Davis has interesting people, ideas, connections, and events. On Davisville, host Bill Buchanan presents stories that have some connection to Davis. The program has won eight Excellence in Journalism awards from the San Francisco Press Club.
Podcast
Analyst sizes up the regional jobs market on DavisvilleMon, 08/08/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill BuchananThe regional job market is looking better, says employment market analyst Rick Reed on this edition of Davisville. Reed has surveyed area employers several times a year since 1992 for what is now a quarterly employment forecast, the Pacific Staffing Employment Trends Survey. Among other questions, he asks his contacts if they’re hiring, as well as why or why not. In our talk, Reed discussed trends, what he thinks employers want to see before they accelerate hiring, fields with the best job prospects, how agriculture helps the area job market, and more. Davis’ unemployment rate of 7.6 percent for May falls in the middle of regional cities, as measured by the state Employment Development Department. Davis’ rate is better than |
Stan Forbes and redistricting (repeat of March 2011 program)Mon, 07/18/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill BuchananI was on vacation in early July, so we're re-airing this program from spring 2011 when Stan Forbes discussed the state citizens' redistricting commission. Forbes, former Davis City Council member, is the only member of the commission from our part of the state. If you've wondered what the commission does, and why it matters to the average Californian, tune in for an explanation. |
How'd we get here? Davisville looks at proposal to triple water rates by 2016Mon, 07/04/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill BuchananBasic civic infrastructure usually attracts scant popular interest, but the triple-your-rates impact has made the proposed city water project an exception this summer. The prospect of the average Davis household paying another $700 to $800 per year for water by 2016 has brought the issue front and center in Davis. On the current Davisville, Bob Clarke, interim Davis public works director and city engineer, and Diane Phillips, public works engineer and Davis’ project manager for the surface water project, discuss what’s behind the cost, some alternatives, city water quality, and why Davis concluded that it needs the project. Clarke and Phillips also discuss project details, prospects for savings, the possible ratepayers’ protest vote that would block the rate increase, and what comes next. |
What's the job of a Christian church in Davis? John Oda has some ideasMon, 06/20/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill BuchananJohn Oda has been pastor of the Davis United Methodist Church for two years. On the latest “Davisville” he talks about the role of a Christian church in Davis; Christianity and gay rights; different ways of interpreting Scripture; last month’s failed prediction of the Rapture by Harold Camping, which became a nationwide story; and Oda's impression of the town he is about to leave, among other subjects. Oda will depart Davis UMC for a church in Oakland at the end of June, the time each year when United Methodist pastors usually receive new assignments. |
Not rich, but doing OK: The Aggie wraps up 2010-11Mon, 06/06/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill Buchanan
A print newspaper for college students might seem anachronistic, but The Aggie made $50,000 more this year than it expected. On the latest Davisville, two students who edited the UC Davis paper for 2010-11 discuss how it continues to find its audience despite the shift to digital media. The guests are Mark Ling, editor for 2010-11, and Becky Peterson, who was city editor and will return as managing editor in 2011-12. The Aggie earns much less than it did several years ago, but cuts in expenses, easy access to copies on campus, and a steady focus on its audience have kept the paper a solvent part of UC Davis student life. |
Joy Cohan talks about downtown on ‘Davisville’Mon, 05/23/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill BuchananJoy Cohan, who steps down as director of the Davis Downtown Business Association on July 1, discusses the state of the city's main commercial district and what she has learned from four years on the job on the current “Davisville.” Among other subjects, she talks about initiatives to draw more people downtown, the “Community Covenant” to reduce the drunken excesses of Picnic Day, the gift card program that has so far produced $125,000 in sales, paid parking, and what she’s doing next. |
Two of the creators of the 'Davis State of Mind' video drop by DavisvilleMon, 05/09/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill BuchananAlex Pacheco and Daniel Watts, whose “Davis State of Mind” spoof has made “middle class in the middle of nowhere” a local catchphrase this spring, talk about the video, why they made it, life in Davis, the reactions they’ve heard, and more on the latest episode of “Davisville.”Pacheco and Watts graduate from the UC Davis School of Law this year. Their video, which parodies |
Former Davisite, author Peter Grandbois, featured on DavisvilleMon, 04/25/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill Buchanan
Author Peter Grandbois, formerly of Davis, returns to “Davisville” this month. Grandbois, now an assistant professor of creative writing and contemporary literature at Denison University in Ohio, read from his new book at the Avid Reader on Picnic Day. Called Nahoonkara and set in 19th century Wisconsin and Colorado, it presents dozens of characters but focuses on three brothers as they work to remake their lives. On “Davisville,” he also discusses how the places where he has lived show up in his work, and looks ahead to his next projects, including a book told from the perspective of the creature in the 1950s science-fiction movie “The Creature from the Black Lagoon.” |
The digital Davis Enterprise. How's it working so far?Mon, 04/11/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill BuchananThe Davis Enterprise rebuilt its website and took down its paywall, at least temporarily, in February. Online Editor Jonathan Edwards called the changes part of a “giant leap into digital relevancy,” and on this edition of “Davisville” he discusses the revisions and how they’re working out so far.
The new approach steps up the Enterprise’s presence online, with the aim of making it more competitive in the increasingly digital news business.
Among other goals, the Enterprise wants to attract more comments and discussions involving online readers, plus draw in UC Davis students who are unlikely to ever pick up a printed copy of the newspaper. |
Davisville Checks in on Picnic Day, Mar 28th, 2011Mon, 03/28/2011 - 5:30pm | Bill BuchananPicnic Day, on April 16, is getting close. Last year’s event was plagued by off-campus drunkenness, arrests, and general obnoxiousness. This year the city, merchants and UC Davis have taken steps to inhibit that behavior. Will the countermeasures work? On this edition of “Davisville,” Entertainment Director Mac Walker and Parade Director Jennifer Mappus, both members of the student-run Picnic Day board, discuss this year’s plans, entertainment lineup, parade, and other attractions. At the end, they discuss how they will be able to tell if Picnic Day met its goals this year, and how they'll spend the day themselves. |
Comments
You're a Davis icon, Bill. Keep up the good work of providing local, informative, and quality programming.
Bill, listen to the first 10 minutes of my show dated 7/7/2010. I hope you approve.
Paul Sheeran
Just wanted to say thanks for an outstanding interview with Freedom From Hunger's president, Chris Dunford.
Keep up the good work!
Sam Citron
thanks, Sam!
This is the program in question; it aired Jan. 25:
http://www.kdrt.org/node/2689
Bill
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