One Southern California county, that was once a conservative bastion, has become a political battleground.

We're talking about Orange County, California, the GOP stronghold for much of the last century. There, a new political culture has been taking shape.

As part of our series "Divided States: Efforts to Pull Together When things Fall Apart," reporter J.P. Dabu takes us into this now purple region. We explore the political shift through the lives of two Orange County residents witnessing the drama unfold ...

Delano is the historic farming town in central California that the late Cesar Chavez called home. It is known as the cradle of Latino civil rights and social justice movements and the home-base of the United Farmworkers Union. But now, it is also home to two prisons and growing gang violence, meaning the town has turned into a place that is far from sacred.

As part of our series “Divided States: Efforts to Pull Together When Things Fall Apart,” reporter Frank Rojas brings us a profile of the farming town through conversations with his mom and grandparents about how they used to know Delano, and what’s becoming of it today …

Each story straddles time ... from before pandemic ... to after. We examine grief in a time of isolation. We explore the arts world's pivot as everything shuts down. We look at efforts to keep a roof overhead as the economy collapses. And we consider whether all this time in isolation might, at some point, help bring us closer together.

Welcome to "The Listening Well" where we go deep on one subject or theme and give you several stories from different points of view using layers of sound to take you there. 

What does grief look and feel like in this devastating moment in history? With the pace and scale of lives lost during the coronavirus pandemic, many people have been and will be facing grief together ... all at the same time. But also alone ... in quiet isolation. 

How do we mourn, remember, and move forward  amidst all of the uncertainty, isolated and online? In our series "Living and Grieving in a Time of Covid 19," each story crosses a line ... from before pandemic to after.

In this episode, we hear from reporter Rebecca Katz who lost her mom to cancer just before the pandemic hit. Now, she shares a bit of her journey ... grieving ... as a young adult on a busy college campus. And then locked down at home in a pandemic ...

Experts are predicting an "avalanche of evictions" in the economic shock from the coronavirus pandemic. 

In our series "Living and Grieving in a Time of Covid 19" each story straddles time ... from before pandemic ... to after. 

In this episode, reporter Nancy Guan tells us about one group of tenants near downtown Los Angeles who started fighting months before the pandemic began to prevent rent increases and avert evictions. They took their case from Chinatown ... to City Hall ... to Malibu. And then the pandemic hit. 

The experience of the arts … even online … has been like oxygen for a lot of people locked in at home.

Just before the pandemic hit … one innovative performance group was pushing the boundaries … bringing the experience of live, in person theater to a whole new level.

They used an ethereal outdoor performance near downtown Los Angeles to breathe new life into a buried history. That is, until the pandemic upstaged, uprooted and shut down the whole thing.

In our series "Living and Grieving in a Time of Covid 19" we tell stories that straddle time ... from before pandemic ... to after. For this episode, reporter Victoria Alejandro tracks the impermanence of the theatrical run that started off grounded deliberately on a particular soil ...

Researchers identify links between loneliness and chronic illness leading to a shortened life-span.  And now, in the current climate, many people are enduring loneliness on an even deeper level.

As part of our series "Living and Grieving in a Time of Covid 19," reporter Isaiah Murtaugh presents this audio diary. As stay-at-home orders went into effect, he pressed record ...  

Several of the most destructive wildfires in California history erupted over the last three years. Tens of thousands of homes went up in flames. Millions of acres burned. For some, their sense of home shifted or just disappeared. For others living nearby, anxiety rises in anticipation of the next wildfire and the connection to the growing climate crisis.

As part of  our series "Home: Unsettled," Megan Botel talks with people recovering from the trauma of being burned out, and with people facing anxiety over the changing climate...  

We are exploring what it means to be at home, to feel at home, in times that can be so unsettling.

Ever heard of the Ellis Act? It’s a housing law that allows California landlords to evict rent-controlled tenants by shutting down the property all together. This controversial law has led to nightmare situations for tenants around Los Angeles who are suddenly left without a home. As part of our series "Home: Unsettled,"  Evan Jacoby takes us to one building in Santa Monica where owners used the Ellis Act to evict residents.

When it comes to the film industry, women have had a hard time even finding a home. Men dominate nearly every aspect of filmmaking. 

For the first time in its nearly hundred year history, one of the nation's top film schools features a production with the entire film crew being all women and gender non-conforming. 

As part of our series "Home: Unsettled," Reporter Cate Young gives us a behind the scenes peak ... and a look at what might be ahead ...  in terms of women in film.