NOW on the News | PBS
34 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 17 years ago - ★★★★★ - 1 ratingAudio interviews with PBS correspondent Maria Hinojosa that go behind the headlines to give new perspectives on current events.
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Episodes
Camilo Mejia on Atrocities in Iraq
July 27, 2007 23:00 - 10 minutes - 3.71 MBAfter serving almost nine months in a military prison for desertion, Camilo Mejia, a veteran of the Iraq conflict, talks about why he refused to return to the war in a web-exclusive interview.
Judy Shepard: Hate Crimes Law
July 12, 2007 23:00 - 8 minutes - 2.75 MBAhead of a much-anticipated vote in the Senate, Judy Shepard, whose homosexual son was beaten to death in 1998, talks to NOW about why she believes the government is "giving permission" for people to harass homosexuals. The Matthew Shepard Act, which would expand the coverage of federal hate crimes to include violent attacks against homosexuals, cleared the House in March. If the Senate approves the measure, President Bush is expected to veto the bill. In a web-exclusive audio interview, Shep...
Reggie Cervantes: Desperate for Health Care
June 28, 2007 23:00 - 9 minutes - 3.24 MBReggie Cervantes, a 9-11 volunteer emergency responder featured in Michael Moore's new film "Sicko" says she's desperate for health care. Cervantes, who traveled to Cuba for Moore's new film about health care in America, says she was forced to seek medical treatment in Havana because she could not afford it in the U.S. As criticism mounts that ground zero rescue workers were not sufficiently protected from toxic pollutants, Cervantes told NOW: "We're sick, we're dying, we're begging for help."
Robert Redford: Business Warming Up To Environment
June 15, 2007 23:00 - 8 minutes - 2.99 MBIn a Web-exclusive interview, actor, director, and environmentalist Robert Redford talks to NOW's David Brancaccio about why he thinks "change is in the air" as businesses find value in going green. Redford says environmental issues are gaining traction as social entrepreneurs discover "there [is] money to be made by doing good." An executive producer of the new documentary "The Unforeseen," Redford also talks to NOW about why he thinks global warming will be "huge" in the 2008 presidential e...
Robert Reich: Last Chance for Immigration Reform?
June 08, 2007 23:00 - 9 minutes - 3.18 MBIn a NOW on the News web-exclusive interview, a former secretary of labor, Robert Reich, calls the current Senate immigration bill "the last opportunity we have probably for the next ten or 15 years" to deal with immigration reform. Reich, who served under President Bill Clinton, told NOW's Senior Correspondent, Maria Hinojosa, that the divisive issue may be "too hot for politics."
Cindy Sheehan: "We'll Come Back Stronger"
June 01, 2007 17:00 - 10 minutes - 2.75 MBDays after leaving the anti-war movement Cindy Sheehan says she'll "come back stronger." Sheehan tells NOW that she plans to rest up, spend time with her family, and then continue her struggle against the Iraqi war. "We're going to pull back and regroup and figure out a better way to come at this," Sheehan told NOW on the News in a web-exclusive audio interview. Sheehan -- whose son, Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, died in Iraq in 2004 -- announced on Memorial Day that she was done being the public ...
Bill Drayton on Social Entrepreneurs
May 25, 2007 23:00 - 7 minutes - 2.75 MBBill Drayton, the innovator who popularized the term "social entrepreneur," talks to Senior Correspondent Maria Hinojosa about what he thinks social entrepreneurship is the next big thing. Drayton runs Ashoka, an organization that finds and fosters social entrepreneurs around the world. He is Bill Clinton's pick to become a winner of a Nobel prize.
Matthew Burden on Military Blogging
May 14, 2007 23:00 - 15 minutes - 5.49 MBMatthew Currier Burden, a military blogger and author of "The Blog of War," talks to Senior Correspondent Maria Hinojosa about new Army regulations for military bloggers and why he fears the rules will keep the truth from coming out of Iraq.
Chris Simcox on Undocumented Immigrants
May 04, 2007 23:00 - 21 minutes - 7.47 MBChris Simcox, founder and head of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, which considers its mission to be "assisting Border Patrol in better defending" the border with Mexico, talks to Senior Correspondent, Maria Hinojosa, about his views on illegal immigration.
Ellen Bravo on Women's Pay
April 27, 2007 23:00 - 14 minutes - 5.03 MBActivist and Writer Ellen Bravo, author of "Taking on the Big Boys," talks to Senior Correspondent Maria Hinojosa about why women make less money than men in the United States and what to do about it. Bravo shares her opinions on why corporations need to be redesigned "not just to shatter the glass ceiling" but to improve the lives of all working Americans.
Gore Vidal on the Virginia Tech Tragedy
April 20, 2007 23:00 - 21 minutes - 7.48 MBWriter, activist, cultural critic and iconoclast Gore Vidal talks to Senior Correspondent Maria Hinojosa about what the killings at Virginia Tech, and their aftermath, say about the state of America today. Vidal also shares his strong views on President Bush, a potential war with Iran, and 'the loss of the republic.'
Paul Rieckoff on V.A. Crisis
April 06, 2007 23:00 - 22 minutes - 8.72 MBThis week Paul Rieckoff, the Executive Director of IAVA, whose group represents tens of thousands of veterans, sheds light on the military's "personality disorder" diagnosis, which keeps injured soldiers from collecting benefits. Rieckoff also weighs in on what he calls unacceptable, dangerous behavior on the part of the V.A. Also, Senior Correspondent Maria Hinojosa speaks with Jon Town, a soldier who was wounded in Ramadi, Iraq in a rocket attack and received a purple heart from the militar...
Saad Eskander on Rebuilding Iraq
March 23, 2007 23:00 - 17 minutes - 6.09 MBSaad Eskander, the Director of the Iraqi National Library and Archives, discusses the painstaking struggles he faced rebuilding a looted and burned library after the U.S. invasion in 2003. Eskander, who returned to Iraq after the war started, talks about how a modern, fully-staffed library was able to emerge under his leadership, and the dangerous challenges that remain.
Bud Cummins on the U.S. Attorney Firings
March 16, 2007 23:00 - 28 minutes - 9.51 MBMaria Hinojosa speaks with Bud Cummins, a former U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, who was one of eight federal prosecutors fired by the Justice Department. Cummins, a Republican, shares his beliefs on the involvement of senior administration officials, why he thinks the Justice Department has severe credibility and morale problems, and his concerns for the future of the Patriot Act.
Todd Gitlin on the Libby Verdict
March 09, 2007 23:00 - 18 minutes - 6.29 MBThis week, Maria Hinojosa speaks with political writer and Columbia University Professor Todd Gitlin about the I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby trial and its wider historical perspective.
Greg Mortenson on Building Schools in Afghanistan
March 02, 2007 23:00 - 15 minutes - 3.06 MBThis week, Maria Hinojosa speaks with humanitarian Greg Mortenson about his efforts to educate children, particularly girls, in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Mortenson also shares his views on this week's arrest of a former Taliban defense minister.
Angela Davis on Race in America
February 23, 2007 23:00 - 12 minutes - 3.06 MBThis week, Maria Hinojosa speaks with longtime activist Angela Davis on Race in America, Presidential Candidate Sen. Barack Obama, and the growing movement against the war in Iraq. Davis, who was once on the FBI's 'most wanted' list, tells us why she thinks young people today need to take more risks.
David Kang on North Korea's Nuclear Program
February 16, 2007 23:00 - 9 minutes - 3.06 MBMaria Hinojosa speaks with David Kang, an expert on North Korea, about why the North Korean nuclear deal took so long, and how Pyongyang could still sell its arms to Al Qaeda.
Elizabeth Warren on Debt and the Middle Class
February 09, 2007 23:00 - 16 minutes - 5.67 MBMaria Hinojosa speaks with Elizabeth Warren, a leading expert on bankruptcy, debt and the middle class, about why so many American families are ending up in major financial trouble, and what should be done about it.
Jeannette Walls on Poverty and Homelessness
February 02, 2007 23:00 - 21 minutes - 7.42 MBJeannette Walls, author of the award winning memoir "The Glass Castle," talks to NOW about the need to help get homeless people off the streets and into housing and describes how the suffering she endured as a child helped her become a successful journalist. Walls believes the best way to help homeless people in America is to give them skills and education. "As far as I'm concerned the best public policies are the ones that help people help themselves," Walls tells NOW Senior Correspondent Ma...
Lt. Col. Isaiah Wilson III on More Troops in Iraq
January 19, 2007 23:00 - 12 minutes - 4.36 MBThis week, Maria Hinojosa talks with Lt. Col. Isaiah Wilson III, a former planner with the 101st Airborne in Iraq and a war historian, about his concerns over U.S. policies in Iraq. He questions President Bush's proposal to send over 20,000 more troops to fight on the frontlines, and has pondered some novel strategy options. Wilson was also the first military insider to publicly state that the U.S. government did not have a strategy to follow combat operations in Iraq.
Patty Casazza on 9/11 Commission Recommendations
January 12, 2007 23:00 - 20 minutes - 7.02 MBThis Week, Maria Hinojosa talks with "Jersey Girl" Patty Casazza about her reaction to Democrats' attempts to implement 9/11 Commission national security recommendations. The "Jersey Girls" are a group of women whose husbands died in the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Casazza is also a member of the steering committee keeping an eye on the 9/11 Commission's work. Casazza's husband John F. Casazza, a Cantor Fitzgerald employee, died at age 38. She has a teenage son.
Elvis Mitchell on the Top Films of 2006
December 22, 2006 23:00 - 17 minutes - 6.04 MBElvis Mitchell discusses his top holiday movie picks, the role of politics in film, the legacy of Robert Altman, and what to look forward to in 2007.
Sen. Jeff Bingaman on America's Energy Policy
December 08, 2006 23:00 - 6 minutes - 2.15 MBMaria Hinojosa talks to Sen. Jeff Bingaman about how he plans to tackle global warming, America's dependence on oil, and possible criminal activities surrounding collecting royalties from Big Oil companies, in his new job as head of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
Lila Azam Zanganeh on Engaging Iran
December 01, 2006 23:00 - 26 minutes - 9.08 MBMaria Hinojosa talks to journalist Lila Azam Zanganeh about President Ahmadinejad's letter to the American people, the need for dialogue between Tehran and Washington, and what Iranians really think of Americans.
Charles Rangel on What's Next for the U.S.
November 17, 2006 23:00 - 20 minutes - 7.69 MBMaria Hinojosa talks to Rep. Charles Rangel, the incoming chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, about the wrong way to wage a war, goals of the new Democratic Congress, and what he'd say to Vice President Cheney.
Matt Taibbi Decries Negative Campaigns
November 10, 2006 23:00 - 19 minutes - 7.69 MBJournalist Matt Taibbi: "The reason I didn't see this as that much of a victory was the tone that was brought to this election...I think the way that they [the media] cover politics in this country is bad and creepy."
Lynne Stewart on her Prison Sentence
October 20, 2006 23:00 - 20 minutes - 7.19 MBMaria Hinojosa talks to Lynne Stewart, the veteran civil rights lawyer, about why she broke the law for a jailed terrorist sheik and whether or not she would do it again.
George Packer on World Threats
October 13, 2006 23:00 - 20 minutes - 5.41 MBMaria Hinojosa talks to George Packer, journalist and author of "The Assassins' Gate" about his experiences in Iraq and his perspective on world affairs.
Rose Ann DeMoro on New Labor Ruling
October 06, 2006 23:00 - 15 minutes - 5.41 MBDavid Brancaccio speaks to Rose Ann DeMoro of the California Nurses Association about an important new labor ruling.
Noam Chomsky on U.S. Foreign Policy
September 29, 2006 23:00 - 17 minutes - 6.08 MBLeading American intellectual Professor Noam Chomsky talks about the newly disclosed intelligence report on Iraq, the Clinton-FOX debate and why America is its own worst enemy.
Mark Hanis on The Crisis in Darfur
September 22, 2006 23:00 - 19 minutes - 6.73 MBAt the United Nations annual summit this week the issue of Darfur was high on the agenda as African Union peacekeepers expanded their mandate in the war-ravaged region and President Bush named a special envoy to Sudan. But Mark Hanis, the 24-year-old head of Genocide Intervention Network, which seeks to help victims in Darfur -- where over 200,000 people have died and two million have been displaced in three years -- said heads of state are failing Darfur with empty rhetoric. "This has been g...
Maziar Bahari: The U.S. & Iran
September 15, 2006 23:00 - 25 minutes - 8.73 MBIranian journalist Maziar Bahari -- who is Newsweek magazine's Iranian correspondent -- said in a NOW on PBS exclusive podcast that Iranians were relieved at the small sign of hope that the nuclear standoff between his country and the West could be resolved. "People are just happy that there won't be a war, that the country will not be attacked ... like Iraq was invaded," Bahari told NOW's Maria Hinojosa in a web-exclusive audio interview from his home in Tehran. In his interview with NOW's M...
Mary Robinson: America Five Years After 9/11
September 08, 2006 23:00 - 20 minutes - 7.16 MBMaria Hinojosa interviews Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights from 1997-2002 for a look at how the world views America five years after September 11.