Crosscurrents

The Bay Area is full of fans of women's professional sports, and they have a lot of questions. Today, KALW's sports podcast, BOUNCE, is here to answer them.

A new sound exhibit at Grace Cathedral lets visitors experience what the bells hear. Today, the Cathedral's artist in residence talks about the fifty years he's spent creating sound sculptures around the world. Then, the Bay Area is home to a tradition of improvised group singing. Plus, the bell ringers of San Francisco's Holy Trinity Church.

When Bill Fontana sees a still object, he doesn't just notice what it looks like, he wonders what it sounds like. He asks himself, “what does it hear?” Bill is a sound sculptor. He places microphones and vibration sensors on objects, then speakers project sounds from the objects - sounds that can't really be heard with the human ear alone. The results are beautiful, other worldly, meditative sounds and he's been doing this for 50 years, all around the world. Now, Bill is Grace Cathedral's 2026 Artist in Residence. His latest installation is called “Resonance.” KALW's Jenee Darden spoke with him on “The Sights + Sounds Show.” 

Grace Cathedral is a place where people gather around sound. They host organ recitals, sound baths and of course choirs. And it's where Bay Area singer and songwriter Bobby McFerrin first led a group in the practice of circle singing. It's a form of group vocal improvisation that helps people connect by creating music in community. Reporter Sheryl Kaskowitz brings us this story from 2024.  

Most days, the corner of Green Street and Van Ness Avenue, in San Francisco.. sounds like any other place in the city — Cars, joggers, the occasional barking dog. But if you're there on Sunday mornings, you'll hear something magical. In this story from 2023, reporter Quinn Nelson introduces us to the bell ringers of Holy Trinity Church. 

Today, we go behind the scenes of the local comedy scene. Then, an improv theater celebrates 40 years of encouraging actors to do what comes naturally to them. And, we hear from comedians contending with social change in their own way.

The Bay Area comedy scene has given us many gifts: A robust improv ecosystem fostered sketch comedy for a national stage, and nurtured stand up comedians for generations, from Robin Williams to Ali Wong. Our area is blessed with a rich and diverse comedy scene, and it can be a lot to keep track of.To help folks get a feel for that scene, KALW recently hosted a group of local comedians at our Live Events Space in downtown San Francisco. Elizabeth Truong is an intern with us. She was there and has this report on their conversation.

Brian Lohmann, co-founded Bay Area Theater Sports or BATS. It's the largest and longest-running improvised theater company in Northern California. And this year, they're celebrating their 40th anniversary. To talk about this milestone and their plans for the future, we hear from his fellow co-founder William Hall who is an improv teacher and performer. William recently spoke to KALW's Jeneé Darden for her show ‘Sights and Sounds.' 

Humor can be a source of laughter and - a form of political resistance. It's a scary time for many immigrants in this country right now and it may feel weird to be turning to humor, but for some comedians, it's actually the perfect time to do just that.Immigration reporter Wendy Reyes brings us this story from 2025, about using comedy to empower and unite people in this moment. 

Today, we're gonna go back 30 years to a moment when major artists came together for nonviolence, freedom, and Tibet: The Tibetan Freedom Concerts. In the Summer of 1996, the very first show happened right here in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Now, KALW is partnering with Rangzen and Adonde Media to bring you a six-part audio documentary about what it took to put together one of the largest concert series of the 90's.The series is called ‘Freedom needs a soundtrack' and today we're bringing you a taste here on the show. Their host Erin Potts was an activist teenager back in the '80s. And when she dreamed, she dreamed BIG. She became the driving force and co-founder of the concerts and now she tells us the story.

Girls flag football is growing, and opening doors for players that didn't exist just a few years ago. Today, we explore why coaches, athletes, and major brands believe girls flag football is just getting started.

Today, a new episode of Uncuffed that's all sports, play, and the pleasure of competition. We've got stories from the track and the chess board. Plus, life lessons from a boxing ring.

Today, we meet the people who fix broken but beloved belongings. And, we get an update on the federal corruption trial of recalled former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao. Plus, we hear why talking about organ donation in Black communities is complicated. 

This October, the trial of former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, her boyfriend, Andre Jones, and prominent local businessmen David and Andy Duong is set to begin.Last week, the federal prosecutors filed a trove of documents alleging Thao and others made bribes for political gain. And the FBI announced that they have identified a key informant- Fruitvale entrepreneur Mario Juarez, who has already given a guilty plea to one count of bribery.Natalie Orenstein is a reporter for the Oaklandside, who has been covering recent events in the Thao case. She spoke with KALW's news editor Sunni Khalid.

August is National Minority Donor Awareness month. It's a month for raising awareness of organ donation and transplantation in communities of color. Studies show there aren't enough Black donors to fill the need for Black folks who need transplants. Why? We explore this question through the story of Arlinda Timmons-Love, a Richmond woman who lost her son Maurice in 1983 to gun violence, when he was 15 years old. Hana Baba talked to her for an episode of The Stoop podcast, hosted by her and Leila Day. 

Here's a question for you- if you have something around your house that needs fixing- an appliance, a device… What do you do? Fix it or ditch it? If you do want to get something fixed, but you're not a do-it-yourselfer or you're just too intimidated to try fixing things yourself – then what?Well, reporter Mary Catherine O'Connor looked for answers - at a Fixit Clinic at a library in San Mateo. And if you have a much loved item that's in need of some TLC, you're in luck! KALW is hosting a fix it clinic tonight! It's happening at our live event space at 220 Montgomery in San Francisco. 

New Arrivals is KALW's pocket sized book tour of Bay Area Authors. Mike Huguenor lives in San Jose. His book, "Elvis is Dead, I'm Still Alive: The Story of Asian Man Records," came out on May 19th, 2026. It's about the first 30 years of one of the most important record labels to come out of the south Bay.

The closure of San Francisco's immigration courts has had big ramifications. Today, we get an update on how immigrants are navigating an increasingly difficult system. Then, we roll out the royal carpet for the first king of BART prom. The prom held under the Rockridge tracks.

On May first, the Trump administration closed its main immigration court in San Francisco's Financial District. That follows months of clashes outside the building between ICE and local activists opposing the crackdown on immigrants. Those cases have now been moved to another Bay Area court in Concord. The move has resulted in "mega" immigration dockets, with dozens — and sometimes more than a hundred — cases to be decided per day. But that's only one of the problems that have resulted from the move. Clara-Sophia Daly is an immigration reporter with Mission Local. She's recently reported on the situation in Concord. She spoke with KALW's news editor Sunni Khalid about what she's found. 

Recently BART held their first ever… prom! More than twelve hundred people attended (and danced at!) the sold-out Under the sea/'80s-themed party under the Rockridge Station tracks. And the party of course included the traditional crowning of a Prom King and Queen.  We're so proud of KALW Immigration reporter Wendy Reyes and “Sights + Sounds” Producer Porfirio Rangel… BART's first Prom queen and king!BART prom is just one example of how the transit system is hosting fun events to increase ridership. Alicia Trost is BART Chief Communications Officer. She and 2026 BART King Porfirio sat down with KALW's Jenee Darden for “The Sights + Sounds Show.” 

It's a brand new season of BOUNCE! Today, KALW's Anna Casalme is taking us out to the ball game, where every kid on the field is a girl. Plus, an update on how the Golden State Valkyries are playing in their second season. 

AI scams are getting incredibly sophisticated. But protecting yourself doesn't have to be. And, we honor the Oakland storytelling icon, Diane Ferlatte.

Online scams have proliferated and are even trickier to detect now… thanks to the use of new AI tools. These scams have become so widespread that this month, San Francisco became the first city in the country to launch a coordinated response to AI-enhanced scams. This action includes multilingual scam alerts, and financial counseling for people who've been defrauded as a result. KALW's NeEddra James reports on AI and while she's seen an acceleration of these scams, she's here to offer some helpful tips for how to protect yourself. 

Earlier this month, we lost a Bay Area storytelling icon — Oakland's Diane Ferlatte. She was an award winning, grammy nominated teller of African American stories. For Crosscurrents host Hana Baba, Ms. Diane was than a storyteller. She became a friend, and a mentor. Ms. Diane advised Hana when she was thinking about telling her own cultural tales. What now the podcast Folktales from Sudan.In 2023, before Hana launched it, she was struggling with questions about folktale storytelling. So Ms. Diane invited Hana to come talk them out with her. And she did that, in an episode of The Stoop podcast that Hana cohosts with Leila Day. Today, we're brining you an excerpt of that conversation.

The way we raise our children is once again changing. Today, the latest science and understanding behind fatherhood. Then, we tag along on the thousand mile journey one musician took to help butterflies migrate. And we are jumping back into Women's Sports with a new season of Bounce.

Lately, there has been a lot of talk about why it is so difficult to raise families in this country. And the question of starting families is one of the unique and few spaces where the experience of women has been studied more than men. And while motherhood has attracted well-deserved attention, fatherhood has been relatively overlooked and often misunderstood.One of the researchers that has been changing this dynamic is Darby Saxbe, a clinical psychologist and professor of psychology at the University of Southern California. She has studied families and fathers for over two decades and just published a book, “Dad Brain: The New Science of Fatherhood and How It Shapes Men's Lives.”So KALW invited her to our live event space to talk about what we've learned in the last decade about the transformative power of fatherhood. She spoke to KALW Executive Producer and proud father Ben Trefny. He begins by talking about what it was like to become a dad.

Right now the butterflies are north of us and inland for the summer, but in a month, they'll begin heading west to make it back to the California coast before winter. Millions of these butterflies used to make the thousand mile trek. But climate change, industrialized agriculture, and ever-expanding suburbs have made this migration harder. Because the monarch caterpillars only eat one thing: milkweed. And it's not around like it once was. Without plentiful milkweed along their migration path, monarchs have nowhere to lay their eggs. Now, only thousands butterflies make it back to the coast every year. When one musician heard about the plight of the monarchs, he decided to take a radical step to help them along their journey by taking the trip with them. Reporter Lusen Mendel has the story, first reported in 2024.

Last year, our podcast Bounce followed the first season of San Francisco's newest WNBA team, the Valkyries. They did not disappoint, and gave the fans a historic run to the play-offs. And this season they haven't backed down, currently holding one of the best team records in the WNBA.So we decided, we wouldn't back down either. We are bringing back Bounce for a third season. Here's Bounce host Erin Lim, with a snippet of what we got in store. 

A legendary venue in Oakland reopens after two decades of closure. Then we go into KALW's live event venue to hear from the artists that transformed it into a living gallery.

A legendary venue in Oakland reopens after two decades of closure. 

We hear from the artists that transformed KALW's live event space into a living gallery.

Today, Berkeley poet Beth Patote brings us back to the water with her poem.

Today, the deep and personal history of Queer media in the Bay Area with the pioneers who made their voices heard. 

We're kicking off season five of Uncuffed by going back in time to the defining childhood experiences of Uncuffed producers inside three California Prisons. 

Today, the transformative power of cold water and the people who jump right in. Then, we meet a club that has been swimming in frigid water for more than a century in the Bay. And the World Championship for Dog Surfing comes to Pacifica. 

Chris Ballard is the author of “ The Plunge: Maverick Swimmers, An Unlikely Quest, and the Transformative Power of Cold Water.” Chris jumped into some frigid water himself to research the effects and benefits of cold exposure on the human body.

People that swim in cold waters often do it in community. And one crew of ocean swimmers has been carrying on a local legacy that began more than a century ago.

This August crowds will be gathering at Lindemar Beach in Pacifica to answer one question. Which dog is the greatest surfer in the world?

New laws meant to encourage the construction of new homes in San Francisco give a lot of power to the state. Today, we explore how and where the homes get built. Then, music legend Melissa Etheridge performs in the Bay Area after releasing her first album in seven years. 

Keeping up with your rent in San Francisco is not for the faint of heart. Online rental services were showing that the average monthly rent for a one bedroom home was more than four thousand dollars, and a two bedroom was averaging at five thousand seven hundred dollars. Housing is a perpetual topic here in the Bay Area and for decades, cities have largely gotten to decide what could be built and where you could build . But over the last few years, California has passed a number of laws trying to shift those decisions to the state.Today, a conversation about the laws that are now coming into effect this month. We hear from Sarah Dennis Phillips, SF Planning Director and David Garcia, Policy Director of the Terner Center for Housing Innovation at UC Berkeley. They spoke with State of the Bay host Grace Won.

Music legend Melissa Etheridge recently released her first new album in seven years. Her album “Rise” is inspired by some of the challenges she's had to rise above in her life, including evacuating her home during last year's Southern California wildfires, and her son passing away from opioid addiction in 2020. She's on tour now with another music icon: Wynonna Judd. Their tour is called “The Raised on Radio Tour.” And they'll be making a stop at The Mountain Winery in Saratoga tomorrow night.KALW's Jenee Darden caught up with Melissa Etheridge for “The Sights + Sounds Show.” 

Pets are often important companions for unhoused people. Today, we meet a grassroots organization that's helping homeless folks take care of their animals. Plus, a new novel takes on the survival instincts needed to make it in a Bay Area suburb.