KQED's Forum

Former White House press secretary Jen Psaki says she learned some of her most effective communication strategies “the hard way.” These techniques were absorbed, refined and stress-tested on her rise to one of the most powerful communication roles in the nation. And as she writes in her new book, they’re “applicable to a wide range of life experiences, whether you’re a parent talking to a teacher about your preschooler, a friend trying to encourage a coworker to take a risk, or a young female staffer trying to convince the most powerful man in the world what he might want to include in his State of the Union address.” We talk to Psaki about how to achieve common understanding and about the importance of knowing your audience, especially in our politically divided nation. Her new book is called “Say More: Lessons from Work, the White House, and the World.”

Guests:

Jen Psaki, host, "Inside With Psaki" on MSNBC; former White House press secretary under President Biden; White House communications director under President Obama

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the newly named Brazil bureau chief for the New York Times, Ernesto Londoño had hit a journalistic zenith. Yet, he had never been more depressed. Contemplating suicide and eager for a way out of his sadness, Londoño signed up for an Amazonian ayahuasca retreat. He was initially skeptical of the drug’s ability to alter his mental health trajectory, but ultimately that experience ended up changing Londoño’s life. That story centers his new book, “Trippy,” which also looks at the promise and peril of medicinal psychedelics.

Guests:

Ernesto Londoño, author, "Trippy: The Peril and Promise of Medicinal Psychedelics"; national correspondent, the New York Times; Londoño has reported from Iraq and Afghanistan

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A New York state jury on Thursday found former President Donald Trump guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records. Those falsified records were to cover up a hush-money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels during Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. After being the first former U.S. president to stand trial for felony charges, Trump is now the first president to be found guilty in criminal court. His sentencing date is set for July 11 — days before the Republican National Convention. We’ll talk about the verdict, the sentencing and the expected appeals ahead. And we’ll break down the political repercussions within California and the nation.

Guests:

Shanlon Wu, criminal defense attorney; CNN legal analyst; former federal prosecutor who also served as counsel to Attorney General Janet Reno

Melissa Murray, professor of law, NYU School of Law - co-host of the Strict Scrutiny podcast

Andrea Bernstein, covered five Trump trials in New York for NPR, and the author of "American Oligarchs: the Kushners, the Trumps, and the Marriage of Money and Power." She is also the co-host of the podcasts "We Don't Talk About Leonard," "Will Be Wild," and "Trump, Inc."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A New York jury found Donald Trump guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, making him the first current or former president in US history to become a convicted felon. It’s earth shaking news and still, the presidential race, with Trump in it, continues on. We’ll talk about what happens next, how the politics might shake out and we’ll hear from listeners and process all of our reactions.

Guests:

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

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

David Graham, staff writer, The Atlantic

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A recent New York Times investigation reveals how violent radical elements in Israel’s settler movement in the West Bank have been allowed to operate with impunity for decades. The report, based in part on accounts by Israeli officials, examines a two-tier system of justice where the authorities systematically ignored or enabled settler violence against Palestinians. Today, leaders of this extremist fringe have gained powerful positions within Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. We’ll talk with the report’s co-author, Mark Mazzetti, about the rise of Israeli extremism and what it means for the current war and U.S.-Israel relations.

Guests:

Mark Mazzetti, investigative reporter focusing on national security, New York Times; co-author, the May 16 cover story "The Unpunished: How Extremists Took Over Israel"

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Australian standup comedian Hannah Gadsby took the world by storm with their 2018 show Nanette, which paired punchlines with personal revelations about sexuality, art and gender-based violence. Since then, Gadsby has married, been diagnosed as autistic, and grappled with fame – all subjects of their subsequent standup performances. In June, Gadsby brings their latest show, Woof!, to the Bay Area. We talk with them about their unique brand of feel-good comedy, the searing social commentary that made them famous, and why “woof!” is the only sane reaction to our present reality.

Guests:

Hannah Gadsby, comedian

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When OpenAI released ChatGPT in 2022, schools and universities were quick to ban the use of the generative artificial intelligence chatbot. Teachers have reported students using the service to cheat and turn in plagiarized and inaccurate essays. But Sal Khan, the founder and CEO of Khan Academy, says generative AI can be a force for good in education. Khan Academy now has an educational AI chatbot, Khanmigo, which can guide students while still promoting critical thinking. Khan says developments like these could allow for every student to have a personal AI tutor and every teacher an AI teaching assistant. And Khan thinks incorporating AI in the classroom can allow for exciting new learning opportunities — with the right programming and guardrails. His new book is “Brave New Words.”

Guests:

Sal Khan, founder and CEO, Khan Academy - an education non-profit

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Every other January, hundreds of volunteers hit the stress across the Bay Area and attempt to count the number of unhoused people and families. The point-in-time count offers a snapshot into the scope of homelessness in different communities, but most experts agree the methodology is often inaccurate and flawed. The preliminary data for this year’s count is finally out and reveals jumps and declines in different cities across the Bay Area. We’ll talk to experts to demystify the counting process, understand this year’s numbers and discuss how data collection could be improved.

Guests:

Sydney Johnson, reporter, KQED News

Elester Hubbard, outreach supervisor, San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team (SFHOT)

Paul Boden, executive director, Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP)

Dr. Margot Kushel, professor of medicine, UCSF; director, UCSF Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative

Christin Evans, vice chair, San Francisco's Homelessness Oversight Commission; owner, Booksmith; co-owner, the Alembic bar

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

California’s $55 billion wine industry is experiencing a downturn for the first time in decades. Wine consumption peaked in 2021 and has fallen each year, dropping 8.7% in 2023 according to one industry report. With bottles sitting on store shelves, cases piling up in winemakers’ warehouses and farmers unable to sell their crops, the ripple effects of the drop in wine-buying are felt throughout the industry. In California’s Central Valley, certain grape growers are diversifying, swapping grapes for other crops; others are demolishing their vineyards and transitioning to solar farms. Financially strained growers, unable to pursue either option, are left with having to allow their crops to wither on the vine. But is this just a short-term market correction or is California’s wine industry in serious trouble? We look at the potential factors underlying the downturn and explore the impact on Californians.

Guests:

Esther Mobley, senior wine critic, San Francisco Chronicle

Amanda Mccrossin, wine content creator

Ryan Woodhouse, domestic wine buyer, K&L Wine Merchants

Stuart Spencer, executive director, Lodi Winegrape Commission; owner and winemaker, St. Amant Winery

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2010 bioethicist Carl Elliott published an extensive article detailing the red flags in a drug study that resulted in the death of one of the human subjects. But instead of the outrage and oversight he expected, the university defended its researchers and Elliott was ostracized by his colleagues. In his new book “The Occasional Human Sacrifice” Elliot shares his experience and those of other whistleblowers in the medical research world. We’ll talk with Elliot about why medical institutions make such formidable enemies, and why the people who revealed some of the biggest medical research scandals refused to stay silent.

Guests:

Carl Elliott, professor of philosophy, University of Minnesota; author, "The Occasional Human Sacrifice"

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices