KPBS Midday Edition

A new policy causing hours-long border wait times was meant to deter unnecessary crossings but it’s affecting essential workers who cross daily. Plus, Supervisor Jim Desmond, who represents a large part of North County, has questioned the county's COVID-19 restrictions. On his podcast, he's also invited controversial guests who have made false statements about the coronavirus without being challen...

As the Republican National Convention starts, what voters can expect in contrast to the Democratic Convention. Plus, as the new school year begins, some students are returning to campus at San Diego State, will the university avoid the fate of other schools where young students ignored health warnings and socialized in mass gatherings? Also, a video produced 30 years ago showing a young Tony Krvar...

With the shortened census deadline approaching and fears about a possible undercount, the United Way of San Diego County organized a car caravan Friday to increase census participation in historically hard to count communities. Also, millions of older Californians live in wildfire prone areas and most are on their own. And, chamber music, a drive-in with a Disney film and a new cross-border mural...

San Diego has been off the state’s COVID-19 monitoring list for several days now but the state hasn’t provided the framework for businesses reopening. Plus, California firefighters are taxed the limit fighting the heat and wildfires. Also, when elder care homes aren't ready for a disaster, local first responders get the call for help but they're already overburdened, especially during the coronavi...

San Diego is now officially off the state’s coronavirus watch list but what that means for local businesses remains to be seen. Plus, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill by Assemblymember Shirley Weber (D-San Diego) that requires all students at California State University to take an ethnic studies course to graduate. Also, California’s power grid manager is in the hot seat after calling for the first...

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said that he will suspend controversial changes he made to the Postal Service to “avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail.” Plus, a Black Lives Matter counter movement called “Defend East County” has swelled to more than 20,000 followers on Facebook and has contributed to the increasingly volatile faceoffs between protesters and counter protesters. A...

A heat wave continues across California and Gov. Newsom is asking for an investigation into the weekend’s blackouts. The blackouts affected hundreds of thousands of households across the state as residents are being urged to stay home during the coronavirus pandemic. Plus, the head of San Diego County’s Democratic party weighs in on the Democratic National Convention, which starts tonight and runs...

Scorching heat is expected everywhere except the coast in San Diego County Friday and a brutal stretch of temperatures is not expected to relent until the middle of next week. Also, medical professionals are not only battling the intractable coronavirus every day, they’re dealing with isolation, shifting guidelines and limited ways to recharge. Plus, author T. Jefferson Parker found inspiration fo...

For the first time since early July, San Diego County case rate fell below the threshold to fall off the state’s monitoring list. Also, a new work by a local theater company honors and eulogizes the lives lost during the pandemic. Plus, President Trump said he is against providing funding to help the US Postal Service in order to sabotage efforts to expand mail-in voting. We discuss threats to the...

Sen. Kamala Harris made history by being the first woman of color on a major party presidential ticket. How local leaders react. Plus, despite a moratorium on evictions during the pandemic, more than 1,600 Californians have been evicted from their homes. Also, two new reports show not only that Black and Latino neighborhoods have the highest rate of COVID-19 infections, but also have a significant...

San Diego Unified had already planned to begin the new school year online because of the pandemic, but now the district says students may not return to the classroom for months. Plus, since March more than a quarter of American children tested positive for COVID-19. How vulnerable are children to getting this virus?. Also, census organizers are getting creative to reach hard-to-count communities d...

SeaWorld Entertainment on Monday announced revenue and audience losses stemming from the coronavirus pandemic. Plus, UC San Diego neurointensivist Dr. Navaz Kanranjia explains how COVID-19 can impact the brain. And, Barbara Bry leads over Todd Gloria in campaign fundraising for the San Diego mayoral race, what’s behind the numbers? Finally, why the Museum of Man changed its name.

Figures showing California has slowed the rate of coronavirus infections may be in doubt because a technical problem has delayed reporting of test results. Plus, Colorado public health officials are finalizing the details of a wastewater testing program to help track the coronavirus pandemic. Also, diversity and inclusion in theatre are the focus of new KPBS TV show “Theater Corner.”

The deadly explosion in Beirut is hitting close to home for San Diego’s Lebanese community. Plus, 25% of the women who have lost a job during this pandemic say it is because of a lack of child care. Also, for weeks, members of the Kumeyaay Nation have been protesting border wall construction in San Diego, saying their cultural heritage sites are being destroyed. Now, human remains have been found....

California's Attorney General Xavier Becerra and other attorneys general sent a letter asking the federal government to step in to increase the supply and decrease the cost of the COVID-19 drug remdesivir. Plus, the county is exploring outsourcing health care of jail inmates to private contractors. Also, KPBS partner inewsource is launching a series today called Veterans Voices. It will follow vet...

A Ramona gym owner was the first business owner to be criminally charged for flouting the county public health order. Plus, with the election three months away, some are worried about how the pandemic will affect the election process. Registrar of Voters Michael Vu answers your questions. Also, climate change is already putting California forests under stress, now a warming ocean is also threateni...

The Marines have called off the search and identified the eight servicemen presumed dead and one Marine killed in a training accident last Thursday. Plus, Congress is still deeply divided over a relief bill for Americans affected by the coronavirus pandemic but reported progress over the weekend. All sides predict a long slog ahead. Also, the Metropolitan Transit System got a new CEO, Sharon Coone...

The extra $600 a week unemployment benefit under the federal CARES Act has helped over two million Californians make ends meet. Now that it's ending, nonprofits and the state look to help fill the gap. We hear from two San Diegans on how the end of the extra benefit will impact their livelihoods. Local and statewide moratoriums have kept a wave of possible evictions on hold for months. With those...

San Diego County amended its public health order to require all employers to inform anyone who could have possibly been exposed if three or more cases of COVID-19 occur at the workplace in a 14-day period. Plus, South of Interstate 8 is the dividing line in the wide gap in the number of Paycheck Protection Program loans awarded to small businesses in San Diego County. Also, a new poll from the Pub...

Custom and Border Protection's participation in policing ongoing protests across the country has come under scrutiny from lawmakers. A letter to Sen. Kamala Harris confirmed CBP supplied munitions that San Diego law enforcement fired on protesters. Plus, even as the Supreme Court blocked its attempt to end DACA, the Trump administration announced Monday it will not accept new applications for the...

The city’s contract with San Diego Gas & Electric is up for renewal. The deal could be lucrative but some are concerned city leaders could be asking for too little. Plus, the rift between St. Anne Catholic Church and Logan Heights residents started over street parking but is being fueled by a cultural divide. Also, as the number of coronavirus cases rise in San Diego, demand for testing is creatin...

Some businesses in the county are openly flaunting public health orders while others are confused about compliance. To that end, the county has set up a compliance team to help businesses navigate the rules and crack down on those that defy those rules. Also, breaking down San Diego COVID-19 deaths by ZIP codes reveals huge disparity. Plus, as work to dismantle the San Onofre nuclear power plant c...

UC San Diego will be one of the sites for a national COVID-19 vaccine trial slated to begin Monday. Local sites are looking for more than 1,000 San Diegans to sign up. The trial is based on a vaccine prototype developed by Massachusetts-based Moderna Therapeutics. Plus, in San Diego, police officers are often the ones responding to mental health-related 911 calls. We’ll hear about a plan to change...

Nearly two months after Leslie Furcron was shot in the forehead by a bean bag round during a protest in front of the La Mesa Police Department Headquarters, the department has released video of the incident and the name of the officer who shot her. Plus, with the scrutiny on police funding in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd, KPBS investigative team found that the San Diego Police De...