Shows / KQED's Forum
KQED's Forum
Forum tells remarkable and true stories about who we are and where we live. In the first hour, Alexis Madrigal convenes the diverse voices of the Bay Area, before turning to Mina Kim for the second hour to chronicle and center Californians’ experience. In an increasingly divided world, Mina and Alexis host conversations that inform, challenge and unify listeners with big ideas and different viewpoints. Want to call/submit your comments during our live Forum program Mon-Fri, 9am-11am? We'd love…
Episodes
- KQED's Forum
Checking in on California’s Reparations Effort
Two years after the state’s landmark report on reparations for Black residents, where does the effort stand? The California Legislative Black Caucus has put…
- KQED's Forum
Stories of Resistance, Survival and Beauty from the Bay Area’s Trans Community
The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee law on Wednesday that bans gender-affirming medical care for minors. For many transgender people, the ruling is yet…
- KQED's Forum
Can the Left Win Back Working-Class Voters?
Working-class voters don’t just vote for their policy preferences — they vote for the party that feels like “their people.” Increasingly, that’s not the left…
- KQED's Forum
Rebecca Solnit on Approaching These Times with Hope, Imagination and Perseverance
In her new book of essays, “No Straight Road Takes You There,” writer and activist Rebecca Solnit urges us to not give in to feelings of doom and complacency…
- KQED's Forum
‘When It All Burns’ Brings Us to the Fireline
For California firefighters battling wildland flames, the work is up close, unrelenting and fueled by a climate growing hotter and drier by the year…
- KQED's Forum
The Long Reach of San Francisco’s Housing Crisis
Scratch at a problem for San Francisco, and you’ll find an issue that underlies almost all of them: the city’s intractable housing crisis. A new documentary…
- KQED's Forum
RFK Jr. Stacks Key Federal Immunization Committee With Vaccine Skeptics
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. named multiple vaccine skeptics to the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices last…
- KQED's Forum
How Trump’s Trade Deals Could Impact Jobs, Prices and Inflation
After months of sparring over tariffs, the Trump Administration says it has reached a deal with China on trade negotiations, but many businesses and consumers…
- KQED's Forum
Live on Forum: Jahari Stampley Family Trio
We’re joined in studio for a live performance by the Jahari Stampley Family Trio. Stampley, an award-winning jazz pianist who is known for melding genres like…
- KQED's Forum
What is Queer Food?
As a food writer and cook himself, John Birdsall often wondered whether there was such a thing as “queer food.” Was it rainbow cupcakes? Quiche? Unicorn…
- KQED's Forum
Deployment of Marines and National Guard to LA Raises New Authoritarianism Concerns
Ostensibly to quell anti-ICE protests, President Trump this week mobilized 700 Marines and another 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles. That’s on top of…
- KQED's Forum
What Protests of the Past Can Teach Us About Protests of Today
In the days since President Trump sent the National Guard and Marines to quell protests in Los Angeles, demonstrations against ICE raids have been held across…
- KQED's Forum
The ‘Take It Down Act,’ Explained
The federal “Take It Down Act,” signed into law last month, has been hailed as a major step in protecting victims of revenge porn and deepfakes. It passed both…
- KQED's Forum
SF Parks Alliance Collapse Leaves Residents and Community Groups Scrambling for Answers – And Money
The San Francisco Parks Alliance has shut down after revelations that it misspent at least $3.8 million. The organization raised money for the city’s parks and…
- KQED's Forum
Quilt Exhibit at Berkeley Museum Chronicles Black Lives in California
Old jeans. Worn shirts. Scraps from flour sacks and homemade dresses. Nothing is too humble for a quilt. In BAMPFA’s new exhibit “Routed West…
- KQED's Forum
Tijuana River Pollution Reaches Crisis Point in San Diego County, Scientists Warn
The South Bay in San Diego County is the site of one of the nation’s worst environmental disasters. Fifty million gallons of untreated sewage and industrial…
- KQED's Forum
Trump Deploys National Guard Troops to Los Angeles
National Guard troops arrived in Los Angeles on Sunday as part of the Trump administration’s response to clashes between federal immigration officials and…
- KQED's Forum
California Rooftop Solar Is at a Crossroads
California has been a leader in rooftop solar adoption for years thanks to incentives and compensation programs. But policies from utilities and state…
- KQED's Forum
How Apple Fueled China's Economic and Technological Rise
The prevailing narrative about Apple in China over the last two decades is that the Cupertino company took advantage of low wages and weak labor laws to ship…
- KQED's Forum
Tune-Yards’ Merrill Garbus on How She Makes Her Signature Sounds, Live in Studio
Oakland based art-pop band Tune-Yards is widely loved for their complex and funky rhythms, layers of sound, thrillingly dynamic vocals, and thought provoking…
- KQED's Forum
What It’s Like to Parent With Your Friends
NPR’s Rhaina Cohen has taken a close look at friend-powered parenting, joining shared households to see how neighbor-and-friend alliances can break the…
- KQED's Forum
As Final AIDS LifeCycle Ride Ends, Where Does AIDS Research Stand?
When the first AIDS LifeCycle ride rolled down the California coastline in 1994, AIDS was the leading cause of death for people aged 25 to 44. Today, HIV is no…
- KQED's Forum
Is What Social Media Tells You About Protein… True?
“We’re in a protein craze, and it’s hard to ignore,” writes New York Times health reporter Alice Callahan. Social media feeds are inundated with claims about…
- KQED's Forum
Robert Macfarlane on the Lives and Rights of Rivers
Celebrated nature writer Robert Macfarlane has written about mountains, trails, and the old ways of humans on Earth. His new book lays out its premise in the…
- KQED's Forum
How Multi-level Marketing Became America’s ‘Unseen Propaganda Factory’
For decades, multi-level marketing (or MLM) companies like Amway and Mary Kay have made the promise that people could become their own bosses, earn extra…
- KQED's Forum
With So Much Vacant Ground Floor Retail, Why Are We Still Building More?
When new apartment and office buildings are built, Bay Area cities often require developers to include retail space on the ground floor. The goal s to create…
- KQED's Forum
How Trump’s Massive, Wide Ranging Budget Bill Could Affect You
President Trump’s budget bill rolls back clean energy initiatives, reduces Medicaid benefits, alters student loan rules, and extends tax cuts to the…
- KQED's Forum
Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson on the ‘Original Sin’ Controversy
Journalists Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson’s new book, “Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again” has…
- KQED's Forum
Remembering George Floyd and the Racial Reckoning He Sparked
We remember George Floyd, five years after his murder by a Minneapolis police officer. In the days and months after Floyd’s death, millions of Americans took…
- KQED's Forum
Why the Mission-Style Burrito Defines the Bay Area
New York has the pizza slice, Philly has its cheesesteak, and Chicago its hot dog. In the Bay Area, our iconic and passionately argued-over staple has long…
- KQED's Forum
Yosemite and Other CA National Parks Underfunded, Understaffed this Summer
The Trump administration’s budget and staffing cuts to national parks could mean longer lines, closed visitor centers and fewer search and rescue workers this…
- KQED's Forum
Bay Area Legends: Maxine Hong Kingston Changed What It Means to Tell an American Story
Chinese American literary pioneer Maxine Hong Kingston revolutionized storytelling with her groundbreaking 1976 book ‘The Woman Warrior,’ which blended reality…
- KQED's Forum
How Do You Rate Newsom's Job Performance?
More than half of Californians think Gov. Gavin Newsom is more focused on winning the presidency than governing the state, according to a poll this month from…
- KQED's Forum
What the Target Boycott Says About the Power of Consumers
Retailers are now facing a lot of headwinds, including tariffs and a drop in consumer confidence. But for Target, once affectionately known by customers as…
- KQED's Forum
Alison Bechdel Parodies Her Fame in Comic Novel ‘Spent’
Perhaps you’ve been following Alison Bechdel’s work since her comic strip “Dykes to Watch Out For,” which invented the now ubiquitous Bechdel test (does a…
- KQED's Forum
BART Meltdowns, Fare Hikes, Budget Cuts and Other Bay Area Transit Woes
It has been a tough month for Bay Area transit. BART had two major meltdowns this month, stranding and frustrating commuters, all while the agency plans to…
- KQED's Forum
Forum From the Archives: Jonathan Hirsch on Losing His Father to 'A Cult and Dementia'
In his popular podcast “Dear Franklin Jones,” radio producer Jonathan Hirsch tried to make sense of a childhood dominated by his parents’ spiritual guru. In a…
- KQED's Forum
Forum from the Archives: The New Yorker’s Michael Luo on ‘the Epic Story of the Chinese in America'
In 1889, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the now infamous Chinese Exclusion Act, which prohibited Chinese laborers from entering the country. Writing for the…
- KQED's Forum
‘Second Life’ Looks at Parenting in an App-Obsessed World
When New York Times critic Amanda Hess was told her baby had a rare genetic condition, her first instinct was to “Google [her] way out of it.” But instead of…
KQED's ForumWhat’s on Your Summer Fun List?
A jazz festival in June. A California quilt show in July. A languorous lighthouse lunch in August. The best music, museums and memorable meals are just a few…
- KQED's Forum
Live From East Oakland: Can $100 Million Revitalize Oakland’s Black Community?
For several decades, Black residents of East Oakland have watched their once-thriving middle-class community wither in numbers as the rising cost of living…
- KQED's Forum
Trump’s Memecoin, Qatari Jet Raise Bipartisan Corruption Concerns
The biggest owners of the Trump memecoin $Trump will dine with the president Thursday night at the Trump National Golf Club. The cryptocurrency directly…
- KQED's Forum
From California to Kyiv, Advocates Fight for Return of Ukraine’s Stolen Children
Vladimir Putin has removed tens of thousands of Ukrainian children to Russia since the start of his full scale invasion in February 2022. The deportations…
- KQED's Forum
Celebrating 40 Years of West Coast Literature with Zyzzyva
When a scrappy San Francisco literary journal launched in 1985 to champion West Coast writers, the dream was to make a lasting imprint. Now, 40 years later, we…
- KQED's Forum
Exploring the Mysteries of the Brain with UCSF Dementia Researchers
New research from UC San Francisco’s Memory and Aging Center suggests that a decline in one region of the brain can cause other regions to “step in to help” –…
- KQED's Forum
How Siblings Shape Us, Even in Adulthood
What makes a family tick? While parents spend lots of time and energy trying to shape their kids’ lives, studies show that siblings play as significant a role…
- KQED's Forum
What Are Your Allergy Season Questions?
Do your seasonal allergies feel worse this spring? You might not be imagining it: climate change is hastening the end of winter, pushing up pollen production…
- KQED's Forum
Without Temporary Protected Status, What's Next for Bay Area Afghan Refugee Community?
The Trump administration has announced plans to end temporary protected status for people from countries including Afghanistan, Cameroon, Venezuela, and…
- KQED's Forum
The Evolution of Men’s Fashion with 'The Menswear Guy'
Derek Guy – known online as “the menswear guy” – runs the popular social media account “Dieworkwear.” Guy’s recent piece for Bloomberg Businessweek looks at…
- KQED's Forum
Ballers, Unicorns, Valkyries, Oh My! Bay Area Sports Teams Bring Sparkle to the Summer
When you think about Bay Area sports, the Ballers, the Unicorns, or the Fire and Iron are not names that might first come to mind. But these new Bay Area…
- KQED's Forum
The New Yorker’s Michael Luo on ‘the Epic Story of the Chinese in America’
In 1889, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the now infamous Chinese Exclusion Act, which prohibited Chinese laborers from entering the country. Writing for the…
- KQED's Forum
Jonathan Hirsch on Losing His Father to ‘A Cult and Dementia’
In his popular podcast “Dear Franklin Jones,” radio producer Jonathan Hirsch tried to make sense of a Northern California childhood dominated by his parents’…
- KQED's Forum
Running on ‘Vibes’: Leah Litman on the Supreme Court’s Grievance Politics
In recent years the U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative supermajority has struck down the constitutional right to abortion, delivered a blow to the…
- KQED's Forum
Trump Revives Fight Against Sanctuary Cities
In his second term in office, Donald Trump has revived his fight against sanctuary jurisdictions. For decades, local government agencies across the country…
- KQED's Forum
Historian Peniel E. Joseph on How 1963 ‘Cracked Open and Remade’ America
For historian Peniel Joseph, the year 1963 — the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation — is the defining year of the Civil Rights Movement. “America came…
- KQED's Forum
What’s Next in Artificial Intelligence?
Artificial intelligence dominates the Bay Area tech landscape, and we will catch you up on the latest headlines. From chatbots that promise to be your friend…
- KQED's Forum
What’s Behind the Trump Administration’s Push for More Children?
The Trump White House is exploring ways to get Americans to have more children, including government funded menstrual cycle classes and a $5000 “baby bonus.”…
- KQED's Forum
Oakland’s Restaurant Scene Is Swimming in Praise, But Struggling to Stay Afloat
Oakland’s restaurant industry is a conundrum. It’s been celebrated as the best restaurant city in the country. But restaurateurs almost universally say they…
- KQED's Forum
Have You Been Priced Out of a Hobby?
You’ve probably noticed that common hobbies from sewing to skiing have gotten more expensive. It’s a dynamic that Atlantic staff writer Tyler Austin Harper…
- KQED's Forum
Summer Gardening: Tomatoes, Zucchini and Climate Change
Succulent tomatoes that burst in your mouth. Enough zucchini to feed an army. Corn, sunflowers, and more. The summer garden has much to offer, but Bay Area…