers, putting claimants at risk of identity theft. We’ll hear what a new state audit of the EDD found and get the latest on the agency’s struggles to support unemployed Californians.

Businesses across the country are struggling because of the pandemic, but Asian American establishments face particular challenges. In addition to steep drops in revenue and little help from the government , racism and xenophobia are also taking a toll. Now that the pandemic has stretched on for almost a year, some owners are scrambling to survive as consumers spend less at restaurants, nail salons, and dry cleaners. In the Bay Area, a “Save our Chinatowns” campaign is urging people to support Asian-owned businesses. We’ll look at how the pandemic is affecting California’s Asian-American businesses and find out about efforts to support them.

As coronavirus cases surge in the state, Governor Gavin Newsom has issued a curfew for most of the state and many counties are reinstating restrictions that were only recently lifted. Add to that the winter cold and rains, which make it harder to gather outside, and the coming holidays which remind us of more festive times. It’s leaving many of us with severe cases of pandemic fatigue. We’ll talk about what we’re experiencing and ways to alleviate it.

Governor Gavin Newsom this week announced a dramatic rollback of reopening plans--including a curfew in a majority of the state’s counties. But the governor himself is under fire for attending a birthday party for a friend-- and powerful lobbyist -- at the exclusive French Laundry restaurant in Napa Valley. Among the other attendees were top officials from the California Medical Association, Politico reported on Thursday. Meanwhile more details are emerging about a recent trip by a group of California officials to a conference in Maui, which is also raising eyebrows. 

With coronavirus case numbers rising in California and across the country, public officials are telling families to stay home and avoid gathering for Thanksgiving. Many families are now reworking their usual game plans -- whether that means holding a virtual gathering, ordering takeout or abandoning typical Thanksgiving rules to cook something you might not normally cook. This hour, we’ll hear how you’re reimagining your holiday traditions and get expert tips on ways to have a safe, fulfilling holiday.

Programs that temporarily house elderly and vulnerable homeless people in hotel rooms during the pandemic got a boost earlier this week when Governor Newsom announced an additional $62 million in funding. But finding permanent housing for these individuals remains challenging. San Francisco plans to begin shutting down the first seven of 29 shelter-in-place hotels by Dec. 21, and concern is growing over where up to 500 individuals will go as the cold and rain sets in. Other counties, such as Marin, have already moved nearly everyone out of their hotels. Meanwhile Bay Area suburbs like Novato and Milpitas are pushing back against plans to convert hotels into permanent supportive housing. We’ll get an update on programs to help the homeless during the pandemic and what’s being done to ensure permanent solutions to the housing crisis.  

The coronavirus pandemic has jolted many industries and Hollywood is no exception. With only a few weeks of material left to shoot, the blockbuster “Jurassic World: Dominion” halted production after a few positive coronavirus tests. Movie theaters nationwide are hurting from restrictive measures on indoor viewings. Even media conglomerates such as Disney have suffered financial losses. But there is hope your favorite TV shows and much-anticipated movies may be out soon. We’ll look at how movies and shows are still getting made and what the movie industry might look like after the pandemic.

Stanford University distanced itself from Trump administration task force member and Hoover Institution senior fellow Dr. Scott Atlas on Monday after Atlas tweeted that Michigan residents should "rise up" over new coronavirus restrictions. In a written statement, Stanford said his views were “inconsistent with the university’s approach” and emphasized the use of masks, social distancing and following public health guidelines. In September, a large group of Stanford colleagues signed a letter criticizing Atlas for undermining public health by misrepresenting the science on how to tackle the pandemic. We hear about the controversies and how they tie into long-standing tensions between university faculty and the free-market leaning Hoover Institution.

The Pentagon announced Tuesday that it will continue to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan and Iraq, leaving 2500 in each nation by January 15. The move drew bipartisan rebukes from lawmakers and some top military commanders, who say the troop reduction is premature and could further destabilize Afghanistan in particular. The announcement comes as President Trump continues to install loyalists at the Pentagon and a week after he fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper.  We'll talk about what's behind the drawdown in Iraq and Afghanistan and other foreign policy news.

A recurring theme of post-election punditry was that President Trump gained ground among groups like Latino and Black men, a fact that surprised some observers. But what about the role of white voters? They delivered the White House to Trump in 2016 and despite four years that included an impeachment trial, a raging pandemic, and economic recession, white voters came out even more strongly for him again this year. We’ll look at what’s behind the steady support for Trump among white voters, why he may have increased backing among white women, and what it means for the future of U.S. politics.

Biotechnology company Moderna announced Monday that its coronavirus vaccine candidate appears to be 94.5% effective against the disease. The news comes one week after Pfizer announced that its vaccine was more than 90% effective in a clinical trial. As California rolls back reopening plans amid a spike in cases, we’ll discuss next steps for the new vaccines and what we know about safety and long-term effectiveness.

San Francisco has recorded more than 460 drug overdose deaths from January to August of this year, compared to 441 in all of 2019, according to the city's Medical Examiner's Office. The fatalities are chiefly attributable to fentanyl, a dangerous synthetic opioid that drug experts say only recently became widely available in San Francisco. We'll talk about what can be done to prevent more overdose deaths, and why the pandemic is complicating some efforts to provide people the treatment they need.

In the weeks leading up to the presidential election, Twitter and Facebook drew praise from political misinformation watchdogs for attaching warning labels to misleading posts and banning accounts associated with QAnon and other extremist groups. But those moves may have breathed life into so-called "free speech" platforms like Parler, where some prominent Trump supporters have migrated. We'll talk about the rising popularity of conservative social networks and their implications for our already deeply fractured national political discourse.

Wildfire survivors eligible for compensation from PG&E for the 2017 wine country fires and the 2018 Camp Fire will begin getting emergency payments of up to $25,000 by November 23rd. That’s according to an announcement earlier this month by the PG&E Fire Victim Trust. The coronavirus pandemic has compounded the financial devastation for families suffering injury or property loss from the fires. We’ll get the latest on the long-running efforts of fire victims to receive compensation.

Forum reviews, analyzes and answers your questions about the latest in national political news.

The majority of California voters may label themselves liberal or progressive, but some of the results of statewide propositions in last week’s election may suggest otherwise. The initiative to repeal a ban on affirmative action failed. California voted to restore voting rights to former felons, but against other criminal justice reforms, like doing away with cash bail. And the effort to hike taxes on commercial properties to fund schools failed. Meanwhile, Californians chose mostly Democratic candidates while voting overwhelmingly to send Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris to the White House. They also sent more Democrats to Sacramento, which will solidify their supermajority in the California Legislature. We’ll discuss the results of the California ballot measures and what they say about where the state stands politically in 2020.

As coronavirus cases spike across California, Bay Area school districts continue to weigh when and how to reopen. San Jose Unified School District recently announced plans to open classrooms in January; Oakland Unified has yet to set a date. But what impact is remote learning having on the education and mental health of students? We’ll discuss the effects of remote learning on K-12 students and the inequities deepening these concerns and we’ll want to hear from you: how are your children doing with distance learning?

Coronavirus cases reached their highest level with nearly 140,000 cases nationwide reported on Tuesday. Much of the surge is concentrated in the Midwest, but the West Coast is also seeing an uptick. The number of infections has steadily risen nationwide since September and will likely keep climbing as cold weather forces people indoors and Americans travel for the holidays. Meanwhile, uncertainty looms over what will happen with President Donald Trump still in office and President-elect Joe Biden setting up a response that may come too late for many Americans. We talk about why the U.S. has struggled to contain the coronavirus and what measures California is taking to prevent a winter surge.