Producer
PROFILE
Alexandra Sif Tryggvadottir
Producer
FROM Alexandra Sif Tryggvadottir
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Wildfires rages across California A number of large wildfires are burning around California as hot weather continues to make conditions difficult for fire crews.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
LAPD Chief explains Trader Joe’s shootout LAPD Chief Michel Moore announced on Tuesday that one of his officers -- not suspect Gene Atkins -- fired the bullet that killed Trader Joe’s manager Melyda Corado over the weekend. He explains the timeline of what happened, how officers decided to open fire in a crowded area, and whether this will lead to changes in policing policy.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
'Blindspotting' co-star on the link between violence and gentrification Over the weekend, a young black woman was stabbed to death after exiting a BART train. It’s the third violent killing on BART in the last week. It’s all happening as Rafael Casal is out promoting his new film -- set in Oakland, and about race, violence, and gentrification.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Will the government meet the deadline to reunify families separated at the border? Next week is the deadline to reunite the thousands of kids separated from their parents at the border. The Department of Homeland Security said yesterday that they’re working to meet the deadline, but will not “cut corners.” We get an update on where these families are now.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
How will Disney-Fox deal affect what you see in theaters and on TV? For $71 billion, Disney gets Fox’s TV and film studios, 60 percent of Hulu, the FX and National Geographic cable channels, and some properties in India and Latin America. The combined Disney and Fox movie studios have earned nearly 50 percent of the North American box office this year.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
How home staging makes housing more expensive The median home price in LA surpassed $600,000 for the first time this year. Prices are fueled by big market forces, but today we’re looking at one little factor juicing the stats: home staging.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
The challenges of being Native American in Oakland Tommy Orange is a member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes of Oklahoma, but he grew up in Oakland. His new novel, “There There,” is set in Oakland. His many disparate characters -- all urban Indians -- struggle with what it means to be Native and struggle to connect with disappearing traditions.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Justice Department indicts 12 Russians for election hacking The Department of Justice says it has enough evidence to charge 12 members of the Russian military with hacking the Clinton campaign, the Democratic National Committee, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Sen. Kamala Harris on SCOTUS nominee Brett Kavanaugh: 'There is a lot to be concerned about' Democrats are waging an intense battle to block Judge Brett Kavanaugh from joining the Supreme Court. Moments after President Trump nominated him, California Senator Kamala Harris said she’d vote no. She tweeted that Kavanaugh “represents a direct and fundamental threat to the rights and health care of hundreds of millions of Americans.” She joins us to explain her concerns.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
The future of HBO AT&T now owns HBO, since the Time Warner merger went through. AT&T has made it clear it wants from the channel: More subscribers watching more programming more hours of the day. That may not fit very well with HBO’s higher-end programming model, which emphasizes quality over quantity.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Would you take a tram to the Hollywood sign? Warner Bros. wants to build an aerial tram to the Hollywood sign, which would cost $100 million. The ride would start from a parking structure by the studio in Burbank. The plan has us wondering about other ways to ease traffic congestion. Is it time to reconsider the monorail?
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
How the Federalist Society shapes the Supreme Court President Trump will make his Supreme Court pick this evening. He’s reportedly whittled his options down to four people. All are younger than 55, meaning they’re likely to be on the court for decades. They all come from a list compiled by the conservative Federalist Society.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
How much pain can the human brain handle? How does the human brain respond to pain? Journalist Nicola Twilley offered to be a test subject for Irene Tracey, who calls her Oxford lab the “torture chamber.” Researchers stuck needles in Twiley’s calf, burned the back of her hand with a laser, and applied a cream to her shin, which contained capsaicin, the chemical responsible for the burning sensation in chili peppers.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Why the mentally ill end up in jails and prisons The Los Angeles County Jail is the largest psychiatric ward in America. About a quarter of the men imprisoned in LA -- and nearly half of the women -- need some form of mental health care. Across the country, jails and prisons are increasingly being forced to provide psychiatric care for their inmate patients. These institutions are not set up to do that.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Will West LA see denser housing near public transit? L.A. City Council will vote Tuesday on a plan that could pave the way for up to 6,000 new housing units near the Expo Line by 2035. It’s a model city leaders hope to emulate all over the city: dense housing near public transportation. Many homeowners are embracing it.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
'Three Identical Strangers:' true story of triplets separated for 19 years Identical triplets were separated at birth, then found each other by chance when they were 19 years old. They bonded instantly and became celebrities overnight. It sounds like a fairytale, but it didn’t turn out that way. A new documentary tells their story.
Recommended
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Terrorism in London: Lessons for the US This weekend’s terrorist attack in London left seven people dead and almost 50 injured. London police fatally shot the attackers, and ISIS claimed responsibility.
The Treatment
Lucia Micarelli: An Evening with Lucia Micarelli Violinist and actress Lucia Micarelli visits The Treatment to discuss her emotive performances as she prepares for PBS' An Evening with Lucia Micarelli.
Bookworm
George Saunders: Lincoln in the Bardo (Part I) Lincoln in the Bardo dramatizes a grieving President Lincoln as he visits the grave of his beloved son Willie, who died at age eleven. In the novel, the buried dead believe they're not dead -- "they're sick and refer to their coffins as "sick boxes."
Design and Architecture
Securing Public Spaces, Super Wealthy Asians Vehicles are increasingly being used as weapons, as seen in the London Bridge attack over the weekend and in New York’s Times Square last month. The Compton-based company Calpipe is designing security bollards to help make public spaces safer. And novelist Kevin Kwan satirizes the “crazy rich” Asian jet set and their luxurious tastes in his latest book, “Rich People Problems.”