Press Play with Madeleine Brand

White supremacists recently disrupted memorials for Charlie Kirk in Huntington Beach. Their presence reignited concerns about hate groups in the community.

Over the past decade, people have increasingly used medications that affect the brain and induce drowsiness, which are problematic in increasing the risk of falls.

Amid severe hunger in Gaza, “Boustany,” a new cookbook by the Palestinian-British chef Sami Tamimi, highlights the diversity and vibrancy of Palestinian cuisine. 

Some books to look forward to this fall are about long COVID-induced insanity, true crime, and a mother speaking to her son from the afterlife. 

The 2025 state legislative session has ended. Hundreds of approved bills include measures to unmask cops, boost oil drilling, and increase pay for incarcerated firefighters.

A bill banning law enforcement officers from covering their faces is sitting on Gavin Newsom’s desk. Does California have the power to regulate federal agents? 

“The Pitt” earned several Emmys, but the celebration comes with a twist. Michael Crichton’s estate says the show borrows heavily from “ER,” the hit medical drama he created based on his life.

The long out-of-print pre-Fleetwood Mac album by Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks — the only album they ever released as a duo — is being re-released for the first time in decades this Friday.

An economist explains that people are staying put in their current jobs amid economic uncertainty, it’s tougher to find a new role, and mass deportation policies are affecting the overall economy. 

Twenty-two TV series were just awarded the first round of expanded Hollywood tax credits. Is it enough to breathe life back into the industry?

Families invent their own secret languages — nicknames, jokes, and mispronunciations — that bond them together, linger for years. Linguists call this “familect.”

KCRW host Sam Sanders dishes on all things pop culture — the moments, movies, music, and TV shows people couldn't stop raving about over the summer.

In a 6-3 vote, the Supreme Court overturned a lower court ruling that temporarily blocked federal immigration agents from indiscriminately arresting people on sidewalks, at Home Depots, swap meets, etc.

Santa Monica is on the verge of a fiscal emergency as massive sex abuse settlements and shrinking revenues stretch city services, reflecting a wider crisis across LA County.

The book “Changeover” explores the budding rivalry between tennis phenoms Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, and what it means for the future of the sport.

No candidate exists for 2025’s “song of the summer.” Media consumption is fragmented, streaming allows people to listen to the same songs for longer, and more artists are competing for attention. 

The Trump administration halted major offshore wind projects in the Northeast, citing cost and national security concerns. Environmental advocates say wind power is key to meeting clean energy goals. 

The Eames House survived the Palisades Fire, underwent smoke remediation and other repairs, and reopened in late July.  

Vladimir Nabokov’s “Lolita” is the story of a middle-aged professor with an insatiable obsession with little girls, who sexually assaults his 12-year-old stepdaughter. It’s also one of literature’s most celebrated novels — acclaimed for its prose and wordplay.

Critics review the latest film releases: “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” “Preparation for the Next Life,” “Twinless,” and “The Threesome.”

Today, the governors of CA, OR, and WA launched a health pact to coordinate their states’ vaccine recommendations and “ensure residents remain protected by science, not politics.” 

A deadly U.S. airstrike on a boat in the Caribbean signals a more aggressive turn in the war on drugs. 

In 2020, Quibi offered phone-based 10-minute (or less) videos. Now, the Hollywood-based company MicroCo is launching a new version of that idea.

Today’s protein-obsessed culture is rediscovering cottage cheese. On social media, people are blending it into ice cream, dips, pancakes, and even pasta sauces. 

Downtown LA’s iconic Mayan Theater’s current operators have run the venue since 1989. KCRW looks at the history that’s showcased everything from Gershwin, to porn, to Mexican wrestling.

Judge Charles Breyer ruled that the Trump administration’s use of the military as domestic police violated federal law, setting the tone for legal challenges in other cities. 

Thousands of people hoping to join ICE attended a recruitment fair in Texas. Many applicants were Latino. 

Building atom bombs was a feat rivaling the science behind them. The Manhattan Project oversaw hundreds of thousands of workers in cities that technically didn’t exist. 

The single bloodiest day of World War II was the firebombing of Tokyo — before atomic bombs destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Why isn’t it mourned that way? 

Kilmar Abrego Garcia was wrongly deported to a Salvadoran prison. Now the Trump administration is trying to send him to Uganda. 

States are redrawing congressional maps in an aggressive battle for control. Texas and California are leading the charge, sparking a partisan fight leading up to the midterm elections. 

President Trump has said he wants to get rid of FEMA and shift relief responsibility to the states. FEMA employees say this leaves the U.S. unprepared for the next Hurricane Katrina. 

Terry Riley is known for creating minimalist music, which influenced artists across genres, including ambient, electronic, pop, and rock. On Sept. 7, the Ford amphitheater will host a concert celebrating his work.

HHS secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is cutting hundreds of millions of dollars of mRNA vaccine funding research. The groundbreaking technology is used in most COVID-19 vaccines, and shows promise in other areas.

At the end of Ruth Asawa’s life, an encounter with an auction house curator turned her from a relatively obscure artist into one whose works command millions of dollars.

Critics review the latest film releases: “Honey Don’t!,” “Splitsville,” “Lurker,” and “Suspended Time.”

Granola and energy bars often start with the same pantry staples such as oats, nuts, seeds, dried fruit, etc. They diverge in the proportion of ingredients and the technique used to make them.

Israel has approved a West Bank settlement plan that would split the territory and pave the way for thousands of apartments, drawing global criticism and threatening hopes of a Palestinian state.

Gov. Newsom last year accused oil companies of “screwing” customers, but now he wants to increase oil drilling in Kern County to prevent a possible rise in gas prices in 2026.

Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead were counterculture icons. But according to author Jim Newton, Garcia himself wasn’t particularly political. At least not publicly, or even in ways we might traditionally think.

Forty-two cats in a traditional portrait setting. Felines filling the frame in an array of poses on blue and pink fabrics, bathed in soft light. The 1891 masterpiece "My Wife's Lovers" is just as fabulous as it sounds.

A new California congressional map, commissioned by Democrats, seeks to counter Texas’ proposed gerrymandering. The man who drew the map had never drawn a partisan one before.

Californians are likely headed to the ballot box in November for a special election on redistricting – and the state is likely headed to court over the scheme. 

For 45 years, Blue Note in Greenwich Village served as New York City’s upscale club for jazz. Then came locations in Asia, Europe, and South America. Last week, LA got its own Blue Note.

KCRW’s LeRoy Downs says Blue Note LA will appeal to a wide audience, even those who don’t often listen to jazz. He highlights some artists who will perform there this season.

After two months of denied access, Rep. Brad Sherman tours LA’s secretive ICE facility, raising questions about masked raids, detainee living conditions, and oversight rights. 

Matt, 19, got hormones and surgery through CHLA. After the hospital ended its gender-affirming care, he turned to a new clinic but is considering leaving the U.S.  

By now, you or someone you know has probably ridden a Waymo in LA. What lies ahead for the company, its rivals, human ride-share drivers, and customers?

Around 160,000 Americans still receive dial-up internet. AOL is ending the service. KCRW takes a trip down the memory superhighway.

Pali High starts its new academic term on August 13. Instruction will still temporarily happen at the old Sears in Santa Monica. There’s optimism for rebuilding the old campus and community.

Over the weekend, an Israeli airstrike killed Anas Al-Sharif and four other Al Jazeera journalists in what the Israeli military said was a targeted attack on their media tent.

In the novel “Wanting,” two childhood friends grow up and commit to lives they feel were never meant for them, and begin questioning their choices. 

In the early 1990s, there was no bigger football team than the Dallas Cowboys. The team won three Super Bowls in four years, before the dynasty fell apart amid rampant allegations of drug use and violence.

A new chapter is unfolding in the power struggle between President Trump and cities as he sends the National Guard into DC — and defends the LA deployment in court. 

UC regents are meeting to discuss whether to settle with the Trump administration over their freezing of grants. But an appeals court may unfreeze the money first.

New research reveals the death toll from the January fires in LA County may be far higher than official counts. Many deaths linked to smoke, stress, and health disruptions are unreported. 

“Woody at Home, Volume 1 and 2” contains Woody Guthrie’s 22 previously unreleased songs that protest against racism, facism, and corruption.

The Trump administration froze UCLA’s roughly 800 grants, covering research into medicine, science, energy, and climate. How are scholars and the university responding?

Luke Farritor, a 23-year-old tech prodigy with no government experience, is at the center of sweeping federal cuts reshaping how government works. 

For about a decade, the director of the Knoedler Gallery ended up buying fake art from a Bonnie and Clyde-like duo. An FBI criminal probe and lawsuits ensued. 

Garlic brings its unique aroma, pungency, heat, and sometimes mellow nuttiness to each dish you’re making.