Interview: Queena Kim

When Queena Kim went on the air in early 2015 as the morning host-reporter for The California Report, she made a significant job change, but not much of a physical move.Before January, she'd been the senior reporter covering technology and Silicon Valley for Los Angeles-based Marketplace, but she was working out of the KQED studios.

What attracted you to this position at KQED?
I wanted to host, so it was a great opportunity to host a daily show during the morning drive time. I also wanted to have a bit more control over the work I do, and I was really excited that Holly Kernan was here. I admired her work at KALW, and she was open to giving me creative freedom and letting me make my mark on the show.

In many ways, the best thing about working the shift is the easy in, easy out. I have to be here at about 4am, but at that time of day it only takes me 15 minutes from Berkeley. Plus I get a great parking spot in front of the building.

What are some ideas you've had for changes to the show?
I would like to expand my role to being more than just a presenter — doing more two-way interviews and producing additional pieces. I'm also working to add new music and make the show more sound-rich.

There's a desire on my part, and on the part of KQED, for me to do more reporting on technology. The issue is going to be trying to find a place for us with all the tech news that's out there right now. How can we be more thoughtful and thought-provoking?

I'm trying to cover technology and Silicon Valley in more of a meta way, in terms of the ideas and concepts that people are talking about. For example, we recently did a story about the notion of creative destruction. It's a term that's often used in the tech industry, but I don't think people often know what it means. So it's a bit of "Here's this concept. Here's how we see it playing out."

Guilty pleasure?
I actually am trying to get rid of guilt and trying to not judge the things I do. But if I were to name a guilty pleasure it would be binge-watching, most recently Borgen. I do also love to watch a lot of young-adult sci fi on Netflix.