Fifth & Mission

The flagship news podcast of the San Francisco Chronicle. Producer/host Cecilia Lei and co-host Laura Wenus discuss the biggest stories of the day with Chronicle journalists and newsmakers from around the Bay Area. | Get full digital access to the Chronicle: sfchronicle.com/pod

News
Politics
976
Financial Help You Might Not Know About
Confused about the money you could be entitled to receive from the government? You’re not alone. Columnist Kathleen Pender talks about coronavirus and COVID-19 relief, including programs that have flown under the radar.
22 min
977
SF City Insider: San Francisco After COVID-19
In this episode of San Francisco City Insider, Heather Knight talks to Benjamin Grant, urban design policy director at SPUR, about the ways San Francisco will be permanently changed — and maybe improved — by coronavirus.
23 min
978
School’s Out For Summer
It’s all but certain that most, if not all, California schools will remain closed for the rest of the academic year. Does this mean students will fall woefully behind? Reporter Jill Tucker has a reassuring message for stressed out parents.
24 min
979
“Sailors Do Not Need to Die”
In a stunning letter obtained by The Chronicle, the captain of the nuclear aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt pleads with the Navy to help him contain the coronavirus spreading among his sailors. Matthias Gafni reports.
17 min
980
SF City Insider: Is the Coronavirus Surge Still...
Have we flattened the curve? In this episode of San Francisco City Insider, Dr. Allison Bond, an infectious disease expert at UCSF, gives Heather Knight an inside view of San Francisco hospitals — which, so far, seem like a calm before a storm.
23 min
981
Coronavirus Scammers and Price Gougers
Criminals are using the pandemic as a fresh excuse to swindle people. Crime reporter Megan Cassidy runs down some of the common scams and offers tips on how to avoid them. Plus: Details about price gouging schemes in the Bay Area.
15 min
982
Is San Francisco the Next New York?
The epicenter of the U.S. coronavirus pandemic is New York City, where officials acted more slowly than the Bay Area to shut down businesses and schools. Have we escaped the worst, or is New York's crisis our future?
19 min
983
SF City Insider: Inside San Francisco's Emergen...
In this episode of the San Francisco City Insider podcast, Ivy Lee, a legislative aide who’s among the hundreds of City Hall staff members who've been spending long days inside Moscone Center to prepare for the expected surge in coronavirus cases, talks to Heather Knight about San Francisco's readiness for a potential disaster.
21 min
984
Mortgages on Hold — Is Rent next?
Alexei Koseff talks about Gov. Newsom's announcement of relief for people struggling to pay mortgages in the coronavirus crisis — and what tenant advocates are demanding from the governor. Plus: The latest on testing, data collection.
16 min
985
Is Your Check in the Mail?
Congress is on the brink of passing a historic $2 trillion aid package. Dustin Gardiner joins Audrey Cooper to discuss possible cash payments, loans for big and small businesses and expanded unemployment benefits.
20 min
986
Is S.F.’s “Powder Keg” About to Explode?
Laguna Honda Hospital, a nursing home full of some of the state’s most vulnerable people, is struggling to determine the full size of its coronavirus outbreak after two nurses there tested positive. Jason Fagone discusses the different stories being told by city officials and the health workers on the ground at the 750-patient facility.
22 min
987
SF City Insider: Disaster for Small Businesses
In this episode of San Francisco City Insider, Heather Knight talks to Sharky Laguana, president of San Francisco's Small Business Commission, about how the shutdown to stem the coronavirus outbreak has already destroyed some small businesses, including his own.
25 min
988
Where Are the Tests?
For weeks, the country has struggled to test everyone suspected of having the coronavirus, a key part of helping to slow the spread of Covid-19. Catherine Ho and Audrey Cooper discuss increasing testing capacity, what is being done to rush the results, and whether it’s all too late to make a difference.
19 min
989
Coronavirus Hits Workers Hard
People who've lost jobs are worrying about how to pay their bills, and many who work for essential businesses are worrying about staying safe. Reporter Mallory Moench joins Audrey Cooper to discuss the morale of the Bay Area workforce.
17 min
990
Coronavirus: When Will This End?
Health reporter Erin Allday joins Audrey Cooper to talk about whether the current shelter-in-place is working to #FlattentheCurve. Plus, she answers some of our most-asked reader questions.
27 min
991
Where Are the Masks?
As hospitals brace for a surge of coronavirus patients, many are running out of critical protective gear — especially masks. Rachel Swan and Audrey Cooper discuss a situation so dire the CDC is telling health workers to wear scarves and bandanas.
20 min
992
Refusing Coronavirus Tests
Vice President Pence promised that every Grand Princess passenger would be tested for coronavirus. But The Chronicle's Matthias Gafni has learned that hundreds of quarantined patients — encouraged by federal officials — have refused. Is that a threat to the community?
20 min
993
Coronavirus Evictions
Local officials have taken steps to keep people and businesses from being evicted. But what happens after shelter-in-place ends? And how are we taking care of the homeless? Dominic Fracassa discusses the latest steps.
25 min
994
Coronavirus Update: $1.1 Billion Aid Package
Alexei Koseff reports from Sacramento, where state lawmakers passed funding for coronavirus response on Monday, then suspended their session for a month — reportedly a first in more than 150 years.
5 min
995
Shelter in Place
The Bay Area is shutting down after an emergency order across most of the region that's the nation's strongest move so far in response to the coronavirus threat. Erin Allday and Audrey Cooper discusse what is — and isn't — covered by the order.
19 min
996
The Kids Are Home: Now What?
Reporter — and former kindergarten teacher — Steve Rubenstein gives Audrey Cooper and all parents advice on what to do with kids who are because of school closures in response to the coronavirus. Plus: Thoughts from a real expert, age 7.
16 min
997
Predicting the Coronavirus Future
Disease modelers are trying to come up with their best guesses about how badly COVID-19 could take hold in the United States. Health reporter Erin Allday discusses what we know and what could stave off the worst possible outcomes.
24 min
998
Schools Are Closing
Children in San Francisco will be out of school for three weeks due to coronavirus fears and districts around the region are following suit. Trisha Thadani on what happens to families with no other options or children who need school meals.
11 min
999
Fifth & Mission Is Working From Home
Coronavirus has forced thousands, maybe millions, of Americans to work from home. That includes Chronicle journalists like Audrey Cooper and Mallory Moench, who discuss pros and cons and what to expect.
19 min
1000
SF City Insider: “This Is Going to Be Catastrop...
San Franciscan Amanda Kahn Fried is on sabbatical in Italy, a coronavirus hot spot where events seem to be a few weeks ahead of the Bay Area. On the San Francisco City Insider podcast, she tells host Heather Knight what it’s like to live under lockdown. | Subscribe to San Francisco City Insider.
19 min