San Diego News Now

Nearly half of students in the San Diego Unified School District are not meeting the state standard for reading and writing. We visit the school that has seen the most improvement in the district. Then, renters in Imperial Beach are raising alarms after the owners of an apartment complex issued mass eviction notices. Plus, a review of the documentary ‘Never Look Away.’

Five of the 11 seats on an advisory board for water and sewer services are vacant, even as residents pay rising rates. Then, immigrant advocates say San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria’s decision to defund the Office of Immigrant Affairs sends the wrong message to the city’s immigrant community. Plus, the busy holiday travel season comes at the same time San Diego County data show an uptick in the flu vir...

Results on the sales tax measure to fund transportation projects show a divide between urban and suburban voters. Then, a new program by the North County LGBTQ Resource Center wants to remove barriers from accessing abortion care. Plus, officials say the illegal flow of U.S. guns into Mexico is arming the cartels.

As we approach the peak of cold and flu season, health officials are warning San Diego County residents about a rise in two serious respiratory illnesses: walking pneumonia and whooping cough. In other news, a lawsuit was announced Monday on behalf of South Bay residents affected by discharged raw sewage and contamination. Plus, for nearly 30 years, Carlsbad has had a moratorium on drive-thru rest...

A new Scripps Research study links heavy alcohol use to the most common form of dementia. In other news, South Bay residents who notice a rotten egg smell have a new tool to understand its health risk. We learn more on the latest response to the cross-border sewage crisis. Plus, artificial light has disrupted the sleep and circadian rhythms of people, and it’s also affecting living things that sha...

Local Indigenous leaders are working to increase representation and cultural awareness. That also means making higher education more inclusive. We hear from San Diego State University’s tribal liaison. In other news, the California Center for the Arts is a North County hub for culture, art and community. A foundation has managed it for 30 years, but a budget deficit for Escondido could mean a chan...

A new effort is underway to help downtown San Diego, and other civic centers across California, after being affected by the COVID pandemic. In other news, San Diego County data show, one in four adults over 65 experiences a fall each year. A local nonprofit is teaching seniors how to fall safely or not at all. Plus, roughly 8 million young people became eligible to vote for the first time this yea...

Now that Donald Trump is preparing to make good on his promises of mass deportations, many are afraid. We hear from a therapist on how undocumented immigrants can find healthy ways to process fear and anxiety around the issue. In other news, San Diego is considering a reform to its building code to encourage more family-sized apartments. Plus, the co-founder and executive director of the nonprofit...

Thirty-two million tourists visited San Diego last fiscal year, staying longer and spending more, leaving a record economic impact. In other news, many credit unions in California rely on overdraft fees for revenue. State lawmakers took notice and passed a new law to protect customers. Plus, the unique financial challenges facing veterans.

Immigrant rights advocates are preparing for what might be an unprecedented immigration crackdown. In other news, it’s Veterans’ Day and commemorations are happening all over San Diego. We look at how LGBTQ veterans are being honored locally. Plus, the San Diego Unified School Board announced the winners of its social media awareness contest.

As analysts parse the reasons for former President Donald Trump's win, the head of the local GOP says it was entirely predictable. Meanwhile, a local no party preference voter is terrified of Trump making good on his promised agenda. In other news, a Japanese helicopter carrier off the San Diego coast has successfully shown it can operate with F-35 fighters. Plus, this weekend in the Gaslamp Quart...

Open enrollment for Covered California is now underway and for the first time it includes DACA recipients. In other news, three years ago, Amazon opened a fulfillment center in one of Tijuana's poorest neighborhoods and residents hoped the company would make big investments in the community, but those expectations remain largely unfulfilled. Plus, California law requires the state’s electricity gr...

Vote counts from the election are still underway. In today’s podcast, we’ll be updating you on the unofficial results that came in late last night. Those results will continue to be updated over the coming days, but we won’t have the final certified results until next month.

Former Navy contractor Leonard Francis is due in a San Diego courtroom today. He’ll be sentenced more than 11 years after his arrest rocked the Navy. In other news, local activists honor the memory of migrants who died trying to cross the southern border last year. Plus, we have details on San Diego Beer Week, which runs through Sunday.

A new poll of likely California voters, shows presidential candidate Kamala Harris underperforming in a state where she and president Joe Biden won handily four years ago. In other news, in the South Bay, where many residents have close ties to immigrant communities, voting isn’t just about civic duty, it’s a chance to make their voices heard in a system they say often overlooks them. Plus, San Di...

A bipartisan group of San Diego County politicos gathered earlier this week to denounce Republican Assembly candidate Carl DeMaio. In other news, we go over the sales tax measures in the North County that are on the ballot. Plus, the executive director of Susan G. Komen San Diego joins the podcast to talk about breast cancer awareness and this weekend’s More Than Pink Walk.

The San Diego City Council is moving to ban software used by landlords to set rental prices. In other news, how pollsters survey people in this era of cell phones, texts and social media. Plus, one border artist is reimagining abandoned Baja buildings as lost souls.

A major project is now underway to fix and expand the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant. In other news, residents in National City are calling on the city council to block a fuel transfer station from being built nearby homes. Plus, this election season, Americans have been exposed to a surge of unfounded claims, and disinformation is only expected to intensify.

The general election is one week away, KPBS reporters talk about the San Diego city attorney race and the sales tax measures on your ballot. And the Coast Guard relieved two senior leaders in San Diego due to a “loss of confidence” following an investigation. Plus, Thursday is Halloween and indie theater Cinema Under the Stars is celebrating with an inaugural Halloween film fest.

SB 9 allows homeowners to split their lots in two and sell off their excess land. After a slow start, the law is starting to produce results in San Diego. And, San Diego launched an online dashboard this week that aims to increase transparency and accountability around its climate action goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2035. Plus, Balboa Park’s Japanese Friendship Garden has a new exh...

Shifting soil has plagued the coastal rail line between San Diego and Orange counties the past few years, often causing monthslong shutdowns. Now the project to fix the rail is getting a $125 million financial boost from the state. And last week, the Pentagon upgraded discharge codes for hundreds of LGBTQ+ veterans. The problem is it only applied to those forced out under Don't Ask, Don't Tell, le...

Work is now underway at the Oceanside Pier to remove debris from a fire earlier this year. In other news, by the end of 2024, the city of San Diego is expected to lose more than 600 shelter beds for people experiencing homelessness. San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria wants to address that by expanding the city’s safe sleeping site program. Plus, we hear from Democratic Congresswoman Sara Jacobs about the...

This week the nonprofit EcoFlight gave a group of advocates, nonprofit leaders and government representatives a bird’s eye view of the Tijuana River Valley. In other news, voters across San Diego County will decide on local tax measures this year. We learn about the tax proposals in Chula Vista and National City. Plus, one of our KPBS web producers joins the podcast to talk about the KPBS Voter Gu...

Nine months ago today, an overflowing storm channel flooded San Diego homes, making them unlivable. Now there’s a call for accountability and transparency about the response. In other news, this fall, low-income community college students who live in Mexico, but go to school in San Diego or Imperial county will pay in-state tuition. Plus, local Democrats are supporting a plan to expand access to c...

College students across California were arrested this year protesting university investment supporting Israel, and now, some UC San Diego students are getting a crash course on legal defense. In other news, young adults with disabilities are gaining valuable work experience while helping shelter dogs become more adoptable. Plus, we have details on San Diego Comic Fest, which returns this week.