PBS News Hour

News and Public Affairs Series / 8 Seasons

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Watch Latest: S2024 E322

26m 45s

The life and achievements of chemist Stephanie Kwolek

5m 46s

Kevlar is a fiber that’s stronger than steel, and it’s revolutionized everything from military and police body armor to sports equipment. For our “Hidden Histories” series this Women’s History Month, we learn about Stephanie Kwolek, the pioneering researcher who invented Kevlar in 1965.

What’s behind a decline in U.S. support for LGBTQ+ rights

6m 41s

For the last few decades, LGBTQ+ rights in America have seen increasing public support. But now, a new survey finds a slight decline in that support for the first time in years. William Brangham speaks with Melissa Deckman, CEO of the Public Religion Research Institute, to learn more about the data.

Aviation expert weighs in on the safety of helicopters

6m 4s

From fatal crashes during U.S. military operations to high-profile accidents like the one that killed basketball star Kobe Bryant and his daughter, a string of incidents in recent years have raised questions in people’s minds about the safety of helicopters. John Goglia, a former member of the NTSB and former chair of the National Coalition for Aviation Education, joins John Yang to discuss.

Plastic industry pushed myth of recycling, new report finds

6m 32s

The world produces an average of 430 million metric tons of plastic each year. The United States alone produces tens of millions of tons of plastic waste annually. Yet on average, only about 5 to 6 percent of plastic in the U.S. is recycled. NPR correspondent Michael Copley joins Ali Rogin to discuss a new report on the plastic industry’s tactics to push recycling and avoid regulation.

Conservationists track surge in sharks off Cape Cod’s coast

5m 56s

Environmental efforts to protect sharks in recent years have resulted in a huge increase in the great white shark population off the New England coast. It’s a conservation success story, with potentially unnerving implications for beachgoers. Rhode Island PBS Weekly’s David Wright reports.

Brooks and Capehart on third-party candidates

10m 53s

New York Times columnist David Brooks and Washington Post associate editor Jonathan Capehart join Amna Nawaz to discuss the week in politics, including whether President Biden should act on his own on immigration, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s call for political change in Israel, plus the appetite for third-party candidates in the upcoming presidential election.

Mayorkas: ‘We have not given up on Congress’ to act

8m 58s

What the U.S. is experiencing at the southern border reflects what’s happening around the world, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Friday. And that’s “the largest number of displaced people” since World War II or longer. Mayorkas talks to Amna Nawaz about whether the president will take action on immigration, the rising number of people fleeing Haiti and growing terror warnings.

What to know about 2024’s third-party candidates so far

7m 18s

The 2024 rematch between President Biden and former President Trump is officially set, but third-party candidates and well-funded organizations are attempting to carve out their own paths. Laura Barrón-López and Geoff Bennett discuss the different efforts to field an alternative ticket.

‘To Be A Jew Today’ examines modern, multifaceted faith

7m 30s

In Noah Feldman’s latest book, “To Be A Jew Today,” the Harvard Law professor turns his focus to his own faith in order to understand identity, politics and culture. Feldman sits down with Amna Nawaz to discuss Jews’ relationship to Israel, persistent and subtle forms of antisemitism, and all of the different ways to be Jewish.

U.S. skeptical Israel can protect civilians in Rafah

5m 32s

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday announced he had approved plans to assault Rafah, where more than half of all Gazans have fled. At the same time, Netanyahu and international mediators also acknowledged that negotiations for a cease-fire have advanced. Nick Schifrin talks with Amna Nawaz to break it all down.

Fani Willis allowed to stay on Trump’s Georgia case

5m 28s

District Attorney Fani Willis will stay on to lead Georgia’s election interference case against Donald Trump, but the top prosecutor, with whom she had a romantic relationship, is stepping aside. That departure came after the judge in the case said one of them would have to resign. William Brangham joins Amna Nawaz to catch up on a week of legal developments for the former president.

EU’s top diplomat calls 30,000 killed in Gaza ‘a massacre’

7m 40s

The Biden administration is struggling to find solutions to two major foreign policy challenges: creating a ceasefire in the war in Gaza and helping fund Ukraine’s war against Russia. Nick Schifrin speaks with Josep Borrell, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, to learn more about global efforts on these two fronts.

What to know about Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ settlement

6m 43s

Students and teachers in Florida can now discuss sexual orientation and gender identity in classrooms, as long as it’s not part of formal instruction. It’s an important change after a new settlement between state education officials and civil rights attorneys who challenged the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law. WMFE education reporter Danielle Prieur joins Stephanie Sy to discuss.

The struggles of pregnancy amid the Israel-Hamas war

8m 34s

Of the many horrors endured by Palestinians and Israelis since the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7, perhaps none is more acute than those of expectant mothers. For the last several months, special correspondent Leila Molana-Allen has been charting the progress of their pain, their pregnancies, their sorrows and their joys. She brings us their stories now.

Why Black women face discrimination in higher education

8m 14s

The death of an administrator at Lincoln University in Missouri and the resignation of Harvard’s former president have sparked outrage, concern and dialogue about the treatment of Black women in higher education. We hear from Black women about the challenges and pressures they face in academia, and Geoff Bennett speaks with UT Austin professor Bridget Goosby for more.

How quantum computing could help us understand the universe

7m 13s

Scientists, researchers and some big companies are eager to jumpstart the next generation of computing, one that will be far more sophisticated and dependent on understanding the subatomic nature of the universe. But as science correspondent Miles O’Brien reports, it’s a huge challenge to take this new quantum leap forward.

Slain reporter Jim Foley’s mother on new book about her son

7m 28s

Friday marks 13 years since the start of the Syrian civil war. Jim Foley was an American journalist covering the conflict when he was kidnapped by Islamic State terrorists in 2012 and publicly beheaded two years later. A decade later, his mother Diane Foley tells his story and how she became an advocate for American hostages abroad in a new book, “American Mother.” She joins Amna Nawaz to discuss.

Gazans suffer starvation, displacement this Ramadan

5m 37s

There is fasting, and then there is starving. At Ramadan, many Gazans say they are now doing both. Nick Schifrin reports on how Palestinian families are struggling for sustenance during this holy month that has come amid a food crisis fueled by the Israel-Hamas war.

Israel announces plan to evacuate Rafah ahead of offensive

3m 21s

Israel’s top spokesperson suggested that Israel has a plan to evacuate many of the more than 1 million Gazans who have fled to Rafah in southern Gaza. The news comes as the U.S. continues to call on Israel to allow humanitarian aid into the strip while families struggle to observe Ramadan. Foreign affairs and defense correspondent Nick Schifrin speaks on how people in Gaza are celebrating.

Politics divide families in the run-up to the 2024 election

9m 56s

For many Americans, politics has become far more personal, and divisive, than it once was. Now, in the run-up to the November election, that’s creating some friction within families. Tonight, Judy Woodruff looks at the impact of politics on marriages, dating and families as part of her ongoing series, America at a Crossroads.

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