Carren Jao

A woman sitting down with a floral skirt

Born and raised in the Philippines, Carren is a storyteller at heart, working to uplift diverse voices. She is a skilled digital storyteller with more than a decade of experience working on engaging content that lives on multiple platforms. Her arts and culture stories have won recognition from the LA Press Club and the Asian American Journalists Association.

As arts and culture editor for KCET, a public television station and online destination in Southern California, she leads editorial strategy and content development for arts, culture, food, travel and history content. Working with collaborators across 11 Southern California counties, she tells award-winning stories that matter.

Previously, Carren has worked as a full-time freelance journalist. Her work has been published around the world, including the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, Wired UK, Surface, Dwell and many others.

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"PROBE Summer of 1980" float at Los Angeles Christopher Street West pride parade, 1980. | ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives, USC Libraries

50 Years of L.A. Pride, The World’s First Permitted Gay Pride Parade, in Posters

The L.A. Pride Parade and Festival in West Hollywood is a fixture of Los Angeles life, but 50 years ago, it was at the center of a heated battle between the authorities and the LGBT community’s wish to be publicly gay.

Storefront of Chinatown meat and vegetable market, San Francisco, California, 1895 | University of Washington, Special Collections, Hester 11128

An Episode Guide to ‘Asian Americans’

Discover the story of Asian Americans through this five-part series spanning 150 years of immigration, racial politics, international relations and cultural innovation. Here's what to expect in each episode.

Real Stories from Asian Americans Today

Being Asian American can mean a multitude of things, and it encompasses a myriad of little-known stories and unique experiences of people straddling two cultures. Read a few stories and submit your own!

Two children playing in the pool in the backyard | Still from Gee Family home video from CAAM's "Memories to Light" project

Home Videos: Inside the World of Asian Americans

"Memories to Light" brings to life the experiences of Asian American communities across the country that spans through six decades, from the 1920s through the 1980s. Watch the past come to life.

Storefront of Chinatown meat and vegetable market, San Francisco, California, 1895

Ten Things I Learned from Watching ‘Asian Americans’

This May, PBS presents “Asian Americans,” an ambitious five-part series that covers 150 years of Asian American history. Here are some of the few compelling things I’ve picked up on while watching.

42 Ambitious Recipes to Fuel Your Culinary Cravings

Tired of the same old recipes? Here are some ambitious projects to undertake at home to excite your palate.

George Uno at home in Japan, looking through archives

Join Us for Virtual Screenings of 'Asian Americans'

Learn more about how Asian Americans helped shaped the nation in this series of virtual events. Register now.

deviled porkchops america's test kitchen

47 Easy-to-Make Recipes to Liven Up Your Regular Menu

Here are 47 simple-to-execute recipes that can spice up your existing menus for that inevitable culinary slump.

An Episode Guide to 'Asian Americans'

Lewis MacAdams, founder of Friends of the Los Angeles River, stands in the river as bulldozers clear vegetation from its channel in anticipation of heavy El Nino-driven rains, expected in the winter of 1997-98 | Blake Gumprecht, courtesy of FoLAR

He Made Waves on the River: Lewis MacAdams Passes Away

Without Lewis MacAdams, an avowed poet, Los Angeles might have completely forgotten the river that birthed the city. This leader in the river movement passed away at 75 years old.