KQED's Forum

As drug use has ballooned over the last decade, so too has the demand for addiction treatment. But as Mother Jones reporter Julia Lurie reveals in a new investigation, unscrupulous rehab centers are proliferating in a loosely regulated industry. We'll talk to Lurie about the practices she uncovered, including the "Florida shuffle," in which centers woo recovering users with cash, free flights, and even drugs. We'll also hear about how to find a responsible rehabilitation center and we want to hear from you: If you have undergone treatment for drug addiction, how was your experience with the rehab industry?

Historian Edward Watts' new book "Mortal Republic" begins in the third century BC, when Rome developed democratic institutions that allowed it to expand its territory, grow economically and remain politically stable. But by the late second century economic inequality coupled with politicians' "constitutional trickery" led to violence and ultimately, to civil war. Watts joins Forum to talk about the collapse of Roman democracy and what it illuminates about today's political realities.

Protesters shut down a downtown Sacramento shopping mall on Sunday, one day after prosecutors declined to file charges against the police officers who killed Stephon Clark last March. Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert announced Saturday that she would not press charges against the two officers, who have said they thought Clark, a vandalism suspect, had a gun. But investigators found only a cellphone. On Sunday, Clark's mother, SeQuette Clark, pledged to continue what she called the family's "fight for justice." We'll discuss the case and new efforts in Sacramento to regulate police use of deadly force.

Forum reviews, analyzes and answers your questions about the latest news from Washington, D.C.

When he was an inmate at San Quentin State Prison, Earlonne Woods co-founded a podcast called Ear Hustle, which is prison slang for listening to things "that may not be your business." Over its first three seasons Ear Hustle documented everyday life behind bars -- from cellmate dynamics to "getting a date" (for a parole hearing) to parenting from prison. In November, Governor Jerry Brown commuted Woods' 31-years-to-life sentence for attempted robbery, citing his work on the podcast. Woods and Ear Hustle's co-creator and co-host Nigel Poor join Forum to talk about their experiences and what's next for the program.

Governor Newsom on Thursday declared a state of emergency in Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake, Glenn and Amador counties due to flooding. And authorities in Humboldt County say that a Ferndale man died while trying to navigate flood waters to reach his three kids who were trapped in their house. We'll get the latest news on the floods in Northern California and find out what's next for communities along the Russian River, where more than 3,000 people were evacuated earlier in the week.

More than a quarter of Oakland public school students were enrolled in charter schools last year and that has become a central issue for the city's teachers who have been on strike since last week. The union representing Oakland teachers has blamed charter schools, which are privately operated, publicly funded and mostly non-union, for diverting money from district schools. Forum talks about how charter schools affect school funding and about proposed laws to regulate charters in California.

In 2017, the #MeToo Movement began exposing Hollywood’s culture of sexual violence, which then broadened into a global rallying cry. But sexual coercion and abuse has long had a place in Hollywood as three recently-released books attest. The books examine the working conditions of women during Hollywood's Golden Age and the abuses of casting couch predators like Howard Hughes and Harry Cohn. We'll talk with the authors about the vast contributions --and challenges- for women in the studio era

President Trump's former personal lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, testified before the House Oversight Committee in a full day of hearings on Wednesday. Cohen characterized the president as a racist, a conman and a cheat. In confrontational questioning, Republican committee members attacked Cohen's credibility and motivation. Forum discusses the hearing and its political implications.

South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg says that he has the right kind of experience to be president. Buttigieg, who is 37 years old, openly gay, a Rhodes scholar and a Navy veteran is a rising star in the Democratic Party. Though he is currently considered a long shot for the nomination, Buttigieg would make history as the youngest and first gay man elected to the White House. Buttigieg joins us in the studio to discuss his presidential bid and his new memoir "The Shortest Way Home."

Wired magazine calls him "the man who saved net neutrality." A former industry lobbyist, Tom Wheeler surprised many when the Federal Communications Commission passed a number of consumer-friendly reforms under his leadership. We'll talk with him about the roll back of some of those policies under the Trump administration. We'll also discuss his new book on the history of revolutionary technologies, "From Gutenberg to Google: The History of Our Future."

More than a quarter of Oakland public school students were enrolled in charter schools last year and that has become a central issue for Oakland teachers who have been on strike since last week. The teachers union blames charter schools for taking money away from district schools. Forum talks about the role of charter schools in school funding, particularly in Oakland, and proposed laws aimed at regulating charter schools across the state.

Florida prosecutors charged New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft Monday with soliciting prostitution at a local spa tied to an international human trafficking ring. Kraft's arrest was part of an ongoing investigation in Florida and New York into massage parlors that employ trafficked immigrant women who are forced to perform sex acts for clients. We'll talk about the prevalence of illicit spa and massage businesses in the Bay Area and what's being done to stop them.

The 91st annual Academy Awards take place on Sunday, and the best picture contenders range from the super hero blockbuster "Black Panther" to "Roma," a Spanish-language drama about a young domestic worker in Mexico City. Forum reviews the winners, the snubs and the highlights from the ceremony, which is host-less for the first time in 30 years. And we want to hear from you: Did your favorite film get a nod? How did this year’s ceremony stack up to past years?

Forum reviews, analyzes and answers your questions about the latest news from Washington, D.C.