Greater LA

By KCRW

Local

What's Greater LA about?

Host Steve Chiotakis connects you to the people and places of Southern California.

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Amid changing abortion laws...

06.08.2023

Reproductive health workers nationally have been turning to unions for support since the fall of Roe v. Wade. Planned Parenthood in Orange County could be next. Unions across industries are staging more strikes and showing more solidarity, prompting some experts ...

Greater LA episodes:

06.08.2023 Amid changing abortion laws, OC clinic workers seek union protection Reproductive health workers nationally have been turning to unions for support since the fall of Roe v. Wade. Planned Parenthood in Orange County could be next. Unions across industries are staging more strikes and showing more solidarity, prompting some experts ...
06.07.2023 Will LA see more ‘social housing?’ California and LA are seeing major pushes for “social housing,” which is government-supported, not owned by a for-profit entity, and is affordable to people of different income levels. Public housing used to be enormously popular in Los Angeles, but that ...
06.06.2023 Some VA benefits get in the way as veterans try to secure housing Some disabled veterans are shut out of supportive housing due to VA disability income. It’s a catch-22 that reflects larger challenges in filling subsidized units. Across from LA City Hall, a vacant lot has signs that boast, “Good things are ...
06.06.2023 Are you doing any good by throwing food waste into green bins? Yes If you put food scraps into a green bin with your yard waste, are you truly helping the planet? For LA residents, the answer is definitely yes. With over 80% of major event ticket sales in California, Ticketmaster/Live Nation has ...
06.01.2023 Meet the bumble bee Census counters As bumble bees decline, local volunteers fan out to find them. Together they’ll create the California Bumble Bee Atlas to help guide conservation decisions. June ushers in Pride month and with it celebrations and remembrances. Brody Levesque of the Los ...
05.31.2023 Quantifying your garbage footprint — to reduce it Sometimes the best way to cope with anxiety over the climate crisis is to focus on something you can control. So why not start with your trash? The beloved video store Vidiots reopens its doors this week with a bigger ...
05.30.2023 Small businesses near Hollywood studios feel financial pain of writers’ strike Small businesses that support the film/TV industry are feeling the economic ripple effects of the ongoing Hollywood writers’ strike. A proposed expansion of the city’s “adaptive reuse” ordinance could make it easier to transform unused commercial and office buildings into ...
05.25.2023 Which wild plants can you find and eat in LA? After a record-breaking rainy season, LA’s hills are blanketed in fresh, green foliage. That’s great news for local foragers who spend their free time harvesting edible plants. A local designer, a clothing line using dyes from plants, and an environmental ...
05.24.2023 Slow state payments push child cares to the brink Last year, the state approved hundreds of millions of federal dollars to help child care providers through the pandemic. Eight months later, most payments haven't arrived. Set in California and Florida, TC Boyle’s latest novel “Blue Skies” finds humor plus ...
05.23.2023 Catalytic converter thefts: Car owners, cops, insurance adjusters try keeping up Catalytic converter thefts more than tripled in LA County last year, and some victims are replacing the $3,000 car part just to have it stolen again. So Yun Um’s new documentary “ Liquor Store Dreams ” explores her upbringing in ...
05.22.2023 Get to know LA’s Iranian communities — by car LA boasts the largest population of Iranian immigrants in the world. Learn how they’ve shaped the area’s landscapes and neighborhoods with a new car tour. LA City Council members on Thursday committed an unprecedented $1.3 billion to the homelessness crisis. ...
05.18.2023 Could unrest from writers, directors, and actors bury Hollywood? After more than two weeks of striking, film/TV writers and their supporters are finding new ways to keep up the energy at the picket lines. WGA West Vice President Michele Mulroney says they’re prepared for a lengthy strike to meet ...
05.17.2023 Ren Faire ‘brats’ help keep SoCal’s 16th-century party alive Kids are carrying on the tradition at the Original Renaissance Pleasure Faire, which celebrates its 60th anniversary this year. Artist Sarah Rosalena’s new show “Standard Candle” focuses on women’s uncredited work that explores the cosmos and Native American traditions. Joshua ...
05.16.2023 Can restoration efforts lure steelhead back to Malibu Creek? Scientists and fly-fishers work to return the endangered Southern California steelhead to its native waters in Malibu Creek by removing invasive fish and an obsolete dam. USC goes all in on artificial intelligence with a $1 billion “ Frontiers of ...
05.16.2023 Prop HHH is now on track to exceed its housing goals Prop HHH, the LA voter-approved $1.2 billion homeless housing bond measure, has been slow and costly. But six years in, thousands of units are finally opening. In East West Players’ “On This Side of the World,” theater-goers hear stories of ...
05.11.2023 Inside LA’s vibrant Asian American and Native American theater scenes Asian American artists in LA are working to break apart the “Asian American monolith” by telling more nuanced stories and experimenting with form. LA-based Native American theater creators are also having a moment. Larissa FastHorse and DeLannaStudi talk about what ...
05.10.2023 Lonely? Here’s your guide to making friends in LA Feeling lonely is normal. It’s also a sign you’re looking for community. Here’s a list of practical suggestions for making friends in LA. Americana artist Doug Levitt has traveled over 120,000 Greyhound bus miles, turning stories he’s heard into songs ...
05.09.2023 Karen’s Diner: Angelenos eat up waiters’ terrible service Part restaurant, part in-your-face comedy show, Hollywood pop-up Karen’s Diner is where staff scream at you. Terrible service is actually a selling point here. “Romeo and Juliet Suite” hits the stage and the screen this week in Benjamin Millepied’s multimedia ...
05.08.2023 LA’s biggest air polluters must be more transparent, new bill demands Residents in southern LA County face increased asthma and cancer risk. One state legislator is trying to bring them relief by closing air pollution loopholes. Workers in LA’s massive fashion district fought to rewrite a new community plan that will ...
05.04.2023 ‘Extremely powerful place to be’: Hundreds make Manzanar pilgrimage For many years, Californians have converged on Manzanar to remember the Japanese Americans who were incarcerated there during World War II. A new community science project from NASA and UCLA is teaching the public to listen to and identify the ...
05.03.2023 Will the future of dating apps rely on AI? The dating app Snack helps its users cut through the small talk by employing artificial intelligence to have conversations with their matches for them. After 152 years, Calle de los Negros – site of the most lethal act of racial ...
05.02.2023 ‘Gone to the Wolves’ brings LA’s 1980s metal scene back to life In John Wray’s new novel “Gone to the Wolves,” the characters travel from Florida swamps to the 1980s Sunset Strip to Norway –– all in the name of metal. More than 11,000 film and TV writers hit the picket lines ...
05.01.2023 Can LA get its CARE Court system running by December? LA County, the epicenter of the state’s mental health crisis, is rushing to be one of the first with a CARE Court that could require treatment for mental illness. California is facing an unprecedented mental health crisis that has been ...
04.27.2023 LA poised to be leader in sustainable aquaculture and ‘blue tech’ From kelp farming to underwater robots, Los Angeles is becoming the Silicon Valley of the sea. For people experiencing homelessness, it can be tough to stay in touch with friends and family. The nonprofit Miracle Messages aims to make it ...
04.26.2023 Tipping is confusing. Here are tips to do it right As more restaurants ask for tips and service fees, it can be hard to know where gratuity really counts. KCRW offers your go-to guide. The City of LA is writing new rules to keep pandemic-era outdoor dining going strong. But ...
04.25.2023 City Nature Challenge: Help biologists discover rare species The City Nature Challenge began as a friendly rivalry between LA and San Francisco. Now millions of people globally are helping biologists by taking photos of their local plants and animals. Local governments must provide green bins for California residents. ...
04.24.2023 Why Armenians in LA are moving back to their native country SoCal has long been home to Armenian Americans, but now more of them are migrating in the other direction to build stronger ties to their heritage in Armenia. The Hillside Villa apartments in Chinatown were under a city covenant to ...
04.20.2023 This beatboxer shows you how to make art out of your breath Shodekeh Talifero is a beatboxer, composer, and “breath artist.” Before he hits the Broad Stage this weekend, he’s teaching Santa Monica College students about breath and movement. Former LA Mayor Richard Riordan died this week. The businessman-turned-politician led LA after ...
04.19.2023 Community land trusts: Idea for affordable housing catches on in LA LA’s community land trusts aim to keep housing affordable by letting residents own the buildings they live in. They’re also a radical experiment in living cooperatively. LA County’s mental health hotline is 988, but long wait times and bureaucratic rigmarole ...
04.18.2023 Abortion doulas want to protect the right to bodily autonomy A group of doulas with the Los Angeles Abortion Support Collective are organizing to protect abortion access as states respond to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. The Queen Mary has stayed afloat for almost 90 years. After a multimillion ...
04.17.2023 Tough guy Danny Trejo wants you to eat well, care for others “ Trejo’s Cantina ” features stories about Danny Trejo’s time on the streets, in prison, and on film sets — plus recipes for non-alcoholic drinks and “Fight Night Nachos.” The California Air Resources Board keeps car companies honest by checking ...
04.13.2023 Born & Razed: Downey’s changing economy, demographics, and art scene Dave Alvin formed Americana band The Blasters in Downey with his brother Phil, then went solo in the 1980s, but returned to show KCRW around. In the 1990s, Downey rapidly shifted its demographics to become mostly a Latino area. It ...
04.12.2023 LA gas plant will switch to hydrogen: Environmentalists are worried One of LA’s gas power plants will start burning hydrogen to meet clean energy goals. The controversial decision has some worried about air quality and explosion risks. LA’s mosquito population has been on the rise for a decade, but a ...
04.11.2023 Can growing weed indoors be more environmentally-friendly? Los Angeles is the epicenter of indoor cannabis cultivation in Southern California, but how intensive is it on our environment, and is there a better way? In the San Fernando Valley and South LA, council seats have been left empty ...
04.10.2023 Can CA’s most notorious prison become modern rehab center? Gov. Newsom announced plans to transform San Quentin into a Norwegian-style restorative environment. That would require overcoming gangs, racial divides, and structural inequality that runs deeper in the U.S. than Scandinavia. The pros and cons of electric vehicle purchases are ...
04.06.2023 Easter Sunday: LA drag queens to protest anti-LGBTQ legislation Wear your Sunday best. At Drag March LA, scheduled for Easter Sunday, drag queens take the stage to protest the rise in anti-LGBTQ legislation. LA’s Rashida Holmes and Greg Dulan are James Beard Award finalists. The pandemic may have played ...
04.05.2023 LA’s Homeboy Threads: Recycling clothes, creating jobs A new business focused on training formerly incarcerated people is now diverting thousands of pounds of clothes from landfill each month. Director Colin K. Gray’s “Unzipped” follows housed and unhoused residents of Venice, California in the struggle for the soul ...
04.03.2023 Looking back on 100 years of Tinseltown’s Hollywood Sign This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Hollywood Sign. It’s been at the center of scandals, PR stunts, and more during its time perched up on Mount Lee. In 1978, the Hollywood Sign was in a sad state, so ...
03.30.2023 Leadership in LA’s alcohol scene: Women are giving it a shot As women rise to positions of authority within LA’s alcohol industry, they are using their experiences to support one another and create welcoming spaces. Americana at Brand, the elusive local internet celebrity, talks about his niche brand of humor, how ...
03.29.2023 Robert Luna: No more ‘us vs. them’ Sheriff’s Department mentality Robert Luna takes charge of the LA Sheriff's Department amid concerns about crime, deputy gangs, and poor jail conditions. Can he turn the department around?
03.28.2023 Sad and sick of storms? Doctor explains seasonal affective disorder Back-to-back winter storms in Southern California have got us feeling the blues. Could it be seasonal affective disorder? Tensions are rising in the Orange Unified School District boardroom, and the stakes are as high as defending democracy and protecting children. ...
03.27.2023 ‘Skip the Small Talk’: Like speed dating but for making friends Are you having a hard time making friends as an adult? Speed friending events are popping up across LA to help folks connect. Balboa Island’s ferry has been making the trip back and forth across the harbor since 1919, but ...
03.23.2023 No more fence around Echo Park? Residents have divided opinions Two years after police cleared a large homeless camp and the city fenced Echo Park Lake amid massive protests, a new council member wants to bring down the chain link barrier. Reactions are mixed. A new exhibit at the Honor ...
03.22.2023 Can LA capture enough stormwater to meet residents’ needs? SoCal’s drought restrictions are over for now, but this winter’s rainwater won’t last long. LA County captured lots of stormwater, but not enough to provide lasting relief. May 1 is the end of the contract between Hollywood studios and film/TV ...
03.21.2023 LAUSD strike begins. What’s ahead for workers, students? Two teachers — from an elementary school and a high school — explain why they’re striking in solidarity with LAUSD workers such as custodians and bus drivers. Plus, how to get resources for surviving the strike, and what’s driving this ...
03.21.2023 On eve of likely LAUSD strike, how’s community bracing itself? KCRW hears from parents, teachers, LAUSD’s Jackie Goldberg, and SEIU’s Lester Garcia as the district sits on the verge of a three-day shutdown. Following unprecedented amounts of winter rain, Orange County is struggling to save hillside housing and railways.
03.16.2023 LA street vendors fight for legal access to busiest spots in town Sidewalk vendors in LA are suing the city for access to no-vending zones as part of a broader push to make vending a viable legal business opportunity. The Actor’s Gang has been bringing theater classes to California prisons for over ...
03.15.2023 USC, UCLA women’s hoops teams in NCAA tournament: What to expect? Both USC and UCLA’s women’s basketball teams surpassed pre-season expectations by making the NCAA tournament. But how far can fans expect them to advance? Longtime LA politician Mark Ridley-Thomas finds himself on the wrong side of a 19-count federal corruption ...
03.14.2023 Inglewood Church wants to tag-team with Hollywood to spread hope A local Inglewood church backs an entertainment company and studio to spread a message of hope. Residents in the San Bernardino Mountains are still digging out from the snow. Now another storm bringing rain complicates the situation. In “L.A. Painter: ...
03.13.2023 Can Bass’ ‘Inside Safe’ homelessness effort overcome messy rollout? Mayor Karen Bass’s efforts to shelter unhoused Angelenos is scaling up fast. But some participants say the rollout has been messy and confusing. There’s no Oscar for Best Location. If there were, a San Fernando couple might win. They own ...

Older episodes

Greater LA

What's Greater LA about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Greater LA episodes:

Amid changing abortion laws, OC clinic workers seek union protection

Will LA see more ‘social housing?’

Some VA benefits get in the way as veterans try to secure housing

Are you doing any good by throwing food waste into green bins? Yes

Meet the bumble bee Census counters

Quantifying your garbage footprint — to reduce it

Small businesses near Hollywood studios feel financial pain of writers’ strike

Which wild plants can you find and eat in LA?

Slow state payments push child cares to the brink

Catalytic converter thefts: Car owners, cops, insurance adjusters try keeping up

Get to know LA’s Iranian communities — by car

Could unrest from writers, directors, and actors bury Hollywood?

Ren Faire ‘brats’ help keep SoCal’s 16th-century party alive

Can restoration efforts lure steelhead back to Malibu Creek?

Prop HHH is now on track to exceed its housing goals

Inside LA’s vibrant Asian American and Native American theater scenes

Lonely? Here’s your guide to making friends in LA

Karen’s Diner: Angelenos eat up waiters’ terrible service

LA’s biggest air polluters must be more transparent, new bill demands

‘Extremely powerful place to be’: Hundreds make Manzanar pilgrimage

Will the future of dating apps rely on AI?

‘Gone to the Wolves’ brings LA’s 1980s metal scene back to life

Can LA get its CARE Court system running by December?

LA poised to be leader in sustainable aquaculture and ‘blue tech’

Tipping is confusing. Here are tips to do it right

City Nature Challenge: Help biologists discover rare species

Why Armenians in LA are moving back to their native country

This beatboxer shows you how to make art out of your breath

Community land trusts: Idea for affordable housing catches on in LA

Abortion doulas want to protect the right to bodily autonomy

Tough guy Danny Trejo wants you to eat well, care for others

Born & Razed: Downey’s changing economy, demographics, and art scene

LA gas plant will switch to hydrogen: Environmentalists are worried

Can growing weed indoors be more environmentally-friendly?

Can CA’s most notorious prison become modern rehab center?

Easter Sunday: LA drag queens to protest anti-LGBTQ legislation

LA’s Homeboy Threads: Recycling clothes, creating jobs

Looking back on 100 years of Tinseltown’s Hollywood Sign

Leadership in LA’s alcohol scene: Women are giving it a shot

Robert Luna: No more ‘us vs. them’ Sheriff’s Department mentality

Sad and sick of storms? Doctor explains seasonal affective disorder

‘Skip the Small Talk’: Like speed dating but for making friends

No more fence around Echo Park? Residents have divided opinions

Can LA capture enough stormwater to meet residents’ needs?

LAUSD strike begins. What’s ahead for workers, students?

On eve of likely LAUSD strike, how’s community bracing itself?

LA street vendors fight for legal access to busiest spots in town

USC, UCLA women’s hoops teams in NCAA tournament: What to expect?

Inglewood Church wants to tag-team with Hollywood to spread hope

Can Bass’ ‘Inside Safe’ homelessness effort overcome messy rollout?