KQED's Forum

Longtime New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof has reported from war zones and humanitarian crises and has examined our own nation’s struggles with poverty, addiction and homelessness. And yet, in his new memoir, “Chasing Hope,” Kristof calls himself an optimist. Journalism, he says, is an act of hope in itself. We talk to Kristof about what he’s learned about the power of storytelling to make people care about issues near and far.Guests:Nicholas Kristof, columnist, New York Times; his new memoir is "Chasing Hope: A Reporter's Life" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Governor Gavin Newsom is calling for swifter reforms to California’s beleaguered home insurance market as homeowners across the state continue to lose coverage or face rate hikes. A growing number of insurance companies have stopped writing new policies in the state, citing increased climate-related risks and higher costs. Meanwhile, the state’s fire coverage of last resort, the FAIR plan, is overwhelmed and facing its own financial crisis. Newsom said this month he is drafting legislation that would speed up how quickly insurance companies can increase rates, a change insurers say they need to do business in the state. We’ll get the latest on the home insurance crisis and take your questions.Guests:Danielle Venton, science reporter, KQED NewsAmy Bach, executive director and cofounder, United Policyholders - a San Francisco-based nonprofit that advocates for insurance consumersKarl Susman, president and principal agent, Susman Insurance Services, Inc.Michael Soller, deputy insurance commissioner for communications and press relations, State of California Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Humanitarian aid groups are reporting “unprecedented” levels of starvation for over 2 million people in Gaza, after nearly eight months of Israeli military bombardment and blockades. Another 5 million people are estimated to face “acute” food shortage in Haiti between March and June, and according to the United Nations, the threat of famine looms for 18 million people in east Africa as Sudan enters its second year of civil war. These hunger crises could have long-lasting effects; according to biologist and early development specialist Tessa Roseboom, the impacts of near starvation are likely to be experienced by generations to come. Her research focuses on people who were born during or shortly after the Dutch “Hunger Winter,” a result of German blockades in the final months of World War II. We speak with Roseboom about her research and its implications for people experiencing starvation in current conflicts around the world.Guests:Abby Maxman, president and CEO, Oxfam AmericaDr. Tessa Roseboom, professor of early development and health, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

During the Trump Administration, scenes of children separated from parents and placed in chain link cells that looked like cages caused a national outcry. But the policy of immigration detention in the U.S. is far from new. With historical roots in slavery and the treatment of indigenous people, it has been used on Jews fleeing Nazi Germany, migrants from civil wars in Central America and immigrants from around the world since the policy was codified in 1891. In her new book, “In the Shadow of Liberty,” Stanford professor Ana Raquel Minian traces the nation’s detention policy by focusing on individual stories of immigrants past and present. We talk to Minian about why she believes immigrant detention doesn’t make us safer and her recommendations for a different path forward.Guests:Ana Raquel Minian, associate professor of history, Stanford University; author, "In the Shadow of Liberty" and "Undocumented Lives: The Untold Story of Mexican Migration" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A generation of American folk singers – including Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and Woody Guthrie – owe their inspiration to a little-known New Deal project known as the U.S. Music Unit. Over the course of two years, federal workers recorded amateur musicians at government-owned homesteads as a way to “raise morale, build community, and create hope,” according to music scholar Sheryl Kaskowitz. The Music Unit made hundreds of recordings for the Library of Congress before it was shut down on grounds that it was “socialistic.” We talk to Kaskowitz about the people behind the music and hear some songs from archives. Kaskowitz’s new book is “A Chance to Harmonize.”Guests:Sheryl Kaskowitz, author, "A Chance to Harmonize: How FDR’s Hidden Music Unit Tried to Save America from the Great Depression—One Song at a Time" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Whether you’re looking for an outdoor excursion, a quiet art gallery to wander through or a rousing show for an evening’s entertainment, KQED’s Arts & Culture team has got you covered. From festival dates to soccer schedules, the 2024 Summer Guide has recommendations in the Bay Area covering every interest and price point. We’ll get a temperature check on how the region’s arts and culture ecosystem is faring and hear from reporters about what they’re looking forward to this season.Guests:Gabe Meline, senior editor, KQED Arts & CultureNastia Voynovskaya, editor and reporter, KQED ArtsDavid John Chávez, theatre critic; author of the theater portion of KQED’s summer arts previewAlan Chazaro, arts and food reporter, KQED; also a poet and educator Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gov. Gavin Newsom last week proposed a series of deep cuts to close the state’s $45 billion budget deficit. The proposals, which include no new taxes, include a nearly 8% cut to state operations and the elimination of 10,000 unfilled jobs and will affect some education, public health and affordable housing programs. The governor’s office says that the proposal “maintains service levels for key housing, food, health care, and other assistance programs.” We look at the Governor’s May revise and the fiscal health of our state.Guests:Guy Marzorati, correspondent, KQED's California Politics and Government DeskMichelle Gibbons, executive director, County Health Executives Association of CaliforniaLindsey Holden, legislative reporter, The Sacramento Bee Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential bid “is the most openly authoritarian campaign I’ve seen [from] any candidate anywhere in the world since World War II”. That’s according to Harvard political scientist Steven Levitsky, co-author of the book “How Democracies Die”. Trump’s stated plans include seeking revenge on political opponents, purging the federal workforce, ordering mass deportations, and deploying the military domestically. As part of Forum’s “Doing Democracy” series, we’ll talk with Levitsky and others about why democracy experts are sounding the alarm about a possible second Trump administration, and whether our institutions can withstand the upheaval.Guests:Steven Levitsky, professor of government, Harvard; co-author with Daniel Ziblatt of the New York Times bestseller "How Democracies Die." Their latest book is "Tyranny of the Minority: Why American Democracy Reached the Breaking Point."Lulu Garcia-Navarro, host, "The Interview" podcast, New York Times; former NPR correspondentEric Cortellessa, reporter, Time magazine - He interviewed Donald Trump for a cover story in April. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You may know actor and stand-up comedian Tiffany Haddish best for her riotous performance in the 2017 film “Girls Trip.” Or for her Emmy Award-winning turn as host of Saturday Night Live…or for her voicework in “The Lego Movie 2” and other animated films. But her successes came hard-won against a backdrop of childhood trauma and mental health challenges. “I know what it feels like to hurt and what it feels like to see other people hurt,” she writes in her new memoir “I Curse You with Joy.” We talk to Haddish about her career, her life and what’s bringing her joy right now.Guests:Tiffany Haddish, author, "I Curse You with Joy"; stand-up comedian; actress, "Girls Trip," "Night School," "Nobody's Fool" and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In his magazine profiles and podcasts, Oakland writer Carvell Wallace has a gift for examining people and the times we live in with clarity and wisdom. With his new memoir “Another Word for Love,” Wallace extends his compassionate gaze to his own story, tracing a childhood peppered with homelessness and abuse, through to his quest for healing, pleasure and the divine. “It is is not enough to be hurt and to know that you have been hurt,” he writes. “The price of being alive, of being in love, is that you are required to heal.”Guests:Carvell Wallace, author, "Another Word for Love: A Memoir"; 2023 recipient of the American Mosaic Journalism Prize; host, "Closer Than They Appear" and "Finding Fred"; his other book is "The Sixth Man" which he co-authored with Andre Iguodala Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices