KQED's Forum

As we near one week since the start of Israeli and U.S. airstrikes on Iran, which killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, we take stock of where the war stands. We’ll look at what comes next for Iran’s government and what we know about the U.S. and Israel’s strategy. And we’ll hear reactions from Iranians in the U.S. Do you have a connection to Iran? How are you processing this week of developments? Join us. Guests: Arash Azizi, contributing writer, The Atlantic; author, "What Iranians Want: Women, Life, Freedom" Sina Toossi, senior nonresident fellow, Center for International Policy; his latest article for The Nation is "The Iranian Voices America Isn’t Hearing” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

First-time YA novelists René Peña-Govea and Susie Nadler are both school librarians living in the Bay Area. Thus, it is no surprise that in their publishing debuts, San Francisco serves as both a setting and a character. Peña-Govea’s book, “Estela, Undrowning” follows the novel’s namesake as she navigates the pressures of an elite public high school, college admissions, and her family’s pending eviction. And in “Lies We Tell About the Stars,” Nadler tells the story of a young woman living in the aftermath of a major earthquake and the loss of her best friend. We talk to the authors about writing for young adults, how the Bay Area influences their work and how to keep young people reading. Guests: René Peña-Govea, teacher librarian; author, "Estela, Undrowning" Susie Nadler, school librarian; author, "Lies We Tell About the Stars" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a century-long absence, gray wolves are returning to California. Biologists estimate some 70 wolves are living in the state, and recently, a female wolf traveled into Los Angeles County, the first such sighting. But their comeback is not without controversy. Ranchers in rural counties say they’re losing livestock to predation, while conservationists say the wolves bring ecological benefits as they reclaim part of their historic range. How do you think the state should manage our wolves? Guests: Kaggie Orrick, director, California Wolf Project, UC Berkeley Paul Roen, Sierra County supervisor; manager, Sierra Valley Ranch Beth Pratt, executive director for the California region, National Wildlife Federation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People who ski in the Sierra Nevada backcountry say there’s no better way to experience the wonder of the mountains in winter. But the avalanche that killed nine backcountry skiers near Lake Tahoe last month has highlighted the dangers inherent in the sport. Those hazards include masses of snow racing down steep slopes — and a human tendency to sometimes underestimate risk. We talk about what can be done to address the dangers and heighten awareness for the growing number of people looking to explore the wilderness in winter. Guests: Sarah Wright, outdoors engagement reporter, KQED Sara Boilen, clinical psychologist; backcountry skier; co-host, "The Avalanche Hour" podcast Ethan Greene, director, Colorado Avalanche Information Center Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As recent court decisions make more people vulnerable to ICE detention, the Trump administration is purchasing massive warehouses that could detain upward of 5,000 people per site. Lawmakers and detainees describe existing ICE detention centers as grossly inadequate, with accounts of denied medical care, cruelty from guards and limited access to sunlight. Most immigrants detained by ICE have not committed a crime yet can be held for months or years. Now, resistance to these detention centers is growing nationwide – including in deeply red counties – and California activists and lawmakers are trying to prohibit ICE’s expansion here. We hear about the legal landscape and answer your questions. Guests: Ahilan Arulanantham, law professor and faculty co-director, Center for Immigration Law & Policy at UCLA School of Law; former legal director, ACLU of Southern California Matt Haney, District 17 representative, California State Assembly Wendy Fry, reporter covering poverty and inequality for the California Divide team, CalMatters Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“How We Get By,” a new series from KQED News, looks at how people in the Bay Area make due with the sky-high cost of living. Prices for necessities from housing and food to childcare and gas have shot up in the past decade and somehow, millions of people have managed to keep up – but how? For some people, it’s putting multiple generations under one roof, taking on a side hustle or cutting back on extras. What strategies help you afford to stay here? At what point do the costs outweigh the benefits? We examine the price of living in the Bay Area, how it has shaped us and hear your experience. Guests: Erin Baldassari, senior editor of housing affordability, KQED Neale Mahoney, professor of economics, Stanford University; former special policy advisor for economic policy, White House National Economic Council Abigail Lucia Sanchez, predoctoral researcher, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is your kid a fussy eater? A lot of us have come to accept that there’s a period where children can only stomach dino nuggets, buttered noodles and PB&J’s. But American kids used to be “fabulous” eaters, writes historian Helen Zoe Veit. They ate “spicy relishes, vinegary pickles… raw oysters and looked forward to their daily coffee.” We talk to Veit about what happened, and what we can learn from the past to expand kids’ palates — and help parents feel less overwhelmed at dinner time. Veit’s new book is “Picky: How American Children Became the Fussiest Eaters in History.” Guests: Helen Zoe Veit, associate professor of history, Michigan State University; author, "Picky: How American Children Became the Fussiest Eaters in History" Dr. Erik Fernandez y Garcia, pediatrician and professor of pediatrics, UC Davis Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“All my life I have tried to be a good woman,” writes Savala Nolan. Being “good” meant not rocking the boat. It meant following the rules and fitting herself into the mold of duty, excellence, sacrifice, and hard work. But as a Black woman and mother navigating a world built for men, Nolan learned that the lessons of being good no longer fit her life. In her new book of essays “Good Woman: A Reckoning,” Nolan, an attorney who heads UC Berkeley Law’s Thelton E. Henderson Center for Social Justice, blends history and memoir as she examines the confining expectations of womanhood. We talk to Nolan. Guests: Savala Nolan, executive director, Thelton E. Henderson Center for Social Justice, Berkeley Law; author, "Good Woman: A Reckoning," "Don't Let It Get You Down: Essays on Race, Gender, and the Body" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Weeks after the Department of Justice released millions of pages of documents related to accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, new questions are emerging about evidence that may implicate President Trump in assaulting a teenage trafficking victim. This comes as Bill and Hillary Clinton testify before the House Oversight Committee about their relationship to the disgraced financier. We’ll talk about the latest disclosures and what Epstein’s ties to political, academic and business elites reveal about the structure of power and influence in our society. Guests: Stephen Fowler, political reporter, NPR Maegan Vazquez, reporter, Washington Post Virginia Heffernan, journalist and critic; columnist, The New Republic; publisher of "Magic and Loss" newsletter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The United States and Israel’s strikes against Iran continued throughout the weekend, killing supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei, top officials and civilians. Iran has retaliated with strikes on Israel, Gulf countries and U.S. bases. We talk with experts on Iran about what the attacks mean for the future of the Islamic Republic and the region, and what might happen next. Guests: Robin Wright, contributing writer, New Yorker; her most recent piece for the magazine is "What Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Meant to Iran, and What Comes Next" Wright is also the author of "Dreams and Shadows: The Future of the Middle East" Sahar Razavi, associate professor, Department of Political Science; director, Iranian and Middle Eastern Studies Center, California State University, Sacramento Nate Swanson, director, Iran Strategy Project at the Atlantic Council Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fan fiction, where fans reimagine their favorite characters in new – often steamy – stories, is reshaping mainstream literature, television and film. This year alone, three novels spun from fan-written romances between Harry Potter characters have hit national bestseller lists. And on the popular fanfic site Archive of Our Own, you’ll find everything from Star Wars-inspired romances to a zombie apocalypse featuring the Car Talk guys. We’re tracing how communities of queer, female, and frequently thirsty fans became a force too big for publishers and Hollywood executives to ignore. Guests: E. Alex Jung, features writer, Vulture and New York Magazine Candice Lim, writer, producer and former co-host, Slate's ICYMI podcast Domee Shi, film director and creative vice president, Pixar; her films include "Turning Red," "Elio" and the animated short film "Bao" Disclaimer: Suicide and suicidal ideation comes up in conversation during this podcast episode. If you are in crisis, please call, text or chat with the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988, or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK  to 741741. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Arthur Miller’s classic play “All My Sons” tells the story of a father who attains the American Dream, but at a high cost to himself and everyone around him. Nearly 80 years after the original, Berkeley Rep’s new production reimagines the play with a Puerto Rican family at the center.  The main characters, Joe and Kate Keller, are played by real life couple Jimmy Smits and Wanda De Jesús. We’ll talk with the actors and director David Mendizábal about what the production has to say about the American Dream today. Guests: David Mendizábal, associate artistic director and director of "All My Sons," Berkeley Repertory Theatre Wanda De Jesús, actor starring as Kate Keller, Berkeley Repertory Theatre's production of "All My Sons" Jimmy Smits, actor starring as Joe Keller, Berkeley Repertory Theatre's production of "All My Sons" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Commercial surrogacy has long been life-changing for LGBTQ+ and infertile couples wishing to have children. Even though the practice is banned or highly restricted in much of the rest of the world, the U.S. has no federal laws overseeing the practice. In a new investigation, New Yorker staff writer Ava Kofman exposes one Los Angeles couple that enlisted surrogate mothers for at least 25 children, all of whom are currently in foster care. California is considered a surrogacy stronghold within the $42 billion global fertility industry. We unpack why, and the reforms advocates want to see to improve the informed consent of both surrogates and intended parents — and to keep their children safe. Guests: Deborah Wald, certified family law specialist based in San Francisco Ava Kofman, staff writer, The New Yorker - her recent piece is “The Babies Kept in a Mysterious Los Angeles Mansion” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Newer AI tools have begun to act less like “a souped up search engine and more of a junior staffer” observes one industry watcher.  Software developers are deploying Claude Code. Small business people are using AI to work out logistics. At home, people are deploying AI to organize to-do lists, plan vacations, and create meal plans. But what are the risks?  We talk about how AI is evolving, and how to think about the ethics of using these tools. Guests: Nitasha Tiku, tech culture reporter Maxwell Zeff, senior writer covering artificial intelligence, WIRED Heather Kelly, technology reporter focusing on the intersection of technology and everyday life Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is consciousness for, and why did it evolve? Can we change our “default” consciousness? These are some of the questions that Michael Pollan says began to preoccupy him after his first psychedelic experience, which altered his ordinary consciousness so profoundly that he wanted to learn everything he could about the mysteries of sentience, thought and selfhood. We talk to him about what he uncovered and challenges of studying a phenomenon that he says we’ll never understand completely. Pollan’s new book is “A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness.” Guests: Michael Pollan, author, "A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness" - professor emeritus, UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism; his other books include "In Defense of Food," "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and "How to Change Your Mind." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Violence erupted across Mexico after the killing of Mexico’s most notorious drug cartel leader, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, on Sunday. Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” was the head of the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación, an organization that trafficked drugs across multiple Mexican states and countries. The killing signaled an aggressive and unexpected approach from Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, to confronting organized crime. As the chaos settles and shelter in place restrictions lift, the relationship between Mexico’s drug kingpins, the government and the rest of society remains unclear. We talk about what the killing means for Mexico and the United States and what could happen next. Guests: Javier Cabral, editor, L.A. Taco - independent local news and culture site; Associate producer for the Taco Chronicles on Netflix Oswaldo Zavala, professor of Latin American Literature and Culture, City University of New York - College of Staten Island; author of “Drug Cartels Do Not Exist: Narcotrafficking in US and Mexican Culture.” Cecilia Farfán-Méndez, head of the North American Observatory, Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Supreme Court ruled Friday that President Trump does not have the authority to impose his sweeping tariffs — a major setback for his trade agenda. Studies have found that American businesses and consumers have borne most of the cost, and in California, ports, farms, businesses and workers have felt widespread effects. So what does this court ruling mean for the world’s 4th largest economy? We look at how the tariffs have affected California businesses, and what’s ahead as the President seeks to enact new tariffs in response. Guests: Ari Hawkins, reporter and author of the “Morning Trade” newsletter, POLITICO Nick Vyas, professor of economics; founding director of the Randall R. Kendrick Global Supply Chain Institute, University of Southern California Idrees Kahloon, staff writer, The Atlantic Bianca Blomquist, California director, Small Business Majority Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Writer Caroline Paul learned to fly a Cessna when she was 20, a paraglider in her 30s, a motorized hang glider in her 40s, and then at 58 years old, as her marriage was dissolving, she took up the gyrocopter, an odd aircraft that resembles a tiny helicopter. “The reasons for this aren’t all mysterious. It’s easier to learn a landing than a human heart,” she writes in her new book “Why Fly: Seeking Awe Healing and Our True Selves in the Sky.” We talk to Paul about the history of flight, why it captivates us, and how she tried to pilot her way through heartbreak. Guests: Caroline Paul, pilot; author, "Why Fly: Seeking Awe, Healing, and Our True Selves in the Sky;" her most recent books include "Tough Broad: From Boogie Boarding to Wing Walking-How Outdoor Adventure Improves Our Lives as We Age" and "The Gutsy Girl: Escapades for Your Life of Epic Adventure" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Citizenship allows you to vote, get a passport and run for office – and it’s supposed to be a promise of protection, equality and belonging. But as immigration agents arrest and detain more American citizens, what if that promise is a myth? In a new book journalist Daisy Hernández dismantles the idea that citizenship is neutral, stable or fair. And she proposes that today it often replaces race a powerful instrument of exclusion. We talk to Hernández about her new book “Citizenship: Notes on an American Myth” and what she thinks real belonging might look like. Are you a noncitizen, or a U.S. citizen who’s felt “lesser than?”  Guests: Daisy Hernández, author, "Citizenship: Notes on an American Myth" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With midterm elections a mere eight months away, are Democrats ready? Maybe not, according to journalist Mark Leibovich who traveled the country talking to party leaders about how Democrats intend to meet the moment. Despite Trump’s low approval ratings and a slim Republican majority in Congress, a Democratic rebound is far from a slam dunk with the Republican National Committee currently holding a $100 million fundraising advantage. What happened to the once-confident multiracial coalition of working class men and women? We talk about the future of the Democratic party. Guests: Mark Leibovich, staff writer, The Atlantic - His latest piece is titled "The Democrats Aren't Built for This" Aimee Allison, founder and president, She the People - A national organization dedicated to building the political power of women of color Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices