TV Santa Barbara

Our All-Star Panel of Top Local Journalists roves through the full range of politics and public policy stories animating Santa Barbara this week, as Nick Welsh offers a behind-the-scenes view of the Independent’s Yes-on-50 front cover editorial, Josh Molina sheds light on the city’s meeting-before-the-meeting on the big Paseo Nuevo development and Ryan P. Cruz breaks down the agendas of the city council members pushing anew for rent control. Plus: why supes punted on health department layoffs, why Montecito Union School District decided to settle a $7.5 million, decades-old claim of child abuse, and why Nick went long in this week’s issue on Good Samaritan homeless services.

In an exclusive interview, celebrated public health leader Dr. Peter Marks joins Newsmakers for a far-ranging conversation about the clear and present danger posed to the nation by Robert F. Kennedy’s purge of science-based health and safety policies. Dr. Marks recounts his own defenestration by RFK, after years of government service - including his pivotal role in developing the Covid vaccine - and offers a sobering forecast of what it will take to repair and restore fact-based practices to the task of keeping the U.S. public safe from unnecessary disease.

It’s a special Three Amigos edition of Newsmakers TV, as Nick Welsh and Josh Molina join the genial host to break down the latest in this week’s top local news stories in Santa Barbara, including the showdown over expanding the Hilton Beachfront Resort, efforts by the city to find a new operator for the FARO homeless navigation center and the local multi-front battle to block Sable Oil’s restart of an antiquated offshore pipeline. Plus: the first you-heard-it-here-first gossip from the 2026 city council campaign trail.

Assembly member Gregg Hart returns to Newsmakers TV to discuss his just-passed milestone legislation requiring the rogue Sable oil company to undergo full environmental review in its bid to restart the failed pipeline that caused the disastrous Refugio spill. Hart also offers his up-to-date assessment of the Trump Administration’s efforts to dismantle California’s efforts on climate; concerns about Gov. Newsom’s support for new drilling in the Central Valley; and the Nov. 4 special election campaign to pass Proposition 50, the Democrat’s response to the Texas Republican gerrymander of congressional seats, which Trump triggered to head off GOP loss of the House in the 2026 mid-terms.

State Senator Monique Limon returns to Newsmakers TV for an urgent conversation about Proposition 50, the one and only issue in the Nov. 4 special election, by which Democrats are trying to respond to Donald Trump’s efforts to redo the national political landscape in advance of the crucial 2026 mid-term elections. Characteristically for Limon, she explains her support of the measure in practical terms – what it means in federal funds for education, health care and emergency services for constitutents, as well as the need to respond to the threats and intimidation that the president has inflicted on communities with large Latino populations, like Santa Barbara.

On this week’s edition, our all-star panel of top local journalists checks in with a batch of scoops,, as Nick Welsh reprises his reporting on the closing of Santa Barbara’s most venerable housing shelter and Sheriff Bill Brown’s double data sets detailing his dealings with federal immigration agents; Ryan P. Cruz has an updated picture of ICE activities on the Central Coast; and Josh Molina has the fascinating story of how SB’s art museum is prep

On a special “Back to School” edition, Santa Barbara Country Superintendent of Schools Superintendent Susan Salcido returns to Newsmakers TV for a conversation of about local districts are responding to a new set of urgent and demanding challenges inflicted by the Trump Administration’s attack on public education, from the looming threat of immigration raids and cuts in federal funding, to the assault on longstanding policies and programs put in place to protect the civil rights of all students. Plus: we try and fail to dent her deep-seated optimism.

The normal chaotic hijinks of the Santa Barbara City Council have accelerated into warp speed and sheer lunacy in recent weeks, as Josh Molina and Ryan P. Cruz join the genial host on this week’s episode of Newsmakers TV to try to make sense of the Gang of Seven’s words and actions on recent key budget, housing and immigration issues. And Callie Fausey discusses her exclusive reporting on the State Street Fiesta stabbings, shedding light on big systemic problems at the courts and on the county’s policies over bail for criminal suspects.

Callie Fausey, Christiana McDermott, Josh Molina and Nick Welsh join the genial host for a fast-paced recap of all of Santa Barbara’s top local news stories, from the financial impacts of Trump Administration cuts being felt by public schools, Planned Parenthood and public broadcasting, to post-mortems of this year’s Fiesta, which could yield a re-imagining of Old Spanish Days, to the latest on the housing front, from vacation rental conflicts to a new vision for Paeo Nuevo. Plus: $55/hour to afford to live in Santa Barbara?

The Independent’s prize-winning columnist and editor Nick Welsh joins the genial host for a one-on-one conversation that takes a deep and detailed dive into the tangled legal, political and policy affairs involving the Sable oil company’s effort to restart offshore oil production and pumping through Santa Barbara County. Plus: updating the myriad of immigration-related matters surrounding Trump’s loutish deportation crusade on the Central Coast.