First Stories by KALW Audio Academy ’19 Fellows Broadcast
By Ben Trefny, News Director, KALW
Last week, KALW‘s Crosscurrents showcased the work of every member of our current Audio Academy class — Pria Mahadevan, Lance Gardner, JoAnn DeLuna, Alyia-Renee Yates, Magnolia McKay, Kevin McLean, Porfirio Rangel, and Lisa Wang — plus our honorary member, Sara Nora Koust, an intern from Denmark who worked with us over the last six months.
The first storytelling assignment that each received was based on a question asked by somebody in the Bay Area. They’re part of our audience-generated project called Hey Area, which is source for many of the most intriguing, insightful, and entertaining stories we tell. And for this assignment, we asked each fellow to answer the question in the space of two minutes.
These are those stories. Enjoy!
• Is San Francisco Really Sinking?
Roland Burgmann, a professor in the Earth and Planetary Sciences department at University of California, Berkeley. Credit: Lisa Wang.
• Why are there so many eucalyptus trees in the Bay Area?
Eucalyptus trees in San Francisco. Credit: Kevin McLean.
• How Did Folsom Street become the center of “sexy times”?
Leather Etc. on Folsom at 8th Street. Credit: Lance Gardner.
• Who is the most influential Latino in the Bay Area?
Eric Quezada poster at 518 Valencia. Credit: Porfirio Rangel.
• Where are all of the Diego Rivera murals in San Francisco?
Diego Rivera’s “The Making of a Fresco Showing the Building of a City.”
Credit: Joaquín Martínez, used under CC BY 2.0 / cropped.
• When and why did the drum circles start at Lake Merritt?
Kerry Taylor has been drumming at Lake Merritt for several years. Credit: JoAnn DeLuna.
• Why are there so many sand dollars on Ocean Beach?
Sand dollars washed up along Ocean Beach. Credit: Angela Johnston.
• What is the steepest street in San Francisco?
The view from the top of Filbert and Leavenworth. Credit: Alyia-Renee Yates.
• What is San Francisco’s oldest running streetcar?
Dinky at Cameron Beach Yard. Credit: Magnolia McKay.