Kcbs In Depth

Earlier this past week, California began the deployment of CHP officers to San Francisco in an effort to help clamp down on drug trafficking. The hope is that with more boots on the ground -- and additional assistance from California National Guard members as well -- San Francisco will begin to get a handle on the open air drug markets that have overrun portions of the city.  But the move is also drawing fierce push back from those who say a law enforcement crackdown is no way to address what is fundamentally a public health crisis. So on this edition of KCBS In Depth, we’ll hear from both sides as San Francisco and the entire state search for answers in the face of this spiraling epidemic of drug addiction. Guests: Sophia Bollag, California politics reporter, San Francisco Chronicle  Brooke Jenkins, district attorney, San Francisco Dr. Daniel Ciccarone, professor of addiction medicine, UC San Francisco Host: Keith Menconi 

Fans of the Oakland A’s are still trying to make sense of the bombshell announcement earlier this month that the team has entered an agreement to purchase land for a new ballpark in Las Vegas. So why can’t Oakland seem to keep its sports teams? Well, it turns out that there is a long tangled history to that question going back decades, but luckily two Bay Area sports insiders have just written a book laying it all out. That book is “Goodbye, Oakland: Winning, Wanderlust and a Sports Town’s Fight For Survival.” On this edition of KCBS In Depth we discuss the past, present and future of sports in Oakland with one of the book’s co-authors, Andy Dolich, a sports business consultant who worked in the A’s front office for over a decade and then went on to serve in executive roles for the Warriors and the 49ers.  Hosts: Keith Menconi, Holly Quan

So just what happens if people don’t come back to downtown? It’s a question that’s been asked with increasing urgency in recent weeks, especially in San Francisco, where the term “doom loop” has now been added to everyone’s vocabulary list. On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we check in with local urban planning advocates and economists to get some perspective on how the Bay Area’s civic centers could be reshaped by the work-from-home revolution.   Guests:  Jeff Bellisario, executive director, Bay Area Council Economic Institute Alicia John-Baptiste, CEO, SPUR Ted Egan, chief economist, San Francisco Host: Keith Menconi 

On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we take on the case for the four-day workweek, that is the idea that not only workers, but also many employers would be better off if we all got an extra day to ourselves: a day to recharge our batteries, tend to the trouble spots in our lives and return to work that much more energized and productive. But there’s also plenty of skeptics who say that while the four-day workweek may work for some, it’s just not a practical way to run an economy.  Guests:  Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, global programs and research manager, 4 Day Week Global | author, "Shorter: Work Better, Smarter and Less – Here’s How" Matthew Bidwell, professor of management, Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania  Host: Keith Menconi 

What a difference a year makes: One year ago, California’s reservoirs were depleted, its snowpack was down to only 14 percent of average and more than 90 percent of the state faced severe drought. But then came December and a series of storms fueled by atmospheric rivers that have completely changed the state's water outlook, at least in the short term.  On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we try to get a handle on how this all happened, what it says about California’s water future and what lingering water woes we might still be facing.  Guests:  Jeanine Jones, interstate resources manager, California Department of Water Resources Alexander Gershunov, climate scientist, UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography Heather Cooley, director of research, Pacific Institute Host: Keith Menconi

Even with all the life hacks and productivity boosts in the world, a lot of us simply feel like we’re falling further and further behind in the race of life. On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we speak with Oakland-based artist Jenny O'Dell, who is asking the question, whose idea was it to make this into a race in the first place? And who’s actually profiting from all this rushing around? Her conclusion: That we need to fundamentally rethink our relationship with the clock.  Guest: Jenny O’Dell, author, "Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock" Host: Keith Menconi

On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we discuss the latest advances in AI technology, including the release of a major update to ChatGPT, an already shockingly advanced AI-powered chatbot.  With so much changing so fast, we hear from two leading journalists covering artificial intelligence to try to get a better handle on where the AI revolution might be leading us. Guests:  Kevin Roose, tech columnist, The New York Times | author, "Futureproof: 9 Rules for Humans in the Age of Automation"  Sigal Samuel, senior reporter, Vox’s Future Perfect | she just wrote an article for the site called “The case for slowing down AI” Host: Keith Menconi  

Environmental advocates, local leaders and the aviation industry itself all say the country's general aviation fleet needs to make the transition to cleaner-burning gas, but how to make that happen? And how fast to go? Those are questions that are sparking heated debate, including here in the Bay Area.  On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we discuss the leading role that Santa Clara County has taken in this work, and also hear why some within the industry have been critical of the county’s approach, warning that moving too fast could make the skies less safe.  Guests:  Ariel Wittenberg, public health reporter, E&E News Mark Baker, president, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association   Cindy Chavez, supervisor, Santa Clara County Host: Keith Menconi 

With the 95th Academy Awards just a week away, we reflect on more than nine decades of Oscars ceremonies and the pivotal Oscars moments that have shaped the course of Hollywood history. Guest: Michael Schulman, staff writer, The New Yorker | author, “Oscar Wars: A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat, and Tears.” Host: Keith Menconi  

In just a few days, California and a number of Bay Area counties are set to drop their Covid health emergencies. After three years in the pandemic fight, we check in with local health experts to get some perspective on what's gone right, what's gone wrong and what lessons we should take going forward.  Guests:  Dr. John Swartzberg, clinical professor emeritus of infectious diseases, UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health Dr. Monica Gandhi, infectious disease physician, UC San Francisco  Dr. Sara Cody, health officer, Santa Clara County | director, Santa Clara County Public Health Department  Host: Keith Menconi

About one month from now the Bay Area Air Quality Management District is set to vote on a set of new rules that would aim to phase out gas furnaces and water heaters and replace them with all-electric appliances.  It’s an effort to stamp out some of the biggest sources of pollution from Bay Area cities, but this transition comes with a price tag and many residents are worried about how they’re going to be able to afford it. On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we check in with two local experts about how residents can navigate these changes.  Guests:  Lucas Davis, professor studying energy markets, UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business Panama Bartholomy, executive director, Building Decarbonization Coalition Host: Keith Menconi  More resources:  The Climate Center based out of Santa Rosa is set to hold a webinar on March 15th on how to address the challenges of electrifying California’s homes and buildings. It's called, "Building Electrification – Stories from the Home Front." Additional information on home el

During this time of partisan gridlock, there actually does seem to be one thing both political camps can agree on: big tech needs to make some changes. In fact, when President Biden made a call for wide ranging reforms of the tech sector during this week's State of the Union, he won a rare bipartisan standing ovation for the comments.  On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we run through some of the proposals that are on the table and consider what this reform push might actually add up to. Guests:  David Greene, civil liberties director, Electronic Frontier Foundation Eric Goldman, law professor, Santa Clara University Jim Steyer, CEO, Common Sense Media Host: Keith Menconi

At the beginning of this year Oakland’s police department seemed to be on track to finally exit two decades of federal court oversight, but then its police chief was placed on leave amid a scandal over officer discipline. On this edition of KCBS In Depth we speak with independent criminal justice reporter Ali Winston about where the reform process stands now.  Guest: Ali Winston, investigative journalist | co-author, "The Riders Come Out at Night: Brutality, Corruption, and Cover-up in Oakland” Host: Keith Menconi

It has been a week of mourning after a string of mass shootings struck three California communities in the span of just a few days. On this edition of KCBS In Depth we speak with some of those who are helping to rally the community response to these tragedies. Then in the second half of the program, we also discuss gun control in California, and hear why even as calls for further reform grow louder the legal challenges are also getting steeper. Guests:  Deborah Penrose, mayor, Half Moon Bay  Cynthia Choi, co-executive director, Chinese for Affirmative Action | co-founder, Stop AAPI Hate  Adam Winkler, constitutional law professor, UCLA Dr. Amy Barnhorst, associate director, Violence Prevention Research Program at UC Davis  Host: Keith Menconi

Is seems California is rethinking a key piece of its decades-old compact with car culture: minimum parking requirements. Those are zoning requirements that force developers to include a certain number of parking spots in new constructions, and they're facing pushback in a lot of places all at once. On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we consider why so many have soured on parking requirements and what this shift will mean for our changing cityscapes in the decades ahead.  Guests:  Michael Manville, urban planning professor, UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs Alex Shoor, co-founder and executive director, Catalyze SV Host: Keith Menconi

Hoping to improve your sleep habits in 2023? On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we check in with a local sleep scientist to get some advice on how to make that happen. Host: Aric Prather, professor of psychiatry, UC San Francisco | author, "The Sleep Prescription: Seven Days to Unlocking Your Best Rest” Guest: Keith Menconi 

2020 and 2021 were two years that upended daily life in the Bay Area as we faced pandemic risks, choking wildfire smoke and a spike in violent crime. Well, now that we’re closing out 2022 we have the chance on this edition of KCBS In Depth to ask the question: how will this  year be remembered?  Guest: KCBS Insider Phil Matier  Hosts: Keith Menconi, Patti Reising 

At this point we’ve been talking about the opioid epidemic and its tragic toll for years now, but more recently the risks from this crisis have begun to take on a new form as fentanyl-laced pills slip into the illicit drug market in greater numbers and make their way into the hands of teens and young adults. On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we speak with some of those who are responding to the youth fentanyl overdose crisis in the Bay Area.   Guests:  Geralyn Maul-Vasquez, who lost her son to an accidental fentanyl overdose Dr. Veronika Mesheriakova, director, UCSF's Youth Outpatient Substance Use Program Mary Ann Dewan, superintendent of schools, Santa Clara County Office of Education  Avery Kalafatas, founder, Project 1 Life Host: Keith Menconi

It’s not every day that you get to witness a genuine scientific breakthrough, but on Tuesday that’s exactly what the scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory had to share with the world with their announcement that they had ignited a fusion reaction that produced more energy than it took to create. This milestone, decades in the making, brings us one step closer to harnessing a potentially limitless source of clean energy. So on this edition of KCBS In Depth, we’ll hear from one of the scientists who helped get us here about how he and his colleagues managed to pull it off.  Guests:  Arthur Pak, among the scientists involved in the ignition experiment  Umair Irfan, correspondent, Vox Host: Keith Menconi 

On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we take a closer look at the science of the immune system to help understand why viral infections like flu and RSV are surging this year after two relatively mild winter seasons. Guests:  Dr. Michael Rose, physician specializing in internal medicine and pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Dr. Keren Landman, senior reporter covering public health and infectious diseases, Vox  Host: Keith Menconi