Fifth & Mission

If you're among the thousands of Bay Area residents who've skipped the second shot of a two-shot vaccine, you've got health experts worried. You may be better off than people who are fully unvaccinated, but you're at risk of getting sick, especially from the potent "delta" variant, according to new research. Chronicle health reporter Catherine Ho talks about people who haven't returned for second...

Beyond the politics and fear, what do the numbers actually show? Chronicle data reporter Susie Neilson explains that even though crime has been falling all over the place for decades, the pandemic spurred distinct trends, including a surge in gun violence in Oakland and a shift from car to home burglaries in San Francisco. Now, crime is returning to pre-pandemic levels, too — for better and for wo...

Karaoke's OK now, right? Packed indoor dining? Concerts? Reporter Kellie Hwang breaks down the new normal with host Cecilia Lei. Plus: Health reporter Erin Allday reflects on this long road back to something like post-pandemic life. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the pandemic hit them hard, LGBTQ youth found solidarity and celebration on the platform. Host Cecilia Lei is joined by reporter Malavika Kannan, who wrote about the community, and 19-year-old content creator Cas Davis of Fairfield, who found their voice there. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lizzie Johnson tells the story of 10-year-old Bre-Anna Valenzuela, whose parents were fighting as her mother fought a terminal disease. But at least their home in Fresno was protected by California's eviction moratorium. Or so they thought. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod       Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The powerful San Francisco supervisor, a pivotal figure at City Hall since 2000, acknowledged a problem with alcohol after Chronicle reporters interviewed dozens of his colleagues about a troubling pattern of bullying and apparent intoxication at meetings. City Hall columnist Heather Knight joins Cecilia Lei with the story. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod   Learn more about your...

Poor Yelp reviews can spell trouble for restaurants, but food writer Elena Kadvany says difficulty in staffing back up is causing longer wait times and service gaps as the industry recovers from the pandemic. Host Cecilia Lei also speaks to Dennis Leung, a restaurant G.M., and Sevan Araneda, a former bar manager, about what we should expect as we dine and drink in public again. | Unlimited Chronic...

Water shortages and parched conditions are affecting the entire Bay Area. Reporter Kurtis Alexander gives the latest drought updates to host Cecilia Lei. Then, food writer Tara Duggan explains why farms and ranches will be hit hardest, and grazing specialist Byron Palmer shares how his business is struggling to survive. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad cho...

One of San Francisco's most explosive debates centers on whether the city's policies and "amenities" attract unhoused people and tent camps. Now, the debate extends to public bathrooms. As the Chronicle's Mallory Moench reports, one of the city’s leaders in the homelessness crisis has advocated for the removal of portable toilets from some sites. The pushback was fierce, with some activists and of...

An earlier version of this episode was published with old audio. That version has been fixed, and we've also republished the correct audio here. For a while, the state wasn't doing much to monitor the spread of coronavirus variants in communities. That has changed, reporter Erin Allday says. More widespread genomic sequencing of the virus may help us respond more quickly to flare-ups, protect vuln...

For a while, the state wasn't doing much to monitor the spread of coronavirus variants in communities. That has changed, reporter Erin Allday says. More widespread genomic sequencing of the virus may help us respond more quickly to flare-ups, protect vulnerable communities and understand if vaccines are working. It's a breakthrough that may provide benefits even after the pandemic is over. | Unlim...

In just a few decades, the waterline is expected to rise by almost a foot, which will impact nearly every facet of life in the region. Chronicle urban design critic John King joins host Cecilia Lei to discuss his new four-part series, "Rising Reality," which looks at how Bay Area communities are bracing for rising sea levels. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your...

The coronavirus pandemic's toll on San Francisco public schools may be felt for years. More than 1,700 students have left, which could cost the district millions of dollars. Some families left the city, others switched to private schools whose campuses were open. Will they come back, and what happens if they don't? Reporter Jill Tucker talks about what schools are grappling with. | Unlimited Chron...

Mayor London Breed wants to spend that much over the next two years. Reporter Trisha Thadani joins Cecilia Lei to talk about how the mayor plans to spend the money, and homeless advocate Juthaporn Chaloeicheep gives her reaction to the huge price tag. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Monica Gandhi of UCSF has gained national attention with her controversial critiques of the Bay Area’s conservative pandemic response, which she argues has done more harm than good for some populations, especially schoolchildren. Before the pandemic, Gandhi was known locally as a long-time HIV/AIDS care provider who ran San Francisco General’s Ward 86. She talks with Erin Allday about how that...

Reporter Sarah Ravani and photographer Gabrielle Lurie talk with Cecilia Lei about their reporting on dementia patients at Gordon Manor, an assisted living facility in Redwood City. Dementia patients have been particularly vulnerable during the pandemic, as they have trouble following safety protocols, which also disrupt the routines that keep them healthy and safe, including contact with family....

After more than a year of lockdowns, people are ready to shove aside their "travel guilt" and get away, with more than three-quarters of Americans saying they're planning trips. But reporter Greg Thomas tells Demian Bulwa that not everything is back to normal: Shorter road trips might win out over long flights, and usually bustling San Francisco might have a long road to recovery as a tourist hub....

We tend to look at mass shootings as isolated events. But Guardian reporter Abené Clayton tells Cecilia Lei "the repercussions of gun violence spread like a virus," and we should be thinking about tragedies like the San Jose shooting as a public health disaster. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Few issues have been as critical in the past year as keeping people in their homes, even as they struggle to pay rent. Now, as the pandemic eases, San Francisco and California face pressure to ward off a wave of potential evictions. Reporter Emma Talley has the latest on San Francisco's eviction moratorium, which was expected to be extended. And reporter Mallory Moench discusses a more controversi...

In the year since George Floyd’s death, local city leaders have launched a variety of police reform initiatives, from cutting budgets to reallocating funds to the community. But do they go far enough? Reporters Sarah Ravani and Megan Cassidy give Cecilia Lei an update on how major Bay Area cities responded to last summer's protests, and whether progress has been made. | Unlimited Chronicle access:...

John Jones III is an Oakland activist and member of the city’s Reimagining Public Safety Task Force, formed after calls were made to cut the Oakland police budget. He tells new host and producer Cecilia Lei that it’s always good when people demand justice, but there’s a difference between a moment and a movement, and racial justice must focus on more than protests and police reform. | Unlimited Ch...

The conservative celebrity's effort to unseat Gov. Gavin Newsom is historic, but advocates for transgender rights see her as a problematic and detached figurehead at a critical time. Reporter Dustin Gardiner breaks down Jenner's place in the nation's culture wars. And columnist Ann Killion weighs in on Jenner's statements that trans girls should be barred from girls sports in schools. Plus: Announ...

Soleil Ho, co-host of the Extra Spicy podcast, covers the food industry — but hadn't eaten indoors at a restaurant in 15 months. That changed recently after she got fully vaccinated and knew hospitality workers had too. So what was it like to slide into a booth inside a pho restaurant for the first time? Soleil dishes all about it. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about...

For months, Chronicle columnist Ann Killion has been raising questions about Stanford's decision to cut 11 varsity sports programs early in the pandemic. This week, the school reversed course under pressure, reinstating every one. Killion tells Demian Bulwa about how deep-pocketed Stanford had angered athletes and alumni, triggered lawsuits and exacerbated gender inequities. And what happened to t...

Reporter Trisha Thadani talks about the city's new Street Crisis Response Team — mental health professionals, not cops — which responds to the city's most vulnerable people, including those who are mentally ill, addicted to drugs and unhoused. The team is part of a the nationwide movement to get police out of situations where they might not be needed. But big challenges remain, including providing...