

The Bay
KQED
Bay Area-raised host Ericka Cruz Guevarra talks with local journalists about what’s happening in the greatest region in the country. It’s the context and analysis you need to make sense of the news, with help from the people who know it best. New episodes drop Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Sep 26, 2025 • 16min
Why Girls’ Flag Football Could Be the Next Big Sport
Girls’ flag football is exploding in popularity at high schools across the Bay Area, especially since the sport was officially sanctioned by California in 2023. It coincides with the rise of professional women’s sports teams like the Golden State Valkyries and Bay FC, cementing the Bay’s status as a leader in women's sports.
Links:
How the Bay became the new capital of women’s sports
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 24, 2025 • 17min
A Reporter Gave Tenderloin Kids Disposable Cameras. This Is What They Showed
San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood has the highest concentration of children in the city. But stories about the Tenderloin often overlook this fact.
Reporter Cami Dominguez worked with a local nonprofit to give kids in the neighborhood disposable cameras for a week. Today, we talk about what the photos show.
Links:
Photos Capture SF’s Tenderloin Through the Eyes of Kids Who Live There
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 22, 2025 • 17min
As Small Farms Face Federal Cuts, Local Food Banks Will Take a Big Hit
Local food banks are about to lose a key source of fresh, local produce after the Department of Agriculture ended the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program or LFPA. The program was a key source of revenue for small, local farms that played a major role in keeping people fed during the pandemic.
Links:
Small Farms Fed the Bay Area During COVID. But Now Face Federal Cuts
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 19, 2025 • 24min
Meet Misa James, Winner of the KQED x Good Compenny Bay Area Music Showcase
Earlier this summer, KQED in partnership with LaRussell and Good Compenny hosted a Bay Area Music Showcase in Vallejo. After more than 200 submissions, five artists from the Bay Area were selected to compete for real recognition.
Today, first place winner Misa James talks with us about his music, being an artist in San Jose, and his hopes after his win.
Links:
Listen to Misa James’ Music
LaRussell, Ruby Ibarra, Souls of Mischief, Misa James and more perform in San Jose Sunday Sept. 21
Watch Misa James perform at the KQED x Good Compenny Bay Area Music Showcase
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 17, 2025 • 21min
Trump Directs National Parks to Erase Histories That ‘Disparage Americans’
Earlier this Spring, the Trump Administration issued an Executive Order telling U.S. National Park Service staff, including those in California, to scrub parks of any materials that “inappropriately disparage Americans past or living.” Advocates and park workers say following through has been confusing and chaotic, and many worry that a true record of California’s history is at stake.
Links:
As Trump Targets National Parks that 'Disparage Americans,’ Advocates Warn California History Is At Stake
What’s Going on With the Muir Woods Exhibit Removal?
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 15, 2025 • 31min
Surviving Suicide Loss in Palo Alto
In the early to mid-2000s Palo Alto was rocked by a cluster of teen suicides. For Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, we’re airing a documentary from audio reporter and producer I-Yun Chan, who traveled to Palo Alto to help her understand her own loss, and what it means to live on after someone losing someone to suicide.
This story was edited by Shereen Marisol Meraji and was made in the audio program at UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism. It was engineered by Chris Hoff.
This episode discusses suicide. If you are experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 12, 2025 • 16min
Meet the Valkyries' DJs Whose Job Is to Make Ballhalla Go Wild
The Golden State Valkyries’ first season has been a huge success. Next week, they’ll be the first WNBA expansion team to appear in the playoffs.
The Valkyries aren't just good; they're fun to watch. Part of their appeal is the community around the team, which embraces women and LGBTQ people. This is also reflected in the team's official DJs, whose job it is to set the mood at Chase Center, AKA Balhalla.
Links:
Meet the DJs Bringing the Pride and the Party to the Valkyries’ Ballhalla
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 10, 2025 • 22min
SF’s Newest Park Could Cost This Supervisor His Job
There's another recall election in the Bay Area. This time, it's in San Francisco's Sunset District on the city's west side.
Voters in District 4 have until Tuesday, Sept. 16 to vote in a special recall election for Supervisor Joel Engardio, who faces backlash from constituents after supporting Prop. K, which closed a portion of the Great Highway for a new park.
Links:
Your Guide to the Special Recall Election of San Francisco Supervisor Joel Engardio
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 8, 2025 • 25min
‘It Just Felt Like the World Was Burning’: Remembering the 2020 Fires
In August 2020, a dry lightning storm kicked off an unprecedented siege of wildfires. These firestorms lasted for months, destroyed 9,000 structures and killed 31 people. Millions of residents throughout the region breathed in toxic smoke as the sky turned orange and the pandemic raged on.
As we mark five years since the sky turned orange, we’re bringing you stories from people who lived through the 2020 fires, in their own words.
Links:
The Summer That Changed California Forever
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 5, 2025 • 19min
Volunteers Monitor for ICE Activity to Support Day Laborers
Hundreds of people are signing up to 'adopt' street corners near where day laborers gather to find work. Their goal? To keep an eye out for ICE agents.
KQED labor correspondent Farida Jhabvala Romero takes us to one intersection in East Oakland to meet some of these volunteers.
Links:
Volunteers ‘Adopt’ Street Corners To Monitor For ICE Activity
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices