53°
Fair
LATEST UPDATES: Tracking COVID-19 | Vaccines | Racial Justice
Amita Sharma
Investigative Reporter
Amita Sharma has worked at KPBS since 2000 and has covered a wide range of stories for TV and radio. She is part of the KPBS Investigative Reporting unit and occasionally hosts KPBS Evening Edition.
Among the reports Amita has produced are a three-part series on child sex trafficking in San Diego, a two-part series on how the state is using survivors' benefits for foster children to pay for their upkeep, and a four-part series on the Port of San Diego's finances. Other investigations include the San Diego angle to the U.S. attorney firings, private security firm Blackwater’s controversial training camp proposal, and the Sunroad development controversy. Amita has also interviewed a number of local and national newsmakers including former Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean, Wisconsin Congressman James Sensenbrenner, and fired U.S. Attorney David Iglesias. In 2005 she landed an exclusive interview with three federal prosecutors who worked on the bribery investigation resulting in the guilty plea of former San Diego Congressman Randy “Duke” Cunningham. She also covered the murder trial of David Westerfield, the 2001 shooting at Santana High School, and how three of the 9/11 hijackers spent their time in San Diego.
Amita has also worked as a newspaper reporter. She has degrees in journalism and international relations from the University of Southern California.
Recent Stories by Amita Sharma
Remembering A San Diego Civil Rights Leader
- Feb. 17
- By Amita Sharma
Trunnell Price, co-founder of the San Diego Black Panther Party, died last month at 72. He helped start the local chapter while a student at SDSU in the 1960s.
BLM Protesters: Sheriff’s Deputies Ignored MAGA Supporters’ Assaults At Poway Rallies
- Feb. 3
- By Amita Sharma
Several protesters say rallies against police brutality have become lessons in law enforcement indifference to aggressive behavior by Trump and Make America Great Again followers. San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore disputes these claims.
Pandemic Profile: Caregiving Work Tough Before The Pandemic, Now It's Filled With Fear
- Jan. 18
- By Amita Sharma
A caregiver, who works at an assisted living facility worries about getting the virus and giving it to her family.
Roughly Half Of Caregivers At Long-Term Care Facilities Refusing COVID-19 Vaccine
- Jan. 15
- By Amita Sharma
Many are worried about long-term side effects.
Vaccination Rollout At San Diego Senior Care Facilities Lags Far Behind Plan
- Jan. 13
- By Amita Sharma
As new COVID-19 cases again surge through senior care facilities in San Diego and throughout the state, getting vaccines into the arms of residents and caregivers has been spotty and slow, according to doctors and advocates.
Hundreds Of COVID-19 Cases Tied To San Diego County Tribal Casinos
- Dec. 21, 2020
- By Amita Sharma
Community outbreak records obtained by KPBS show a total of more than 630 cases in which people diagnosed with the disease had been at casinos within 14 days of their diagnosis.
Ex-Caregiver Accused Of Sexually Assaulting Three Women At Nursing Homes Arrested
- Dec. 17, 2020
- By Amita Sharma
Matthew Fluckiger is accused of sexually violating three elderly women, including one with dementia, at three area nursing homes.
Families Still Fighting Over Trump, Even As His Term Closes
- Nov. 23, 2020
- By Amita Sharma
Four years of disputes over President Donald Trump and his policies have fractured families to the point of estrangement, made even worse by his refusal to concede and false claims that President-elect Joe Biden’s victory is based on voter fraud.
Now That The Presidential Election Is Over…
- Nov. 9, 2020
- By Amita Sharma
In 2016, after a polarizing election, feelings were so raw that Thanksgiving dinner tables became battlegrounds.
Scott Peters Coasts To Victory In 52nd Congressional District
- Nov. 3, 2020
- By Amita Sharma
Democratic Rep. Scott Peters is closing in on an easy victory in the coastal San Diego district.
Latest on kpbs.org
400 Years: Taking The Knee
Encores Monday, March 1, 2021 at 10 p.m. on KPBS TV + Wednesdays, March 4 & March 10 at 4 p.m. on KPBS 2 (not available to stream)
