The Evening News on Pacifica broadcasts each weeknight from the studios of KPFA-FM in Berkeley, the nation's first listener-supported radio station.

The Evening News is a collaboration of KPFA and its sister stations KPFK-Los Angeles and KFCF-Fresno. This hour-long broadcast seeks to bring unreported and under-reported stories of interest to Californians, with a focus on issues of peace, and social & economic justice.

KPFA Radio c/o News Department
1929 Martin Luther King, Jr. Way
Berkeley, CA 94704-1037

(510)848-6767 ext. 699

Email: news@kpfa.org

Click here for a list of staff

The KPFA Evening News - February 29, 2004 at 6:00pm
Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide flees into exile today, as violence erupts in the Capital, Port au Prince, and the U.S. and France send in troops More than 100,000 Venezuelans march in support of President Hugo Chavez as opponents demanding his recall stage demonstrations in several cities Israel's Supreme Court issues a one week halt to construction of the 20 foot high so-called "security barrier".. Israel is under intense international pressure to not build the wall, with a case at the International Court of Justice in the Hague on its legality pending

The KPFA Evening News - February 28, 2004 at 6:00pm

The KPFA Evening News - February 27, 2004 at 6:00pm
Embattled President Jen-Bertrand Aristide says the United States should defend Haitian democracy and lead a deployment of foreign police to thwart a coup underway in his country... The Bush Administration tells Aristide to step aside in favor of his constitutional successor and contemplates sending U.S. troops off the shore of Haiti The California Supreme Court declines a request by the State Attorney General to immediately shut down San Francisco's same-sex weddings and to invalidate the 35-hundred marriages already performed.. In New York State the Green Party mayor of New Paltz follows Gavin Newsome's lead and authorizes same-sex marriages 70-thousand Southern California grocery workers to vote this weekend on whether to end their 4 and a half month strike against 3 supermarket chains The Bush Administration moves to reclassify service employment as manufacturing jobs California's Democratic Congressional Delegation warns Governor Schwarzenneger that President Bush's proposed budget could cost the State 20 billion dollars The Bush Administration jettisons the Clinton Administration's plan to phase out land mines

The KPFA Evening News - February 26, 2004 at 6:00pm
IBM with a big court victory as a jury in Santa Clara decides the company is not liable in the case of 2 former workers who claimed their job conditions caused their cancers. The much-watched trial was the first of some 200 similar lawsuits facing IBM Secretary of State Powell for first time publicly suggests that Haitian President Jean Bertrand Aristide step down before his term is up.. Powell also says the Bush Administration is willing to participate in a security force if a political settlement is reached in Haiti A former cabinet member in Briatin accuses the Blair administration of spying on United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan in the build-up to the Iraq War.. Prime Minister Blair says his country's spies adhered to International Law North Carolina Senator John Edwards brings his bid for the Democratic Presidential Nomination to the Bay Area.. His main rival, Massachusettes Senator John Kerry, also campaigns in California.. he'll be in the Bay Area tomorrow night Seniors, people with disabilities, and home care workers rally across the State in opposition to budget cuts proposed by Governor Schwarzenneger A tentative contract is reached in Southern California's Grocery Workers Strike, the longest supermarket walk-out in U.S. history

The KPFA Evening News - February 25, 2004 at 6:00pm
President Bush rejects Haitian President Aristide's appeal for immediate assistance to stave off a coup d'etat.. members of the Congressional Black Caucus demand and obtain a meeting with Bush on the Haiti crisis In an unprecedented raid, Israeli troops firing tear gas and rubber bullets storm 4 Palestinian banks and seize more than 8 million dollars.. Israel claims the funds were used to underwrite Palestinian militants Opponents of gay marriage ask the California Supreme Court to block San Francisco from issuing any more same-sex marriage licenses, and in Sacramento, gay and lesbian lawmakers announce a resolution opposing a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage San Francisco supervisors call for a halt in sending youthful offenders to the California Youth Authority facilities - 2 Alameda County supervisors back a similar move Presidential hopeful John Kerry says he would require companies to give their employees a 3 month warning before sending their jobs abroad 12 term San Mateo congressman Tom Lantos faces 2 democratic challengers in the Democratic Primary, both have denounced Lantos's support for the invasion of Iraq

The KPFA Evening News - February 24, 2004 at 6:00pm
President Bush urges approval of a Constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage...social conservatives praise the President - opponents say Bush's action is election year pandering to the Right Wing A pair of conservative republicans who helped organize last year's gubernatorial election say they'll try to remove California Attorney General Bill Lockyer from office for failing to enforce the State's ban on same sex marriage The National Education Association asks President Bush to dismiss Education Secretary Rod Paige for calling the teachers union a "terrorist organization" Haitian opposition leaders reject a power sharing plan agreed to by President Aristide - while armed rebels capture another Haitian city Worldwide protests target San Francisco based Bechtel Corporation and Texas based Halliburton as war profiteers in Iraq Alameda County voters are asked to increase the county sales tax to save hospital facilities for indegent residents

The KPFA Evening News - February 23, 2004 at 6:00pm
Ralph Nader says he shares a common goal with Democrats of ousting President Bush from the White House - and rejects charges that he is running as a spoiler in the Presidential Campaign The Bush Administration sends 50 marines to Haiti to protect the U.S. Embassy - as armed rebels vow to march on the capital within the week A suicide car bombing targets a police station in Kirkuk, killing 13 Iraqi police officers and wounding 51 people Palestinians present their case at the World Court against the Israeli barrier in the West Bank, saying it is annexing large areas of Palestinian land.. Israel, the U.S., and the European Union stay away from the hearing San Francisco's new minimum wage law takes effect - with a mandatory raise to 8.50 an hour Closing arguments in the IBM cancer trial in Santa Clara County The second break-in in 8 days at the home of the Humboldt County District Attorney, who is the target of a recall campaign largely financed by Pacific Lumber

The KPFA Evening News - February 22, 2004 at 6:00pm
Consumer advocate Ralph Nader declares he'll run again for the presidency, this time as an independent rather than a Green Rebels in Haiti continue their advance, attacking the country's second largest city A suicide bomb attack on a Jerusalem bus kills 8 Israelis and wounds 60. The attack comes on the eve of a World Court hearing on the so-called "seperation wall" A gathering today in Japantown to remember the Japanese Americans placed in prison camps during World War II

The KPFA Evening News - February 21, 2004 at 6:00pm
Haiti's president agrees to a peace plan aimed at ending an uprising in which at least 60 people have been killed so far Islamic hard liners and reformists are both claiming victory in Iran's elections Thousands of Palestinians protest Israel's West Bank security wall just 2 days before the start of World Court hearings on the legality of the structure Anti death penalty activists call for a statewide moritorium on capital punishment

The KPFA Evening News - February 20, 2004 at 6:00pm
Same sex marriages in San Francisco to continue as a Superior Court Judge rejects a conservative group's legal effort to put a stop to them.. the judge consolidates all three of the lawsuits arising from SF's action and says he'll hold a hearing on the merits of the case next month - gay marriage opponents are expected to appeal The Bush Administration demands that Haiti's President Jean Bertrand Aristide form a new cabinet with a neutral prime minister to end the armed revolt that threatens to topple his government A fierce debate underway within the Environmental Protection Agency over how it is conducting its Superfund program to clean up the Nation's worst toxic waste sites ..critics say the EPA is using Enron-style accounting to inflate the number of clean-ups For the second time in two months, President Bush uses a congressional recess to appoint a right-wing judge blocked by the Senate Two East Bay lawmakers teaming up to get irradiated ground beef out of the School Lunch Program The Federal Communications Commission gives low power radio a technical clean bill of health

The KPFA Evening News - February 19, 2004 at 6:00pm
Democratic Presidential candidate John Edwards steps up his attacks on President Bush's economic record, calling the loss of U.S. jobs overseas a moral issue and vowing to stop it if he's elected to the Oval Office, meanwhile the AFL-CIO endorses Edward's main rival Senator John Kerry Former Enron Chief Executive Jeffrey Skilling indicted on 35 federal counts of fraud, insider trading and other crimes, the highest ranking indictement yet in the energy company scandal ...Skilling walks out of jail after posting a five million dollar bond The City of San Francisco takes the offensive in the battle over same-sex marriage, suing California to strike down State laws restricting marriage to a man and a woman After a 17 year struggle the United Farmworkers Union signs a landmark collective bargaining agreement with Pictsweet Mushroom Farms in Ventura State Treasurer Phil Angelides with a back-up financial plan if voters reject Governor Schwarzenegger's 15 billion dollar bond proposal State lawmakers ponder dismantling the problem-plagued California Youth Authority

The KPFA Evening News - February 18, 2004 at 6:00pm
Howard Dean drops out of the race for the Democratic Presidential nomination - he says he'll urge his supporters to work for progressive change in the Democratic Party President Bush says he's troubled by gay weddings in San Francisco, but declines to publically endorse a constitutional ban on gay marriage Suicide car bombings kill at least 11 Iraqis and wound dozens of foreign troops in twin attacks on a military base south of Baghdad The international committee of the Red Cross says that Israel's West Bank barrier violates international humanitarian law and should not be built across occupied Palestinian land The United Nations Security Council calls for a peaceful solution to the escalating crisis in Haiti, as frightened Haitian police officers desert their posts Unemployed South Bay workers march through San Jose to call attention to the plight of workers struggling since the economic bubble burst in Silicon Valley

The KPFA Evening News - February 17, 2004 at 6:00pm
John Kerry goes for the knock-out punch in the Wisconsin primary - both John Edwards and Howard Dean say they'll stay in the race regardless of today's outcome, but Dean has no campaign manager and no campaign appearances planned Two San Francisco judges delay taking any action to block the City from issuing same-sex marriage licenses.. one judge sets a hearing on the merits of the opponnents case for Friday .. the other sets his hearing for March 29th OXFAM International out with a report charging big brand retailers in the fashion and food businesses with driving down working conditions for millions of workers around the world, most of them women San Francisco supervisor Tom Ammiano unveils legislation to bring the City energy independence with greater efficiency and renewable sources Battered women under welfare reform denied counseling and services in California Haiti's Pemier says his country is in the throes of a coup and appeals for international help

The KPFA Evening News - February 16, 2004 at 6:00pm
Hundreds of gays and lesbians line up in the rain outside City Hall for the chance to get married - on the last full day of gay marriages before a court hearing A new report slams Walmart's low wages and their impact on local communities - the report is released two weeks before a hard fought Contra Costa ballot measure on banning big box development Haitian rebels attack police headquarters in the center of the country - the attack comes a day after a former leader of the notorious paramilitary group FRAPH re-emerges to join the armed rebellion India and Pakistan hold their first peace talks in two and a half years Roadside bombs kill two U.S. soldiers in separate Iraqi attacks in Baghdad and a city to the Northeast Howard Dean's national campaign chairman quits the campaign a day before the critical Wisonsin Primary

The KPFA Evening News - February 15, 2004 at 6:00pm
San Francisco City Hall is overwhelmed by same sex couples in line for marriage licenses. Yesterday, Valentine's Day, hundreds were told to come back another time. Some camped out overnight, and lined up around the block again today. Candlelight vigils against war and occupation in the Bay Area and around the world today, from North America to Europe to Africa and Asia, anti-war activists are commemorating a year of organizing for peace Iran's student movement calls for a boycott of legislative elections scheduled this week. Reformist candidates have been barred from the ballot Newly released drawings from Libya of nuclear warheads are raising questions about Pakistan's role in nuclear proliferation

The KPFA Evening News - February 14, 2004 at 6:00pm
The U.S. launches a commercial-free Arabic-language satellite television network in an attempt to improve its image in the Middle East Supporters of striking Southern California grocery workers gather at two Safeway stores in San Francisco to protest against proposed cuts in workers' health care benefits Growing international outrage over the ongoing murders of hundreds of women in Ciudad Juarez prompts a Valentine's Day pilgrimage to the Mexican town that shares a border with El Paso, Texas About a thousand people come together for a Valentine's Day rally for same sex marriage in Sacramento

The KPFA Evening News - February 13, 2004 at 6:00pm
San Francisco issues hundreds more marriage licences to same sex couples and the weddings at City Hall are likely to continue through the weekend - opponents of gay marriage go to court to try to stop it but are rebuffed in their legal challenge In Massachusetts advocates of same-sex marriage claim at least a temporary victory as State lawmakers adjourn an effort to draft a constitutional amendment defining marriage as exclusively between a man and a woman The Pentagon with a new panel to rule whether the detainees at the U.S. base at Guantanamo Cuba are a threat or can be released - but at the same time secretary of defense Rumsfeld indicates they can be held without trial indefinitely - one human rights group calls the panel a sham President Bush orders the release of all of his Vietnam-era military records - but there's no new evidence indicating that he showed up for service in Alabama A Federal Judge orders the Government to grant over 20-thousand asylum holders permanent resident status - the judge calls the government's treatment of asylum holders a national embarrassment It looks like the endorsement of the AFL-CIO is on the way to John Kerry - today he gets the backing of former General Wesley Clark

The KPFA Evening News - February 12, 2004 at 6:00pm
San Francisco makes history by becoming the first city in the nation to issue marriage licenses for same sex couples - dozens of gays and lesbians flock to City Hall to be married - the act of civil disobedience is intended to pre-empt a conservative group's legal challenge A near miss by the Iraqi resistance as it attacks a military compound in Fallujah just as the commander of all U.S. forces in the Mideast arrives - General John Abizaid is not hurt An alternative weekly in Memphis Tennessee says its interviewd two former members of the Alabama Air National Guard who say George W. bush never served with them during the time he had been assigned to their unit A settlement in a lawsuit brought by disabled rights activists against Macy's West department stores SBC Communications opens crucial contract talks with the Cmmunication Workers of America for 100 thousand employees

The KPFA Evening News - February 11, 2004 at 6:00pm
The Massachusetts legislature debates a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage - hundreds of opponents and supporters of the measure rally as the debate begins San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom proposes that the City issue marriage licenses to same sex couples Haitian President Jean Bertrand Aristide rejects opposition demands that he resign - members of the Congressional Black Caucus criticize the Bush administration for supporting the opposition Striking and locked out grocery workers resume talks with Southern California grocery chains - in San Francisco, a protest at the Pacific Stock Exchange urges shareholders to sell off their Safeway stock Drug Czar John Walters denounces medical marijuana during a Sacramento visit - State lawmakers urge a moratorium on federal raides in California Federal officials reportedly drop their supboenas of anti-war activists who staged an anti-war event at an Iowa university Wesley Clark drops out of the Democratic Presidential race

The KPFA Evening News - February 10, 2004 at 6:00pm
A suicide bomber blows up a truckload of explosives outside a police station south of Baghdad killing more than 50 people and wounding up to 100 - amoung the dead are Iraqis lined up for a job on the police force - asked about the bombing Defense Secretary Rumsfeld says there are murders in every major city in the world because human beings are human beings Two grassroots groups launch a nationwide campaign to get Congress to censure President Bush for manipulating intelligence to justify the attack on Iraq The 11th hour reprieve granted San Quentin death row inmate Kevin Cooper should keep his effort to exonerate himself going well into next year - the U.S. Supreme Court refused to intervene last night and let the Ninth Circuit Appeals Court stay of execution stand Democratic Presidential front-runner John Kerry wins primaries in Virginia and Tennessee - the sweep gives Kerry 12 wins in the 14 Democratic contests thus far State Democrats come out backing Governor Schwarzenegger's 15 billion dollar bond to deal with the State's fiscal crisis - both Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer and the leaders of both houses of the State Legislature announce their support today San Francisco Supervisor Tom Ammiano with a resolution for a moratorium on sending youthful offenders to facilities of the California Youth Authority

The KPFA Evening News - February 9, 2004 at 6:00pm
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals orders a hearing for death row inmate Kevin Cooper on new evidence in his case - Cooper's execution could still go forward at midnight if the U.S. Supreme Court intervenes AFSCME, one of the country's largest unions, announces it's withdrawing its support from Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean - Democratic candidate Dennis Kucinich criticizes front-runner John Kerry as being to similar to President Bush on Iraq Haitian police recapture the city of St. Mark from armed opponents of President Jean Bertrand Aristide A federal judge orders an Iowa University to turn over records about a gathering of anti-war activists San Francisco housing rights activists today urge approval of a measure to bar demolition of apartment buildings with more that 20 units Berkeley's Claremont Hotel goes up for sale - it's been the target of a boycott authorized by Claremont workers

The KPFA Evening News - February 8, 2004 at 6:00pm
Unless there is a last minute stay, California death row inmate Kevin Cooper will be executed tomorrow night, about 18 hours from now, at San Quentin Prison. Cooper says he's innocent of the murders for which he was convicted In a rare appearance on a weekend television news program, President Bush defends his decision to invade Iraq Continued weekend violence in Haiti claims 18 lives Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich visits San Francisco, though he's collected only 2 delegates so far, the Ohio congressman still has a legion of enthusiastic supporters

The KPFA Evening News - February 7, 2004 at 6:00pm
Senator John Kerry wins major victories in Michigan and Washington, while former Vermont Governor Howard Dean suffers a major blow to his campaign when the head of a major union decides to withdraw his support President Bush's poll numbers continue to drop as public support for the President declines in the wake of outgoing weapons inspector David Kay's comments on the search for illegal weapons in Iraq The independent commission investigating the September 11 attacks meets with National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice in an interview commissioners describe as candid and productive A major death penalty conference in Oakland just days before the scheduled execution of Kevin Cooper

The KPFA Evening News - February 6, 2004 at 6:00pm
A Federal Court throws out death row inmate Kevin Cooper's challenge to lethal injection as cruel and unusual punishment - the Reverend Jesse Jackson meets with Cooper and asks Governor Schwarzenegger to delay the execution An Alameda County Superior Court judge refuses to drop charges against 25 anti-war protestors arrested at the Port of Oakland last April California Secretary of State Kevin Shelley announces new plans to safeguard voting results for the March 2nd primary - it's a response to concerns about electronic voting machines President Bush turns aside Democratic objections and asserts sole authority to name members of a panel to investigate pre-war intelligence on Iraq - the co-chairs are a former conservative Republican judge and a former moderate Democratic senator Ohio's Republican Governor signs into law one of the nation's most far reaching bans on gay marriage - and domestic partner benefits An armed group opposed to Haiti's President Jean Bertrand Aristide stages a violent take over of the city of Gonaives

The KPFA Evening News - February 5, 2004 at 6:00pm
CIA Director George Tenet breaks his silence on the Iraq weapons intelligence failures with a heated defense of his agency - Tenet insists the CIA never told President Bush posed an imminent threat to the U.S. as the Administration claimed Another accusation against Halliburton - its under investigation for involvment in the payment of $180 million in bribes in Nigeria to win a natural gas project contract there - Vice President Cheney was head of the company at the time Lawyers for San Quentin death row inmate Kevin Cooper in a Federal Court in San Jose asking for a reprieve - in 5 days Cooper is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection, a method his lawyers contend is unconstitutionally cruel A rally on Wall Street in support of striking and locked-out Southern California grocery workers Port of Oakland maintenance, custodial, technical and administrative workers step up their pressure to win a new contract Neighborhood leaders in SF denounce Proposition J, the workforce housing measure on the March ballot

The KPFA Evening News - February 4, 2004 at 6:00pm
The Massachusetts Supreme Court clarifies its previous ruling on gay marriage saying civil unions will not meet legal muster - President Bush denounces the decision In a sometimes contentious Senate hearing, Defense Secretary Donal Rumsfeld says he still thinks Iraq may have had weapons of mass destruction before the U.S. Invasion President Bush reverses course and says he'll give 2 extra months to a commission reviewing the September 11th attacks Mayor Gavin Newsom names former supervisor and Mayoral rival Angela Alioto to head his committee to develop a ten-year plan to end homelessness in SF The Southern California supermarket chains reject an offer from striking and locked out union members to submit their dispute to binding arbitration A rally in Oakland to protest the State Administrator's plan to shut down 5 Oakland schools

The KPFA Evening News - February 3, 2004 at 6:00pm
Senator John Kerry wins victories in Missouri and Delaware - Senator John Edwards takes his native South Carolina Civil Disobedience outside the gates of San Quentin where Kevin Cooper is scheduled to die next week - in Sacramento, 12 State lawmakers urge Governor Schwarzenegger to stop next week's scheduled execution of Kevin Cooper The Bush Administration refuses to bend to Democrats' demands that President Bush share the responsibility for naming members of a commission to investigate pre-war intelligence on Iraq Environmental and civil rights groups mobilize against another Bush Administration Judicial nominee - William Meyers III has been named to the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco San Francisco activists and some supervisors denounce what they call the shameless greed of major corporate land owners seeking to lower their property tax assessments KPFA General Manager Gus Newport resigns after seven months on the job

The KPFA Evening News - February 2, 2004 at 6:00pm
President Bush unveils a 2.4 trillion dollar budget - he wants to boost military spending to 400 billion dollars President Bush announces he'll form an independent panel to probe pre-war intelligence on Iraqi weapons - Democratic critics question whether the panel will be impartial The Democratic Presidential candidates face voters in 7 states tomorrow where a total of 269 delegates will be chosen California Attorney General Lockyer files suit against the supermarket chains involved in the Southern California Grocery Workers strike and lockout - he's challenging their profit sharing agreement Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says he wants to remove nearly all the Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip 2 former ary chiefs are questioned in the scandal over Pakistan's sales of nuclear weapons technology to Iran, Libya, and North Korea

The KPFA Evening News - February 1, 2004 at 6:00pm
With weapons of mass destruction no where to be found, the Bush Administration is planning to establish an investigation of intelligence failures concerning Iraq - critics say it's an election year ploy 2 suicide bombers blow themselves up in the offices of 2 Kurdish parties alligned with the U.S. occupation forces, killing at least 56 and wounding some 200 people The BBC's former director says British Prime Minister Tony Blair's government systematically bullied the network over its Iraq coverage, which was critical of the U.S.-British invasion Quatamala announces food rationing for 77 thousand of its poorest residents on the brink of starvation