KQED's Forum

When infrastructure works, it’s a marvel. A soaring bridge. A sewer system that spirits away waste. Underground pipes that bring water, electricity and the internet to wherever we want it.. As engineering professor Debbie Chachra argues in her new book, infrastructure is an expression of our society’s values and our ability to work together. But we often take infrastructure for granted and we aren’t doing enough to care for it and build more of it. She’ll join us to help us pay attention to the things that undergird our world.

Guests:

Debbie Chachra, author, "How Infrastructure Works: Inside the Systems that Shape Our World"; professor of engineering, Olin College of Engineering in Massachusetts

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

Catch up on the our most compelling interviews of the week in 30 minutes or less! This episode MSNBC Host, author, podcaster, and more, Rachel Maddow joins Mina to talk about her new book "Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism" and Alexis interviews Emily Galvin-Almanza, co-founder of Partners for Justice, about a new approach to criminal justice.

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

Rotten Tomatoes, the site that rates movies according to how a tomato decomposes – from Certified Fresh to rotten – turns 25 this year. And its origin story isn’t only one of the dot-com boom: It began with Jackie Chan movies, a martial arts club and three UC Berkeley undergrads. The trio went on to found a website that changed the way we choose the movies we watch. We’ll talk with them about the Rotten Tomatoes’ beginnings and we’ll hear from you: How do you use Rotten Tomatoes? Does the tomatometer make or break whether you see a film?

Guests:

Senh Duong, creator and founding COO, Rotten Tomatoes

Patrick Lee, founding CEO, Rotten Tomatoes

Stephen Wang, founding CTO, Rotten Tomatoes

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

When someone calls your cell phone are you filled with dread, or even anger? Is it better to call or leave a text? And how long should a voicemail be, if you leave one at all? As our relationships with our mobiles and each other evolve, so do the goalposts of communication norms. The meanings of emojis seem to change with the seasons, and generational conflict can ensue when a parent ends a text to their teen with a period. We’ll talk with experts about why you should text before you call and how to avoid sounding passive aggressive over DMs. And we’ll hear from you – what are your communication pet peeves?

Guests:

Heather Kelly, technology reporter, The Washington Post

Carlos Cabrera-Lomeli, community engagement reporter, KQED

Lee Humphreys, professor and chair, department of communication, Cornell University

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

In his new book, “Fear is Just a Word,” Azam Ahmed chronicles the years-long journey of Miriam Rodriguez, who took it upon herself to find justice for her daughter after she was kidnapped in 2014 by one of the most violent gangs in Mexico. Rodriguez would eventually lead law enforcement to arrest nearly a dozen cartel members, doing much of the investigation and research herself, despite great risk to her and her family. Ahmed, a global investigative correspondent for the New York Times, shares that story with us, and explains how the cartels came to hold so much power in Mexico.

Guests:

Azam Ahmed, international investigative correspondent, The New York Times

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

An estimated 80 percent of criminal defendants in state courts in the US are represented by public defenders, who typically have huge caseloads. And their clients often need more than just legal help, many are dealing with poverty, homelessness, mental illness and other challenges. Operating in Alameda County and other places around the country, the non-profit Partners for Justice supports the work of public defenders by helping to connect clients to wrap-around social services. Embedded in public defenders’ offices, PFJ’s specially-trained advocates also work with clients to tell their own life stories and put their alleged crimes in context. The approach is known as “holistic defense” and advocates say it lowers incarceration rates and helps defendants rebuild their lives. We’ll talk with PFJ’s founder and a client advocate about their work.

Guests:

Jamir Graham, advocate, Partners for Justice

Emily Galvin-Almanza, founder and co-executive director, Partners for Justice

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

On October 3 the House of Representatives ousted California Congressman Kevin McCarthy as House Speaker. After the withdrawal of initial GOP nominee Steve Scalise, their next nominee, Jim Jordan, failed to receive a majority of votes in an election held Tuesday. The House leadership vacuum becomes increasingly problematic as President Biden continues to pledge U.S. support for Ukraine and Israel. We talk about the dysfunction in the House and how it might resolve.

Guests:

Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs, Princeton University - His most recent books include "Fault Lines: A History of the United States Since 1974" and "Burning Down the House: Newt Gingrich, the Fall of a Speaker, and the Rise of the New Republican Party"

Lee Drutman, political scientist; author; senior fellow, Political Reform Program at New America

Joan Greve, senior political reporter, The Guardian US

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

For more than 35 years, British comedian Eddie Izzard built a career as an openly trans woman, winning Emmy awards, acting for both film and TV and performing in one-woman shows on Broadway. Now, she’s juggling a campaign for a seat in Parliament while making stops in North America for her Remix Tour, which revisits some of her favorite comedy sets. Ahead of her San Francisco shows, we’ll talk with Izzard about getting into politics and what it means to “remix” her old comedy.

Guests:

Eddie Izzard, comedian; author. Izzard is currently running to be the Labour candidate for a seat in Parliament

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

Contemporary efforts to undermine democracy, spread disinformation and subvert elections are not without precedent in American politics, according to Rachel Maddow, the longtime MSNBC host, author and podcast creator. Rather, they’ve got a “prequel,” a period of American history before and during World War II when an “ultra-right authoritarian movement, weirdly infatuated with foreign dictatorships” planned to attack government targets to sow chaos and ultimately overthrow President Franklin D. Roosevelt. We’ll talk to Maddow about what we can learn from the Americans who beat back the domestic authoritarians of the 1930s and 1940s. Her new book is “Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism.”

The U.S. Supreme Court’s latest term is underway with another round of big cases to watch. The future of an entire federal agency – the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – is expected to be decided, along with cases about whether someone under a domestic violence restraining order can possess a gun, and the legality of the abortion medication mifepristone. We’ll look at the Court’s docket and what’s at stake with Ian Millhiser, senior correspondent at Vox who covers the Supreme Court.

Guests:

Rachel Maddow, author, "Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism"; host, "The Rachel Maddow Show" on MSNBC. Maddow's other books include “DRIFT: The Unmooring of American Military Power” and “Blowout: Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia, and the Richest, Most Destructive Industry on Earth”

Ian Millhiser, senior correspondent, Vox - His books include "Injustices: The Supreme Court's History of Comforting the Comfortable and Afflicting the Afflicted" and "The Agenda: How a Republican Supreme Court is Reshaping America."

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

Next month will mark one year since the public release of ChatGPT, the AI-enabled chatbot. The technology immediately sent shockwaves across college campuses: Would it revolutionize higher education, or simply lead to widespread cheating and plagiarism? We’ll look at how chatbots and AI are impacting higher ed, from college essays to classroom teaching.

Guests:

Francesca Caparas, professor of english, De Anza College

Beth McMurtrie, senior writer, The Chronicle of Higher Education

Jenae Cohn, executive director, UC Berkeley Center for Teaching and Learning

Andrew Yu, senior, UC Davis

Jennifer Tran, sophomore, UC Berkeley; student representative, Committee on Teaching, Academic Senate

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