KQED's Forum

Most Americans are now acutely aware that we have a housing crisis, but Atlantic writer Jerusalem Demsas says that we have much less clarity about what’s causing it. “All too often,” she writes, “explanations center around identifying a villain: greedy developers, or private equity companies, or racist neighbors, or gentrifiers, or corrupt politicians.” All which may be true, she says, but they fail to identify the root cause, that housing decisions are made at the hyper local level, in a tangle of zoning boards, historical preservation committees and sparsely attended meetings, “where no one is watching and no one is accountable.” We talk to Demsas about her new collection of essays, “On the Housing Crisis: Land, Development, Democracy” and why she thinks local governments are to blame for the housing shortage.

Guests:

Jerusalem Demsas, staff writer, Atlantic Magazine; author, On the Housing Crisis: Land, Development, Democracy

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Voice actors and motion-capture artists in SAG-AFTRA have been striking against major video game companies since July to secure protections against the use of "digital replicas" created by artificial intelligence. The union is demanding greater transparency, consent requirements, and fair compensation for A.I. use. We'll talk to video game performers on how the strike is impacting them and what it means for the industry.

Guests:

Mandalit del Barco, correspondent, NPR

Alberto Menache, motion capture specialist, co-founder of NPCx

Sarah Elmaleh , voice artist, director, chair of SAG-AFTRA Interactive Media Agreement Negotiating Committee

Andi Norris, actor, stunt and movement performer, member of SAG-AFTRA negotiating committee

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The Bay Area is home to a surprising number of symphonies and philharmonic orchestras. They’re found not just in San Francisco, San Jose and Oakland, but Walnut Creek, Santa Rosa Berkeley and other smaller cities also manage to support orchestras. September ushers in the start of a new season for many of these groups. But sustaining local performing arts organizations and introducing new audiences to classical music remains a huge challenge. We check in with local orchestras about their upcoming performances and how you can support the arts.

Guests:

Donato Cabrera, music and artistic director, California Symphony

Jessica Bejarano, founder and music director, San Francisco Philharmonic

Kedrick Armstrong, music director and conductor, Oakland Symphony

Gabe Meline, senior editor, KQED Arts & Culture

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Americans love big cars. But a new data analysis by the Economist finds the bigger the cars, the deadlier they are for pedestrians, for people driving smaller cars and for our roads and infrastructure. As the Economist’s Daniel Knowles writes, “for every life the heaviest 1% of SUVs or trucks saves in America, more than a dozen lives are lost in smaller vehicles.” Regulators are starting to consider ways car design could be safer for pedestrians and other drivers. But advocates say more needs to be done. As part of our In Transit series, we’ll take a closer look at the impact of big cars and hear from you: Do you love your big car? Why?

Guests:

Ethan Elkind, director of the Climate Program at the Center for Law, Energy and the Environment, UC Berkeley School of Law; host of the podcast, Climate Break

Daniel Knowles, Midwest correspondent, the Economist

Angie Schmitt, journalist, author of "RIGHT OF WAY: Race, Class, and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America", founder at 3MPH Planning and Consulting, focused on pedestrian safety

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For years, people felt good drinking a glass or two of red wine for the supposed health benefits, but last year the World Health Organization declared that “no level of alcohol consumption is safe for our health.” The debate over alcohol and health is happening as the federal government prepares to release new dietary and nutrition guidelines next year. We’ll talk to experts about whether light drinking is harmful and what we can expect from the new guidelines. And we want to hear from you, how much alcohol do you deem safe?

Guests:

Esther Mobley, senior wine critic, San Francisco Chronicle

Dr. Gregory Marcus, cardiologist, electrophysiologist and professor of medicine, University of California, San Francisco

Adam Sherk, scientist, Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research at the University of Victoria - He is also a researcher for the World Health Organization's Collaborating Centre for Alcohol and Public Health Policy.

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Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump take the stage Tuesday night for their first Presidential debate. The only debate on the books before November’s election, it’s being held in the key swing state of Pennsylvania. Political analysts are watching for how the two challenge each other on the key issues of immigration, health care and the economy – as well as for the pair’s cadence and debate strategies. Mics will only be turned on for the candidate speaking; there will be no in-room audience. Thirty percent of Americans say the debate will inform their vote, according to a NPR-Marist poll released Tuesday morning. We’ll recap the major takeaways with KQED’s politics team and hear your reactions.

Guests:

Marisa Lagos, politics correspondent, KQED - co-host of KQED's Political Breakdown

Scott Shafer, senior editor, KQED’s California Politics and Government; co-host, Political Breakdown

Guy Marzorati, correspondent, KQED's California Politics and Government Desk

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Michael Blecker spent three years as an infantryman in Vietnam, and the last four decades fighting for veterans as the executive director of the nonprofit Swords to Plowshares. In that role, Blecker has spearheaded efforts to help vets suffering from the psychic and physical wounds of war. He’s concentrated his work on issues that have plagued veterans including poverty, illnesses like Agent Orange or Gulf War Syndromes, homelessness and despair. Along the way, Blecker has earned praise as one of the country’s leading and most effective advocates for veterans. Nancy Pelosi, calls him an “American hero.” Blecker retires this year, and we talk to him about his life in service.

Guests:

Michael Blecker, Executive Director, Swords to Plowshares, a nonprofit based in San Francisco and focused on supporting veterans

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During her first major interview since becoming the Democratic party nominee, Kamala Harris was asked by CNN if she would appoint a Republican to her cabinet. She replied, “I would,” and added, “I think it’s important to have people at the table and when some of the most important decisions are being made that have different views, different experiences.” In response, vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance told Fox News that former President Trump would appoint a Democrat to his cabinet if elected. While the U.S. hasn’t had an opposite-party cabinet member since the Obama Administration, there’s significant precedent for the practice. We’ll look at the history of presidents, from Lincoln to Obama, appointing cabinet members not from their party, what impact those appointments had and what’s possible in today’s politically polarized environment.

Guests:

Lindsay Chervinsky, presidential historian; executive director, George Washington Presidential Library - author, “Making the Presidency: John Adams and the Precedents That Forged the Republic”

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What a difference a few months makes. June’s presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump made history, as Biden’s poor performance led to his withdrawal from the race. On Tuesday, his replacement, Kamala Harris, will debate Trump for the first, and perhaps only time. With polls showing a tightening race (the closest in 60 years, according to CNN), both campaigns are hoping this debate moves the needle. Harris is trying to define herself for the many voters who say they don’t know enough about who she is and where she stands. For his part, Trump has been claiming without evidence that the debate is “rigged” on Harris’ behalf. We’ll preview the debate and get the latest on the race, with less than two months before Election Day.

Guests:

James Fallows, contributing writer, The Atlantic - and author of the newsletter Breaking the News. He was chief White House speechwriter for Jimmy Carter

Sabrina Siddiqui , White House Reporter, Wall Street Journal

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We’ve been hearing about women mobilizing to protect reproductive rights but so are an increasing number of men. In 2019 fewer than one in ten men said that abortion rights are a top voting issue; now the figure is 1 in 5, according to new polling. The group Men4Choice says it’s mobilizing men who were once “passively pro-choice” as many have come to witness their partners’ struggles to access reproductive care. Are you a man who’s concerned about abortion rights this election?

Guests:

Amanda Becker, Washington Correspondent, The 19th

Oren Jacobson, co-founder and executive director, Men4Choice

Carter Sherman, reproductive health and justice reporter, The Guardian

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