KCBS Radio In Depth

Chaos, frustration and a whole lot of unused doses: California’s vaccine rollout to date has been even more challenging than expected, so what’s it going to take to get the Golden State back on track as Covid-19 continues to spread? We look for answers on this edition of KCBS In Depth.

Guests: 

• Victoria Colliver, California-based health reporter for Politico
• Dr. Robert Wachter, professor, chair of UC San Francisco’s Department of Medicine

Host: Keith Menconi

On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we consider what the Democrats’ new voting majority in the Senate will mean for the incoming Biden-Harris Administration.

For some local perspective on that question, we speak with two California political watchers, who do their political watching from different sides of the partisan divide. 

Guests: 

• Aimee Allison, founder of She the People
• Mike Madrid, Republican political consultant; partner, GrassrootsLab; co-founder, The Lincoln Project

Host: Keith Menconi

2020 was certainly a year for the history books, but now that it’s finally over and done with what will be its lasting legacy? On this edition of KCBS In Depth we reflect on a very challenging year for the Bay Area with some of the newsmakers and experts who understand those challenges best. 

Guests:   

• Dr. John Swartzberg, emeritus professor of Public Health at UC Berkeley’s Division of Infectious Disease
• Chris Dicus, professor of wildland fire and fuels management at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
• Cat Brooks, co-founder of the Anti Police-Terror Project in Oakland 

Host: Keith Menconi 

It’s a cruel paradox of the Covid-19 pandemic: Many of the communities that have been the most heavily impacted are also among the very hardest for health officials to reach.

On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we turn our focus to the health crisis facing the Bay Area’s Latino community and the local organizers who have stepped up to bridge the gap. 

Guests: 

• Jacqueline Franco, co-founder, META
• Saúl Ramos, deputy director, SOMOS Mayfair 

Host: Keith Menconi 

One of the key officials helping to shape San Francisco’s response to the pandemic just got bumped up to statewide office: That’s San Francisco Health Officer Dr. Tomas Aragon, who will soon be moving on to lead California’s Department of Public Health as both director and health officer. 

On this edition of KCBS In Depth, we speak with Dr. Aragon about his leadership in San Francisco as well as the very important job he has waiting for him just ahead. 

Host: Keith Menconi

Faced with a rapidly growing Covid-19 surge, six Bay Area counties over this past week called an early start to the governor’s stay at home order. On this edition of KCBS In Depth we’ll be hearing why one county decided to hold off. 

Then in the second half of the program we discuss a continuing area of disagreement in the pandemic response: Which activities pose the greatest Covid danger.  

Guests: 

• Louise Rogers, chief of San Mateo County Health  
• Apoorva Mandavilli, New York Times reporter focusing on science and global health

Host: Keith Menconi 

The third wave of Covid-19 is gathering force in the Bay Area, so on this edition of KCBS In Depth we take a closer look at the effort to make sure the region is ready for what's coming. 

First up, we'll discuss the latest health orders that have come down this past week and how effective they might be. Then in the second half we'll check in with a major hospital system to hear what they’re doing to prepare as the ICU beds fill up. 

Guests: 

• Dr. Art Reingold, a professor with UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health where he heads up the Division of Epidemiology 
• Dr. Stephen Parodi, an infectious disease specialist and an associate executive director with Kaiser Permanente  

Host: Keith Menconi

The days are growing colder, the nights are growing longer, but all the same challenges we’ve been facing in 2020 are still very much with us. Take it all together and many Bay Area nonprofits fear we could soon hit a breaking point.

On this edition of KCBS In Depth we discuss the soaring needs facing low-income residents as we enter the holiday season, as well as what could be done to help. 

Guests: 

• Leslie Bacho, CEO, Second Harvest of Silicon Valley
• Bridget Balajadia, program manager of parish engagement, Catholic Charities Santa Clara County

Host: Keith Menconi

It’s now been almost three weeks since election day, but the political tumult isn’t letting up, and the shockwaves are being felt all across the nation including right here in the Bay Area. 

On this edition of KCBS In Depth we discuss how this time of political division is impacting the lives of average Bay Area residents and also consider what could be done to bridge the gap. 

Guest: Eric Liu, co-founder and CEO, Citizen University

Host: Keith Menconi 

Misleading stories, conspiracy theories, outright lies: This election cycle seems likely to have been targeted by disinformation on an even larger scale than we saw in 2016.

On this edition of KCBS In Depth we'll hear about the efforts taking place on the airwaves and online to push back against the false claims and help the truth rise to the surface.

Guests: 

Host: Keith Menconi