Crosscurrents

We want to tell you about a new podcast we're launching in February. It’s made by high schoolers. Here’s a sneak peak.

We’re used to prices going up. But, at Trader Joe’s in Northern California, the price of a certain wine has just gone down. For the past seven years their Charles Shaw brand wine famously known as “two-buck chuck” has been selling for 2.49. Now, it’s back down to 1.99. How do they keep it so cheap?

This award-winning documentary explores the lives of Sikh youth in America, and how they confront and respond to violence, sometimes with humor.

Governor Gavin Newsom released his proposed budget in early January. It’s his second since he took office and, just like the first one, it focuses on education. Many public education advocates are applauding Newsom’s focus on equity, special education, and teacher quality. But California still ranks low compared to other states when it comes to public education spending.

We just want to give you a heads up that the Crosscurrents podcast is on a temporary hold because of special coverage of the impeachment trial from NPR News. Until we’re back on the air, we’re taking the time to prepare great new content for you. Stay tuned, stay subscribed, and we’ll be back with news and stories from around the San Francisco Bay Area.

A local hospital helps its teen patients forget about their illnesses for a night. Then, #OscarsSoWhite is back. We’ll hear a high schooler’s take on Asian representation in Hollywood. And, we’ve got a love story from the StoryCorps booth.

California is extending health benefits to low-income young adults regardless of their immigration status. Then, a local singer talks about the power of music in his life. And, what is earthquake weather? Is it a real thing?

There are a lot of new laws taking effect this month in California covering everything from rent control, criminal justice, health insurance, and the gig economy. CalMatters reporter Laurel Rosenhall helps us break some of them down. Then, we head out into the Santa Cruz Mountains to meet the owner of the Bigfoot Discovery Museum.

Another Silicon Valley mobile home park is in danger of closing and lawmakers have stepped in to help preserve it. Then, we hear from a retired Golden State Warrior who was on the team when they originally moved to San Francisco 58 years ago.

A prime piece of California coastline is back in the news, bringing up issues of privacy versus public access — it's the latest in the fight over Martins Beach. Then, we get an update on the state of monarch butterflies. And, a new interview from Solano State Prison, about a guy who used to be a professional arborist.

San Francisco Unified School District's efforts to close the equity gap are paying off. Then, a painter finds something deeper in the photos of perfect strangers. And, we find out what REAL IDs mean for people who don’t have permanent addresses.

Can we compare Oakland homeless encampments to global refugee camps? A new report from the New York Times illustrates similarities. Then, millions of Venezuelans have been forced to flee their country in the past four years. We meet one woman who’s trying to help them.

Refugees from around the world are resettling in the Bay Area and some are finding new homes with local families. Then, we head to the desert and spend time with a group of Christians at Burning Man.

First, a 100-year old Baptist church in East Oakland elects its first female senior pastor. And, a longtime Oakland R&B singer who hasn’t let the ups and downs of the music business stop him from lighting up the stage.

After a month delay to the start of crab season, we’ll hear from a fisherman on the future of the industry and the oceans. Then we’ll meet the author of the latest book on Batman. And we'll drop by a community in Alameda that transforms its block into a winter wonderland.

The H-1B is one of the most commonly-used work visas in the United States, and the Trump Administration is denying them at a record rate. Data reporter Sinduja Rangarajan spent eight months investigating why.

A federally-guaranteed educational rights for homeless students is under the microscope. Then, we hear about strategies for getting through the holidays in prison.

The students of Berkeley High are fighting to make their campus more sustainable. Then, a Cirque du Soleil clown talks about life under the big top. And, this week's Audiograph, a signature sound from around the Bay.

The homeless crisis in Oakland has pushed some people to extreme measures, like taking over an empty home they don’t own. We’ll hear about Moms 4 Housing. Then, we’ll hear from musician Carly Bond about how her family history influenced the title of her first record, "Heart Hunger." And, we sing with an Oakland group that performs Eastern European traditional music.

The government says deepening shipping canals in the Bay for oil tankers will reduce emissions and drive down gas prices. But environmentalists say it’s only deepening our reliance on fossil fuels. Then, a woman who finally made it to Burning Man, after years of being told she couldn’t.

Stanford researcher studies our brains and the emotion of empathy. Turns out, we can teach it. Then, we meet a man on his way out of prison.

West Oakland has a problem with diesel pollution, and trucks are part of it. We’ll find out how truck routes are changing. Then, Chronicle reporter Heather Knight joins us to talk about why San Francisco streets are getting more dangerous. And, a familiar San Francisco sound is going on hiatus.

A San Francisco-based court might block one of the Trump Administration’s signature immigration policies. We’ll hear more about that policy and how the court might rule. Then, what happens when you sing a song with toxic lyrics on repeat for three days straight?

A man denied an education as a San Francisco schoolboy gets a second chance. We’ll meet the lede plaintiff in a 1970s landmark lawsuit and see how his life has changed. Then, we’ll find a sympathetic ear in a time of need — San Francisco’s warm line is going statewide. And, author Mimi Lok writes about diaspora and Chinese women in her first book.

San Francisco supervisor Matt Haney set up a new taskforce to tackle drug dealing in the city — we’ll find out more about his plan. Then, we’ll hear from men inside San Quentin State Prison as they consider masculinity and music.