The Bay

I’m sure you’ll agree with us: Sometimes, it's good to take a break from the news. Every July, The Bay takes a break from making new episodes. We use this time to reset, rest, and brainstorm what we want to make for you. We will resume our regular schedule on Monday Aug. 3. Say hello anytime thebay@kqed.org. We always love hearing from you. Thank you for listening and enjoying the show! Learn more...

In this June 2026 edition of the monthly news roundup, we discuss the Giants’ pride month controversy, the debate over a new data center coming to Pittsburg, and how high school students pushed for improvements to their local bus line in San Francisco. Links: Pittsburg controversy over data center on old Delta View Golf Course This Bay Area suburb lost its main industry. Can it rebuild? In San Fra...

In today’s episode, we bid farewell to The Bay’s producer, Jessica Kariisa, and discuss her deep love for San Jose. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last month, the streaming platform Spotify added a new feature that allows users to generate their own AI remixes. With no signs of AI slowing down in the music industry, we’re revisiting this episode about the labor implications, and how human artists are adapting. This episode first aired Nov. 14, 2025 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Metropolitan Community Church of San Francisco (MCC-SF) was one of the first gay-positive Christian churches. During the height of the AIDS crisis, it was a place where hundreds of LGBTQ Christians found community, sustenance, and healing as they grappled with the illness and death of the epidemic. When We All Get to Heaven, a 10-episode audio documentary series produced by Eureka Street Produ...

In 1945, Wesley Johnson, a San Francisco State graduate from Texas, rode down Fillmore Street, announcing Juneteenth and inviting all around to celebrate. At that time, the Fillmore district was the heart of San Francisco’s Black community, and famously known as the ‘Harlem of the West.’  But over the decades, systemic displacement in the name of urban renewal has dramatically shrunk the neighborh...

Another huge sporting event is here in the Bay Area. The World Cup, with 48 participating countries and 104 matches spread out across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, is underway until the final on July 19. In addition to the six World Cup games at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, free watch parties are on all over the region, and two teams – Paraguay and Australia – are using the Bay Area as their bas...

Last week, the Pacifica City Council approved an emergency declaration to demolish the beloved Chit Chat Cafe at the Pacifica Pier, as parts of the structure began to crumble into the ocean. Plans for the rest of the pier are still up in the air, as Pacifica residents reckon with the future of their coastal community in the face of coastal erosion, sea level rise, and climate change. Links: ‘You C...

The World Cup is now underway, with planned events around the Bay Area. Under the ethos of soccer as a “global language,” local soccer leagues in the Bay Area have been providing a rare sense of solace for new immigrant youth.  This episode first published June 11, 2025 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

California still has lots of ballots left to count, more than one week after the primary. Republicans, including President Donald Trump, have seized on the slow count to spread conspiracy theories of election fraud. But what’s actually behind the holdup? KQED’s Marisa Lagos explains why California counts ballots so slowly, and what could help speed up the count. Links: Ballots Are All In, but Cali...

In conversations with loved ones, transgender and non-binary kids from the Bay Area discuss acceptance, trust, and what it looks like to thrive. This episode first aired Dec. 4, 2025. Links: Become a KQED member Email us: thebay@kqed.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are still many ballots left to count, but from the governor’s race to local tax measures and the race to replace Nancy Pelosi in the House of Representatives, we sit down with KQED’s politics and government correspondent Guy Marzorati about the results of the primary so far. Links: KQED: California Primary Election Results  Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by The Screen...

Jason Agan was a popular teacher at Angelo Rodriguez High School in Fairfield. But for years, students whispered about his behavior. He touched some of them in public in ways that made them uncomfortable, they said, including hugging students and massaging their shoulders.  In late 2019, after multiple written complaints and an administrative hearing, the school district fired Agan. But he never l...

This graduation season has felt different. Commencement speakers across the country are getting booed for promoting AI in their speeches – and the videos have gone viral. Recent college graduates were in school when ChatGPT first launched in late 2022, and many are worried about how AI will affect their future job prospects and society at large. Today, we hear from three recent graduates in the Ba...

In this edition of The Bay’s monthly news roundup, Alan Montecillo is joined by KQED political correspondent Guy Marzorati and KQED reporter Sydney Johnson ahead of California’s primary election on Tuesday, June 2. They preview the race to replace Rep. Nancy Pelosi in San Francisco, Measures A and E in San Jose and Oakland, and the mayoral election in the city of Richmond. Links: 2026 Primary Vote...

On April 15, 2024, dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters blocked the Golden Gate Bridge, in an attempt to pressure the U.S. government into ending military aid for Israel’s bombing and invasion of Gaza. Now, seven of those protesters are on trial facing felony charges in San Francisco. If convicted, they could face a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit me...

The wetsuit changed surfing forever, making it possible for surfers to wade in the frigid waters of the Bay and allow the scene to thrive. In this episode of Bay Curious, we learn about the Ocean Beach surfers and the UC Berkeley physicist who had a part to play in the wetsuit’s invention.  Links: The Wetsuit Changed Surfing — We’ve Got a Berkeley Physicist to Thank for It Learn more about your ad...

This weekend, SF Carnaval is expected to draw an estimated 500,000 people to San Francisco's Mission District. The celebration, which takes place May 23-24, celebrates the music, dance, and culture of the Latin American diaspora. Links: Carnaval San Francisco 2026: From Parade Route to Parking, What to Know This Weekend Carnaval San Francisco Turns Music, Memory and Resistance Into Celebration Lea...

Valero’s Benicia refinery employed hundreds of people and contributed millions in taxes to the local government for decades. Now, with the refinery on its way out, local leaders hope Benicia can be a leading example for how cities transition away from the fossil fuel industry. But with tight city budgets and a global fuel crisis looming, that’s much easier said than done. Links: California’s Fuel...

San Francisco has seen a 22% decrease in people sleeping on the streets, according to preliminary data from this year’s Point In Time count. But the number of families experiencing homelessness has gone up 15%. Recent changes have allowed families to stay longer in shelters, but securing affordable housing remains a challenge. In this episode, we meet one family caught up in the city’s shelter sys...

Community-based preschools across the state have struggled to compete with California’s free, universal transitional-kindergarten program, where enrollment grew to 213,000 students this year. Now, hundreds of preschools have shuttered — worsening the shortage of licensed child care spaces for children younger than 4 years old. Links: As Transitional Kindergarten Grows, Hundreds of Child Care Cente...

Workers at San Francisco International Airport who clean planes, handle baggage, and push wheelchairs told city supervisors at a recent hearing that they’re sleeping in their cars and surviving on rice and oatmeal. Now city supervisors say their labor fight for higher wages is on notice.  Links: San Francisco Airport Labor Fight Hits City Hall This Week Some members of the KQED podcast team are re...

According to a KQED analysis, the average Pacific Gas & Electric utility bill went up nearly 70% between 2020 and March 2025. But understanding what you’re actually paying for can be confusing. In this episode, KQED’s climate reporter Laura Klivans helps Ericka decode her PG&E bill.  This episode originally aired Dec 17, 2025 Links: The Average PG&E Utility Bill Has Gone Up Nearly 70% Since 2020 |...

The Golden State Valkyries’ first season was a huge success. The team sold out every home game and became the first WNBA team ever to make the playoffs in their expansion season. This year, expectations are high. Marisa Ingemi of Valkyries Beat joins us to preview the Valkyries’ second season season, and provide some helpful tips for new fans. Links: 2026 WNBA Season Preview from a Valkyries persp...

Jurors and journalists are getting a peek into the world of OpenAI and its founding as two of the richest, most powerful men in tech duke it out in an Oakland federal courthouse. Elon Musk claims that Sam Altman and other co-founders of OpenAI abandoned their founding promise to develop AI for the benefit of humanity. But does anyone here really have our best interests at heart? KQED’s Rachael Myr...