News

This is NSPR’s weekday show about the local and regional effects of COVID-19 in the North State. Listen each weekday at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 a.m. NSPR will continue this special coverage as long as our community needs it. Our mission with this show is to provide accurate news and information about COVID-19 for the North State.

Today we’ll check in with Shasta County on California Governor Gavin Newsom’s latest announcement that churches can now re-open. We’ll hear why it’s critical to follow your county’s guidelines in order for them to keep moving forward with re-opening, and we'll get a psychologist take on why some people are following health recommendations like wearing masks during this pandemic and others aren’t.

Lately, choosing to wear a mask, or choosing to not wear a mask seems to be the big controversy. And when you visit a downtown, or a shopping center, there is a wide discrepancy of people wearing, or not wearing masks. 

NSPR's Matt Fidler wanted to go into the psychology of why some people choose to comply with the guidance of experts like the CDC and medical experts, and why some people just aren't very concerned, despite the known risks. So he called up local psychologist and author of “Show Your Anxiety's Who's Boss,” Dr. Joel Minden. Minden is the director of the Chico Center for Cognitive Behavior Therapy.

The California Department of Public Health announced Monday that religious services can resume under new guidelines, but with restrictions on how many people can attend and other precautions. And on Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom added hair salons and barber shops to the list of businesses permitted to begin reopening in counties that have received state approval.

NSPR's Marc Albert spoke Tuesday with Kerri Schuette, spokesperson for the Shasta County Health and Human Services Agency, about the reopening of churches, the continued importance of wearing masks and following social distancing guidelines, and more.

This is NSPR’s weekday show about the local and regional effects of COVID-19 in the North State. Listen each weekday at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 a.m. NSPR will continue this special coverage as long as our community needs it. Our mission with this show is to provide accurate news and information about COVID-19 for the North State.

Does visiting an ice cream shop put you at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 than a fast-food restaurant? How to navigate which businesses are the safest to visit and which might not be is what we’re exploring today with help from the podcast Pandemic Economics. It’s from The Becker Friedman Institute for Economics at the University of Chicago and it's hosted by Eduardo Porter and a good friend of this station, Tess Vigeland. It’s an interesting conversation, we highly recommend staying tuned.

Earlier this month, California State University Chancellor Timothy White announced that the majority of CSU courses will be delivered virtually in the fall because of the coronavirus pandemic.

NSPR's Andre Byik recently spoke with Chico State President Gayle Hutchinson, about the Chico City Council's recent action to possibly explore the viability of bringing more students back to the campus than currently planned.

As more businesses begin to reopen under the governor's phased reopening plan, questions have been raised regarding which agencies have the authority to enforce public health orders. 

NSPR's Andre Byik recently spoke with Chico Vice Mayor Alex Brown to discuss enforcement as well as other items addressed at Tuesday's City Council meeting, including exploring possible options to bring students back to Chico State in the fall. Here are highlights from their conversation. You can listen to the full interview at the top of the page.

This is NSPR’s weekday show about the local and regional effects of COVID-19 in the North State. Listen each weekday at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 a.m. NSPR will continue this special coverage as long as our community needs it. Our mission with this show is to provide accurate news and information about COVID-19 for the North State.

Today we’ll hear from Chico Vice Mayor Alex Brown on enforcing California Governor Gavin Newsom’s stay at home order in the city and the council’s recent action to possibly explore the viability of bringing more students back to the campus. We’ll also hear from Chico State President Gayle Hutchinson about the idea and more about Chico State’s current plans for the fall semester.

This is NSPR’s weekday show about the local and regional effects of COVID-19 in the North State. Listen each weekday at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 a.m. NSPR will continue this special coverage as long as our community needs it. Our mission with this show is to provide accurate news and information about COVID-19 for the North State.

Today we’ll check in with Glenn County on reopening and how residents there are doing during this pandemic. Also, we’ll hear from a Northern California doctor who just returned from helping treat COVID-19 patients in a hospital intensive care unit in New York.

There have been 12 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Glenn County as of May 21 and no deaths. 

The small, rural county has moved into phase two of reopening after receiving local variance approval from the state last week.

NSPR’s Marc Albert spoke with Amy Travis, director of the Glenn County Emergency Operations Center, about how the county has been responding to the pandemic. Highlights from their conversation are below. Listen to the full interview at the top of the page.