North Gate Radio

On this episode of North Gate Radio, five reporters explore how community has shaped the past and present of the Bay Area. You’ll hear about senior citizens in Emeryville playing Mahjong to sharpen their memories, a former Black Panther reflecting on the legacy of the party, and the artistry of the girls flag football team at Berkeley High School. We also meet a death doula helping the bereaved navigate loss through "grief gardening" and close with a trip to an encampment in West Oakland where volunteers are addressing illegal dumping. This is a recording of North Gate Radio that was broadcast live on KALX radio station, 90.7FM. A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/communities-that-care/

On this episode of North Gate Radio, five reporters explore how local residents across the Bay Area are navigating current political realities and systemic challenges. You’ll hear from a Latino organizer in South San Francisco who is using air quality monitors and community empowerment to combat climate change and sex worker advocates in the Mission district fighting new legislation that threatens to roll back decades of progress. We also visit Berkeley to speak with an unhoused advocate about the city’s push to tow inhabited vehicles, and learn how a new California law is making university admission automatic for eligible high school students. We close with a trip to Oakland to see how a nonprofit arts organization is empowering the next generation of queer and trans nightlife performers. This is a recording of North Gate Radio that was broadcast live on KALX radio station, 90.7FM. A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/how-politics-are-shaping-the-bay-area/

On this episode of North Gate Radio, five reporters explore how the intersection of food and community shapes the fabric and future of the Bay Area. You’ll hear from an Indigenous chef in Oakland reconnecting with her ancestors through a new cookbook, a legendary restaurateur reflecting on how the Berkeley Free Speech movement inspired her activism, and a job training program in Alameda teaching people how to regenerate the soil. We also visit a "bean-up" potluck at Willard Park and close with a trip to the Mission to uncover the history behind the neighborhood's favorite ziplock cocktail. This is a recording of North Gate Radio that was broadcast live on KALX radio station, 90.7FM.

On this episode of North Gate Radio, five reporters explore how arts and music serve as vessels for storytelling and community building throughout the Bay Area. You’ll hear about the Oakland musicians composing original songs inspired by literature, how artist Diedrick Brackens weaves stories about identity into cotton tapestries, and why a Daly City DJ is turning grocery store aisles into viral Filipino house parties. We also examine the local movement of artists reclaiming their independence from Spotify’s algorithms and close with a celebration of the lowrider community receiving federal recognition through a new collection of USPS forever stamps. This is a recording of North Gate Radio that was broadcast live on KALX radio station, 90.7FM. A transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/sounds-scenes-from-the-bay/

On this episode of North Gate Radio, five reporters explore how people across the Bay Area are dealing with technology and its impact on the human experience in a rapidly changing world. You’ll hear about the repair café volunteers in Silicon Valley saving electronics from landfills, a young mother using social media to find community while facing a terminal diagnosis, the pressures of optimization on Palo Alto youth, and why Gen Z is suddenly obsessed with physical media. We close with a visit to Children’s Fairyland in Oakland to see why puppets still capture the shortest attention spans. This is a recording of North Gate Radio that was broadcast live on KALX radio station, 90.7FM. A transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/technology-and-the-bay/

On this episode, six reporters trace how student activism in the Bay Area sparks movements for social change, nationally—and how each generation continues to reshape what’s possible. This episode moves across time and tactics, from the 1968 San Francisco State strike that birthed the nation’s first College of Ethnic Studies to today’s campus fights over free speech and political dissent. You’ll hear stories rooted in Berkeley and beyond: Native students carrying forward the legacy of Alcatraz, STEM students organizing around Palestine, conservative activism on UC Berkeley's historically liberal campus, and more. A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/student-power-to-the-people/.

It’s a new year! 2026! Whatever your thoughts about resolutions, we can all agree that the new year offers a natural reset button. It’s a time when we can’t help but think about our goals, our values, our priorities. And this year, we’re offering you something new to consider – a set of goals, values, and priorities not just for transforming yourself but for transforming your community! And the best part? It’s already underway across the Bay! A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/just-transition-in-the-bay-area/.

The Bay Area has always known how to win — from the Giants’ World Series titles to the Warriors’ championships, the 49ers’ Super Bowl runs, and the Sharks keeping the ice alive. Now women’s sports are claiming that same City of Champions legacy, turning San Francisco — and the whole Bay — into a national powerhouse, from professional soccer and basketball to flag football to packed sports bars. On this episode of North Gate Radio we feature 6 stories on how women in The Bay are making sports more inclusive, proving profitability, and pushing the industry to catch up. A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/the-bay-turns-out-and-turns-up-for-womens-sports/.

Dying often involves a set of choices, rituals, and conversations we tend to avoid until we can’t. In the Bay Area, people are confronting that reality head-on: talking openly in Death Cafes, seeking natural burials, flying loved ones home across borders to honor final wishes. On this episode of North Gate Radio, 5 reporters examine death and dying in The Bay and Silicon Valley's promise of digital immortality. A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/death-doulas-and-digital-afterlives/.

North Gate Radio Presents The Stakes Explained. A multi-media series where UC Berkeley professors, frontline journalists and community members unpack President Trump’s executive orders and actions to see what’s at stake for our democracy. A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/the-stakes-explained/

From the Bay to Bogotá, reporters dove deep into how communities are coming together in times of strife. In Oakland, statewide homelessness policy is shaping how advocates are organizing in the face of sweeps. Also, federal funding cuts are coming down hard on an LGBTQ center on the shores of Lake Merritt. A researcher at the California Institute for Integral Studies walks us through a new framework for thinking about neurodiversity. Two reporters traveled abroad to South America to document the legacy of “El Sistema,” which trained generations of Venezuelan musicians. Their reporting took place in Colombia, home to many Venezuelan migrants who have left the country in the wake of political turmoil and upheaval. These pieces were made in collaboration with Royvi Hernandez through Berkeley Journalism’s International Reporting Project. This is a recording of North Gate Radio that was broadcast live on KALX radio station, 90.7FM. A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/community-resistance-at-home-and-abroad/

It’s pretty stressful out there right now, so this week, our reporters went to find out what people do when they are not spiraling about the current state of affairs. They discovered that they collect cute little figurines in the form of ‘Blind Boxes’, they form new women’s elite rugby teams and they wrestle each other to the sound of jazz music at Oakland’s own Queer Fight Night. In Albany, there is a new mayor who is prioritizing healing on the local level and the non-profit, Meals on Wheels, is fighting to keep funding to provide much-needed food and human connection to seniors. This is a recording of North Gate Radio that was broadcast live on KALX radio station, 90.7FM. Aa full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/community-culture/

From public funding cuts to personal turning points, our reporters look to the margins for stories shaped by policy, protest and resilience. The California State Library is one of many libraries that had their federal funding terminated. Those with reading disabilities are among the most affected. A young artist is challenging the application of euthanasia for those with mental illness and is having dinner with as many strangers as possible before he passes. Women with ADHD who are transitioning into menopause are dealing with amplified ADHD traits. Weekly protests against Elon Musk and the Trump Administration outside Walnut Creek’s Tesla Showroom have grown immensely since February. The Trump Administration has stopped funding for refugee resettlement, leaving those who run resettlement agencies, like Chris George, disheartened. This is a recording of North Gate Radio that was broadcast live on KALX radio station, 90.7FM. A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/the-edge-stories-from-the-margins-of-policy-protest-and-personal-choices/

If you’ve left home and can’t move back – where is home? What if you can return - but your home, neighborhood, your entire city…was destroyed…then, where is home? What if your home doesn’t resemble the one your parents remember…the language most people speak and the food they eat have changed - are you still home? On this episode of North Gate Radio, our reporters bring you the stories of musicians who have found the harmony of home - amidst so much change. Reporters: Negar Ajayebi, Hussain Khan, Aisha Wallace-Palomares A transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/home-is-where-the-harmony-is/

On this show, three reporters profile boundary breaking artists who call the Bay Area home. These artists refuse to be constricted by what’s trendy. We’ll travel from an intimate backyard concert in Oakland into the vastness of the cosmos with a stop on the way at Live Oak Park in Berkeley to listen to a bird who is also a composer. A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/breaking-musical-boundaries-in-the-bay/

Meet some of the drummers, dancers, rappers and dj’s dedicated to maintaining THE BAY’s cultural heartbeat, no matter the obstacles. Reporters: Amaray Alvarez, Royvi Hernandez, Audy McAfee A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/bay-area-beats/

There’s been a greater focus in the United States on the importance of mental well-being. 5 reporters for North Gate Radio each tell a story looking at what’s working and what isn’t when it comes to mental health care. Reporters: NeEddra James (show host/reporter), Robert Seth Strauss, Renée Bartlett-Webber, Jasmine Ascencio, Nicole J Caruth A full transcript of this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/state-of-mind/

Public transportation across the Bay Area is struggling with perpetually low ridership. 5 reporters for North Gate Radio each tell a story examining how different transportation agencies are trying to fix the problem. Reporters: Ellie Prickett-Morgan (host/reporter), Julia Mayer, Anna Zou, Lisa Plachy, and Nava Iman Rawls A full transcript for this episode can be found at https://projects.journalism.berkeley.edu/radio/show/routes-riders-and-rondo-alla-turca/