JUDY: GOOD EVENING. ON THE NEWSHOUR TONIGHT, DEEP-FREEZE. PARTS OF THE COUNTRY TRY TO DIG OUT OF A MASSIVE WINTER STORM THAT HAS LEAD TO DOZENS OF DEATHS, WIDESPREAD POWER OUTAGES AND TRAVEL DELAYS. THEN, SCHOOL BAND. THE TALIBAN FURTHER RESTRICTS GIRLS' EDUCATION AND WOMEN'S RIGH IN AFGHANISTAN, FORCING EIGHGROUPS -- FORCING AID GROUPS TO HALT THEIR WORK IN THE COUNTRY. AND THE UNBANKED. WHY MANY AMERICANS DO NOT HAVE ADEQUATE ACCESS TO BANKS AND THE CRUCIAL FINANCIAL SERVICES THEY PROVIDE. >> WE TRY TO LIKE APPLY FOR DIFFERENT THINGS, ALWAYS GETTING TURNED DOWN DUE TO LIKE BANK ACCOUNTS, CREDIT SCORES, AND ALL THESE. JUDY: ALL THAT AND MORE ON TONIGHT'S "PBS NEWSHOUR." >> MAJOR FUNDING FOR THE PBS
NEWSHOUR HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY -- AND WITH THE ONGOING SUPPORT OF THESE INDIVIDUALS AND INSTITUTIONS. AND FRIENDS OF THE NEWSHOUR, INCLUDING LEONARD AND NORMA CLORE BRIAN. THE WILLIAM AND FLORA HEWLETT FOUNDATION. FOR MORE THAN 50 YEARS, ADVANCING IDEAS AND SUPPORTING INSTITUTIONS TO SUPPORT A BETTER WORLD. AT HEWLETT.ORG. ♪ THIS PROGRAM WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC
BROADCASTING AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS ATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU. THANK YOU. JUDY: A BRUTAL FREEZE IS STILL PARALYZING PARTS OF THE UNITED STATES TONIGHT. AT LEAST 50 PEOPLE HAVE NOW DIED IN THE FIERCE WINTER STORM. 27 OF THOSE DEATHS HAVE BEEN IN WESTERN NEW YORK STATE ALONE. TENS OF THOUSANDS OF CUSTOMERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE STILL WITHOUT ELECTRICITY. LAURA BARRÓN-LÓPEZ HAS THE LATEST. LAURA: AS BUFFALO WOKE TWO BLANKETS OF SNOW TODAY, ITS RESIDENTS BEGAN A LONG MORNING OF DIGGING OUT THEIR HOMES. THE WORST BLIZZARD SOME HAVE SEEN IN DECADES. >> IT'S HORRIBLE. I CAN'T BELIEVE IT. JUDY:JUDY: I THINK THIS IS THE WORST ANTHONY: WE HAVE HAD SINCE I HAVE BEEN THUGH THIS, THE WORST SINCE 1977. LAURA: OTHERS WERE LEFT POWERLESS. >> THERE IS NEIGHBORS DOWN THE STREET WHO LOST POWER LAST NIGHT, SO I KNOW IT'S BEEN REALLY TOUGH FOR A LOT OF
PEOPLE. LAURA: THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND STORM BROUGHT HURRICANE-FORCE WINDS AND BURIED WESTERN NEW YORK UNDER FEET OF THICK SNOW. SOME PARTS OF BUFFALO REPORTED UP TO 40 INCHES OF SNOW OVERNIGHT. ITS EFFECTS WERE LETHAL, AS RESCUERS FOUND THE DEAD IN CARS, HOMES AND IN SNOWBANKS. IT PARALYZED STATE AND LOCAL EMERGENCY SERVICES, INCLUDING BUFFALO'S FIRE DEPARTMENT, WHICH COULDN'T RESPOND TO CALLS. WHILE THE CITY'S AIRPORTS TODAY REMAINED SHUT. >> IT IS STILL A DANGEROUS SITUATION TO BE OUT. LAURA: NEW YORK GOVERNOR KATHY HOCHUL WARNED OF WORSE WEATHER TOO, AND URGED DRIVERS TO STAY OFF THE ROADS. >> WE STILL HAVE SCORES AND SCORES OF VEHICLES THAT WERE ABANDONED WHEN PEOPLE LEFT DURING THE STORM. OR JUST IN A DITCH, THEY CAN'T POSSIBLY GET OUT. WE HAVE HAD SNOWPLOW, MAJOR SNOWPLOWS AND RESCUE VEHICLES, I SAW THEM MYSELF, IN DITCHES BURIED IN SNOW. LAURA: NATIONWIDE, ROUGHLY 60% OF AMERICANS WERE PLACED UNDER WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES OR MO, REACHED AS FAR SOUTH AS THE U.S.-MEXICO BORDER. IT SCRAMBLED TRAVEL PLANS FOR THOUSANDS, LIKE THIS COUPLE IN
KENTUCKY, WHO WERE TRAPPED IN THEIR CAR. >> IT'S BEEN ALMOST 12 HOURS. LAURA: AS FOR A CHRISTMAS MEAL, THEY WERE LUCKY. >> WE EACH GOT A WATER FROM THE SEMI TRUCK DRIVER, AND A SANDWICH AND A GRANOLA BAR FROM HIM. LAURA: BUT IN OHIO, A DEADLY COLLISION ON THE HIGHWAY. WHITE OUT CONDITIONS CAUSED A 46-CAR PILEUP THAT KILLED 4 PEOPLE AND LEFT OTHERS INJURED. AIRLINES HAVE CANCELED MORE THAN 17,000 FLIGHTS SINCE LAST WEDNESDAY AND LEFT MANY HOPING FOR WARMER DAYS TO COME. FOR MORE ABOUT THE STORM'S TOLL AND THE SITUATION ON THE GROUND IN BUFFALO, I'M JOINED ON THE PHONE BY MAYOR BYRON BROWN. HE HAS BEEN VISITING HOSPITALS AROUND THE CITY THIS AFTERNOON THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TODAY. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THE SITUATION IS LIKE ON THE GROUND, ESPECIALLY IN THE HOSPITALS? >> THE SITUATION HAS IMPROVED A BIT TODAY. WEATHER CONDITIONS MILDER THAN SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, WHEN WE HAD EXTREME BLIZZARD CONDITIONS.
LIGHTLY RIGHT NOW. MADO E A LOVET OF PROGRESS BY PLOWING TO WORK WITH THE POWER COMPANY TO HELP THE NATIONAL GRID RESTORE POWER. AT ONE TIME OVER 20,000 WERE WITHOUT POWER, NOW THAT'S JUST OVER 8000. WE CONTINUE TO WORK AGGRESSIVELY WITH THE NATIONAL GRID TO CONTINUE THE POWER RESTORATION PROCESS. WE HAVE COMPLETED THE PROCESS OF RESCUING STRANDED MOTORISTS THAT WERE STRANDED IN THEIR VEHICLES. WE HAVE ALSO BEEN PLOWING TO ASSIST EMERGENCY MEDICAL CALLS AND FIRE CALLS. WE ARE NOW CONTINUING TO PLOW TO KEEP ROADS OPEN SO THERE IS HOSPITAL ACCESS. WE ARE INTO THE RESIDENTIAL STREETS NOW, SO WE MADE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS TODAY.
UNFORTUNATELY THE DEATH TOLL IN BUFFALO HAS INCREASED AND BUFFALO POLICE, BASED ON 911 CALLS AND OTHER INFORMATION, FEEL THAT NUMBER WILL CONTINUE TO RISE. LAURA: AS BUFFALO WORKS TO GET OUT OF THIS HORRIFIC STORM, YOU SAID THERE ARE SOME 8000 STILL WITHOUT POWER. WHAT RESOURCES ARE YOU ABLE TO PROVIDE? >> WHAT WE ARE TELLING PEOPLE WITHOUT POWER, AND I WAS ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE UNTIL YESTERDAY, TO PUT ON EXTRA LAYERS OF CLOTHES, TO BUNDLE UP, TO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE EXTRA COVERING WHILE SLEEPING. ONE OF THE SAFEST PLACES IN A STORM OF THIS INTENSITY IS IN THE HOME. IN MY HOME WITHOUT POWER, THE TEMPERATURE INSIDE THE HOUSE GOT DOWN TO ABOUT 40 DEGREES. WE COULD SEE OUR BREATH. WE HUDDLED IN ONE ROOM AS A FAMILY WITH EXTRA LAYERS OF
CLOTHING TO STAY AS WARM AS POSSIBLE. WE KNOW THERE ARE SOME HOMES THAT HAVE BEEN WITHOUT POWER FOR FOUR DAYS. IN THIS EXTREME COLD, THAT IS INCREDIBLY UNCOMFORTABLE. FAMILIES THAT NEED TO GO TO WARMING CENTERS, WE DO HAVE WARMING CENTERS. WE OPENED UP OUR POLICE AND FIRE STATIONS FOR PEOPLE THAT NEED TO GET INTO A WARM LOCATION. WE HAVE BEEN DOING WELFARE CHECKS WITH BUFFALO POLICE AND FIRE TO CHECK ON THE ELDERLY AND FAMILIES WITH YOUNG CHILDREN. LAURA: YOU SAID YOU HAD WARNED THE PUBLIC REPEATEDLY ABOUT THIS BEING A ONCE IN A GENERATION STORM, TOLD THEM TO BUY GROCERIES AND STOP DRIVING BY THE MIDDLE OF LAST WEEK. DID THAT MESSAGE FAILED TO GET THROUGH? >> MOST PEOPLE FOLLOWED THE MESSAGE.
ROADS THAN WE WOULD HAVE LIKED TO HAVE SEEN, WITH A DRIVING BAN IMPOSED BY THE CITY AND COUNTY ON FRIDAY. WE LERALLY HAD TO RESCUE HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE FROM THE ROADS, BUT THE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY DID FOLLOW THE GUIDANCE. THAT WAS HELPFUL. UNFORTUNATELY BECAUSE OF VHICLES ON THE ROAD, IT DID SLOW SOME OF OUR RESPONSE TO BE ABLE TO PLOW, TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS EMERGENCY MEDICAL IONS,ATTU AND TO RESCUE STRANDED MOTORISTS. WE HAVE CONTINUED TO WORK THROUGH THAT. WE ARE NOT LETTING THOSE ISSUES STOP US FROM DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN TO PROTECT THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF THE RESIDENTS OF OUR COMMUNITY.
LAURA: THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. OUR THOUGHTS ARE WITH YOU AND BUFFALO RESIDENTS AS YOUR COMMUNITY TRIES TO RECOVER FROM THIS STORM. >> THANK YOU VERY MUCH. JUDY: IN THE DAY'S OTHER NEWS, JAPAN IS GRAPPLING WITH ITS OWN MASSIVE SNOWSTORM. HEAVY SNOW HAS BLANKETED THE COUNTRY'S NORTHERN COASTAL REGIONS SINCE LAST WEEK. AT LEAST 17 PEOPLE HAVE DIED AND ANOTHER 93 MORE WERE INJURED. A NUMBER FELL TO THEIR DEATH WHILE REMOVING SNOW FROM THEIR ROOFTOPS. SOUTH KOREA'S MILITARY FIRED WARNING SHOTS TODAY AFTER NORTH KOREAN DRONES VIOLATED ITS AIRSPACE FOR THE FIRST TIME IN FIVE YEARS. THE SOUTH ALSO SCRAMBLED ATTACK HELICOPTERS AND FITER JETS ACROSS THE HEAVILY FORTIFIED BORDER. A SENIOR SOUTH KOREAN OFFICIAL INSISTED THE MILITARY RESPONSE WAS IN SELF DEFENSE. >> THE SOUTH KOREAN MILITARY DETECTED UNIDENTIFIED TARGETS
BELIEVED TO BE NORTH KOREAN DRONES IN THE CHAUNG-GEE PROVINCE THIS MORNING AND TOOK RESPONSIVE ACTIONS. THIS IS A CLEAR PROVOCATION BY NORTH KOREA VIOLATING SOUTH KOREAN AIRSPACE. JUDY: THE SOUTH ALSO SAID IT SENT SURVEILLANCE PLANES TO PHOTOGRAPH MILITARY FACILITIES IN NORTH KOREA. TAIWAN'S DEFENSE MINISTRY SAID TODAY THAT CHINA'S MILITARY SENT 71 PLANES AND SEVEN SHIPS TOWARD TAIWAN OVER 24 HOURS IN ITS LATEST SHOW OF FORCE. THAT CAME AFTER CHINA EXPRESSED ANGER AT UNITED STATES' SUPPORT FOR TAIWAN IN THE U.S. ANNUAL DEFENSE SPENDING BILL THAT WAS SIGNED INTO LAW LAST WEEK. MEANWHILE IN CHINA, HOSPITALS ARE OVERWHELMED WITH PATIENTS IN INTENSIVE CARE AS COVID-19 CASES CONTINUE TO SPIKE. HEALTH OFFICIALS SAY THE ELDERLY ACCOUNT FOR MANY OF THE CRITICALLY ILL PATIENTS. AN AMERICAN DOCTOR WORKING IN BEIJING WARNED EMERGENCY ROOMS ARE EXPERIENCING A BACKLOG OF PATIENTS. >> THE HOSPITAL IS JUST OVERWHELMED FROM TOP TO BOTTOM.
SO, THE ER IS FILLED UP WITH PEOPLE. A LOT OF THEM GOT ADMITTED TO THE HOSPITAL, THEY'RE NOT GETTING BETTER IN A DAY OR TWO, SO THERE'S NO FLOW. JUDY: HOSPITALS HAVE NOW EXPANDED THEIR ONLINE SERVICES, OFFERING TELEHEALTH APPOINTMENTS TO COPE WITH OVERCROWDING. CREMATORIUMS AND FUNERAL PARLORS ARE ALSO OVERWHELMED. YESTERDAY, CHINA ANNOUNCED IT WILL STOP KEEPING A DAILY COUNT OF ITS TOTAL NUMBER OF INFECTIONS EVEN AS THE COUNTRY DEALS WITH THIS LATEST SURGE. IN ADDITION, CHINA'S NATIONAL HEALTH COMMISSION SAYS THE COUNTRY WILL STOP REQUIRING INCOMING TRAVELERS FROM ABROAD TO QUARANTINE BEGINNING JANUARY 8. AND UKRAINE'S FOREIGN MINISTER TOLD THE ASSOCIATED PRESS HIS GOVERNMENT IS HOPING TO HAVE A PEACE SUMMIT, PREFERABLY AT THE U.N., BY THE END OF FEBRUARY. BUT RUSSIA WOULD ONLY BE INVITED IF IT FACED A WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL FIRST. MEANWHILE, THE RUSSIAN MILITARY SAYS IT SHOT DOWN A UKRAINIAN DRONE THAT WAS HEADED FOR ONE OF
ITS AIRBASES DEEP INSIDE RUSSIA. IT SAID THREE SERVICEMEN WERE KILLEDY DEBRIS. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THE BASE HAS BEEN TARGETED THIS MONTH. STILL TO COME ON THE "NEWSHOUR," THE ARCHITECT OF THE ATOMIC BOMB HAS HIS NAME CLEARED AFTER MORE THAN A HALF CENTURY. WHY MANY PEOPLE DON'T HAVE ADEQUATE ACCESS TO BANKS. CRITICS LIST THE BEST TV SHOWS OF THE YEAR. AND MUCH MORE. >> THIS IS THE PBS, FROM WETA STUDIOS IN WASHINGTON AND IN THE WEST FROM THE WALTER CRONKITE SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM AT ARIZONA STE UNIVERSITY. JUDY: THE TALIBAN RE-CONQUERED AFGHANISTAN 16 MONTHS AGO, AS THE U.S. WITHDREW AND THE PREVIOUS AFGHAGOVERNMENT COLLAPSED. SINCE THEN, THE COUNTRY HAS SPIRALED INTO ECONOMIC AND SOCIETY-WIDE CHAOS, AND NOW THE TALIBAN'S TREATMENT OF WOMEN AND GIRLS IS AGAIN A CENTRAL ISSUE. HERE'S LISA DJARDINS. LISA: THIS WEEKEND, THE TALIBAN ORDERED THAT WOMEN CAN NO LONGER
WORK FOR ANY NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS, INCLUDING RELIEF AGENCIES. ANY SUCH GROUP THAT CONTINUES TO EMPLOY WOMEN WILL LOSE ITS LICENSE, ACCORDING TO THE ECONOMIC MINISTRY. IN RESPONSE FOUR OF THE LARGEST INTERNATIONAL NGOS, UPON WHICH THE COUNTRY DEPENDS FOR AID, DECIDED TO SUSPEND OPERATIONS ENTIRELY. THIS, DAYS AFTER THE TALIBAN MOVED TO BLOCK WOMEN FROM UNIVERSITIES, EFFECTIVELY BANNING WOMEN AND GIRLS FROM MIDDLE SCHOOL THROUGH COLLEGE. FOR MORE WE TURN TO VICKI AKEN, THE AFGHANISTAN COUNTRY DIRECTOR AT THE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE. SHE IS IN MINNEAPOLIS. AND FAWZIA KOOFI, WHO WAS A MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT IN AFGHANISTAN AND HEADED THE PARLIAMENT'S WOMAN AFFAIRS COMMISSION. SHE IS ALSO AN AUTHOR OF THE BOOK "THE FAVORED DAUGHTER: ONE WOMAN'S FIGHT TO LEAD AFGHANISTAN IN THE FUTURE." SHE JOINS US FROM LONDON. THANK YOU BOTH. VERY ESTEEMED IN THIS AREA. VICKI, WHAT IS HAPPENING IN AFGHANISTAN RIGHT NOW. WHAT KIND OF OPERATIONS HAVE YOU CEASED AND WHAT IS THE IMPACT?
VICKI: THE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE HAS BEEN WORKING IN AFGHANISTAN SINCE 1988. WE HAVE 8000 STAFF, 3000 OF THEM WOMEN. WE HAVE CEASED OUR OPERATIONS IN HEALTH, EMERGENCY RESPONSE, EDUCATION, AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT UNTIL WE CAN UNDERSTAND A PATHWAY FORWARD, BECAUSE AS A HUMANITARIAN ORGANIZATION, WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO SERVE MEN AND WOMEN EQUALLY. IN AFGHANISTAN WE CANNOT SERVE WOMEN UNLESS WE HAVE WOMEN ON OUR STAFF. LISA: WE KNOW THERE IS AID BEING CUT OFF, THOUSANDS OF WORKERS WHO NO LONGER HAVE JOBS TO FEED THEIR FAMILY. WHAT IS THE REACTION FROM THE PEOPLE YOU KNOW IN AFGHANISTAN AND WHAT DOES THIS MEAN GOING AHEAD? FAWZIA: THE PEOPLE ARE DEVASTATED. ONE CAN LIVE ON THE POVERTY LINE IN HUNGER, BUT WITH INJUSTICE, NOBODY IS ABLE TO TOLERATE OR
ACCEPT. SINCE THE TALIBAN SEIZED POWER AUGUST 2021, THEY HAVE ISSUED 35 UNITS AND DECREES TO ELIMINATE AND ERASE WOMEN FROM THE PUBLIC SPHERE. THE LAST ONE WAS BANNING WOMEN FROM WORKING WITH NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS. THESE WERE WOMEN WHO WERE THE BREADWINNERS OF THE FAMILY. THEY WERE BASICALLY SUPPORTING THEIR FAMILY THROUGH THE SALARY THEY WERE RECEIVING. THE TALIBAN HAVE ANNOUNCED WAR AGAINST WOMEN. I AM GRATEFUL FOR THE ORGANIZATIONS TO PROTEST IT. LISA: WOMEN WERE KEY, ESPECIALLY IN HEALTH CARE, A BIG PART OF WHAT YOUR ORGANIZATION DOES. CAN YOU TAKE ME INTO WHAT IT MEANS, NO LONGER HAVING HEALTH CARE CLINICS FROM NGOS, AND WHAT IS THE HEALTH CARE SITUATION YOU HAVE SEEN RECENTLY?
VICKI: WITH HEALTH CARE, AS WE KNOW IN AFGHANISTAN, THERE ARE MANY AREAS WHERE WOMEN ARE ONLY ALLOWED TO SEE WOMEN DOCTORS OR NURSES, SO IT IS ESSENTIAL TO CONTINUE TO HAVE FEMALE STAFF IN THOSE AREAS. THIS SEEMS TO BE RECOGNIZED, AT LEAST BY THE MINISTER OF HEALTH. THE ISSUE WOULD BE, CAN WE CONTINUE TO HAVE FEMALE STAFF GO TO CLINICS AND ARRIVE THERE SAFELY? WITHOUT THIS CRITICAL CARE, MANY WOMEN AND CHILDREN MAY DIE WITHOUTCCESS TO THESE SERVICES. EVEN MORE IMPORTANTLY, THESE WOMEN THAT NO LONGER HAVE A JOB ARE THE ONLY BREADWINNERS IN THEIR HOMES. ARE THERE FAMILIES GOING TO STARVE TO DEATH BECAUSE THEY CAN'T COME TO WORK? JUDY: YOU HAVE SEEN INCREASING MALNUTRITION ON A DEVASTATING SCALE IN AFGHANISTAN.
THE TALIBAN HAS SAID THEY MADE THIS DECISION BECAUSE WOMEN WERE NOT ABIDING BY THE DRESS CODE. WHAT DO YOU SAY TO THAT? >> I DON'T AGREE BECAUSE IN MY OWN ORGANIZATION, WOMEN ARE ABIDING BY THE ISLAMIC DRESS CODE. IN RURAL AREAS WHERE WE DO MOST OF OUR WORK, EVEN UNDER THE REPUBLIC THEY ALWAYS DRESSED CONSERVATIVELY BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT YOU NEEDED TO DO IN THOSE COMMUNITIES. IT WOULD BE GOOD TO UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT THEY MEAN BY THIS. LISA: WHO IS THE TALIBAN RIGHT NOW? IN NEGOTIATIONS YTHTALIOUPAN IP PRICESENTED ITSELF AS A MORE MODERATE, MODERN TALIBAN. THERE WAS A DIFFERENT TALIBAN WHEN YOU WERE A YOUNGER WOMAN. ARE THEY NOW THE SAME? IS THIS A NEW TALIBAN OR IS THIS JUST AS BAD AS BEFORE? PRES. ZELENSKYY: THEY HAVEN'T -- FAWZIA: THEY HAVE ENFORCED THESE SAME POLICIES THEY WERE ENFORCING WHEN THEY WERE IN
POWER THE FIRST TIME. WHAT WE HOPED WAS TT THEY CHANGED, THAT THEYOULD ALLOW WOMEN TO GO TO SCHOOL AND WORK. THEY TOLD ME DURING THE NEGOTIATION THAT FROM THEIR PERSPECTIVE, WOMEN CAN BECOME AS HIGH-LEVEL AS PRIME MINISTER. I THINK THEY WERE SAYING THAT TO GET THE POWER AND CREATE A NARRATIVE THAT WE ARE NOW TRAPPEDNTO. LISA: SOME PEOPLE LOOK AT SITUATIONS LIKE THIS IN THE WEST AND SAY THERE IS STARVATION, INCREDIBLE OPPRESSION. PERHAPS THIS IS A TIME WHEN THE PEOPLE WILL REBEL. DO YOU THINK THAT'S REALISTIC ANYTIME SOON? FAWZIA: PEOPLE ARE DIVIDED AMONG THEMSELVES. THERE IS A HUGE LEVEL OF OPPOSITION. THEY DON'T KNOW HOW TO GOVERN. I'M HOPING WITH THE LEVEL OF RESISTANCE THAT'S INCREASING DAY BY DAY, AND NOT ONLY WOMEN ARE PROTESTING, MEN ARE PROTESTING. IN VERY CONSERVATIVE AREAS, MANY STUDENTS WERE PROTESTING AGAINST
THE TALIBAN'S DECISION. I'M HOPING OVER TIME THIS PRESSURE WILL MAKE THE TALIBAN ACCOUNTABLE OR PAVE THE WAY FOR A BETTER ALTERNATIVE. JUDY: -- LISA: YOUR ORGANIZATION ESTIMATES 97% OF AFGHANISTAN IS AT RISK OR ALREADY IN POVERTY. WHAT KIND OF MEASURES OUR FAMILIES HAVING TO TAKE TO TRY TO SURVIVE? >> MANY FAMILIES ARE DEALING WITH VY NEGATIVE COPING MECHANISMS, LIKE HAVING TO SEND THEIR CHILDREN TO WORK OR SELL THEIR DAUGHTERS INTO MARRIAGE. WE HAVE SEEN AN INCREASE IN PEOPLE SELLING BODY PARTS LIKE KIDNEYS. MANY MEN ARE TRYING TO MIGRATE TO GET INTO PLACES LIKE IRAN TO FIND WORK TO SUPPORT THEIR FAMILIES AND THIS LEAVES THE WOMEN ALONE. HOW ARE WE TO REACH THEM IF WE DON'T HAVE FEMALE STAFF? LISA: YOU ARE SOMEONE WHO HAS FOUGHT FOR THIS COUNTRY.
YOU HAVE SURVIVED ASSASSINATION ATTEMPTS, BEEN SHOT AT BECAUSE OF YOUR COUNTRY AND YOUR VISION FOR IT. WHAT IS THIS MOMENT LIKE, HEARING EVERYTHING THAT VICKI JUST SAID? FAWZIA: IT IS REALLY HEARTBREAKING. I AM SPEECHLESS SOMETIMES. LET'S NOT FORGET, WHAT IS HAPPENING IN AFGHANISTAN, IF THE MEN ARE GOING TO WORK, THE WOMEN CANNOT GET OUT OF THEIR HOUSE WITHOUT A MALE COMPANION. I LOST MY HUSBAND, MY BROTHERS. I DON'T HAVE ANY MAN IN MY FAMILY. IF I WAS IN AFGHANISTAN, I COULD NOT GET OUT OF MY HOUSE. THESE ARE ZOOLOGICAL AND THERE IS NO LOGIC TO THEIR DECISION. IT IS SHOWING THE UGLY FACE THE TALIBAN HAS. LI: WE THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME. WE KNOW HOW BUSY YOU ARE.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK. JUDY: IT IS NOT WELL-KNOWN, BUT ABOUT 4.5% OF U.S. HOUSEHOLDS ARE "UNBANKED," MEANING NO ONE IN THE HOUSE HAS A CHECKING OR A SAVINGS ACCOUNT. THE RATE DECLINED DURING THE PANDEMIC IN PART BECAUSE PEOPLE OPENED ACCOUNTS TO RECEIVE GOVERNMENT STIMULUS FUNDS. BUT DISPARITIES BETWEEN THE BANKED AND UNBANKED PERSIST. OUR ECONOMICS CORRESPONDENT PAUL SOLMAN HAS THE STORY. >> LORD WE PRAISE YOU AND THANK YOU FOR THIS FOOD. PAUL: AT HOME WITH HIS WIFE IN SOUTH MEMPHIS, DONALD JENKINS IS SO GRATEFUL HE NO LONGER LIVES ON THE EDGE. FOR YEARS A DRUG ADDICT WHO COULD NOT HOLD A JOB, HIS PETTY CASH CAPPED -- KEPT CLOSE TO THE VEST. >> I HAD MY MONEY IN MY POCKET. PAUL: ISN'T IT DANGEROUS TO HAVE
IT IN YOUR POCKET? >> YES. VERY. GOT ROBBED A FEW TIMES. PAUL: WAREHOUSE CLERK PAULA JONES USED TO STASH HER CASH IN A CAN. >> WE WAS TAUGHT LIKE, YOU KNOW, YOU KEEP YOUR MONEY AT HOME //IT -- AT HOME. IT WAS LIKE, DON'T DEAL WITH BANKS. PAUL: JONES WAS UNBANKED," NO BANK ACCOUNT, AS ARE 6 MILLION U.S. HOUSEHOLDS. BLACK HOUSEHOLDS UNBANKED AT MORE THAN FIVE TIMES THE RATE OF WHITE ONES. >> THERE'S BEEN A DISTRUST OF FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS SINCE DOWN THROUGH HISTORY. PAUL: CREDIT COUNSELOR CHARLESTIEN HARRIS WORKS AT SOUTHERN BANCORPS IN PREDOMINANTLY BLACK CLARKSDALE, MISSISSIPPI. >> BECAUSE OF REDLINING AND THE DIFFERENT DISCRIMINATION POLICIES THAT WERE HAPPENING IN THE BANKING INDUSTRY AT THAT TIME, THERE WERE NOT A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES TO REALLY ENGAGE WITH A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION. PAUL: REDLINING -- DESIGNATED NEIGHBORHOODS HIGHLIGHTED ON MAPS IN RED AS TOO HAZARDOUS FOR MORTGAGE LENDING AS FAR BACK AS EARLY LAST CENTURY, MOST OF THEM BLACK, STOKING DISTRUST STILL EVIDENT IN MEMPHIS, WHERE 45% OF BLACK RESIDENTS REMAIN
UN- OR UNDERBANKED. >> WE TRY TO LE APPLY FOR DIFFERENT THINGS, ALWAYS GETTING TURNED DOWN DUE TO LIKE BANK ACCOUNTS, CREDIT SCORES, AND ALL THESE. BUT THEN YOU HAVE SOMEBODY THAT COULD COME UP AND JUST PROBABLY IN THE SAME SITUATION AND THEY CAN JUST WALK IN AND GET A, YOU KNOW, GET A HOUSE, BUY HOUSE. PAUL: DONALD JENKINS BALKED AT EVEN ENTERING A BANK. >> YOU KNOW, I JUST COULDN'T TRUST NOBODY. AND THEN THE RACIAL THING, YOU KNOW. PAUL: BECAUSE THESE ARE, THEY'RE WHITE PEOPLE AT THE BANK? >> YES, MOSTLY, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU GO IN. BUT THEY SWITCHING AROUND NOW. IT'S DIFFERENT NOW. PAUL: EVEN SO, SAYS STEVE NASH OF NONPROFIT ADVANCE MEMPHIS, THE ANXIETY LINGERS. >> REDLINING, I THINK, HAS BEEN A BIG, BIG IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY AS FAR AS TRUST WITH THE BANK AND ITS WEALTH STRIPPING. WHEN, YOU KNOW, AN INSTITUTION SAYS, NO, WE'RE NOT GOING TO SERVICE YOU, THAT'S A BIG DEAL. TODAY WE'RE STILL HAVING TO UNPACK AND PUT BACK TOGETHER.
PAUL: IN MISSISSIPPI, WHERE THE UNBANKED RATE IS 11%, THE HIGHEST IN THE COUNTRY, CREDIT COUNSELOR HARRIS SAYS THERE ARE OTHER REASONS PEOPLE DON'T HAVE BANK ACCOUNTS. >> THE LARGER BANKS LIKE U.S. BANK AND WELLS FARGO AND THOSE TYPES OF BANKS ARE ACTUALLY LEAVING THE SMALLER COMMUNITIES. AND IN THE CASE OF THE DELTA, YOU REALLY DON'T HAVE BANKING OPPORTUNITIES. THEY'VE CLOSED DOWN. PAUL: WHEN UNPROFITABLE BANK BRANCHES CLOSED IN A NUMBER OF RURAL COMMUNITIES, SOUTHERN BANCORP, A COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT FINANCIAL INSTITUTION OR "CDFI," BECAME THE ONLY OPTION. >> WE ARE MORE MISSION DRIVEN THAN WE ARE PROFIT DRIVEN. PAUL: BUT EVEN WHERE COMMUNITIES DO HAVE A BANK, BARRIERS PERSIST. >> I WASN'T MAKING ENOUGH MONEY TO DEAL WITH A BANK. PAUL: CLARKSDALE RESIDENT ELIZABETH JOHNSON RECENTLY OPENED AN ACCOUNT AT SOUTHERN. MORE THAN A THIRD OF THE UNBANKED SAY THEY DON'T HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO MEET MINIMUM BALANCE REQUIREMENTS. JOSON HAD BEEN AMONG THEM, WAS PAID BY HER EMPLOYER ON A RELOADABLE DEBIT CARD.
>> IF YOU GETTING YOUR CHECK ON THE CARD, WHAT YOU GOING TO DEAL WITH THE BANK FOR? I MEAN, YOU JUST WANT YOUR CHECK. PAUL: LIKE MANY HERE -- >> IF YOU GET A SOCIAL SECURITY CHECK, SOMETHING LIKE THAT, THEY GO TO THE LIQUOR STORE OR TO THE FURNITURE STORE AND THEY HAD TO CASH THEIR CHECK. PAUL: BUT JOHNSON CAME TO SOUTHERN FOR CREDIT COUNSELING. >> SOMETIMES IT CAN BE A LONG JOURNEY. AND SO IT'S NOT AN OVERNIGHT FIX -- FIXED. PAUL: JOHNSON WANTS TO IMPROVE HER CREDIT SSHE CAN BUY A LITTLE LAND. >> I WAS RAISED IN THE COUNTRY AND I JUST WANT TO GO BACK. I WANT TO GO BACK AND LIVE THE REST OF MY LIFE IN THE COUNTRY. UL: BAD CREDIT, OR NO CREDIT HISTORY AT ALL, STYMIES BANK LOANS, MAKES THE POOR EVEN POORER AS THEY RESORT TO EXORBITANT OPTIONS. >> A TITLE LENDER HERE. PAYDAY ADVANCE PLACED THERE. PAUL: IN MEMPHIS, THEY ABOUND. >> ANOTHER THERE. TENNESSEE TITLE LOANS. PAUL: REVEREND J. LAWRENCE
TURNER, DRIVING ME ON MEMPHIS'S GETWELL ROAD. >> THIS COMMUNITY JUST HAPPENS TO BE NOT ONLY ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED, BUT HEAVILY POPULATED WITH PEOPLE WHO ARE BLACK AND BROWN. PAUL: SO EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK, LENDERS CHARGING INTEREST RATES OR FEES THAT, ANNUALIZED, CAN RUN TO 300% OR 400%. >> THEY ARE LITERALLY TWICE THE NUMBER OF THESE FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS AS THERE ARE FAST FOOD RESTAURANTS. PAUL: THERE'S A CERTAIN IRONY IN THAT WE'RE DRIVING ON GET WELL ROAD, RIGHT? >> YEAH, YOU ARE NOT GOING TO GET WELL FINANCIALLY. PAUL: TURNER HAS SEEN SO MANY PARISHIONERS CAUGHT IN A DEBT TRAP, HIS BLACK CLERGY COLLABORATIVE PARTNERED WITH HOPE CREDIT UNION, A CDFI, TO OFFER SMALL LOANS AT RELATIVELY LOW COST. OUR CO-OP TO $1000. -- >> UP TO $1000. HALF OF THAT AMOUNT IS GIVEN IMMEDIATELY.
THE OTHER HALF IS PLACED IN A SAVINGS ACCOUNT. ONCE THEY HAVE REPAID IT, THE OTHER 500 BECOMES AVAILABLE TO FUNDS IN THE E THAT THERE IS A DEFAULT. PAUL: AND CHARGE INTEREST AT A FRACTION OF WHAT PAYDAY LENDERS DO, SAYS HOPE CEO BILL BYNUM. >> YOU'RE TYPICALLY GOING TO PAY, YOU KNOW, IN THE 10 TO 18% RANGE. PAUL: THAT WILL SOUND HIGH TO A LOT OF PEOPLE IN OUR AUDIENCE. >> NO, I THINK IF YOU LOOK AT WHAT PEOPLE PAY FOR SHORT TERM, SMALL DOLLAR LOANS, MOST PEOPLE WILL PAY FROM 10% TO 18%. THINK OF IT AS A CREDIT CARD. AND SO RATHER THAN BEING IN A POSITION WHERE YOU HAVE TO GO TO A CHECK CASHER OR PAYDAY LENDER OR PAWN SHOP, THAT'S GOING TO CHARGE YOU 200%, 300%, 400%, WE ARE CHARGING MUCH LESS. PAUL: BYNUM BELIEVES THIS CAN ALSO BE A FIRST STEP TO CLOSING THE WEALTH GAP IN COMMUNITIES WITHOUT ACCESS TO TRADITIONAL BANKS. >> IT'S NOT JUST A SOLUTION TO AN IMMEDIATE NEED. IT GIVES THEM A LADDER THAT THEY CAN CLIMB WHEN THEY HAVE OTHER NEEDS. YOU'VE GOT THE FULL SUITE OF TOOLS THAT A TRADITIONAL BANK OFFERS TO THEIR CUSTOMERS IN MORE AFFLUENT COMMUNITIES.
PAUL: IN ITS WORK TO PROMOTE ECONOMIC STABILITY, STEVE NASH'S ADVANCE MEMPHIS PROVIDES A MATERIAL INCENTIVE TO OPEN A SAVINGS ACCOUNT. >> EVERY DOLLAR YOU SAVE FROM EARNED INCOME, WE WILL MATCH IT TWO TO ONE TO PURCHASE AN ASSET. YOU CAN USE IT TO PURCHASE A CAR. YOU CAN USE IT AS A DOWN PAYMENT ON A HOUSE AND THEN YOU CAN USE IT FOR POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION. PAUL: WITH THE NONPROFIT'S HELP, DONALD JENKINS SAVED ENOUGH TO BUY A TRUCK, THEN A HOUSE. >> OH, MAN, I GOT A CREDIT CARD. IT GOT MY NAME ON IT. I CAN GET MY MONEY OFF OF HERE WHEN I WANT TO PAUL: JENKINS NOW HAS HIS OWN LAWN CARE BUSINESS. SO YOU'RE REALLY PROUD THAT YOU HAVE A BANK ACCOUNT? >> OH, YES, SIR. PAUL: PROUD AND FINALLY BANKED. FOR THE PBS NEWSHOUR, PAUL SOLMAN IN MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE. JUDY: IT HAS BEEN A MOMENTOUS TWO YEARS FOR LAWMAKERS IN
WASHINGTON. AFTER TACKLING MAJOR LEGISLATION AND SURVIVING CONTENTIOUS MIDTERM RACES, SOME ARE USING THE HOLIDAYS TO CONFER WITH FRIENDS, FAMILIES AND ADVISORS ABOUT NEXT STEPS IN THEIR POLITICAL CAREERS. AND SO ARE OTHERS WHO ARE THINKING ABOUT TAKING THE BIGGEST STEP, A RUN FOR THE WHITE HOUSE. TO TALK ABOUT THIS AND MUCH MORE, IT'S POLITICAL STAKES WITH TAMARA KEITH OF NPR AND LEIGH ANN CALDWELL WITH THE WASHINGTON POST. AMY WALTER IS AWAY. IT IS SO GOOD TO SEE BOTH OF YOU ON THE DAY AFTER CHRISTMAS, THE MONDAY BEFORE NEW YEAR'S. WE DO HERE POLITICIANS, SOME OF THEM, SAYING I AM GOING TO TAKE THE HOLIDAYS TO TALK WITH MY FAMILY, OSE ADVISORS, AND FRIENDS. IS THAT WHAT THEY ARE REALLY DOING? TAMARA: I WILL SAY THAT ONE OF PRESIDENT BIDEN'S TOP ADVERS SAID IF THEY HAD NOT BEEN AT LEAST MAKING PREPARATIONS FOR A
CAMPAIGN ONE -- CAMPAIGN MONTHS AGO, THAT WOULD BE CAMPAIGN MALPRACTICE. EVEN IF THEY ARE OFFICIALLY SPENDING QUALITY TIME WITH THEIR FAMILIES MAKING DECISIONS, THEY ARE ALSO DOING THE BEHIND-THE-SCENES WORK OF RUNNING A PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN. ACTUALLY DECLARING, MAKING IT OFFICIAL ON THE FEDERAL ELECTIONS COMMISSION WEBSITE, THAT TENDS TO HAPPEN LATER. IF YOU ARE NOT MAKING PREPARATIONS, YOU ARE PROBABLY NOT RUNNING A SERIOUS CAMPAIGN. THERE ARE MANY REPUBLICANS -- NOT SO MANY DEMOCRATS -- MANY REPUBLICANS MAKING PREPARATIONS BEHIND-THE-SCENES, IN ADDITION TO GOING ON BOOKSTORES. JUDY: WE HAVE A FEW COMMENTS WE HAVE BEEN HEARING IN RECENT WEEKS. HERE THEY ARE. >> I AM GOING TO LISTEN TO MY FAMILY OVER THE HOLIDAYS. I HAVE A BIG LATINO FAMILY THAT'S GOING TO COME OVER CHRISTMAS. >> WE ARE TAKING THE HOLIDAYS TO LOOK AT THE SITUATION. >> PRESIDENT BIDEN HAS SAID HE WILL HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH HIS
FAMILY OVER THE HOLIDAYS. THE PRESIDENT WILL MAKE THAT DECISION, I EXPECT THAT SHORTLY AFTER THE HOLIDAYS. BUT I EXPECT THE DECISION WILL BE TO DO IT. >> WHETHER IT'S RON DESANTIS, OR POMPEO, OR VICE PRESIDENT PENCE. EVERYONE WILL HAVE THEIR OWN TIMELINE FOR DIFFERENT REASONS, BUT I THINK PEOPLE CAN WAIT. JUDY: SO WE HAVE ONE VOICE, GOVERNOR SUNUNU, SAYING THEY CAN WAIT. OTHERS SAYING I AM GOING TO THINK ABOUT IT OVER THE HOLIDAYS. IS THIS A DEVICE OR IS IT REALLY HAPPENING? >> I THINK A LITTLE BIT OF BOTH. THINKING ABOUT IT OVER THE HOLIDAYS ALSO INCLUDES LOOKING AT POLLING NUMBERS, TALKING TO DONORS. OF COURSE THEY ARE TALKING TO THE FAMILY. THEY ARE DOING EXACTLY WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE TO KNOW IF THEY ARE ABLE TO RUN A VIABLE CAMPAIGN. MAYBE AFTER THE HOLIDAYS WHEN THEY ARE TRYING TO CONSIDER IF THEY ARE GOING TO RUN OR NOT, ALL THESE THINGS ARE BEING TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION. WHAT'S CRITICAL IS ARE THEY
GOING TO PEOTTER OUT? HAS SOMEONE LIKE RON DESANTIS PEAKED TOO SOON? JUDY: SPEAKING OF THE REPUBLICANS, IT SOUNDS LIKE REPUBLICANS ARE MORE OPEN TO CHALLENGES TO FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP. TAMARA: WHAT I WILL SAY ABOUT FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP IS A FEW DAYS AFTER THE MIDTERMS THAT WERE PRETTY DISASTROUS FOR HIS PARTY, HE ANNOUNCED HE IS RUNNING FOR ELECTION AGAIN. AND HE HAS DONE BASICALLY NOTHING THAT LOOKLIKE A PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE. HE HAS NOT LEFT FLORIDA. HE SOLD SOME TRADING CARD THING, ELECTRONIC TRADING CARDS, QUITE SUCCESSFULLY APPARENTLY, BUT HE HAS NOT REALLY LOOKED LIKE A PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE. HE HAS NOT HELD THE RALLIES THAT WOULD SHOW PEOPLE THE EXCITEMENT THAT EXISTS BEHIND HIM. INSTEAD HE TOOK A MEETING WITH KANYE, WHITE SUPREMACISTS, AND
OTHERS, AND THAT LOOKS LIKE WEAKNESS TO REPUBLICANS WHO PROBABLY WERE GOING TO RUN REGARDLESS OR AT LEAST HAVE BEEN PUTTING TOGETHER THE SCAFFOLDING OF A PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN. JUDY: WHAT ABOUT THE DEMOCRATS? ARE THEY CLEARING THE FIELD OR NOT FOR PRESIDENT BIDEN? LEIGH ANN: SINCE THE 2020 MIDTERM ELECTIS, I THINK THE MOOD AMONG DEMOCRATS HAS SHIFTED ABOUT PRESIDENT BIDEN. WHEN THEY THOUGHT THEY WERE GOING TO GET A SHELLACKING IN THE MIDTERMS, THERE WAS A LOT OF PESSIMISM ABOUT THE PRESIDENT. SINCE THEN, DEMOCRATS DID MUCH BETTER THAN EXPECTED, SO THEY ARE WILLING TO GIVE HIM ANOTHER CHANCE. DEMOCRATS ON CAPITOL HILL ARE SAYING THEY HOPE HE RUNS AGAIN. WE WILL SEE IF THAT IS SUSTAINED, BUT RIGHT NOW HIS STANDING IS ETTY HIGH WITHIN HIS PARTY AT LEAST AMONG THE WASHINGTON, D.C. CROWD. JUDY: LEAPING FROM THAT TO THE CONGRESS, WHERE WE KNOW SOME ARE
THINKING ABOUT RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT, AS THEY LOOK BACK ON THE PAST TWO YEARS, WHAT ARE THEY FEELING GOOD ABOUT? WHAT ARE THEY FEELING, WE DIDN'T REALLY GET THAT DONE? >> IT WAS A DEMOCRATICALLY CONTROLLED CONGRESS, BUT VERY NARROWLY CONTROLLED BY DEMOCRATS. THEY DID A NUMBER OF THINGS THAT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR MANY OF US WOULD NOT HAVE PREDICTED WERE POSSIBLE, INCLUDING GUN LEGISLATN THAT WAS BIPARTISAN. AND OBVIOUSLY PASSING THE TWO MAJOR PIECES OF LEGISLATION THAT DEMOCRATS PASSED. ONE OF THESE IS A MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL BILL, EVEN THOUGH IT IS CALLED THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT. AS THE YEAR WENT ON, CERTAINLY BUILD BACK BETTER DIDN'T HAPPEN BUT THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT DID HAPPEN.
THERE WERE A NUMBER OF BOLD IDEAS THAT ENDED UP BEING SMALLER, BUT STILL MORE THAN MOST PEOPLE WOULD HAVE EXPECTED TO BE POSSIBLE. JUDY: WHAT DO YOU SEE IN THEIR MINDS AS THEY ARE THINKING ABOUT HOW THE SESSION TURNED OUT? >> I THINK DEMOCRATS ARE THRILLED. THERE IS AN EVENLY DIVIDED SENATE. HOUSE DEMOCRATS HAD ONLY A TWO SEAT MARGIN. THE FACT THEY WERE ABLE TO PASS SUCH MAJOR PIECES OF LEGISLATION -- NOT AS BIG AS THEY HOPED, BUT THINGS LIKE THE CARE ECONOMY WERE NOT ABLE TO GET PAST. THE FACT THEY WERE ABLE TO PASS SO MANY THINGS, SOME OF THEM ON A BIPARTISAN BASIS, THEY ARE THRILLED. THE ELECTORAL COUNT A, REFORMS TO THAT SYSTEM, IS ANOTHER BIG WIN FOR THEM. JUDY: THAT BRINGS UP THE ISSUE WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT ALL YEAR, DEMOCRACY. A LOT PEOPLE GOING INTO THE
MIDTERMS THINKING, WHERE IS OUR DEMOCRACY? ARE WE STRONGER AT THE END OF THIS YEAR? >> THERE ARE CANDIDATES WHO DENIED THE RESULTS OF THE 2020 ELECTION WHO RAN IN 2022, LOST, AND ACCEPTED THE RESULTS. THAT'S A WIN FOR THE BASIC FUNCTIONS OF DEMOCRACY. I WOULD SAY ANY CELEBRATION WOULD BE PREMATURE. IF YOU LOOK AT TRUST IN AMERICAN INSTITUTIONS, INSTITUTIONS LIKE THE PRESS, LIKE US, EVEN INSTITUTIONS LIKE THE CHURCH. THINGS LIKE CONGRESS OR THE PRESIDENCY. TRUST IN AMERICAN INSTITUTIONS IS AT ALL-TIME LOWS AND THAT LEAVES THE COUNTRY WEAKER. IT MAKES IT EASIER FOR DEMOCRATIC EROSION TO OCCUR WHEN PEOPLE HAVE THEIR OWN SOURCES OF INFORMATION, WHEN THEY DON'T TRUST THAT THEY CAN TRUST ANYTHING.
THAT LEAVES AMERICANS MORE SUSCEPTIBLE. JUDY: HOW DO YOU SEE THE QUESTION OF DEMOCRACY AS WE TURN TO 2023? FAWZIA: I THINK TAMERA -- LEIGH ANN: I THINK TAMERA IS RIGHT. THERE WERE SOME BIG WINS. I SAW HOW DIVIDED THE HOUSE WAS. REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS REFUSED TO TALK TO EACH OTHER. THEY WERE ABLE TO PASS THE ELECTORAL COUNT ACT. YOU HAD ELECTION DENIERS RUNNING FOR OFFICE, INCLUDING CRITICAL POSITIONS LIKE SECRETARY OF STATE. IN MOST INSTANCES VOTERS REJECTED THAT. THE FACT VOTERS WERE PAYING ATNTION AND SAW THIS WAS NOT THE DIRECTION THEY WANTED THE COUNTRY TO GO, THIS TELLS US A LOT. DEMOCRACY HAS BEEN IN A STRONGER PLACE BEFORE, BUT THE LAST TWO YEARS THEY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SLOWLY CRAWL BACK AND SAY THE AMERICAN EXPERIMENT IS GOING TO CONTINUE A LITTLE LONGER.
JUDY: A LOT TO BE THANKFUL FOR AS WE SAY GOODBYE TO 20 IN A COUPLE DAYS. THANK YOU BOTH. HAPPY NEW YEAR. PHYSICIST J ROBERT OPPENHEIMER LED THE MANHATTAN PROJECT TO DEVELOP NUCLEAR WEAPONS DURING WORLD WAR II. HE IS PERHAPS BEST KNOWN AS THE FATHER OF THE ATOMIC BOMB. AS TIME HAS PASSED, MORE DETAILS HAVE EMERGED ABOUT HIS LIFE. AS WILLIAM EXPLAINS, THERE ARE NEW ASSESSMENTS OF HIS ROLE IN HISTORY. >> I IMAGINE A FUTURE, AND OUR IMAGININGS HORRIFY US. WILLIAM: CHRISTOPHER NOLAN'S UPCOMING FILM, OPPENHEIMER, TELLS THE STORY OF THE BRILLIANT PHYSICIST, AND HIS INTENSE WORK TO DEVELOP THE WEAPONS THAT WOULD HELP AMERICA WIN THE SECOND WORLD WAR. TWO OF THE BOMBS HE AND HIS COLLEAGUES HELPED CREATE WERE DROPPED ON JAPAN, KILLING
SEVERAL HUNDRED THOUSAND PEOPLE, MOSTLY CIVILIANS, BUT HELPING BRING THE WAR TO A QUICKER END. AFTERWARDS, OPPENHEIMER EXPRESSED REGRET ABOUT THESE WEAPONS AND WORKED TO STOP THEIR PROLIFERATION. IN 1954 AT THE HEIGHT OF ANTI-SOVIET FERVOR, HIS SECURITY CLEARANCE WAS REVOKED OVER ALLEGATIONS THAT HE HAD TIES TO COMMUNISM. BUT ALMOST 70 YEARS LATER, LONG AFTER HIS DEATH, ENERGY SECRETARY JENNIFER GRANHOLM REVERSED THAT DECISION, SAYING, "AS TIME HAS PASSED, MORE EVIDENCE HAS COME TO LIGHT OF THE BIAS AND UNFAIRNESS OF THE PROCESS THAT DR. OPPENHEIMER WAS SUBJECTED TO, WHILE THE EVIDENCE OF HIS LOYALTY AND LOVE OF COUNTRY HAVE ONLY BEEN FURTHER AFFIRMED." FOR MORE ON THIS COMPLICATED MAN AND HIS ROLE IN HISTORY, I'M JOINED NOW BY ALEX WELLERSTEIN. HE'S A HISTORIAN OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS, A PROFESSOR AT THE STEVENS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, AND AUTHOR OF "RESTRICTED DATA: THE HISTORY OF NUCLEAR SECRECY
IN THE UNITED STATES." PROFESSOR WELLERSTEIN, GREAT TO HAVE YOU ON THE NEWSHOUR. FOR THOSE OF US WHO ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH OPPENHEIMER'S WORK ON THE MANHATTAN PROJECT, YOU -- CAN YOU JUST REMIND US A BIT OF WHAT ROLE HE PLAYED AND HOW CENTRAL HE WAS TO THAT. >> OPPENHEIMER WAS THE SCIENTIFIC DIRECTOR OF THE MANHATTAN PROJECT AND THE DIRECTOR OF THE LOS ALAMOS LABORATORY. AND SO IN THIS POSITION, HE WAS IN CHARGE OF ALL OF THE SCIENTIFIC DECISION-MAKING, ALL OF THE ADVISING ON THE PRODUCTION OF THE BOMBS, CRUCIAL TO PLANNING FOR THE ACTUAL USE OF THE BOMBS, AND WAS CREDITED AS THE GLUE THAT HELD TOGETHER THIS MASSIVE NEW INDUSTRY THAT HAD BEEN BUILT IN AN UNPRECEDENTED TIME IN TOTAL SECRECY DURING WORLD WAR II. WILLIAM: AND WE CERTAINLY KNOW WHAT THOSE NUCLEAR WEAPONS DID DURING WORLD WAR II. AND WE ARE STILL LIVING DECADES LATER WITH THE SPECTER OF THEM, EVEN IN THE WAR IN UKRAINE AND RUSSIA'S SABER RATTLING NOW. I MEAN, AS YOU AND OTHERS HAVE WRITTEN, OPPENHEIMER WAS A COMPLICATED AND CONFLICTED MAN.
HE BUILT THE ULTIMATE WEAPONS OF MASSESTRUCTION, BUT THEN ALSO WORKED TO LIMIT THEIR USE. IS IT FAIR TO SAY THAT HE GRAPPLED WITH THE MORALITY OF WHAT HE HAD DONE? PROF. WELLERSTEIN: OPPENHEIMER -- HE'S TRICKY BECAUSE ON THE ONE HAND, HE ALWAYS DEFENDED MAKING AND USING THE BOMBS DURING WORLD WAR II. ON THE OTHER HAND, HE THOUGHT THAT THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE TO HAVING MADE AND USE THOSE BOMBS DURING WORLD WAR II WAS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY COULD NEVER BE USED AGAIN AND THAT YOU MIGHT NOT WANT TO MAKE EVEN LARGER BOMBS LIKE THE HYDROGEN BOMB, WHICH WAS A THOUSAND TIMES MORE POWERFUL THAN THE WEAPONS IN WORLD WAR II. AND SO ON THE ONE HAND, HE'S -- DOES SEEM LIKE HE GRAPPLES WITH THE ETHICS AND THE RESPONSIBILITY. ON THE OTHER HAND, HE DOESN'T SLOT INTO EASY CATEGORIES OF, YOU KNOW, PRO-NUCLEAR OR ANTI-NUCLEAR OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. HUGHES -- CHEESE -- HE'S A TRICKY FIGURE. HE TOOK REALLY SERIOUSLY ALL THE DIMENSIONS OF THE ENTIRE PROBLEM AND DIDN'T SEE IT AS A SIMPLE ONE TO BE SOLVED. WILLIAM: HE'S FAMOUSLY QUOTED
THIS LINE FROM HINDU SCRIPTURE WHERE HE SAID, NOW I AM BECOME DEATH, THE DESTROYER OF WORLDS. I MEAN, THAT UTTERANCE HAS BEEN ENDLESSLY INTERPRETED. WHAT IS YOUR SENSE OF WHAT HE WAS SAYING THERE? PROF. WELLERSTEIN: OPPENHEIMER'S RELATIONSHIP TO THE BHAGAVAD GITA IS PRETTY INTERESTING. I MEAN, THAT'S HIS OWN SORT OF IDIOSYNCRATIC TRANSLATION FROM A MAN WHO STUDIED SANSKRIT, PRINCIPALLY TO READ THE BHAGAVAD GITA. THE GITA IS A STORY ABOUT RESPONSIBILITY. IT'S A STORY ABOUT YOUR DUTY TO CAUSES BIGGER THAN YOU, AND TO THE IDEA THAT A SOLDIER IS NOT NECESSARILY THE ULTIMATE CAUSE OF THE DESTRUCTION THAT IS CAUSED BY WAR. AND I AM BECOME DEATH DESTROYER OF WORLDS. IT'S LESS PROBABLY OPPENHEIMER SAYING I AM DEATH. IT'S MORE OPPENHEIMER TAKING THE ROLE OF THE PRINCE IN THE STORY WHO HAS JUST BEEN SHOWN THIS DISPLAY BY THIS GOD, WHO THE GOD IS SAYING, I'M ULTIMATELY WHY PEOPLE DIE. YOU'RE JUST THE INSTRUMENT. AND SO THAT'S A VERY DIFFERENT SORT OF READ ON WHAT OPPENHEIMER IS GOING FOR THERE. IT'S LESS HE IS THE GOD, IT'S
MORE HE IS NOW BEING COMPELLED BY THIS NEW FORCE,TOMIC ENERGY, TO BE THIS INSTRUMENT OF DESTRUCTION, WHETHER HE WOULD LIKE TO OR NOT. WILLIAM: SO INTERESTING. SO FAST FORWARD TO THE 1950'S. THE COUNTRY IS WRACKED WITH THIS FEAR THAT THE SOVIETS ARE COMING AND THAT THE COMMUNISTS ARE INFILTRATING EVERYWHERE. AND HE'S ACCUSED OF BEING SYMPATHETIC OR IN CAHOOTS WITH THE COMMUNISTS. IS THERE ANY EVIDENCE THAT THAT WAS THE CASE? PROF. WELLERSTEIN: THE MAIN CHARGES AGAINST OPPENHEIMER WERE ABOUT HIS CHARACTER AND HIS SOCIATIONS, AND ASSOCIATIONS IS DO YOU HAVE FRIENDS OR FAMILY WHO ARE COMMUNISTS? THE ANSWER FOR OPPENHEIMER WAS YES. ALL OF HIS FRIENDS AND FAMILY AND STUDENTS WERE EITHER COMMUNISTS OR CLOSE TO COMMUNISTS OR ADJACENT. HE HIMSELF WAS PRETTY CLOSE TO COMMUNISM IN THE YOU HAVE TO PUT 1930'S. THIS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION, OF WHAT IT MEANT TO BE, SAY, PRO-CIVIL RIGHTS IN THE 1930S, THAT THE COMMUNISTS WERE THE ONES WHO WERE OFTEN LEADING THOSE CHARGES.
SO A LOT OF WHAT THEY WERE ADVOCATI FOR IS NOT NECESSARILY VIOLENT REVOLUTION OR STALINISM OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, BUT A LOT OF THINGS THAT WE WOULD ASSOCIATE WITH PROGRESSIVE CAUSES. BUT BY THE 1950S, THE POLITICAL WINDS HAD REALLY SHIFTED. AND IT WAS A PRETTY DAMNING ASSOCIATION TO HAVE YOUR BROTHER BE A MEMBER OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OR YOUR WIFE BEING A FORMER MEMBER OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY AND THINGS LIKE THAT. THE ACCUSATIONS OF HIS CHARACTER WERE THAT BASICALLY DURING WORLD WAR II, HE DID THINGS THAT WERE, IN RETROSPECT, PRETTY IRRESPONSIBLE, INCLUDING LYING TO SECURITY AGENTS, PROBABLY TO PROTECT HIS BROTHER. THINGS THAT DON'T LOOK GOOD IN RETROSPECT, BUT ARE UNDERSTANDABLE AND DON'T NECESSARILY MEAN THAT HE WAS A SPY OR DISLOYAL OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. AND SO I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO SEPARATE THE QUESTION OF, WAS OPPENHEIMER LOYAL, WAS HE TRUSTWORTHY, FROM THE QUESTION OF DID OPPENHEIMER ALWAYS HAVE THE RIGHT RESUME FOR SOMEBODY IN THE 1950S BASED ON THE FEARS
THAT THEY HAD AT THAT TIME? WILLIAM: SO THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY MAKES THIS SORT OF POSTHUMOUS REINSTATEMENT OF HIS SECURITY CLEARANCE. DID THAT SURPRISE YOU WHEN IT CAME OUT? PROF. WELLERSTEIN: OH, IT COMPLETELY SURPRISED ME. I KNEW THAT THEY HAD HAD THIS REQUESTED. I KNEW THAT VARIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS HAD THOUGHT ABOUT THIS. BUT IT WAS SURPRISING BECAUSE THE EASIEST THING FOR A BUREAUCRAT TO DO IS NOT DO ANYTHING RIGHT. THERE WAS NO GREAT PUBLIC OUTCRY OR DEMAND FOR THIS. THERE WERE WAYS YOU COULD IMAGINE THIS BEING SPUN BY ENEMIES OF THE CURRENT POLITICAL ADMINISTRATION. THERE'S NOT A LOT OF OBVIOUS NEED OR GAIN. IT SHOWS SORT OF A RIGHTING OF HISTORICAL WRONGS, WHICH UNFORTUNATELY IS NOT USUALLY A PRIORITY. SO YEAH, I WAS SURPRISED. IT'D BE MUCH EASIER FOR THEM TO DO NOTHING ON THIS THAN TO DO SOMETHING. AND THEM HAVING DONE THIS IS THEM STICKING THEIR NECK OUT A BIT. WILLIAM: ALL RIGHT, ALEX WILLERSTEIN, HISTORIAN AND THE -- AT THE STEVENS INSTITUTE OF
TECHNOLOGY. SO GOOD TO HAVE YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. PROF. WELLERSTEIN: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. SO GOOD TO BE HERE. JUDY: TV MIGHT BE THE MOST POPULAR AMERICAN PASTIME. ONE STUDY SHOWS THAT ON AVERAGE, 55% OF AMERICANS SPEND ONE TO FOUR HOURS EACH DAY WATCHING TV, AND 22% WATCH FOUR OR MORE HOURS EACH DAY. AND TO BE SURE, 2022 HAS BEEN AN INTRIGUING YEAR FOR SERIES AND SHOWS WITH A BUMPER CROP OF CHOICES. JEFFREY BROWN LOOKS AT THE YEAR IN TV FOR OUR ARTS AND CULTURE SERIES, CANVAS. JEFFREY: NO ONE CAN POSSIBLY WATCH EVERYTHING BROADCAST AND STREAMING THESE DAYS, BUT WE HAVE TWO CRITICS WHO DO THEIR BEST. THEY JOIN ME NOW. WELCOME BACK TO BOTH OF YOU. LORRAINE, GIVE US TWO OR THREE OF YOUR TOPICS OF THE YEAR. >> MY TOP PICK IS SEVERANCE.
IT IS A DYSTOPIAN WORKPLACE NIGHTMARE, PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER, ON APPLE TV PLUS. IT FOLLOWS THE FACILITIES OF THIS MYSTERIOUS PLACE CALLED LUMIN INDUSTRIES. >> I GIVE CONSENT TO SEVER MY MEMORIES. >> THESE EMPLOYEES CAN HAVE THEIR PERSONALITIES SEVERED. ONE HALF GOES TO WORK, THE OTHER HALF GOES HOME, AND THEY DON'T REMEMBER ONE ANOTHER. ALL SOR OF MYSTERIOUS THINGS HAPPEN. IT IS THRILLING BUT INCREDIBLY CREEPY AND WILL MAKE YOU FEEL GOOD ABOUT YOUR OWN WORKPLACE. THERE IS NOTHING THAT COULD BE THIS BAD. JEFFREY: EVERYBODY NEEDS THAT. >> I REALLY LOVE PACHINKO, A DRAMA, APPLE TV PLUS AGAIN, IT IS ABOUT A KOREAN FAMILY FOUR GENERATIONS, FOLLOWING THEM FROM THE JAPANESE OCCUPATION ALL THE WAY THROUGH TO THE EMIGRATION TO AMERICA. BEAUTIFULLY SHOT AND THE WOMEN PUSH THE STORY FORWARD.
I THINK THAT'S ONE OF THE BEST DRAMAS OF THE YEAR. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO BRING UP WEDNESDAY, A DARK COMEDY ON NETFLIX THAT FOLLOWS WEDNESDAY ADAMS OF THE ADDAMS FAMILY, PLAYED BY JENNA ORTEGA. THIS COMES FROM THE MIND OF TIM BURTON AND IT IS FANTASTIC, DARK , RCASTIC, CAPTURES TEEN ANGST ROUGH WEDNESDAY ADAMS AND IS THE TEEN COMEDY I WISH I D IN HIGH SCHOOL, FOR ALLS GIRLS WHO DIDN'T REALLY FIT IN BECAUSE WE WERE NOT WORKING ENOUGH. JEFFREY: ERIC, CAN YOU TOP THAT? >> I DON'T KNOW IF I CAN TOP THAT. I'M NOT GOING TO TRY TO TOP LORRAINE. I COSIGNED SEVERANCE. MY TOP IS BETTER CALL SAUL, THE AMC SERIES AND SPINOFF FROM BREAKING BAD FEATURING THE ORIGIN STORY OF SLEAZY LAWYER SAUL GOODMAN. THE PEOPLE WHO MADE BREAKING BAD PERFECTED THEIR STORYTELLING
TECHNIQUES ON BETTER CALL SAUL AND CREATED THIS STORY THAT TOLD US ABOUT THE MAKING OF THIS CHARACTER AND ALSO WHAT HAPPENED AFTER BREAKING BAD, WHEN THE COPS DESCENDED ON THIS METH MAKING OPERATION AND SL GOODMAN HAD TO GO INTO HIDING. VERY SUBTLE, VERY SOPHISTICATED, AND ALSO A WAY OF REWRITING SOME OF THE STORY OF THE OTHER BREAKING BAD CHARACTERS. I AM A STAR WARS AND STAR TREK NERD SO I WANT TO TALK ABOUT ANDOR, STARRING DIEGO LUNA AS A REBEL LEADER THAT WE ALSO SAW IN THE MOVIE ROGUE ONE. THIS IS SORT OF HIS ORIGIN STORY , HOW HE CAME TO BE PART OF A REBEL ALLIANCE THAT WOULD CHALLENGE THE EVIL EMPIRE FROM THE STAR WARS MOVIES, AND HOW THE ALLIANCE WAS FORMED. IT'S ABOUT THESE PEOPLE SEEING A FASCIST GOVERNMENT SLOWLY TAKE OVER A REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT AND HOW THE REBEL ALLIANCE FORMS TO RESIST IT.
THERE IS A LOT THAT CAN SPEAK TO TODAY'S TIMES. THIRD LINE WOULD BE ABBOTT ELEMENTARY, AN AMAZING COMEDY ON ABC ABOUT A YOUNG TEACHER IN PHILLY SCHOOLS. JOKES EVERY FIVE SECONDS AND THEY ARE ALL FUNNY. CHARACTERS ARE AMAZING. IT IS A SHOW THAT HAS THREE SUBSTANTIAL PARTS FOR WOMEN OF COLOR AND THEY ARE ALL DIFFERENT AND DYNAMIC AND ESSENTIAL TO THE STORY, WHICH IS SOMETHING YOU RARELY SEE IN NETWORK TELEVISION. JEFFREY: IS THERE ONE YOU FELT WAS OVERLOOKED AND YOU WANT TO TELL PEOPLE AT THE END OF THE YEAR TO LOOK AT THIS? >> I'M GLAD YOU ASKED BECAUSE I LOVE THESE ARE BIG QUEEN, A HISTORIC -- LOVE THE SERPENT QUEEN, A HISTORICAL DRAMA ON STARZ BAKHMUT IT -- STARZ. IT FOLLOWS CATHERINE DAVID E.G.. SHE IS A VILLAIN IN HISTORY.
SHE GETS TO TELL HER OWN STORY AND EXPLAIN HOW SHE BECOMES THE WOMAN SHE IS. SAMANTHA MORTON IS CAPTIVATING. IT IS A HISTORICAL DRAMA BUT HAS THIS OVERLAY THAT GRITTY, ROCK, AND PUNK ROCK, AND I LOVE IT. JEFFREY: I WANT TO END BY ASKING ABOUT PRESTIGE TELEVISION AND PANDEMIC VIEWING. THERE IS A LOT OF BIG QUESTIONS ABOUT WHERE WE ARE AT, THE VIABILITY OF CREATING NEW PROGRAMMING. IS THERE PLENTY MORE TO COME OR IS THE ERA OF PEAK TV OVER? >> I HAVE NOT SEEN THAT. I SEE PLENTY OF GREAT CONTENT OUT THERE. MORE THIS YEAR THAN THE YEAR BEFORE AND THE YEAR BEFORE THAT. I DON'T SEE A DROP IN QUALITY. I SEE MORE CREATIVITY. THERE IS SO MUCH, EACH PRODUCTION IS CHALLENGING THE OTHER TWO UP THE QUALITY. I DON'T THINK WE ARE AT A PLACE
WHERE WE HAVE USED UP THE CREATIVITY. I SEE MORE TO COME. >> WHAT I SEE IS THAT STREAMING, WHICH IS FUELING A LOT OF THIS, IS MOVING FROM INFANCY TO ADOLESCENCE. THE ERA OF HOUSE OF THE DRAGON OR RINGS OF POWER SERIES, WHERE THEY SPEND TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS ON EVERY EPISODE, THAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN LESS AND LESS. WE WILL SEE LESS CONTENT BECAUSE WALL STREET IS STARTING TO QUESTION WHETHER IT MAKES SENSE TO SPEND MONEY ON PLATFORMS THAT MAY NEVER MAKE MONEY. THERE IS A SENSE THERE ARE ONLY GOING TO BE TWO BIG PLATFORMS THAT EMERGE AS PROFITABLE WINNERS WHEN THE DUST SETTLES. THERE IS A FIGHT BETWEEN NETFLIX, DISNEY PLUS, AMAZON, HBO MAX WHO ARE GOING TO BE AMONG THE 23, OR FOUR WHO SURVIVED THIS. IF YOU ARE SMALLER, HOW DO YOU GET BIGGER SO YOU CAN BE ONE OF
THOSTHAT SURVIVE? WERE GOING TO SEE A LOT SHAKE OUT IN THE NEXT YEAR. CONSUMERS CAN'T KEEP UP WITH IT AND WALL STREET CAN'T JUSTIFY SPENDING THE MONEY ON ALL THOSE SHOWS. JEFFREY: THANK YOU BOTH AGAIN. JUDY: I AM TAKING NOTES, GOING TO GO WATCH ALL OF THOSE. THAT IS THE NEWSHOUR FOR TONIGHT. I'M JUDY WOODRUFF. JOIN US ONLINE AND AGAIN HERE TOMORROW EVENING. FOR ALL OF US AT THE PBS NEWSHOUR, THANK YOU, PLEASE STAY SAFE AND WE'LL SEE YOU SOON. >> MAJOR FUNDING FOR THE PBS NEWSHOUR HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY -- >> FOR 25 YEARS, CONSUMER CELLULAR'S GOAL HAS BEEN TO PROVIDE WIRELESS SERVICE THAT HELPS PEOPLE COMMUNICATE AND CONNECT. WE OFFER NO CONTRACT PLANS AND OUR U.S.-BASED TEAM CAN HELP FIND ONE THAT FITS YOU. VISIT CONSUMERCELLULAR.TV. >> THE LANDSCAPE HAS CHANGED AND NOT FOR THE LAST TIME. THE RULES OF BUSINESS ARE BEING
REINVENTED, WITH A MORE FLEXIBLE WORKFORCE, BY EMBRACING INNOVATION, BY LOOKING AT NOT ONLY CURRENT OPPORTUNITIES BUT AHEAD TO FUTURE ONES. RESILIENCE IS THE ABILITY TO PIVOT AGAIN AND AGAIN FOR WHATEVER HAPPE NEXT. >> PEOPLE THAT KNOW, KN BDOOW. >> THE KENDEDA FUND. COMMITTED TO ADVANCING RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AND IDEALS. SUPPORTED BY THE JOHN D. AND CATHERINE T. MACARTHUR FOUNDATION, COMMITTED TO BUILDING A MORE JUST, VERDANT, AND PEACEFUL WORLD. MORE INFORMATION AT MACFOUND.ORG. AND WITH THE ONGOING SUPPORT OF THESE INSTITUTIONS. THIS PROGRAM WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC
BROADCASTING AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU. THANK YOU. [CAPTIONING PERFORMED BY THE NATIONAL CAPTIONING INSTITUTE, WHICH IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ITS CAPTION CONTENT AND ACCURACY.] . >>> HELLO, AND WELCOME TO
"AMANPOUR & COMPANY." HERE'S WHAT'S COMING UP. >> WE COME FACE-TO-FACE WITH THE HORRIFIC REALITY OF, YOU KNOW, THE EVERYDAY TOLL OF GUN VIOLENCE. >> AT 17, HE SURVIVED A GUNSHOT WOUND TO THE THROAT AND BECAME A TRAUMA SURGEON IN ONE OF AMERICA'S MOST VIOLENT CITIES. MY CONVERSATION WITH DR. JOSEPH SAKRAN ABOUT AMERICA'S GUN EPIDEMIC AND THE EFFORT TO SP IT >>> THEN -- >> THIS SHOULD NOT BE A PARTISAN ISSUE. THERE IS NOT A DEMOCRATIC OR REPUBLICAN VALUE IN ONE SINGLE ACT OF THESE SHOOTERS. >> AFTER THE UVALDE SCHOOL SHOOTING, MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY ALSO PUSHED FOR STRICTER GUN LAWS. WE LOOK BACK AT CHRISTIANE'S INTERVIEW WITH THE OSCAR AWARD WINNING ACTOR ABOUT HIS STORIED CAREER AND BEST SNG
