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Podcasts Take Two
California Lays Out Rules for Reopening Restaurants, How Digital Contact Tracing Could Contain the Coronavirus, The Mountain Messenger Newspaper
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May 12, 2020
Listen • 51:59
California Lays Out Rules for Reopening Restaurants, How Digital Contact Tracing Could Contain the Coronavirus, The Mountain Messenger Newspaper

Guidelines to reopen restaurants, how effective digital contact tracing could contain coronavirus and how a new owner saved the Mountain Messenger.
LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 06: Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gavin Newsom speaks during election night event on November 6, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. Newsom defeated Republican Gubernatorial candidate John Cox. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 06: Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gavin Newsom speaks during election night event on November 6, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. Newsom defeated Republican Gubernatorial candidate John Cox. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
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Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
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Coronavirus: Rules to Reopen California Restaurants

As expected, Governor Gavin Newsom earlier today talked about how restaurants in the state might once again be able to allow dine-in service. He also talked about outdoor museums and botanicals garden, car washes, dog groomers and other office-based businesses... where telecommuting cannot be done. But whether or not any of this can happen will be based on whether the county these businesses serve meet certain criteria that shows a containment of the virus. Currently, only Butte and El Dorado Counties up north have met that criteria.  The Governor says he's currently in talks with 27 counties about how they can get to the point where it is safe enough to move deeper into phase 2 of the state's re-opening plans.

Guests:

  • Jot Condie, CEO of the California Restaurant Association
  • Elina Shatkin, LAist Food Editor 

Coronavirus: Elective Surgeries

Hospitals are beginning to resume elective surgeries. But what, exactly, does "elective" mean? And what will protocols be?

Guest:

  • Elly Yu, KPCC's Investigative Reporter 

Digital Contact Tracing to Contain the Coronavirus

As more places across California start to reopen, contact tracing is set to play a crucial role in containing the spread of the coronavirus. Last week, Governor Newsom’s administration launched a new program to train as many as 20,000 state employees to trace the spread of the virus. They’ll be doing the work the old-fashioned way by surveying people, but digital contact tracing through our smartphones is something that is also being considered. So how much of the work could be done this way and how would it work ?

Guest: 

  • Dr. Cyrus Shahabi, Professor of Computer Science at the University of Southern California 

Coronavirus: Olympians React to Postponement

The Tokyo Olympic Games were postponed due to the pandemic. Those who qualified will now have to wait a year to compete. We checked with LA based athletes Haley Anderson and April Ross to find out how they’re training for their events in isolation. 

Impact of Pandemic on Local News

The pandemic has crippled the economy, and that has left many local news organizations struggling to stay alive. We look at the connections between a population that relies on local news and its civic participation.

Guest:

  • Mike Barthel, Pew Researcher 

The Mountain Messenger

Downieville, in western Sierra County, is home to California’s oldest running weekly newspaper, The Mountain Messenger. It’s been around since 1853. And it’s legendary around here – Mark Twain was a contributor. But earlier this year, the paper’s ink almost dried up, until a new owner stepped in to keep the presses running. As Katie Bernstein tells us, he’s a newspaper editor who’s become a lifeline for folks here in this remote community, where local news about the coronavirus is hard to come by.