KQED's Forum

In her new book, “Raw Dog: The Naked Truth about Hot Dogs,” author and comedian Jamie Loftus dials in on why America loves the hot dog: “They’re high culture, they’re low culture, they’re sports food and they’re hangover food and they’re deeply American for reasons that few people can explain but everyone has been told their entire lives.” Loftus chronicles her cross-country journey eating some of the country’s most famous hot dogs like JJ Red Hots in North Carolina, Nathan’s Famous in New York, and Ben’s Chili Bowl in D.C. Along the way, she also delves into the history of the hot dog and devotes an entire chapter to how a hot dog is made. In her words, a hot dog is “garbage being repurposed as mass-appeal food.” While light-hearted, Loftus offers a steely look at the meatpacking and food services industry. We’ll talk to Loftus and hear from you: How do you feel about hot dogs?Guests:Jamie Loftus, author, "Raw Dog: The Naked Truth about Hot Dogs"; Emmy-nominated TV writer; podcast host, “My Year In Mensa” and "Bechdel Cast" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beginning in the 19th century, Americans harvested ice from frozen lakes and transported it to warm places, turning ice harvesting and delivery into a lucrative business. Then came manufacturing and refrigeration, ice cream and iced tea. One of the first films made in America was of an ice hockey game. These are some of ice’s cultural moments that historian and journalist Amy Brady explores in “ICE: From Mixed Drinks to Skating Rinks—a Cool History of a Hot Commodity.” We talk to Brady about the history of ice, the industries it has spawned and its place in present life as we face an ever-warming planet.Listen to the recent KQED reporting on alleged child labor violations in California.Guests:Amy Brady, author and historian; executive director, Orion Magazine; coeditor of "The World as We Knew It: Dispatches from a Changing Climate" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In recent months, protesters targeted businesses including the Los Angeles Dodgers, retailer Target and beer maker Anheuser-Busch for celebrating the LGBTQ+ community. While many companies rushed to embrace the queer community in recent years, in the face of intense backlash, they are now struggling to navigate the political and social divides. Meanwhile, gay rights advocates say now is the time for companies to take a strong stand against bigotry and hate. As Pride Month kicks off, we’ll talk about the recent surge of homophobic protests and how individuals and companies are responding.Guests:Tom Temprano, managing director of external affairs, Equality California, an LGBTQ+ rights advocacy organizationSister Unity, board member, Los Angeles Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Inc.Leticia Miranda, U.S. retail & consumer columnist, Bloomberg Opinion Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Child labor violations are on the rise across the country. Yet Republicans in multiple states are working to roll back regulations for underaged workers, including lowering age limits, removing restrictions for dangerous work and extending allowable work hours, including on school nights. Critics say the new laws endanger children, depress wages and make it harder for regulatory officials to catch bad actors. California may have stronger regulations by comparison, but we’ll explore the limits of the state’s oversight and the conditions that push so many children into the workforce.Guests:Jacob Bogage, business and technology reporter, The Washington PostHernan Hernandez, executive director, The California Farmworker FoundationElizabeth Strater, director of strategic campaigns, United Farm Workers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More data from the 2020 Census reveals demographic changes that paint a picture of a different Bay Area today than that of a decade ago. In conjunction with migration out of the area during the pandemic, the region’s population is getting older and homeownership rates are dropping. Racial demographics throughout the nine counties are also shifting, but maybe not in the way you’d expect. We’ll talk about these evolving population trends and what they could mean for the local economy and the housing crisis.Guests:Harriet Blair Rowan, data reporter, Bay Area News GroupHans Johnson, demographer and senior fellow, Public Policy Institute of CaliforniaEthan Varian, housing reporter, Bay Area News Group Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“What do you do?” is one of the first questions we ask when meeting new people. And that’s part of the increasingly common American belief that our jobs define who we are. Journalist Simone Stolzoff is a recovering “workist” himself who interviewed more than 100 people — from corporate lawyers in Manhattan to fast-food workers in California — about the role that work plays in their self-identities. Stolzoff joins us to explain why thinking about our jobs as “good enough” can help us separate what we do when on the clock from who we are. His new book is “The Good Enough Job: Reclaiming Life from Work.”Guests:Simone Stolzoff, independent journalist, designer and consultant, author of “The Good Enough Job: Reclaiming Life from Work” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Parents of young kids in California often find that childcare is not only expensive, but also hard to secure and even more so for low-income families. The cost of childcare eats up between 8 and 19 percent of family household income, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. While high costs and lack of availability have been problems for decades, the pandemic made it worse. Numerous childcare centers across California closed permanently in the past few years, even though demand has remained constant. We’ll talk about why childcare is so expensive and efforts at the state level to bring down the costs for families and improve working conditions for providers.Guests:Daisy Nguyen, early childhood education and care reporter, KQEDDeo Agustin, founder and owner, Mind Builder Center - a licensed in-home childcare center in San JoseAnna Powell , senior research and policy associate, Center for the Study of Child Care Employment, Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, University of California, BerkeleyMonique Limón, Senator, California State Senate - She represents the 19th Senate district that includes the Santa Barbara County and half of Ventura County Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It seems like actor and director Randall Park has been in everything. “Veep.” “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” “WandaVision.” “Aquaman.” He played an amiable version of the North Korean dictator Kim Jung Un in the movie “The Interview.” He starred and co-wrote the Netflix hit movie “Always Be My Maybe” with Ali Wong. And his single scene in “The Office” playing the Asian version of lead character Jim is a viral favorite. But Park’s breakthrough role didn’t come until he was 40 when he booked the hit ABC series “Fresh Off the Boat.” And that success came after many years living at home with his parents and hustling for guest roles and small parts anywhere he could find them. We’ll talk to Park about his career, his directorial debut, “Shortcomings,” and what it means to find success in a fickle industry like show biz.Guests:Randall Park, actor and director, debut directorial feature "Shortcomings," actor in "Always Be My Maybe" and the ABC series "Fresh Off the Boat" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The buoyant protagonist of San Francisco writer Kathryn Ma’s new novel, The Chinese Groove, migrates from China, where he’s part of the outcast branch of his family, to San Francisco, where he is sure his distant relatives will welcome and nurture him and shepherd him along his path. Forum talks to Ma about the comedy of errors that follow, San Francisco through a new immigrant’s eyes and her character’s faith in the “groove,” the kindness and generosity expected from fellow countrymen.Guests:Kathryn Ma, author, "The Chinese Groove" and "The Year She Left Us" and "All That Work and Still No Boys." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Connie Wang never intended to write a book about her mother. It felt almost too cliched – the first generation immigrant writing about her parent’s sacrifice. But her mother, with her rejection of the trope that she should be a model minority, her belief that the perfect dinner is two creme brulees, and her intense devotion to the movie “Magic Mike XXL,” made her an irresistible topic for Wang. In her new memoir, “Oh My Mother!” Wang recounts her travels with her mother to Vegas, Versailles and Disney World. The book is also about coming to terms with her mother’s defiant and often hilarious journey as an accidental immigrant who never meant to stay long in America. We talk to Wang about her book.Guests:Connie Wang, journalist; author, "Oh My Mother! A Memoir in Nine Adventures"; former executive editor, Refinery29 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices