Wren Farrell
Newscasts EditorWren Farrell (he/him) is a writer, producer and journalist living in San Francisco. Originally from San Diego, he moved to the Bay Area in 2018, where he got his start in radio at KPFA. He graduated from KALW’s Audio Academy in 2021 and then went on to work for a number of podcasts as an associate producer. In 2023 he joined the inaugural class of UC Berkeley’s California Local News Fellowship, which brought him back to KALW as a full-time emergency and disaster preparedness reporter. In his free time he likes biking, cooking and hanging out.
All Stories
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On Wednesday afternoon, San Francisco Superior Court staff rallied outside of the Hall of Justice to demand that management do more to address the court’s staffing crisis. -
The official data from San Francisco’s 2024 Point-in-Time count came out this week, it shows an increase in homelessness, but officials say the city has made progress on getting people into shelters. -
On Tuesday night, a community of people living in RV’s in San Francisco were forced to move from a parking lot near the Zoo. -
On Monday, dozens of medical interns and resident physicians rallied outside of the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. -
Last week, Governor Newsom issued a statewide order, directing cities to clear homeless encampments. Advocates and stakeholders say this will only make things worse for the state’s unhoused population. -
CrosscurrentsEvery other year, communities across the country count the number of unhoused folks in their area. It's a way to get federal funding. But is the model working? -
A new audit has found that about half of food facilities in Berkeley and San Francisco went uninspected in 2023. -
An extreme heat wave has hit the Bay Area, impacting even San Francisco, where temps are expected to range between the low 80’s to mid 90’s through the weekend. -
A civil grand Jury report in Contra Costa County has made recommendations to improve the county’s community warning system. -
A group of climbers in Yosemite are staging a 24-hour pro-Palestinian protest in one of the park’s most popular destinations.
News Updates
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The school year has just begun, but students, faculty and staff in the California State University system say they are already feeling the impact of budget cuts. -
On Thursday afternoon, a coalition gathered on the steps of San Francisco’s City Hall, to protest the city’s policy on “aggressive” encampment sweeps. -
Temperatures began rising dramatically on Tuesday. Over the next few days it’s expected to be between 70 to 80 degrees on the coast and could hit triple digits inland. -
Today, around a hundred anti-Zionist protestors staged a surprise sit-in at the building that houses the Israeli Consulate in San Francisco. -
This week, pro-Palestinian student organizers announced that San Francisco State University has agreed to divest from weapons manufacturers. -
On Monday, UC San Francisco students and healthcare workers erected a pro-Palestine encampment outside of the university’s main library. By 6 p.m., UCSF police removed it. -
On Monday, the Berkeley City Manager, Dee Williams-Ridley, announced that she is resigning from her position as the city’s top administrator. -
On Monday, San Francisco State University students, faculty, and administration began an “open negotiations session” with the university to discuss the demands of the San Francisco State Gaza student encampment. -
Over the weekend, a crowd of stakeholders gathered at UCSF’s Parnassus campus to kick off construction for what the university says will be a 15-story, “state-of-the-art” facility. -
On Monday, students and faculty at San Francisco State University rallied at the campus’s Malcolm X plaza, demanding divestment from Israel’s war on Palestine.
Crosscurrents
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CrosscurrentsPart six of our series on sea level rise looks at a dune restabilization project at Ocean Beach, and a wastewater treatment plant that is being threatened by coastal erosion and rising tides. -
CrosscurrentsToday is Transgender Day of Visibility. It’s a day to celebrate the lives and accomplishments of trans people, while also acknowledging the discrimination and challenges many still face.March was a particularly tense time for trans folks in San Francisco. Two local bathhouses — Imperial Spa in the Fillmore district, and Archimedes Banya in Hunters Point — were accused of enforcing anti-trans policies.After facing backlash online and potential protests, Imperial Spa quickly reversed their policy. But at Banya, it was a little more complicated. -
CrosscurrentsFor months organizers in California have been working to spread the word about a helpline for perpetrators of domestic and intimate partner violence. You heard that right. A helpline for perpetrators, not victims.It’s an unusual approach to a serious problem: Rates of domestic violence in the U.S. are high, and they got even worse during the pandemic.The helpline – A Call for Change – promises anonymity to its callers. Their goal is to provide a non-carceral approach to preventing domestic and intimate partner violence. -
CrosscurrentsIn part two of this series, we'll learn about the larger network of service providers that the Mobile Support Team works with. And what happens to their clients after a crisis. -
CrosscurrentsLast year, Sonoma County got state funding to make their Mobile Support Team available 24/7. In part one of this series, we look at the complexities of crisis intervention. -
CrosscurrentsToday, an update on Oakland’s community response program for non-violent, non-emergency 911 calls. How and when you can call them, and what they’re doing for Oaklanders. -
CrosscurrentsStudent reporters have been at the center of pro-Palestine encampments across the world. But what's it like being a student reporter today? -
CrosscurrentsSubstance abuse experts say there’s a strong connection between the stress of the pandemic and increased drug and alcohol use nationwide. In this story, we take a closer look at one of the personal stories behind the statistics. -
CrosscurrentsLast week the California Academy of Science’s resident corpse flower bloomed. It’s an event that usually makes the news. But despite all the attention they attract, wild corpse flowers are endangered, which is why the Academy is joining a national effort to preserve their DNA. -
CrosscurrentsIt’s been 34 years since the Loma Prieta earthquake changed the San Francisco Bay Area forever. The Neighborhood Emergency Response Team is part of its legacy.
