Valley News

Governor Gavin Newsom is set to approve an extra $ 500 million for wildfire prevention — a last-minute change that would more than double what’s in the current budget deal. https://www.kvpr.org/sites/kvpr/files/styles/big_story/public/202106/newsom_1.jpg

Last week, CapRadio, along with NPR’s California Newsroom, reported that Governor Gavin Newsom dramatically overstated the amount of wildfire prevention efforts that had taken place leading up to this year’s fire season. CapRadio’s Scott Rodd was the journalist behind that investigation. Valley Edition Host Kathleen Schock spoke with him about …

On July 4th, 1776, the United States declared its independence from Britain, a monumental move that many at the time thought was a bad idea. The new book, “Resisting Independence” by Fresno State history professor Brad Jones, explores the reasons why British loyalism deepened for some following the War of …

Earlier this year, Jeff Gambord realized he couldn’t remember the last time he had a physical exam. So he requested his medical record from Coalinga State Hospital, the psychiatric facility where he’s been a patient since 2006. Gambord learned it’d been more than a year, and he was curious if …

Last year, 30 patients died at Coalinga State Hospital, a psychiatric facility in western Fresno County. That’s more than 2 percent of the population–a death rate that’s almost twice the average of California’s entire state hospital system, and almost seven times higher than the rate within the state prison system. …

In the 1950s, a new style of country music, influenced by rock-n-roll, emerged from Bakersfield’s honky-tonk bars. Pioneered by music legends like Buck Owens and Merle Haggard, the Bakersfield Sound became one of country music’s most influential sub-genres. And now it is being celebrated with an exhibit that runs through …

It’s been a year since Pacific Gas and Electric Company left Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. That exit deal included a promised $ 13.5 billion settlement to pay victims of wildfires that were caused by the company’s equipment. The deal represented a milestone to fire survivors, PG&E interim CEO Bill Smith …

As drought settles over the San Joaquin Valley, a new report warns of other circumstances that could result in entire communities losing drinking water. More than a million Valley residents could lose their public water in coming decades under the sweeping groundwater legislation known as the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act …

Writer Mark Arax has been working to uncover some of the forgotten history that explains how many neighborhoods in Fresno were established. What he discovered was that some of the city’s largest housing developers used restrictive real estate covenants to prevent Armenians and people of color from living in certain …

T ake a minute and think back to the last time you really listened to someone whose political opinions were very different from your own. Was it a few weeks ago, a few months ago, was it ever? Valley Public Radio and the public history project StoryCorps are inviting you …

Paul Hernandez designs and sews his own costumes and entertains audiences through the art of drag with his alter ego Leilani Price. He also does his own makeup before performing at LGBTQ night clubs like Fab in Fresno’s Tower District. But the pandemic ended those performances for over a year …

Wherever you are in the Valley, you’ve likely been enjoying the reprieve from the heat wave that left us all sweaty and guzzling water earlier this month. Beginning Saturday, unfortunately, most of us are in for another round of triple-digit days, this one even longer. So how can we stay …

After 15 months of pandemic-related restrictions, California is back open for business. In downtown Clovis, reactions ranged from cautious optimism to elation. “I still think we should keep our precautions, just to be on the safe side,” says emergency room nurse Angelica Martinez. She’s grateful she hasn’t contracted COVID, but …