PBS News Hour

News and Public Affairs Series / 9 Seasons

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Watch: S2025 E56

57m 46s

Leading researcher on viewing addiction as a brain disorder

6m 41s

This week, we are reporting on some promising treatments for two of the deadliest drugs in America: opioids and alcohol. William Brangham sat down with one of the nation’s leading researchers who is studying America’s addictions and how we can better address them.

Syrians face horrors at site of Assad's chemical attack

8m 34s

Syrians are celebrating their hard-won freedoms throughout the nation, but that joy is tempered by the absence of so many imprisoned and never heard from again. In some ways, Syria is a land of ghosts, and the job of speaking for the dead falls to their loved ones and the new Syrian government. Leila Molana-Allen reports from the suburbs of Damascus. A warning, images in this story are disturbing.

Fed lowers interest rates again but future cuts in question

5m 34s

The Federal Reserve lowered rates for the third consecutive time but also suggested there won’t be as many interest rate cuts in the year ahead as it once planned. Chairman Jerome Powell said the cut wasn’t an easy decision because of higher inflation in recent months. Geoff Bennett discussed the decision with Nick Timiraos of The Wall Street Journal.

Trump tells GOP to reject government funding bill

5m 56s

Not even 24 hours after congressional leaders released a 1,500-page bill that would keep the government funded for the next three months, the threat of a shutdown at the end of this week is back. Republicans in Congress are being pressured by President-elect Trump to block the bill. Lisa Desjardins reports.

Rep. Casar on progressive caucus effort to rebrand Democrats

6m 15s

There are a few weeks left until the Democratic Party faces Republican majorities in Congress. After a decisive loss in the presidential election, Democrats have been at odds over their future and direction during the new Trump era. Rep. Greg Casar of Texas was elected as the new chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and discussed his vision for the party with Lisa Desjardins.

Why a promising treatment for alcohol abuse is barely used

10m 21s

In our ongoing look at treating substance abuse in America, we turn to the most commonly used drug, and one of the deadliest: alcohol. Drinking kills more Americans every year than opioids or any other illegal drug. But promising treatments that could help people curb their drinking are barely being used. William Brangham reports.

Syrians attempt to uncover fate of Assad's prisoners

3m 36s

As we learn more about the atrocities committed by the Assad regime, investigations are underway at sites across that country. Authorities and relatives are trying to uncover the fate of the many thousands detained and feared murdered during Assad's rule. Simona Foltyn visited three mass grave locations and reports.

U.S. astronauts stranded in space face another delay

6m 10s

A pair of NASA astronauts who have been stuck at the International Space Station since June will have to wait a little longer to come back to Earth. NASA says astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams won’t return now until late March or even April, which means they will have lived and worked in orbit for more than nine months. Science correspondent Miles O’Brien reports.

Displaced Syrians return to rebuild homes and families

8m 23s

In Syria, people are returning home after years of a civil war that displaced millions and left the country divided and destroyed. Assad regime checkpoints that severed any chance of seeing loved ones are now gone like the government. Special correspondent Leila Molana-Allen spoke to families overjoyed to be reunited, but now facing the daunting task of rebuilding their homes and their families.

Congress working on budget deal to avoid government shutdown

5m 20s

Congressional leaders should be ready to go home for the holidays. Instead, they are staring at another government funding deadline and scrambling to make it. The deal coming together could have much larger implications, but lawmakers have not yet released the full text of an agreement. Lisa Desjardins reports.

Opioid crisis renews focus on expanding access to methadone

10m 21s

While the numbers are finally starting to decline, more than 74,000 Americans are still dying every year from opioid overdoses. Despite that, very few people who are struggling with addiction get treatment. William Brangham looks at the renewed focus on methadone, one of the oldest and most effective medications in this fight.

Electoral College meets to cast official votes for president

5m 29s

The election may have ended over a month ago, but Tuesday marks the day Donald Trump’s victory becomes official. Across the country, hundreds of presidential electors gathered in their states to cast their Electoral College votes, an often ceremonial but essential step in the process of confirming the election results. Geoff Bennett discussed the significance with Jessica Huseman of Votebeat.

Austin Tice's mother has renewed hope he will be found

9m 53s

Austin Tice, a former U.S. Marine and freelance journalist, is one of the longest-held American hostages abroad. The recent fall of Bashar al-Assad and his brutal regime in Syria has renewed hope that Tice will be found some 12 years after he was abducted during a reporting trip outside of Damascus. Amna Nawaz discussed the latest with Austin's mother, Debra Tice.

The significance of movies added to National Film Registry

4m 25s

The Library of Congress announced the 25 films that made it into this year's National Film Registry. The registry, started in 1989, now includes some 900 movies, chosen for their cultural, historic and aesthetic importance to preserving the nation’s film heritage. Senior arts correspondent Jeffrey Brown has more for our arts and culture series, CANVAS.

Arizona farmers forced to adapt as water source dries up

6m 25s

Yuma County, Arizona, is known as the "Winter Salad Bowl Capital." From lettuce to cilantro to broccoli, the region produces almost all the leafy green vegetables consumed in the U.S. during winter months. Farmers there rely on the nearby Colorado River and as the West contends with drought and a changing climate, they've had to adapt. Stephanie Sy reports.

Wisconsin shooting leaves community shaken by gun violence

2m 52s

Two people were killed and six others injured at a private school in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday. The suspected shooter, also found dead at the scene, was identified by officials as a 17-year-old female student at the school. Authorities are now investigating her motive as another American community is reeling from mass gun violence. Amna Nawaz reports.

City home to Syria's uprising celebrates life without Assad

6m 53s

In 2011, as the Arab Spring took hold across the Middle East, the seeds of Syria's revolution were sown by students and young people in the city of Daraa. Special correspondent Simona Foltyn reports on how the city that fostered the uprising is celebrating the deposing of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Syrian leaders face decisions as they chart path for country

4m 54s

For the first time since he fled the country he ruled with an iron fist and a willingness to kill his own people to hold power, Bashar al-Assad was heard from. In a statement from exile in Moscow, Assad claimed he did not want to leave Syria but was evacuated by Russia after he left Damascus for his family's heartland near the coast. Special correspondent Leila Molana-Allen reports from Latakia.

Trump settlement with ABC raises press freedom concerns

7m 22s

President-elect Trump settled a defamation lawsuit with ABC News for $15 million. That suit followed a segment in which George Stephanopolous inaccurately said Trump had been found liable for raping writer E. Jean Carrol when in fact, he had been found liable in a civil case for sexual abuse. Amna Nawaz discussed more with New York Times reporter David Enrich.

How CEOs are trying to gain favor with Trump

5m 40s

During a press conference Monday, President-elect Trump discussed how CEOs and business leaders from Wall Street to Silicon Valley are rushing to meet with him and build personal relationships in the weeks before his inauguration. Trump took note of just how different a tone it has been compared to 2016. To break down why, Geoff Bennett spoke with Brian Schwartz of The Wall Street Journal.

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