KQED's Forum

Self-driving car companies like Waymo say their autonomous vehicles are dramatically safer than human drivers. But a new CNN investigation found that when things do go wrong, they tend to go wrong in decidedly un-human ways: being incapable of responding to instructions from first responders, driving through crime scenes, and even attempting to traverse entirely flooded streets. As Waymo expands i...

In his new book “Mighty Real: A History of LGBTQ Music 1969-2000” music critic Barry Walters looks at how music produced and performed by gay and straight musicians has been embraced, celebrated, and defined by queer culture. As he notes, queer musicians “have made an art of saying what can’t be overtly said” and their LGBTQ listeners “have learned to hear what others can’t.” Walters traces the in...

California’s End of Life Option Act, which allows people with certain terminal illnesses and a life expectancy of less than six months to receive medication that ends their life, turns 10 this month. Yet despite polling showing the policy is popular, access remains complicated and controversial, and few eligible patients actually pursue the option. We’ll discuss how the program has worked in Calif...

Writer Dave Eggers, who’s been a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, draws inspiration for the first time from his own art school experience and his classical training as a visual artist in his new novel, “Contrapposto.” The novel, which centers the working lives of artists, comes as Eggers opens a new center in San Francisco, Art + Water, that offers local artists free st...

California voters cast their ballots in key races across the state on Tuesday, with the race to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom drawing a massive field of candidates. We break down that race, in which Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer led the pack of Democrats facing off against Republican frontrunner Steve Hilton, and look at results for the state’s Congressional primaries, including the race to succeed fo...

Oakland’s 911 system is perennially understaffed, frequently leading to long wait times for callers facing life and death emergencies or trying to report fires or crimes in progress. The problem has persisted for more than a decade, and we’ll talk to Oakland’s city auditor, an investigative reporter and a 911 dispatcher to explore why, despite a decade of audits and grand jury reports, Oakland’s e...

Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical letter focuses on safeguarding humanity amid the rise of artificial intelligence. In the letter, which is essentially a policy document from the Vatican, the Pope urges tech companies and policymakers worldwide to place human and moral concerns over profit. Anthropic co-founder Chris Olah spoke at the Pope’s release of his letter in Vatican City, signaling an intent...

Graduating from high school marks a time when young people will, many for the first time, have to make their own decisions about their future. It’s a time filled with celebrations, optimism and anxiety about the future, and often sadness at leaving their younger selves behind. We’ll talk with high school seniors, their families and experts about this defining moment and how to navigate it in a rap...

Since his reelection, President Trump has been fixated on illegal immigration in the US, but now the President is taking on immigrants who are here legally. A new policy memo would require some people seeking green cards to leave the country while they wait abroad for their applications to be processed. The memo, which is vague on how this process would work, is already raising concerns for green...

An estimated one in three Californians are insured by Medi-Cal, the state version of Medicaid. But as the federal government cuts billions in funding and imposes new work requirements and paperwork processes, many Californians could lose their coverage. Meantime, in anticipation of the cuts, hospitals and health clinics are already cutting services and closing locations; the state is scrambling to...

Theo Baker arrived at Stanford as an eager freshman planning to study computer science and maybe write occasionally for the student paper. But his reporting uncovered something much bigger, ultimately leading to the resignation of Stanford’s president. In his new book, “How to Rule the World,” Baker argues the university functions less like a school and more like a pipeline to power, wealth and Si...

“Gold is having a moment,” writes New Yorker staff writer Jennifer Wilson. Earlier this year, it traded as high as $5,500 an ounce as an unstable economic outlook has central banks and investors buying gold to hedge their bets. Gold has been embraced by the far right, reality TV, and hobbyists and full-time prospectors headed up to the foothills where the California Gold Rush began. Wilson explore...

The Colorado River basin and its two largest reservoirs, Lake Powell and Lake Mead, are facing record-low water levels, and the seven states that rely on the water system can’t agree on what to do about it. Now the federal government may need to step in, with the Trump Administration proposing a plan that would cut 40 percent of the Colorado River’s water supply to Arizona, California and Nevada o...

Barbara Lee was elected mayor of Oakland last year with the city reeling from a political scandal, mired deep in fiscal crisis and scarred by years of violent crime. She promised a calm, no-nonsense approach to dealing with Oakland’s major problems.   A year later, the city’s financial outlook has stabilized some, its streets are safer than they have been in decades and Mayor Lee is talking about...

America used to value things — youth sports, local businesses and accessible healthcare, for example — simply because they were good for communities. That’s according to Sen. Chris Murphy, who says over the past 50 years the United States has seen a shift away from common goods in favor of profit, disconnection and unhappiness. We speak with the Connecticut Democrat about his new book, “Crisis of...

You may be among the nearly two million voters who have already cast their votes for California’s primary election next week. But if you’re procrastinating like the rest of us, we’ll break down what’s on your ballot. We’ll go beyond the governor’s race to statewide races like attorney general and insurance commissioner, to the key congressional races that could determine the direction of the Democ...

The United States turns 250 this summer, but for many Americans feeling burned out by partisan politics it may feel hard to imagine wanting to celebrate. We talk to author Jeremy David Engels about his new book, “On Mindful Democracy: A Declaration of Interdependence to Mend a Fractured World,” which offers a path out of partisanship and a community-centered approach to democracy. Guests: Jeremy D...

Great museums can drive tourism, and the Bay Area has no shortage of world class institutions. But museums everywhere are facing rising costs, declining fundraising support, and lower attendance. Last month, the Cal Academy of Sciences laid off more than fifty employees. Yet, public support for museums remains high, museums’ clientele has steadily diversified and many museums are managing to do we...

“All my life I have tried to be a good woman,” writes Savala Nolan. Being “good” meant not rocking the boat. It meant following the rules and fitting herself into the mold of duty, excellence, sacrifice, and hard work. But as a Black woman and mother navigating a world built for men, Nolan learned that the lessons of being good no longer fit her life. In her new book of essays “Good Woman: A Recko...

Aziz Abu Sarah, who is Palestinian, and Maoz Inon, who is Israeli, have both lost family to the conflict in the Middle East. They are also both peacebuilders who say they “forged a bond of brotherhood when the world expected us to hate each other.” We first talked to them earlier this year about their relationship and their vision for a culture of dialogue and forgiveness; today we're revisiting o...

Presidents have traditionally waited until their final months in office to give clemency, but just over a year into his second term, President Trump has issued a wave of pardons—including almost 1,600 for January 6th rioters. The New Yorker’s Ruth Marcus says Trump has created a quid-pro-quo “pardon economy,” where pardons are sold for political and personal gain. We’ll talk with Marcus and a form...

The college graduates in the Class of 2026 have not had an easy path. Part of their high school years were spent in Covid lockdown. And now, they are graduating into a difficult economy pockmarked by political strife, high cost of living and the rise of AI. Nationally, more than 40% of recent college graduates are considered underemployed, working in jobs that do not require their degree, and the...

As the June 2nd primary approaches, many California voters remain undecided about their pick for California’s next governor. This year’s race is especially crowded, with Xavier Becerra, Tom Steyer and Katie Porter leading the pack of Democrats facing off against Republicans Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco. We look at the issues that matter most to California voters and find out what polls say about t...

The award-winning documentary by Bay Area director Yoav Potash, “Among Neighbors,” sheds light on the history of antisemitism in Poland, where both during and after the Holocaust, Jews were murdered not only by Nazis, but also by their Polish neighbors. Spanning seven decades of history, the film includes eyewitness testimony and asks what true reckoning and repair look like during today’s reemerg...

Two teenage gunmen killed three people, and later themselves, in an attack Monday at the Islamic Center of San Diego, the city’s largest mosque. Authorities are investigating the shooting as a hate crime, and it comes as anti-Muslim sentiment is on the rise across the United States. We get the latest updates from the investigation, hear how San Diego’s Muslim community is responding and talk to ex...