Fifth & Mission

San Francisco and other counties entered the red tier on Wednesday, reopening indoor dining, gyms and museums. But is that smart with just a fraction of the population vaccinated and variants taking hold? Chronicle reporters Aidin Vaziri and Steve Rubenstein discuss the city's first day in the red tier and why it has some doctors concerned. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

San Francisco prepares to open indoor dining and other activities as the city moves into the red tier. Are we heading into a yo-yo phase of opening up and shutting back down, or does vaccine distribution mean the worst of shelter in place is finally coming to an end? Health reporter Erin Allday talks about what to expect. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Reporters Alexei Koseff and Jill Tucker talk about California's multibillion-dollar reopening plan, which could mean a windfall for schools if they meet certain dates and requirements. The agreement comes as schools and teachers' unions face pressure from parents, and Gov. Gavin Newsom faces a possible recall election. But will it actually speed things up? | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two boys who were forced out of a Bay Area high school over what appeared to be a blackface photo have filed a $20 million lawsuit, saying the selfie was years old and they were actually wearing acne medication. It's the latest emotional dispute over racism on campus and the responsibility of schools. Reporter Matthias Gafni and columnist Justin Phillips talk about the case and the necessary conversation it raises. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The city's 215 hotels are usually packed nightly. But a year into the pandemic, half of them are temporarily closed, the rest mostly empty. S.F. Hotel Council CEO Kevin Carroll talks about how a key industry can rebound. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Reporter Janelle Bitker talks about the conversations she's been having with Bay Area Asian Americans who have been victims of coronavirus-related racism, including a recent series of brutal physical attacks. They say they are too often scapegoated and cast as foreigners in their own home. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Read Janelle Brown's story: sfchronicle.com/asianattacks Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The legendary poet, publisher and City Lights Books founder, who died Tuesday at 101, is remembered by Jerry Cimino of the Beat Museum and others, and we hear him recite from "A Coney Island of the Mind" on the Datebook podcast in 2018. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The United States has surpassed 500,000 dead in the COVID-19 pandemic, a figure that roughly matches the entire population of Sonoma County. The milestone comes amid steady progress in the Bay Area as vaccinations take hold, Reporter Erin Allday talks about that and new worries about research showing a dangerous variant spreading in California, a mutation that may be both more contagious and more serious. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The city's 148-year-old cable cars have been out-of-service for nearly a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency has no timeline for when they'll return. Chronicle columnist Heather Knight explains why that is and why it's crucial to save these treasures. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're not out of the woods, but health reporter Erin Allday says vaccines, the passing of the holidays and other factors are helping the Bay Area turn the corner on the pandemic. Plus: Business reporter Carolyn Said on a study estimating tens of thousands have died due to the nation's unemployment crisis. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No San Francisco public school student has seen the inside of a classroom in nearly a year, though six elementary schools are ready to reopen -- eventually. Chronicle reporter Jill Tucker explains the latest on the move to reopen the city's schools and how Zoom school has spelled disaster for some kids. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Reporter Rachel Swan talks about her investigation into the police shooting of a mentally ill man in Danville. An officer killed Laudemer Arboleda, who was unarmed, after stepping in front of his car during a low-speed chase. Now, amid calls for police accountability in the wake of the killing of George Floyd, the Contra Costa County district attorney must decide whether to charge the officer with homicide. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just as in 1969, when Gov. Ronald Reagan sent in the National Guard, activists want to preserve the Berkeley park while UC wants to build housing. Times — and the stakes — have changed, but reporter Sarah Ravani says the fight is a familiar one. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Related episode: People's Park at 50 — pod.fo/e/b6f8e Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 2021 Lunar New Year marks a full year of the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on San Francisco’s Chinatown. Well before the Bay Area shut down, America’s oldest Chinatown experienced reduced business and xenophobia. With thousands living in Single Room Occupancy hotels and legacy businesses on the brink of closure, the neighborhood is fighting to survive. This is an episode of The Chronicle's food and culture podcast, Extra Spicy. Related: Chinatown's Endangered Banquet Halls: pod.fo/e/b68e0 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Large banquets have long been crucial to San Francisco's Chinese community, and the halls that host them have been the backbone of Chinatown. They were already fading away, but the coronavirus pandemic might be the final blow. Journalist Melissa Hung talks about their decline and efforts to save them. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Related episode: How Will Chinatown Survive? pod.fo/e/28a75 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The South Africa mutation of the virus has been identified in two patients, in Alameda and Santa Clara counties. As reporter Erin Allday explains, this could present a challenge: Current vaccines aren't as effective in fighting this variant. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Chronicle's Washington correspondent Tal Kopan has the latest from the impeachment of Donald Trump. While a majority of senators rejected Trump's argument that a trial is unconstitutional, Democrats may not have enough votes to convict. Kopan weighs in on the atmosphere in Congress, the politics of the moment and the impact on VP Kamala Harris. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A deal between the San Francisco school district and labor unions only sets the conditions needed to return. Will it happen before summer? And what might the school day look like? Reporter Jill Tucker says parents are watching, including some who have shifted kids to private school — or Marin County. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feeling exhausted, confused and just plain over it? You're not alone. Reporter Ryan Kost looks at the mix of good and bad news on the coronavirus front and why it's causing so much uncertainty. Hint: We'd feel a lot better if we had an end date | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

He's spent 35 years giving readers the inside view of San Francisco, Bay Area and California politics. Now, in this excerpt from the It's All Political podcast, Phil Matier talks to Joe Garofoli about covering Kamala Harris and Gavin Newsom from the beginning. | Unlimited Chronicle access: sfchronicle.com/pod Listen to the full episode here: pod.fo/e/b562a Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices