KQED's Forum

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Bob Wachter was one of the nation’s trusted voices, helping us better understand the disease that upended our world and healthcare system. Now he’s focused on what he sees as the next great disruption in medicine: Generative AI. Though we need to address its flaws and limitations, Dr. Wachter says AI is essential to a healthcare system buckling under the weight of clinician burnout, staff shortages and astronomical costs. We talk with Dr. Wachter about his new book, “A Giant Leap: How AI Is Transforming Healthcare and What That Means for Our Future.” Guests: Dr. Robert "Bob" Wachter, professor and chair of the Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Against a backdrop of threats made by President Trump to attack Iran with “speed and violence,” talks between the two nations are set to resume this Friday. Since late December, Iran has been roiled by massive nationwide protests that have been met by a brutal response from the regime, resulting in the deaths of over 6,800 protestors with another 11,000 deaths under investigation according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency. Will the U.S. use this moment to try to force regime change? We talk to a panel of experts. Guests: Jason Rezaian, director of Press Freedoms Initiatives, The Washington Post; author, "Prisoner: My 544 Days in an Iranian Prison – Solitary Confinement, a Sham Trial, High-Stakes Diplomacy, and the Extraordinary Efforts It Took to Get Me Out" Nate Swanson, director, Iran Strategy Project, Atlantic Council Sahar Razavi, associate professor, Department of Political Science and director of the Iranian and Middle Eastern Studies Center, California State University, Sacramento Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As protests against federal immigration agents’ use of deadly force in Minneapolis spread nationwide, privacy experts are raising alarms. Immigration agencies are using facial-recognition and other tools to identify immigrants – and to track American citizens who observe or protest ICE operations. The surveillance technology allows agents to scan people’s faces and link them to government databases. It’s a practice that those targeted say amounts to intimidation and retaliation. We talk about how the technologies work and what they mean for enforcement and civil liberties. Guests: Rachel Levinson-Waldman, director of Liberty and National Security Program, Brennan Center for Justice Sheera Frenkel, technology reporter, The New York Times; co-author, "An Ugly Truth: Inside Facebook's Battle for Domination" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the weekend, San Francisco’s public school teachers voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike. The dispute is centered on pay, health benefits, and support for special education, all at a time when the district has been facing financial headwinds so dire that the state has contemplated stepping in to run the district. We get the latest on the labor negotiations and talk about what a potential strike, which could begin as early as February 9, means for teachers, the district, students and their families. Guests: Maria Su, superintendent, San Francisco Unified School District Cassondra Curiel, president, United Educators of San Francisco Jill Tucker, K-12 education reporter, San Francisco Chronicle Katie DeBenedetti, reporter, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New York Times cooking writer and columnist Yewande Komolafe has long loved the solitary, meditative act of crafting intricate meals and comfort foods in the kitchen. But after multiple amputations profoundly altered her body, Komolafe had to learn to cook in a new way: with adaptive tools, learning “how to whisk a bowl of cream to milky soft peaks with prosthetic hands,” and with other chefs’ assistance. That collaboration helped Komolafe better understand the curative effects of a good meal, both “physiologically and psychologically.” We talk with Komolafe about the restorative powers of cooking a hot dish of fried calamari or shrimp scampi and her journey of self-rediscovery. Her new article for the Times is “How Losing My Limbs Turned Me Into a Different Kind of Cook.” Guests: Yewande Komolafe, cooking writer and columnist, The New York Times Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

George Saunders is one of America’s most celebrated writers. His worlds and characters often live in a reality just beyond or behind our own, and his latest novel “Vigil,” is no exception. The novel opens with an angel falling to earth with the task of comforting an unrepentant oil tycoon in his final hours alive. What spills forth from this zany setup is a comic novel about climate change, personal responsibility, and the kind of honesty that matters most. Guests: George Saunders, author, "Vigil"; MacArthur Genius Grant Fellow; his previous books include "Lincoln in the Bardo," "Tenth of December" and "Liberation Day; English professor, Syracuse University Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This February marks 100 years of celebrating Black History month, which began as just a week in 1926. Now, as political efforts to scrub Black history from American classrooms intensify, historian and California native Jarvis Givens joins us to talk about his new book, “I’ll Make Me a World: The 100-Year Journey of Black History Month.” Givens says the act of preserving Black stories has always been political, always been about power, and always been a tool for liberation. Has learning Black history shaped the way you see America? Guests: Jarvis Givens, professor of African and African American studies, Harvard University. His new book is "I’ll Make a World: The 100-Year Journey of Black History Month." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stigma. Discomfort. High pitched feedback. These are some reasons that people opt out of wearing hearing aids. Yet, hearing loss has been linked to dementia and social isolation, and one-third of Americans aged 70 and older suffer from the condition. Even young people are not immune: 20% of Gen Z suffers from noise-induced hearing problems. We talk about innovations in treating hearing loss. Have you resisted wearing a hearing aid? Guests: Nicholas S. Reed, adjunct associate professor, otolaryngology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Reed is an audiologist and epidemiologist who has studied the links between hearing loss and dementia Christopher Null, technology journalist, He covers hearing aids for WIRED Dr. Konstantina Stankovic, ear and skull base surgeon and auditory neuroscientist, Stanford Medical School. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Friction-maxxing,” a term coined by The Cut columnist Kathryn Jezer-Morton, is the art of adding more inconvenience to our lives —as technology pushes us to eliminate it. That might look like taking the bus to the grocery store instead of DoorDashing meals. Or asking a stranger for directions rather than checking Google Maps. It means putting ourselves in contact with the world, with all of the vulnerability and unpredictability that entails. We’ll talk with Jezer-Morton and tech journalists about how doing things the hard way can bring us more joy, serendipity and human connection. How do you friction-maxx? Guests: Morgan Sung, host, "Close All Tabs" podcast - available on KQED's "Political Breakdown" feed Stephen Council, tech reporter, SFGATE Kathryn Jezer-Morton, columnist, The Cut, New York Magazine; author, "The Story of Your Life: How Social Media Shapes the Way We Experience Everything" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For years, experts, educators and parents have sounded alarms about the dangers of kids spending too much time on screens and now, artificial intelligence could make some apps even more addicting. A trial started this week in a Los Angeles court on a lawsuit against Meta and YouTube that claims social media companies are responsible for the harmful effects of screen addiction on minors. Nearly a thousand similar cases are expected to go to trial this year nationwide. We’ll talk about the lawsuits, consequences of social media addiction in the age of AI and efforts to hold companies accountable. Guests: Cecilia Kang, tech reporter, The New York Times; author, "An Ugly Truth: Inside Facebook's Battle for Domination" Catherine Price, health and science journalist; author, "How to Break Up With Your Phone" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 2026 midterm elections may be in November, but they’re top of mind for California voters who will elect a new governor this year and who passed Proposition 50 last fall – redrawing congressional districts to favor Democrats in their bid to retake the House. We look at how redistricting is shaking out in races across the state. And we examine whether Democrats have gained an edge nationally as new polling shows voters souring on Trump’s immigration and economic agenda, but concerns about election interference mount. What races are you watching? Guests: Guy Marzorati, correspondent, KQED's California Politics and Government Desk Erin Covey, editor, U.S. House of Representatives coverage for The Cook Political Report Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is near consensus on one facet of American life these days: parenting is hard. In surveys, most parents report being exhausted. Parenting is central to our identities and we do what academics describe as “intensive parenting.” We’re giving it all to our children, and broadly expected to do so. And yet… in new book, Overinvested, sociologist Nina Bandejl argues that the data shows that how we’re doing child-rearing in this country has led to worsening outcomes for parents, kids, and society at large. Guests: Nina Bandelj, chancellor's professor in the department of sociology, UC Irvine; author, "Overinvested: The Emotional Economy of Modern Parenting" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The fatal shooting of Alex Pretti on Saturday, the second U.S. citizen killed by federal agents in Minneapolis this month, is drawing bipartisan outrage. Many Americans are questioning the broader purpose of the deadly tactics and the Trump Administration’s defense of agents’ conduct. Meanwhile, Senate Democrats say they’ll block DHS funding, which could lead to a government shutdown, as calls for the impeachment of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem grow. We discuss the guardrails that could keep our democracy safe and we want to hear from you: What do you think is the administration’s endgame, and what could make the violence stop? Guests: Zack Beauchamp, senior correspondent, Vox - covering challenges to democracy and right-wing populism; author, "The Reactionary Spirit" Claudia Grisales , congressional correspondent, NPR Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At Davos, Donald Trump claimed that China doesn’t use wind energy, or in his words, “windmills.” He could not be more wrong. In 2024, China accounted for 40% of the globe’s wind energy generation and in 2025, over a quarter of China’s energy came from wind and solar power. As the U.S. reverts to coal, gas and oil for its energy needs, China is emerging as the world leader in renewables. We talk about whether the U.S. will be left irrevocably behind by Trump’s energy policy and what it all means for California’s renewable energy industry. Guests: Jeremy Wallace, professor of China Studies, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS); author, "China Lab" newsletter; author of recent WIRED article, "China’s Renewable Energy Revolution Is a Huge Mess That Might Save the World" Mark Jacobson, professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University; author, "Still No Miracles Needed: How Today's Technology Can Save Our Climate and Clean Our Air" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The popular HBO drama “The Pitt,” set in a Pittsburgh emergency trauma center, is having an impact on real-world healthcare. Doctors across California say the show has brought heightened public awareness of their daily work and sparked conversations about the challenges that emergency healthcare workers face. We’ll talk to California ER physicians about the effect the TV show has had on their lives and work, and we want to hear from you: Has “The Pitt” changed how you think about emergency care? Guests: Dr. Christopher Colwell, vice chair and chief of Emergency Medicine, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital Dr. Patil Armenian, professor of clinical emergency medicine and medical toxicology, UCSF Fresno Dr. Sarah Medeiros, professor of emergency medicine, UC Davis; host, EM Pulse podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After years of being known as a defunct mall, San Francisco Centre officially closed last weekend leaving 1.2 million square feet of vacant space. The mall was once a centerpiece of San Francisco’s shopping district, but it was hit hard by online shopping, the pandemic, and declining foot traffic downtown. Still, the building and 6-acre site pose what some are calling a major opportunity to help revitalize downtown. We’ll talk about what could be done with the vacant mall and the challenges facing San Francisco’s once-grand retail hub. Guests: Michael Covarrubias, chairman and CEO, TMG partners, a San Francisco-based development company J.K. Dineen, Bay Area housing reporter, San Francisco Chronicle Laura Crescimano, co-founder and leader, SITELAB urban studio Lisa Huang, design director, Gensler Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s been nearly a year since Kash Patel took the helm of the FBI, a period New York Times reporter Emily Bazelon says has been “marred by vendettas, mismanagement and meltdowns.” The New York Times spoke to 45 current and former FBI officials, who describe a traditionally independent agency now captured and weaponized by the White House. The officials say the FBI’s new emphasis on immigration, over counterterrorism and cybersecurity, is making America less safe. We’ll talk to a former Los Angeles field officer and to Bazelon, whose new piece is “A Year Inside Kash Patel’s F.B.I.” Guests: Emily Bazelon, staff writer, The New York Times Magazine; Truman Capote Fellow for Creative Writing and Law, Yale Law School; co-host, Slate's “Political Gabfest” Jill Fields, former supervisory intelligence analyst for violent crime in the Los Angeles field office, FBI Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Calling out ICE and the National Guard to police Los Angeles, Portland and Minneapolis. DOGE and the evisceration of government institutions. Invading Venezuela. The insults, the rambling, the grift. The Epstein files. It’s hard to keep up with how Trump 2.0 is impacting our country. But in her popular newsletter, “Letters from an American” political historian Heather Cox Richardson helps readers keep their eyes on what matters. Guests: Heather Cox Richardson, author of "Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America", Richardson is professor of political history at Boston College. Her previous books include "How the South Won the Civil War." Her newsletter, “Letters from an American” reaches over 5 million readers on Substack and Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

San Francisco-based, Ethiopian-born singer-songwriter Meklit Hadero and her band join us live in the studio to play from her new album, “A Piece of Infinity.” The album reimagines folk songs from across Ethiopia, blending her signature Ethio-jazz style with R&B, synth and other genres. We’ll talk about the stories the album tells and bask in her rich, expressive vocals. Guests: Meklit Hadero, Ethio-Jazz singer and composer Sam Bevan, upright bass Colin Douglas, drums Howard Wiley, tenor saxophone Kibrom Berhane, keyboard and krar Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever achieved a high GPA, crushed your Duolingo streak, or seen a surge of likes on social media… only to feel weirdly empty? Philosopher C. Thi Nguyen attributes that joylessness to what he calls “value capture,” where rankings and metrics can replace our own values and start dictating goals for us. We talk to Nguyen about the difference between playful score keeping… and soul-sucking metrics. And we want to hear from you: Have you ever found yourself playing a game you didn’t choose? Guests: C. Thi Nguyen, philosopher; author, “The Score: How to Stop Playing Somebody Else's Game” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices