Justin Chapman writes, produces, and hosts an award-winning monthly TV talk show on Pasadena Media's TV channel, called "Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman," formerly known as "NewsRap Local with Justin Chapman." The thirty-seventh episode aired Friday, January 23, 2026, and featured a discussion with Michele Zack, author of Altadena: Between Wilderness and City and former Altadena Town Councilmember (at the same time Justin served on the Town Council). Watch the full episode below:
Altadena Author Michele Zack to Join Friday’s Episode of “Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman”
Pasadena Now, 1/19/2026
Pasadena Media’s award-winning local TV talk show “Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman” continues this Friday at 5 p.m., featuring guest Michele Zack, former Altadena Town Councilmember and author of Altadena: Between Wilderness and City.
Zack is an award-winning historian, author, journalist, former Altadena Town Councilmember, and former chair of Altadena Heritage. As senior advisor to The Huntington-USC Institute on California and the West, she wrote federal grants and developed contextual programs to link local to national history and improve the teaching of American history.
In the 1990s, she lived in Thailand working as an AsiaWeek correspondent and was a regular contributor to Far Eastern Economic Review. She authored a popular ethnography of the Lisu, a hill tribe in Southeast Asia, and was co-author of Fielding’s Guide to Thailand. Zack has written widely about Southeast Asia and worked as a speech writer for three Thai prime ministers and other officials, covering economic development.
Zack’s 2004 book Altadena: Between Wilderness and City was recently republished by the Altadena Historical Society. “Eaton’s Water,” a short dramatic film about local pioneers and water development, was adapted from Zack’s story and is used in local classrooms to connect kids to history and the environment.
“Pasadena Monthly” airs at 5 p.m. PT on the fourth Friday of every month on Pasadena Media’s Arroyo Channel and streaming apps, available on channel 99 on AT&T U-verse, channel 32 on Charter Spectrum, YouTube, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Roku. The show is written, hosted and produced by Chapman, directed and edited by Jeffrey Stanfill, supervised by producer Jasiri Jenkins-Glenn, executive produced by Chris Miller and chief executive produced by George Falardeau, CEO and executive director of Pasadena Media.
“‘Pasadena Monthly’ is must-watch television each month for everyone who cares about this city,” Falardeau said.
In 2024, “Pasadena Monthly” won a 1st place award in the Talk Show category at the Alliance for Community Media West’s WAVE (Western Access Video Excellence) Awards. Chapman also won a 3rd place journalism award in the Talk/Public Affairs category of the LA Press Club’s 66th Annual Southern California Journalism Awards for hosting “Pasadena Monthly.” He has won more than a dozen LA Press Club journalism awards, including three 1st place awards. His other TV show, “Well Read with Justin Chapman,” won a 1st place Hometown Media Award from the Alliance for Community Media last year and is nominated as a finalist again in this year’s WAVE Awards.
In June, Chapman was a finalist in the Local Political/Government Reporting (Broadcast) category of the LA Press Club journalism awards for “Pasadena Monthly.” He won a 3rdrplace journalism award for “Well Read” in the LA Press Club’s National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards in December.
Guests on “Pasadena Monthly” (and its previous iteration, “NewsRap Local”) have included Congress member Judy Chu; Congress member Adam Schiff; Assembly member Chris Holden; Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo; Pasadena city manager Miguel Márquez; LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger; JPL director Dr. Laurie Leshin; former Congress member Katie Hill; and many others.
Chapman was the youngest elected official in LA County when he served on the Altadena Town Council at age 19. He has served on a number of local boards and wrote hundreds of articles for dozens of print and digital publications, including KPCC/LAist, Alta Journal, Huffington Post, LA Weekly, Irish Post, Berkeley Political Review, Pasadena Weekly, Pasadena Star-News, Pasadena Now and many others. He is the author of Saturnalia and Paradise Springs. He was a professional child actor who starred in dozens of movies, TV shows, commercials and plays. He previously served as Communications Officer for USC Annenberg’s Pacific Council on International Policy think tank and currently serves as the District 6 Council Liaison/Field Representative to Pasadena Councilmember Steve Madison.
Learn more at justindouglaschapman.com and pasadenamedia.org.
Pasadena Media’s award-winning local TV talk show “Pasadena Monthly with Justin Chapman” continues this Friday at 5 p.m., featuring guest Miguel Márquez, who recently announced his retirement as Pasadena City Manager after more than three years.
Before coming to Pasadena, Márquez served as the Chief Operating Officer and county counsel of Santa Clara County and as a justice on California’s Sixth District Court of Appeals. He was also the general counsel of the San Francisco Unified School District, and a deputy city attorney in the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office. Márquez appeared on Chapman’s show when he was first hired as City Manager in 2022, when it was known as “NewsRap Local.”
“Pasadena Monthly” airs at 5 p.m. PT on the fourth Friday of every month on Pasadena Media’s Arroyo Channel and streaming apps, available on channel 99 on AT&T U-verse, channel 32 on Charter Spectrum, YouTube, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Roku. The show is written, hosted and produced by Chapman, directed and edited by Jeffrey Stanfill, supervised by producer Jasiri Jenkins-Glenn, executive produced by Chris Miller and chief executive produced by George Falardeau, CEO and executive director of Pasadena Media.
“‘Pasadena Monthly’ is must-watch television each month for everyone who cares about this city,” Falardeau said.
Last year, “Pasadena Monthly” won a 1st place award in the Talk Show category at the Alliance for Community Media West’s WAVE (Western Access Video Excellence) Awards. Chapman also won a 3rd place journalism award in the Talk/Public Affairs category of the LA Press Club’s 66th Annual Southern California Journalism Awards, for hosting “Pasadena Monthly.” He has won a dozen LA Press Club journalism awards, including three 1st place awards. His other TV show, “Well Read with Justin Chapman,” won a 1st place Hometown Media Award from the Alliance for Community Media this year.
In June, Chapman was a finalist in the Local Political/Government Reporting (Broadcast) category of the LA Press Club journalism awards for “Pasadena Monthly.” He won a 3rd place journalism award for “Well Read” in the LA Press Club’s National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards earlier this month.
Guests on “Pasadena Monthly” (and its previous iteration, “NewsRap Local”) have included Congress member Judy Chu; Congress member Adam Schiff; Assembly member Chris Holden; Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo; Pasadena city manager Miguel Márquez; LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger; JPL director Dr. Laurie Leshin; former Congress member Katie Hill; and many others.
Chapman was the youngest elected official in LA County when he served on the Altadena Town Council at age 19. He has served on a number of local boards and wrote hundreds of articles for dozens of print and digital publications, including KPCC/LAist, Alta Journal, Huffington Post, LA Weekly, Irish Post, Berkeley Political Review, Pasadena Weekly, Pasadena Star-News, Pasadena Now and many others. He is the author of Saturnalia and Paradise Springs. He was a professional child actor who starred in dozens of movies, TV shows, commercials and plays. He previously served as Communications Officer for USC Annenberg’s Pacific Council on International Policy think tank and currently serves as the District 6 Council Liaison/Field Representative to Pasadena Councilmember Steve Madison.
Learn more at justindouglaschapman.com and pasadenamedia.org.
Justin's book, Paradise Springs, was translated into French and published in France by Editions de l'Aube. This is the first time one of his books has been translated into a foreign language. Click here to read more and order.
In this 25th episode of "Well Read," host and journalist Justin Chapman interviews A.J. Hartley, author of dozens of novels including several he co-authored with blink-182's Tom DeLonge: Sekret Machines: Chasing Shadows, Sekret Machines: A Fire Within, Trinity, and their latest that's just out, Time Rider. Watch the full episode below:
