KALW’s State of the Bay has been inviting the candidates for California’s 11th district to come on their show, and help voters get to know what they are running on and for. And we’re going to be airing segments of those conversations here on Crosscurrents this month.

Today, Saikat Chakrabarti. Chakrabarti started his career in tech here in San Francisco before turning to politics. He worked with Bernie Sanders presidential campaign and later served as campaign manager and chief of staff for Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in New York. He now leads a policy think tank devoted to issues like affordability and a green economy.

Chakrabarti spoke to State of the Bay host Grace Won.

Today’s poet was is from the East Coast, but helped shape San Francisco’s literary scene. Here’s KALW News Editor, Sunni Khalid, speaking with Josiah about Q.R. Hand Junior. 

It’s a moment built on opportunity, something every young player dreams of. Including Chance McMillian of Vallejo. After completing his first season with the Santa Cruz Warriors, the team’s developmental affiliate, he’s one step closer to reaching his long-held dream. Reporter Demetrius Johnson brings us his story. 

KALW’s State of the Bay has been inviting the candidates for California’s 11th district to come on their show, and help voters get to know what they are running on and for. And we’re going to be airing segments of those conversations here on Crosscurrents this month.

Today, California State Senator Scott Weiner. He’s speaking to State of the Bay host Ethan Elkind. He asks the State Senator what he would do if the Republicans in Congress tried to preempt sanctuary city policies.

Up first, San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan. Chan is a Chinese immigrant that moved to the Bay Area at the age of 13 with her family. She has held multiple positions in San Francisco city government and now represents San Francisco's District one, which includes much of the city’s northwest region, which includes the Richmond District, Lone Mountain, parts of Golden Gate Park, Lincoln Park, the University of San Francisco area, Sea Cliff and Presidio Terrace. 

Here’s Supervisor Chan speaking to state of the bay host Grace Won, about why she feels it’s the right time for her to move from local to national politics…

It’s called The “All People Powered Concert & Pitch Competition.” And it’s a mix of live music performances and aspiring tech entrepreneurs in a competition of ideas.  And it is happening this Saturday at the Henry J. Kaiser Center in Oakland. KALW’s Jeneé Darden, of The Sights and Sounds show, spoke with Ryan and the other creator of the show "Co-Founders," Beau Lewis about their new pitch competition. Here’s an excerpt of that interview.

Back in the 1930s, an adventurous woman named Sidney Robertson went on a quest to document those kinds of songs across Northern California. With support from the federal government, Sidney and her small staff were able to collect and catalog hundreds of songs, capturing the music people brought with them when they moved here from all over the U.S. and the world.

These recordings became a soundtrack that celebrates the cultures that make up the Bay Area, and they show how music has the power to connect us across generations and communities. 

In this story, reporter Sheryl Kaskowitz meets a family in Oakland who discovered the power of these recordings for themselves. It’s the fourth episode of The Public Works, her series about how the New Deal transformed the Bay Area and what lessons we can learn from it today.

Josiah Luis Alderete is the host of KALW’s series, Bay Poets. And he has dug up audio of four San Francisco poets/ that have had a deep and lasting impact on shaping this city’s literary landscape. We will be presenting them to you throughout the month. 

Here’s KALW News Editor, Sunni Khalid, speaking with Josiah about San Francisco poet, Al Robles.

“Off the Books” is the debut novel by Soma Mei Sheng Frazier. Soma is the former San Francisco Library Laureate and she’s now a creative writing professor at SUNY (State University of New York) at Oswego. 

KALW’s Jenee Darden spoke with Soma about themes of family, grief and romance on “The Sights + Sounds Show.” Here’s an excerpt of that interview. 

And in San Francisco? Tensions run high about… Boba. Also known as bubble tea, boba’s a hugely popular drink from Taiwan that is usually made of tea, milk, sweeteners, and chewy tapioca balls called “boba” that the drink is named for. For almost 20 years, the feud between two bubble tea shops, Teascape and Bobaland, has torn one San Francisco neighborhood apart. But as KALW's Anna Casalme found out, this heated rivalry… may be starting to cool.

In this next episode we’ll hear how reporter Jesse Dukes has been working with researchers at MIT, speaking to teachers and students all across California and around the country. He learned that the arrival of ChatGPT and other AI tools has led to more cheating in schools… but, it’s not always easy to define what cheating IS…  or to know what to do about it. 

And one big thing AI can do effectively? Writing. Essays. Homework assignments… So what has that meant for our schools and education? For his 2025 series The Homework Machine, reporter and researcher Jesse Dukes talked to teachers and students throughout California and across the country about AI.

Today we hear part one of his series.

And one big thing AI can do effectively? Writing. Essays. Homework assignments… So what has that meant for our schools and education? For his 2025 series The Homework Machine, reporter and researcher Jesse Dukes talked to teachers and students throughout California and across the country about AI.

Today we hear part one of his series.

And electrifying the 51 miles of railway along the Peninsula was not cheap. It was a multi-billion dollar modernization project. It’s also just a small part of a larger, statewide ambition: the California High Speed Rail system.

Last year, KALW’s transportation reporter, Zain Iqbal went on one of the new trains to see what’s changed with electrification.

“Maya’s Big Question,” is the fifth book by New York Times bestselling Bay Area author Meena Harris.The main character is named after her mother and policy advocate Maya Harris. Meena’s aunt is former U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris.  KALW’s Jenee Darden spoke with Meena Harris on “The Sights + Show.” Here’s an excerpt from that conversation. 

In this excerpt from that event, KALW’s Executive Producer Ben Trefney, who moderated the panel, asked Price and Owens to share a few of the stories that seemed to see into our present. First, Anna Price. 

That’s called wage theft. And it hits low-wage workers especially hard and most frequently. That’s one of the reasons why San Mateo County launched the office of Labor Standards and Enforcement last summer. 

Reporter Sebastian Miño-Bucheli wanted to find out: how is it working? How much wage theft is still happening? 

"Comedy Family Style" is a documentary that tells the story of a San Francisco mother and son duo doing just that. Helen Chu and her 10 year-old son Evan Ho are both stand-up comedians. KALW’s Jenee Darden spoke to Helen about her and Evan’s act, and their new film, for The Sights and Sounds Show. 

Recently, Assemblymember Haney joined KALW Executive Producer Ben Trefny at our live event space in Downtown San Francisco, for a wide-ranging discussion about the future. The event was part of KALW’s ongoing Bay Agenda series, that connects residents directly with the leaders and changemakers shaping the Bay Area’s future.

In this excerpt from their conversation we hear Haney respond to a lightning round of Ben’s questions — from housing and small business recovery to public safety, neighborhood identity, and the role of civic media in shaping local change.

After he was diagnosed with stage-four colon cancer, Andre asked his friend and director Tony Benna to document his wild end-of-life journey. “Andre is an Idiot” is Tony’s first feature film, and it’s also a Sundance-award winning film. 

KALW’s Jenee Darden spoke with Tony Benna for “The Sights + Sounds Show.” Here’s an excerpt from their conversation.

Reporter Clara Kamunde takes us to meet the dancers who proves artistry, athleticism, and passion never retire.

Nia Coates is a reporter with UCB’s North Gate radio. Here introduces us to the Bearettes, Cal athletes who are fighting for a space of their own on campus.

Nia reported this story as a student in the audio concentration at UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism. Listen to more North Gate Radio sports stories here!

Leaders in the Bay Area dance community found themselves say they’re now more strained than ever. Last summer, Renée Bartlett-Webber went to find out how Dance programs have had to pivot. 

Harvard English Professor Namwali Serpell breaks down much of the late author’s work in her book, “On Morrison.” It also explores Morrison’s politics, thoughts on race, her experiences with the media. She spoke to Jenee Darden, host of KALW’s sights and Sounds Show, about her book and why she avoided meeting Toni Morrison in person. 

Here’s an excerpt from their conversation

Recently, KALW invited Shroeder to our live event space at 220 Montgomery. The evening was designed to bring finance down to earth, with practical advice and lived wisdom. KALW’s Executive Producer Ben Trefny spoke with Schroeder and asked her about her decades of experience in finance. 

Teachers today are grappling with if and how to use AI in the classroom. When educators in the city went on strike last month, one of their demands was AI safety guards. But AI is already playing an important role in the classroom. KALW’s Education reporter, Julia Haney, wanted to understand how Amira works, so she went to see the program in action.

SB 53 is the State’s Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act. It’s a first-of-its-kind AI safety law and it was passed last year. A number of AI companies lobbied against the legislation. And internet freedom advocates argue the law is now so watered down, that it no longer effectively protects whistleblowers in the AI companies.

Jason Winshell reports on Silicon Valley for the San Francisco Public Press. He spoke to KALW News Editor Sunni Khalid to help us unpack the new law. 

KALW’s homelessness reporter Alastair Boone takes us to Richmond, California to learn more about what it really takes to find permanent housing.

Here in the Bay Area, there is no shortage of events marking the day. One is the annual "What Do the Women Say?" An extravaganza of women’s performance held every year for the past 30 years by Golden Thread Productions that features Middle Eastern and North African artists.

They’re marking their 30th year with a show that has music, song, poetry and plays- and dedicating it to the women of Iran. To learn more about the event, Hana Baba, host of KALW's Crosscurrents, talked to their brand new artistic director Nabra Nelson, who is a playwright herself.

Azevedo has agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in an ongoing federal corruption probe that has already led to indictments against former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, her partner, Andre Jones, and Andy and David Duong, the owners of California Waste Solutions -- Oakland's largest recycling contractor. Their trials are scheduled for the fall.

But Azevedo's plea has raised speculation about the nature of the ongoing probe and also raised the possibility that other current or former local elected officials are being investigated for possible wrongdoing.

Nathan Gartrell is an award-winning reporter for the East Bay Times, who covers state and federal courts in Northern California. He spoke with KALW news editor Sunni Khalid. 

Activists and community members have been rallying to reopen it. The city owns the 37,000-square-foot building that’s now under the control of the San Francisco Arts Commission. Paul S. Flores is a poet and educator. He serves on a programming committee to help save the center. Jenee Darden is the host of KALW’s Sights and Sounds Show. She spoke with Paul to get an update and clarity on what’s happening with the center. 

But the night before the deployment was to begin, San Francisco's Mayor Daniel Lurie spoke to Trump in a phone call. And, the next day, the President reversed his decision on deploying the Federal troops. 

Joe Rivano Barros is a senior editor with Mission Local, who has been following the fight to uncover the details of the Trump-Lurie call.

You can hear more from local poets here! 

Many Asian American artists and activists found inspiration in Black musicians who used jazz as a tool for social change. Today, the work continues. The next generation of local Asian American jazz musicians are asking what it means to make music that honors history, and speaks to the moment. KALW’s Cara Nguyen has the story. 

Nickelodeon recently canceled “The Tiny Chef Show.” But, he’s not gone.... Actually he’s right here in San Francisco at the California Academy of Sciences! He has an exhibit and film in the planetarium about how we can save our planet in small acts. It’s called “Tiny Chef, Big Impact,” 

Jenee Darden is the host of KALW’s Sights and Sounds show. She spoke with Tiny Chef co-creator Rachel Larsen, and Matt Hutchinson who voices the Tiny Chef. Here’s an excerpt of that interview.

Check out Blue Grass Signal, with Peter, Saturday’s at 4pm on KALW. 

After working in tech, the current owner bought Lark in the Morning, and continues the legacy of a beloved world music instrument store. KALW’s Rachel Longan has this profile.

Roselyn Romero is a criminal justice reporter with Oaklandside. KALW's news editor Sunni Khalid spoke to Romero, about the recent hearing and the road ahead for Oakland and the OPD.

This was welcome news to everyone in the Oasis family, especially Tito Soto, the club’s event producer and a headline performer.

KALW's Stafford Hemmer brings us the story of a man who brought Oasis to life every Saturday night for the last six years. And who continues to invest much of his life into the club.

Jenee Darden is the host of KALW’s Sights and Sounds show. She sat down with Alexi to talk about "SoundBox" and his music. Here's an excerpt from that interview.

“SoundBox: Dream Awake” is at Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco, this Friday and Saturday. Find links, and hear the full interview and more from Sights and Sounds here.

You can hear more Bay Area poets here. 

But their legacy and cultural impact lives on today. The South of Market neighborhood of San Francisco was formally recognized as a historically Filipino district back in 2016. It’s home to many Filipino businesses. And a new shop is now bringing a long time Filipino tradition to the neighborhood. KALW reporter Viviana Vivas meets one of the artists there, who is using ink and needles to make a mark on people’s bodies, and in the neighborhood.

These days it's safe to say, most of those flyers are made on a computer. But in San Francisco’s Mission district, there’s it's a well kept tradition of screenprinting those posters. The practice is as resilient as the community that developed it.

KALW’S Rae Kim takes us to meet an artist from that community who still believes in the magic of printing messages by hand. 

New Arrivals is produced by Lisa Morehouse. Find many more episodes here! 

You can hear the whole conversation here.

Now, for the 58th county, and the last story in the series–she’s taking us back to Santa Clara County where she grew up, to a restaurant called Chef Chu’s.

When the restaurant opened in 1970, it was just a small family business. And the area around it was a pretty sleepy suburb. Now Chef Chu’s is at the heart of Silicon Valley. 

Listen to all 58 episodes of California Foodways here!

What started off as a small party more than 25 years ago, has turned into a subculture festival drawing thousands of people from the Bay Area and Beyond. 

In this interview from 2022, KALW’s Jenee Darden spoke with Edwardian Ball producers Justin Katz and Mike Gaines on the event’s roots and its evolution.

In this story from 2024, reporter Sarah Jesse went to Fernay’s kitchen where she revisits the recipes of her Texas family. 

His latest album is "Day Trip" and it features artists such as Marcus Miller and the Bay Area's own Shelia E. And this summer, Brian is hosting his 13th annual Napa Valley Jazz Getaway.

For her series, California Foodways, KALW’s Senior Editor Lisa Morehouse got up in the middle of the night, to meet a bunch of those people who keep the Oakland Produce Market humming.

Here, boats dock early in the morning with salmon and halibut, mackerel.. and now it’s Dungeness crab season! The catch then goes into refrigerated trucks, to eventually end up across the country or around the world. 

But for one Fisherman, catching and enjoying this bounty is best served… right here at home. Kirk Lombard is a sea forager. And he shows people why and how we should catch seafood ourselves, on the docks and mudflats around the Bay. In 2014 KALW’s Angela Johnston went down to the wharf, to learn more.

KALW’s education reporter Julia Haney talked to one of the young leaders on Oakland’s school board about the impact he hopes to make. 

Host of KALW’s Sights and Sounds, Jenee Darden caught up with Luenell to talk about her latest projects. Here’s a part of that conversation

For her series California Foodways, KALW’s Lisa Morehouse visited a distillery’s new home in the North Bay that’s producing whiskey at a location where people used to make something really different: massive objects that changed the course of world events. 

Nia’s music reflects both her African American and Afro-Brazilian roots. Her songs range from being a testament of survival to an invitation to just feel free. 

KALW’s Sights and Sounds Show host, Jenee Darden, spoke with Nia about the life experiences that inspired “Cosmicpolitan.” Here’s an excerpt of that interview.

Mia Pixley is a Black cellist, singer, and psychologist based in Oakland. Her new album, “Love. Dark. Bloom”  is a blend of classical, jazz, folk and the blues. Jenee Darden, the host of KALW’s The Sights and Sounds Show, spoke with Mia about how her album explores the beauty of darkness. Hear the full interview here.

Living Jazz is an educational organization that provides musical retreats in nature and workshops in elementary schools. KALW is a media sponsor.  Kev Choice is Music Director for the King Tribute. He and singer/songwriter B. Deveaux joined KALW's Executive Producer, Ben Trefny, to talk about the upcoming event, which is happening at Oakland's Paramount Theater in Oakland on Saturday, January 17th. 

Here's an excerpt from their conversation.

The host of KALW’s Sights and Sounds show, Jenee Darden, recently went down to the club in San Francisco’s SOMA District to meet with OASIS owner, D'Arcy Drollinger. Here’s an excerpt from their conversation.

OASIS has a LOT of fans. People that have found a little piece of sanctuary within the loudness of their parties and performances.

Here, members of the OASIS community share their favorite memories, what the space means to them, and what they think about the future without this home away from home.

Many of the rights immigrants to the U.S. have are actually rooted right here in San Francisco’s Chinatown. The community there came together more than a century ago, to fight against government efforts to remove Chinese people from the country.

KALW recently held a live event focused on the history of one of the most prominent businesses for Chinese immigrants: laundries. It was called "The Anti-Immigrant Spin Cycle: Challenging A White-Washed History."  

The evening was hosted by KALW’s Executive Producer, Ben Trefny. And included David Lei, a board member with the Chinese Historical Society of America, Here’s part of their conversation, starting with David explaining the court case of Yick Wo v. Hopkins, and how it shaped the rights for immigrants in America today.

You heard that right. A helpline for perpetrators, not victims. It’s an unusual approach to a serious problem: Rates of domestic violence in the U.S. are high, and they got even worse during the pandemic. The helpline – A Call for Change – promises anonymity to its callers. And their goal is to provide a non-carceral approach to preventing domestic and intimate partner violence. 

KALW is now hosting a gallery of some of their prints at our space in downtown San Francisco at 220 Montgommery, it is called ‘Mission Grafica: The Public’s Voice.’

The posters on display offer a living timeline of how artists have aligned beauty with justice in the face of power and change.

This is a piece that was scheduled to air a few weeks ago, but it was only after our show was broadcast that we realized we had aired the wrong story. So today we bring this piece from Uncuffed producer Haena Worthing.

When she was first incarcerated, in the county jail, she realized she would no longer have access to most of what she called "pretty girl things” -  like makeup and nail polish. But her experience with incarceration changed how she thinks about beauty. 

The series brings to life a community facing personal, social, and political trials, including the deaths of hundreds of its members. It's hosted by Lynne Gerber. Here's Lynne speaking with Crosscurrents host, Hana Baba.

At the time, reporter Joshua Sirotiak went up to the mountains to find out what researchers are looking for in our drinking water.

Then, Karen Van Dine was a prayer counselor in a healing circle at a gay ministry in the Castro. Her personal and professional relationships were steeped in the love and loss that came out of the tragic circumstances of the AIDS epidemic. Karen shared this history with the non-profit My Life, My Stories in 2018. 

In 2024, KALW’s Molly Blair Salyer went away to camp, to capture a moment of Camp Mather’s 100th summer.

When one musician heard about the plight of the monarchs, he decided to take a radical step to help them along their journey… by taking the trip with them. This morning we bring you an excerpt from Reporter Lusen Mendel’s story, that they produced in April.

Back in 2018 reporter Margaret Katcher brought a recorder to her holiday table. But when she turned it on, she found herself wondering about her impulse to document the moment…

It's the story of one woman’s incredible loss, and her struggle deciding whether or not to donate her son’s organs. And it's a conversation about Black communities and the stigma around organ donation. 

March was a particularly tense time for trans folks in San Francisco. Two local bathhouses — Imperial Spa in the Fillmore district, and Archimedes Banya in Hunters Point — were accused of enforcing anti-trans policies. 

After facing backlash online and potential protests, Imperial Spa quickly reversed their policy. But at Banya, it was a little more complicated. 

Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere is a professor of Japanese art and culture and curated the exhibit. She spoke with KALW’s Sights and Sounds Show host Jenee Darden about the history of the art form, and how it's been used in social and political movements.

The show is on at Neck of The Woods Saturday November 15, 2025!

“Fairyland” is based on the memoir Alysia wrote in 2013. KALW’s Sights and Sounds host Jenee Darden spoke with filmmaker Andrew Durham. Here’s an excerpt from their conversation.

The series Sidewalk Stories, is a collaboration between Crosscurrents and the East Bay’s Street Spirit newspaper/ where we hear from unhoused people about how they survive and build a life outside. And in this piece, we hear about “street names."

The San Francisco Crosstown Trail offers up a lot of those opportunities for charm and whimsy. It’s a 17 mile walk from Candlestick Point to Land’s End.

Then, how a difficult moment helped lead a young girl to become herself. And, we’ll board an aircraft carrier in Alameda that many people say…is haunted.