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KQED Newsroom Special: Arts & Culture

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Roy Wood Jr. on Presidential Tweets, Racism and Guns
Comedian Roy Wood Jr., a correspondent for The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, grew up in Birmingham, Alabama, and got his start performing in comedy clubs in the South. Some of his most popular standup tackles racism and gun control.  Wood also hosts a series on Comedy Central, This Is Not Happening, and had a starring role in the 2017 special Father Figure. We caught up with him at the Donald J. Trump Presidential Twitter Library, one of five interactive attractions at Colossal Clusterfest, a three-day comedy festival held in San Francisco.

Taylor Mac Interprets U.S. History Through Hit Songs
A 24-Decade History of Popular Music tackles American history through flamboyant performances and elaborate costumes. Created and performed by drag artist and Stockton native Taylor Mac, with costumes designed by Machine Dazzle, the production shines a light on everything from slavery to gay activism.

Ai Weiwei Tackles Global Refugee Crisis in 'Human Flow'
Chinese dissident and artist Ai Weiwei’s work includes vocal criticism of his home country’s government. After an exhibit that highlighted how corruption led to the unnecessary deaths of schoolchildren in the Chengdu earthquake, Ai was arrested, beaten and had his passport confiscated. Ai’s latest film, Human Flow, tackles the global refugee crisis.

Hari Kondabolu and ‘The Problem with Apu’ Takes Aim at Racial Stereotypes
Comedian and writer Hari Kondabolu takes on the long-running cartoon series The Simpsons in a  documentary called The Problem with Apu. The film explores how an Indian convenience store owner named Apu plays on ethnic  stereotypes to generate laughs.

Museum of Ice Cream Serves Up Scoops of Fun
After stops in New York and L.A., the very pink, very popular Museum of Ice Cream opened its doors in San Francisco. But this isn't your typical plain-vanilla museum — think Willy Wonka, not the Smithsonian. From a gold-horned unicorn to a swimming pool filled with rainbow-colored plastic sprinkles, the exhibits are designed to be touched, consumed and shared — especially on social media. The museum’s head of content and social media, Madison Utendahl, gave us a personal tour of the sights, sounds and surprises that have made it such a delicious hit.

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