Soundside

Latest Episodes:

"I will not watch channel four ever again" - your thoughts on Jimmy Kimmel and Sinclair Sep 24, 2025

Show notes

Did you catch Kimmel last night? It was his first night back after Disney pulled him off air about a week ago.

Most likely, you only saw it after the fact. That's because Sinclair Broadcasting, which owns 38 ABC affiliates, including KOMO here in Seattle, announced earlier this week that they would continue to pre-empt Jimmy Kimmel Live! until further notice.

Kimmel’s show was suspended by ABC after he discussed the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk during an opening monologue last week, stating that a “MAGA gang” were “desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them.”

Sinclair had previously demanded Kimmel apologize for his statement, and donate to Kirk’s conservative nonprofit - Turning Point USA.

We asked you how you felt about Sinclair’s decision to pre-empt Kimmel’s show on their stations

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As Seattle finalizes comprehensive plan, some ask - who will speak for the trees? Sep 24, 2025

Show notes

After a few marathon public comment sessions last week, the Seattle City Council is considering the final version of a comprehensive plan.

This is the document that dictates where and how the city will grow over the next two decades.

Over the last week, balancing tree canopy with growth emerged as one of the most controversial issues in the plan.

And there’s a history here:

In 2023, Mayor Harrell and the Seattle City Council passed a so-called tree protection ordinance that would limit the amount of trees developers could cut down while building new housing.

But, according to tree-canopy advocates, two years since the law went into effect tree-cutting has only increased.

Just in August an average of 73 trees were being cut down each week.

So what went wrong? Or – is the law working exactly as intended?

Guest:

Robert McClure is a journalist and co-founder of InvestigateWest

Related stories:

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From Sammamish to space: meet NASA’s new astronaut candidate Sep 24, 2025

Show notes

NASA announced its next batch of potential astronauts this week. Out of 8,000 applicants, just ten were chosen to attend the two year training program, including Lauren Edgar from Sammamish. When those astronaut candidates complete the training, they will be eligible for missions to low earth orbit, the moon, and Mars.

Guest:

Lauren Edgar, NASA astronaut candidate

Relevant Links:

NASA Selects All-American 2025 Class of Astronaut Candidates

NASA Astronaut Candidate Lauren A. Edgar

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

She was harassed on a national level. And the experience, she says, softened her. Sep 24, 2025

Show notes

What happens when you become the target of hate, spread across wide swaths of the media? Of a movement that is as frightening and violent as it is just factually wrong?

You might want life to go back to normal. But those who’ve experienced this know things can’t ever be the same.

A Belligham resident told us about her experience.

Guest:

Jenn Mason, owner of WinkWink sex shop in Bellingham, sex educator, and school board director

Related stories:

Right-wing trolls harassed this Bellingham sex educator. Then she reached across the divide - KUOW

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On The Ballot: Chad Magendanz, 5th Legislative District Sep 23, 2025

Show notes

This week, we're looking at the special election in Washington’s 5th Legislative District, which covers Issaquah to Enumclaw.

State Sen. Victoria Hunt, a Democrat, was appointed to the seat and is running to keep her job this fall.

Republicans are hoping to flip a couple of seats in the legislature and claw back some lawmaking power from Democrats, who currently hold majorities in both the House and Senate

Former State Rep. Chad Magendanz is challenging Hunt for the 5th district’s Senate seat. Magendanz is a Republican and served this district for two terms in the state House until he lost in 2016.

We talk with him about his campaign.

Guest

Chad Magendanz, former state representative, and candidate for state Senate in the 5tth LD

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Using Instagram to sell a house in Seattle Sep 23, 2025

Show notes

Log onto Instagram and you’ll see videos of celebrity interviews, food recipes and, lately, homes for sale.

These days realtors are leaning more on social media to show property listings. They take their audience on immersive tours and give details about a home’s price, features and neighborhood.

These posts get plenty of attention from casual viewers, but they do also attract potential buyers.

A real estate agent shares how she's using social media to sell homes around the city.

Guest:

Candace Hagen, a real estate agent in Seattle.

Related stories:

Seattle-area real estate agents go where homebuyers scroll | The Seattle Times

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes.

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ask a Doctor: What the latest federal vaccine guidance means for your kids Sep 23, 2025

Show notes

There's a flurry of health news happening these days: Decisions and announcements being made at federal agencies. State governments vowing to fight changes.

It can be hard to know what the impacts will be at the ground level.

We're going to set aside some time every now and then to check in with doctors and medical professionals about the latest developments -- and what they mean for you.

In this segment, we're digging into the latest news on childhood vaccinations: Last week, a vaccine panel formed by Health and Human Services head Robert F. Kennedy Jr. met to discuss policy regarding measles, Covid-19 and Hepatitis B.

There were a variety of actions taken by the panel -- some votes taken, some NOT taken. Two local doctors help us make sense of what all of this means.

Guest:

Dr. Helen Chu, a professor of medicine at UW Medicine.
Dr. Amanda Kost, chief of service of family medicine at Harborview Medical Center.

Related stories:

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes.

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Affordable Housing vacancies in Seattle rise while the homeless population grows Sep 19, 2025

Show notes

There is a disconnect between the high level of homelessness in Seattle and the high number of affordable housing units that are sitting unused at the moment. As of the end of last year, nearly 11% of affordable housing in the city were empty – more than 2700 apartments. .

That’s more than five times the number of vacancies compared to 7 years ago.

So what happened?

Well, for many, affordable housing is, ironically, no longer the affordable option. A flattening of rents overall has made these units less desirable than many other market rate options. But even though these units are sitting empty, it’s unlikely they will be opened for Seattle’s growing homeless population.

Guest: Seattle Times homelessness reporter Greg Kim

Links:

Why thousands of Seattle’s affordable-housing apartments became vacant

Homeless people visited ER less after moving into King County’s hotels

Bracing for cuts, King County Housing Authority pulls back

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Soundside's "Weekend Warmup" - Sept 18-21 Sep 18, 2025

Show notes

Well, with Fall officially beginning at 11:19 on Monday morning, we’ve reached the FINAL weekend of the summer. How will YOU be celebrating the end of the season?

Are you sad to see the summer slip away, or are you excited for the Autumnal goodness that the season change brings?

Either way, we’ve got Soundside Producer Jason Megatron Burrows here with nearly EVERY option available!

LINKS:

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hear it Again: The hunt for truth behind Oregon's mysterious cattle mutilations Sep 18, 2025

Show notes

In 2019, the remote plains of Harney County, Oregon made national news. Scattered amongst groves of ponderosa pine were a handful of mutilated cattle. The cows had an almost surgical removal of their tongues and other organs.

But the most astounding thing is that the scenes where these cattle were found were pristine. No tracks. And not one drop of blood – the carcasses were drained dry.

That detail became the inspiration for a documentary by co-directors Jackson Devereux and Lachlan Hinton, and reporter Anna King. Their documentary film – three years in the making – is titled “Not one Drop of Blood.”

The documentary will screen at the Northwest Film Forum's Local Sightings film festival in Seattle on Saturday, September 20th.

Guests: