Valley News

This weekend, Fresno State’s Music Department will be performing the opera, “Madama Butterfly.” The hundred-year-old show is about the convoluted marriage of an American naval officer and a Japanese geisha known as Madama Butterfly. To learn more about the performance, and navigating racial stereotypes, we sat down with director and …

Mental health care is a constant need here in the San Joaquin Valley, especially for those who can’t afford to go elsewhere—and for those whose symptoms are tough enough to require some treatment but not hospitalization. Last week, Fresno County opened a new crisis residential facility to house those who …

Forget the movie, which won the 2019 Oscar for Best Picture despite criticism for being overly simplistic and “whitewashed”—the real-life “Green Book” was a widely-distributed paperback pamphlet that listed tens of thousands of businesses that would serve African Americans in pre-Civil Rights Act America. In this interview, we speak with …

Pacific Gas and Electric, the primary utility provider in the Central Valley, filed for bankruptcy last month leaving questions about what this means for California’s renewable energy industry. Many renewable energy companies contract with PG&E, but as the company’s assets are examined, those contracts could be changed. This could also …

When Tulare Regional Medical Center reopened its doors back in October, it was a new beginning . The embattled hospital had been closed for a year after its previous owner had bungled its finances so badly —and suspiciously—that declaring bankruptcy became the only way to start over . But there’s …

In 2018, a Gallup poll reported that 45 percent of Americans trusted mass media to report the news accurately and fairly . That’s up from an all-time low of 32 percent in 2016, but still far lower than the levels of trust in the 1990s. Healing this relationship is one …

Farmers donning boots and stetsons, marketing-types in polos: The 2019 World Ag Expo in Tulare has a good mix of both. You’ll also find trailers that self-load hay bales, and a so-called, “rugged phablet” – that’s short for phone-tablet – that can withstand being dropped in water. And there’s ag …

Veterans typically have to wait years for the VA to process their claims for disability benefits. A new law is aiming to help clear away the immense backlog. A group of vets recently gathered at an American Legion Post in San Diego to talk about their sometimes frustrating relationship with …

Military communities around the country are looking at the potential impact of President Trump’s state of emergency declaration. The president declared a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday to secure up to $ 8 billion in funding for a barrier on the southern border – more than four …

Megan Anderson Bohigian has been a teacher and writer for years, but only started publishing her own work after she retired in 2012. Her latest collection of poems, “Vanishing Point,” uses metaphors to compare nature to her personal experiences. Megan says the inspiration to write about her memories in this …

Governor Gavin Newsom signed his first pieces of legislation into law on Wednesday, and he chose to sign them at a school where the water contains a carcinogen and kids can’t even use the drinking fountains. Newsom opened his visit in a history classroom, introducing the bills to a room …

Governor Gavin Newsom’s remarks on California’s embattled high-speed rail project in his State of the State address Tuesday seemed to confuse just about everyone. Supporters and opponents alike questioned whether he’s scaling back the project, or even abandoning it. Turns out … he really isn’t changing all that much. Capital …

If you or a loved one needed to go to the emergency room, how would you pay the bill? If you’re like most Americans, you don’t have huge cash funds socked away for a trip to the ER. Most of us are overwhelmed by the high cost of healthcare—and it …