KBTC's Weekly Public Affairs Show - Friday at 7:30pm

Northwest Now is KBTC's weekly public affairs television show hosted by veteran journalist Tom Layson. Now in its 17th season, Northwest Now takes a closer look at the issues and people who are part of Western Washington. 

WATCH LIVE| Friday nights at 7:30pm on KBTC and the KBTC Livestream.  

STREAM | Available here and on-demand on the free PBS App.  

LISTEN | Listen here, download, or find episodes at Apple Podcasts.

Explore the Northwest Now Collection  

Northwest Now Digital Extra | Northwest Now Digital First | Open Government | Saving the Salmon |Specials

Northwest Now Host - Tom Layson 

Tom Layson is KBTC's Managing Editor and worked in Yakima, Terre Haute, Louisville, Sacramento, Columbus, and New York-New Jersey. Tom anchored 13 hours of live coverage in the NY/NJ market during 9-11 - just one example of the many thousands of hours he’s been on set or in the field covering politics, natural disasters, courts and crime, economic development, personal finance and the environment the past 40 years. Tom grew up in the Maple Valley area and is a graduate of Pacific Lutheran University.

JM Simpson

JM Simpson is a retired history professor using his gifted photographic eye to capture intimate and impactful images of the homeless population in the Olympia area. Our discussion with a gifted visual storyteller on the next Northwest Now.

Audio Preview

Listen to an audio preview of this week's show by Northwest Now's Associate Producer, Chris Anderson. 

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9/19 | JM Simpson JM Simpson is a retired history professor using his gifted photographic eye to capture intimate and impactful images of the homeless population in the Olympia area. Our discussion with this gifted visual storyteller, on the next Northwest Now.

9/26 | AG Nick Brown You name the policy, Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown is suing the Trump administration on multiple fronts - from defunding the environment to ICE raids to attacks against the state’s DEI policies. We sit down to discuss the issues and the strategies that form what some might call the legal side of the resistance.

10/3 | Election 2025 It may be a so-called “off” year, but in the city of Seattle, the mayor’s office is up for grabs. Early polling shows an upstart challenger doing well against the incumbent. Meanwhile, several seats in the state legislature are up for grabs that could either solidify or water down the strong majority held by the Democrats.