KQED's Forum

The magazine Mother Jones and the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR), which produces the podcast Reveal, will be merging. Based in the Bay Area, the two news organizations both work on a nonprofit model and are known for their deeply reported investigative pieces. The two organizations share a long and collaborative history, and have done joint stories in the past such as the 2021 piece on sugar plantations that led the U.S. government to ban imports from the company in question. We’ll talk to the leaders of both news outlets about their plans and what the merger means for local and national journalism. Guests:Clara Jeffery, editor in chief, Mother JonesAl Letson, host, Center for Investigative Reporting's radio show and podcast "Reveal"Robert Rosenthal, CEO, Center for Investigative Reporting Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Vatican announced Monday that Catholic priests will be allowed to bless the unions of same sex couples. It’s seen as an important step toward a more inclusive approach to LGBTQ+ church members, but is not the same as a marriage sacrament, which is a formal ceremonial rite. The Vatican emphasized it does not amend “the traditional doctrine of the church about marriage” and should not be connected to a civil union or marriage-like ceremony. Still, it’s being cheered by more liberal members of the Church as a step in the right direction. We’ll examine Pope Francis’ new position and the reaction to it.Guests:Michael O'Loughlin, national correspondent and associate editor, America: The Jesuit Review; former reporter on the Catholic church, Boston Globe and Crux; author, "Hidden Mercy: AIDS, Catholics and the Untold Stories of Compassion in the Face of Fear"Harriet Ryan, investigative reporter, Los Angeles Times; author, "The fight to move the Catholic Church in America to the right — and the little-known O.C. lawyer behind it"Philip Pullella, vatican correspondent, Reuters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Large corporations have quietly bought large collections of homes in California, mostly for use as rental properties, often hidden behind complex networks of shell companies. A Sacramento appraiser has begun to crack the code, revealing more than ten thousand properties in California owned by one company, Invitation Homes. He joins us, with other experts, to discuss the extent of corporate home ownership across the state and its impact on renters, homebuyers, and the real estate market.Guests:Alex Lee, assemblymember, California State Assembly - he represents California’s 24th Assembly District which includes the Alameda County communities of Fremont, Newark, and Sunol, and the Santa Clara County communities of Milpitas and San JoseRyan Lundquist, residential appraiser and housing analyst, Sacramento areaAlana Semuels, economic correspondent, TIME magazine Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the Republicans’ majority in the House down to just three votes, control of Congress is very much up in the air next year. And once again the road to a majority for Democrats runs through California. Nonpartisan analysts say five House seats are up for grabs, all of them currently held by Republicans. We’ll check in on those races, plus the hotly contested race to replace Palo Alto Democrat Anna Eshoo who is retiring after 30 years in Washington.Guests:David Wasserman, senior editor & elections analyst, The Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan publication that monitors congressional races.Marisa Lagos, politics correspondent, KQED; co-host of KQED's Political Breakdown showIvy Cargile, associate professor in Political Science, California State University BakersfieldPaul Mitchell, vice-president, Political Data, Inc. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sea-level rise is already causing harm in the Bay Area, but it’s hard to picture what’s yet to come. Some Bay Area artists are using their crafts to imagine what our region might look like as waters continue to rise: drowned cities, hills turned into islands, and more commuting by boat. These visions of the future are manifested through graphic images, art installations and storytelling. For our latest installment of Climate Fix, Forum’s regular collaboration with KQED’s Science team, we’ll hear from the artists grappling with sea-level rise.Guests:Ezra David Romero, climate reporter, KQEDKristina Hill, director, Institute for Urban and Regional Development, College of Environmental Design, UC BerkeleyAna Teresa Fernández, artist, creator of the "On the Horizon" art installation that has been displayed on beaches in California, Mexico and at the San Francisco Cliff House.Nicole Gluckstern, playwright and director of "The Forever Wave," an audio play set in San Francisco in 2070 after major sea-level rise.Brian Stokle, urban planner and cartographer, co-created a series of poster maps that depict the Bay Area. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The end of the year is a time of reflection, and for some, a chance to reassess our priorities. But if the goal is greater happiness, says author and Harvard professor Arthur C. Brooks, we may be going about New Year’s resolutions all wrong. It’s great to try and lose weight or save more money, but research shows that practicing things like forgiveness and gratitude are actually more likely to increase overall happiness, he writes. Brooks joins us to talk about his new book, Build the Life You Want, co-authored with Oprah Winfrey, which offers strategies to increase happiness and well being, even in the face of hardship.Guests:Arthur C. Brooks, professor, Harvard; columnist, The Atlantic; co-author (with Oprah Winfrey) of "Build the Life You Want." His other books include "From Strength to Strength." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s the season of craft fairs, when artisans come out from their studios, or from a corner of an apartment stuffed with art supplies, and try to sell what they’ve made. We sit down with local craftspeople and creators to discuss the world of crafts, and what it means to be an artisan today in the Bay Area, where culture is rich but finances are always tight. We talk about hobbies, obsessions, side hustles, and why they’re such important parts of our lives and our community.Guests:Yina Kim, artist; storyteller; maker; founder, ODSY Workshop. She works and lives in the Sunset in San Francisco.Sam Saavedra, chain stitch embroiderer; owner, Mira Flores in Oakland.Jolie Karno, wood turner; instructor, The Crucible; founder, Lower 48Viviana Matsuda, ceramicist; owner, MUD WITCH Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 28th United Nations climate conference, COP28, ended Wednesday in Dubai with an agreement among nearly 200 nations to transition away from fossil fuels and achieve net zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050. California took the stage at the talks and joined subnational governments in task forces, including one committed to reducing methane emissions. We’ll talk about what the conference accomplished and where it fell short and analyze California’s role as a leader — and oil-producer — in fighting the climate crisis.Guests:Wade Crowfoot, secretary, California Natural Resources AgencyVijay Vaitheeswaran, global energy and climate innovation editor, The Economist Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When he opened his popular and award-winning restaurant Rintaro, Sylvan Mishima Brackett wanted to serve “the kind of food you’d expect if the Bay Area were a region of Japan.” At Rintaro, you’ll find dishes like yakitori brushed with tare sauce and seared on a binchotan grill, chicken and cheese katsu atop snowy piles of cabbage, and toothsome udon noodles piled in a clear, umami-packed broth. Now you can try to recreate these dishes that have brought raves from customers and critics at home with the “Rintaro” cookbook, which the New York Times just named one of the best cookbooks of the year. Brackett and his co-author Jessica Battilana join us to talk about all things Rintaro.Guests:Sylvan Mishima Brackett, owner and chef of Rintaro; former creative director of Chez PanisseJessica Battilana, co-author, "Rintaro: Japanese Food from an Izakaya in California. Battilana is also the author of "Repertoire: All The Recipes You Need" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What was your movie of the year? Maybe you were one of many who donned hot pink at the theaters. Maybe your movie of the year is one that just came out, or one you felt never got its due. 2023 was a weird year for movies: the SAG strike prevented actors from promoting their work; Marvel and Disney flicks underperformed; few expected “Barbie” to be the massive box office hit it was. We hear from critics about their favorite films of the year and the throughlines that connected them. From multifaceted, new and unexpected storylines about women, to examinations of evil and the everyday way it manifests, the best and worst of 2023’s movies have a lot in common. Join us to share the film that stood out to you this year, and to get ideas for movies to watch over the holidays.Guests:Alissa Wilkinson, movie critic, New York TimesDave Schilling, contributing writer, LA Times ImageKristen Meinzer, co-host, the podcast "Movie Therapy with Rafer and Kristen" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices