San Diego City Council voted to appoint attorney Lee Burdick to the seat on the Port Commission vacated by Laurie Black. The 5-to-3 vote came after a two-and-a-half hour public hearing.

From cheerleader to conceptual artist, Glenna Jennings revisits high school through a new narrative that combines her photography, a novella, and her long fascination with Dostoyevsky's Raskolnikov.

"Sesame Street," now in hi-definition for the first time, premieres a new season of the critically-acclaimed preschool series will merge two crucial areas: mathematics and literacy.

A growing number of San Diegans are dying from taking too many prescription painkillers. The county medical examiner says there's been a 30 percent increase in medication-related deaths over the last few years.

California animal shelters would be required to euthanize animals sooner under cuts proposed in Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's revised budget. Shelters now care for the animals for six days before they're "put down."

A severe drought out West continues to threaten farms, fish, and water supplies to nearly everyone. Tighter water restrictions went into effect this month in much of Southern California, and the federal government issued a directive last week that could cut water delivery to farmers and residents in the state by 7 percent.

Luis Alberto Urrea, one of today's most critically acclaimed writers, talks with us about his new novel "Into the Beautiful North," which is set in a Mexican village and in the Tijuana-San Diego border region.

The State of California is facing a $24 billion budget deficit, and needs to balance its books by the end of this month. We speak to political consultant Leo McElroy about the ramifications of letting the budget deficit carry over into the new fiscal year, and to find out where cuts are likely to be made.

The North County Fire Protection District will begin billing drivers for responding to automobile accidents. We'll find out why local public agencies are turning to an accident response fee to offset funding from the state.

Governor Schwarzenegger says he's not bluffing about the extent of the painful cuts needed to solve California's budget crisis.

It's World Ocean Day. The international celebration is designated by the United Nations as day to take action to protect marine ecosystems. KPBS Environment Reporter Ed Joyce tells us UC San Diego research shows the health of the oceans has declined in recent decades.

Hundreds of people turned out this weekend to help clean up the Tijuana River Valley in San Diego’s South Bay.

The San Diego City Council is set to vote on the 2010 fiscal year budget today. Officials agree the process hasn’t been contentious, but that doesn’t mean the situation is good.

The Padres lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday in the longest major league game this season.

North Korea convicted two American journalists and sentenced them Monday to 12 years of hard labor, intensifying the reclusive nation's confrontation with the United States. Washington said it would "engage in all possible channels" to win the release of Laura Ling and Euna Lee.

A South Bay school superintendent is under fire for initiating a leadership shake-up in his district. KPBS Reporter Ana Tintocalis says some educators are now questioning the direction of the district.