KPBS Midday Edition

San Diego ended the year with a 4.2% unemployment rate, the lowest rate since the pandemic started – even in the face of the omicron surge. Later, KPBS investigative reporter Claire Trageser looks at what is causing a childcare staffing crisis in the San Diego region. Plus, a new investigation from CalMatters finds that the state has failed to take guns away from thousands of domestic abusers, and...

In a surprising move, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore announced that he will not serve out the remainder of his term, and will instead retire effective February 3. Plus, veterans suffering from certain medical conditions became eligible for "presumptive" VA disability benefits last year, but a backlog of paperwork may complicate the issue. And, in our weekend arts preview, we'll take you to scu...

Though hospitalization rates have not reached the highs of last winter, the ongoing crush of patients is testing the resources of San Diego’s emergency departments. And California Gov. Gavin Newsom and San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria are promoting reforming conservatorship laws in an effort to address homelessness. In other news from Sacramento, state regulators are holding off on considering a propos...

The country continues to battle the surge of omicron cases as the Biden Administration is taking steps to increase the availability of test kits and N95 masks. Plus, mental fatigue is on the rise and is less avoidable as the pandemic enters its third year with the omicron variant. Next, we remember Tijuana photojournalist Margarito Martinez Esquivel who was killed Monday. Later, Microenterprise Ho...

Trash collection services resume today, following a month-long strike that saw mountains of trash piling up in Chula Vista and other parts of San Diego. Plus, a new study by Scripps Institution of Oceanography is raising the alarm about water pollution along the border coastal region. Next, why the San Diego County Board of Supervisors and local city councils hold votes on national issues that don...

Local community group Alliance San Diego hosted its annual All People's Celebration honoring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and KPBS spoke to keynote speaker Rebecca Cokley about issues impacting the disabled community. Next, Voice of San Diego reporter Maya Srikrishnan discusses who was left out of the recent 2020 census data despite San Diego’s growing diversity. Later, UCSF physician Dr. Linds...

On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a vaccine mandate issued by the Biden administration that would have applied to companies with 100 employees or more. Legal analyst Dan Eaton breaks down why vaccine mandates are being blocked. Plus, the Chula Vista Police Department is using Chinese-made surveillance drones the Pentagon says might pose a national security risk. And, this weekend in...

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria chose to avoid much of what he called “happy talk” in his second State of the City address Wednesday night. Plus, with a new future in discussion for the Midway District, KPBS spoke with Voice of San Diego’s Scott Lewis about the thriving neighborhood that existed in the area in the 1940s. And KPBS’s Amita Sharma reports that Chula Vista is giving a private corporation...

Many healthcare workers are out with COVID, and state officials are now considering an order for hospitals across California to suspend some elective surgeries. Plus, the Senate is preparing to vote on two long-awaited voting rights bills: the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. Meanwhile, San Diego company TuSimple, announced late last month, that they made the world’s first...

This weekend, San Diego County hit a record of nearly 50,000 new COVID-19 cases. KPBS health reporter Matt Hoffman speaks about the surge and how hospitals are faring. Plus, the impact of the omicron variant on the local economy and how the local economy could be impacted by Gov. Newsom’s budget proposal. Finally, California Report Magazine explores the rich history of the Rainbow Sign — a groundb...

Long waits for COVID-19 testing has prompted the state to bring in help from the California National Guard and change San Diego County’s testing guidance. Plus, San Diego’s homeless shelters struggle with coronavirus outbreaks led by the highly transmissible omicron variant. Also, military medical teams have been dispatched to hospitals across the country overwhelmed by COVID-19. Meanwhile, some h...

This week marked the return of the controversial “Remain in Mexico” policy, as two asylum seekers were sent back to Tijuana to await the resolution of their cases. Plus, Congress ditched a controversial measure last month that would have required women to register for the Selective Service — supporters of gender-neutral registration say they'll keep working to include women. Also, our weekend arts...

One year ago today, insurrectionists swarmed the U.S. Capitol, shocking the nation, and leaving many wondering how robust our democracy really is. A new book from a local author looks at the conditions that lead to civil conflict in countries, and searches for answers to avoid them. Plus, instances of restaurants, grocery stores and other businesses temporarily closing their doors are becoming mor...

First we’ll discuss how local schools are handling the return to the classroom after the holiday COVID-19 surge and the home testing kit shortage. After, we’ll talk to Dr. Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, about some of our most pressing COVID-19 questions amidst the omicron-fueled surge. Also, while the pandemic has ravaged much of the cross-border economy, Tij...

San Diego County emergency rooms are being stretched to their limits. Meanwhile, hateful slurs have been found graffitied at the campus of San Dieguito Academy in Encinitas for the second time in only a few months, which marks the third of it’s kind to occur at a San Dieguito Union campus this academic year. Then, we hear about a new kind of THC that has emerged in the past few years—it’s called D...

This morning, the FDA recommended booster shots for 12- to 15-year olds. We talk to an infectious disease doctor about the recommendation. Plus, more than a hundred San Diego Fire Department firefighters are in isolation due to potential coronavirus exposure and its having an impact on fire services. And, scientists and volunteers from San Diego to Oregon flocked to shorelines this morning to docu...

We look ahead at new state laws that could impact your day to day life. We revisit a KPBS piece about a local organization working to empower youth through the arts. And, for our arts preview this weekend, we're shaking things up just a little, with a guide to some works of art viewable from the outdoors.

Cases of COVID-19 are once again on the rise in San Diego County. On Tuesday, the county reported more than 3,600 new cases, the highest number of new cases in a single day since last winter. Plus, a new energy storage project is rolling out across the county, with the first two sites scheduled to break ground within the next month. Then, earlier this year KPBS met a group of women living at a ret...

It’s been a rainy week in a rainy December, and tonight another storm is expected to arrive in San Diego County, bringing even more precipitation. Plus, a new investigation by the New York Times took a closer look at the growing network of paid experts, doctors and researchers used to defend police departments when a person dies in police custody. Also, state and local water agencies are moving fo...

A small aircraft carrying four people crashed in flames near Gillespie Field last night. Plus, the CDC released new COVID-19 guidelines on Monday that have shortened the time people need to quarantine. Then, KPBS takes a look back at some of the stories we covered over the past year. Back in April, military reporter Steve Walsh had the story of one of Naval Aviation’s few openly gay pilots, who wa...

COVID-19 cases are once again on the rise in San Diego County, as are hospitalizations. Plus, this past weekend was still one of the busiest for flight travel, but it was met with trip cancellations as the coronavirus spread among flight crews. And, we revisit reporting by KPBS that showed that CalFresh regularly pushes out people who are still eligible for the extra money to help them buy food. T...

Good news from the pandemic is far and few in between, but the personal wealth of San Diegans grew in 2020, according to a recent report. Plus, from the archive, a $66 million performing arts center at Southwestern College will have an impact on the South Bay as well as the next generation of artists. And, some unconventional holiday music from San Diego bands — perfect music to get us through yet...

New congressional districts map approved by the Citizens Redistricting Commission made a big change to San Diego County — a majority Latino district, one of 16 in California. Plus, Pfizer is considering increasing the doses for its children COVID-19 vaccine to three after a two-dose trial shows disappointing results. And, a closer look at renting in the San Diego area and the growing housing right...

With a predicted surge of the omicron variant over the winter break, officials at UC San Diego decided to return to distance learning for the first two weeks of January. Both the UC and CSU systems are requiring students to get COVID-19 booster shots before returning to campus. Also, researchers are struggling to figure out exactly what kind of danger omicron poses and how to fight it. And a look...

Researchers at UC San Diego, based on the amount of virus detected in the county’s wastewater, say that a COVID-19 surge this winter is not just a possibility, it’s already here. Plus, San Diego’s Climate Equity Index is meant to guide city decision making so the communities on the front lines of the climate crisis get help first. But the tool is far from perfect. Also, San Diego could build a new...