Benjamin Purper
Benjamin Purper came to KCBX in May of 2021 from California’s Inland Empire, where he spent three years as a reporter and Morning Edition host at KVCR in San Bernardino. Dozens of his stories have aired on KQED’s California Report, and his work has broadcast on NPR's news magazines, as well. In addition to radio, Ben has worked as a newspaper reporter and freelance writer.
He attended the University of Redlands, where he studied International Relations with minors in Instrumental Performance and Latin American Studies, and studied abroad in Mexico and Argentina.
Benjamin's journalism career started in college, when his university’s newspaper was abruptly shut down and defunded. He and the newspaper staff raised money and started a new, independent online newspaper, of which he became Editor-in-Chief for two years. After college, he completed an internship with NPR in their Culver City office.
Besides public radio, Benjamin enjoys music (he plays bass), writing and travelling, and is looking forward to working on the Central Coast.
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California's Central Coast is facing a future with much less water. Vineyards and the irrigation they need aren't sustainable. So Paso Robles is courting a spaceport as the region's new moneymaker.
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Local governments also redistrict every 10 years, though under less scrutiny than states. In Santa Barbara County, Calif., an independent commission is taking its first crack at mapmaking.