George Lavender

Independent Producer

George Lavender is an award-winning independent radio and print journalist. His radio reporting has aired on NPR, KCRW, WBUR, KQED, and Radio France International.

George Lavender on KCRW

Southern California has long been associated with street racing. And law enforcement officials say they’re gearing up for another deadly summer.

What's fueling the rise in illegal street racing?

Southern California has long been associated with street racing. And law enforcement officials say they’re gearing up for another deadly summer.

from KCRW Features

Businesses that grow or sell cannabis still face a challenge when it comes to what to do with the money they make. At the Higher Path dispensary in Sherman Oaks,…

The business of legal weed poses banking challenges

Businesses that grow or sell cannabis still face a challenge when it comes to what to do with the money they make. At the Higher Path dispensary in Sherman Oaks,…

from News Stories

Most banks are unwilling to serve an industry that is illegal in the eyes of the federal government.

Banking and cannabis

Most banks are unwilling to serve an industry that is illegal in the eyes of the federal government.

from KCRW Features

More from KCRW

President Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport more than 200 alleged Venezuelan gang members. But a judge blocked those deportations over the weekend.

from Press Play with Madeleine Brand

Ukraine says tens of thousands of children have been taken and illegally hidden within Russia’s adoption system since the invasion.

from Press Play with Madeleine Brand

President Trump’s trade war and Friday’s Oval Office berating of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky represent a remarkable shift in American foreign policy.

from Press Play with Madeleine Brand

Zelensky’s visit to the white house turned catastrophic when Trump and Vance accused him of disrespecting the U.S. What does it mean for peace talks?

from Press Play with Madeleine Brand

Measles is spreading in a West Texas community with low vaccination rates. What’s the risk in Southern California?

from Press Play with Madeleine Brand

The San Clemente City Council voted down a ban on giving food to strangers in public, including unhoused people.

from KCRW Features

Famed Big Bear bald eagles, Jackie and Shadow, welcomed two newborns after years of losses. The chicks must now weather the winter cold and predators to survive.

from KCRW Features

The Trump administration’s release of war plans on a group chat that included the Atlantic’s editor-in-chief raises questions about the competence of the president’s top national…

from Press Play with Madeleine Brand

At a rally in Beverly Hills, local Ukrainians and their supporters gathered to voice opposition to President Trump’s politics regarding Russia and Ukraine.

from KCRW Features