http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/ en Copyright 2009 Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:00:23 +0000 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who grew up in communist East Germany, joined Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and other world leaders at the renowned Brandenberg Gate in Berlin to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, a physical barrier between the democracies of the U.S. and Western Europe and the Soviet-dominated East. For over two decades, the city of Berlin was divided between East and West. Families and friends were split apart by the wall and, though many Easterners tried to escape to the West, many didn't make it. In this video, NewsHour correspondent Jeffrey Brown looks at where Germany stands today 20 years after the fall of the wall. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/germany_celebrates_the_fall_of.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/germany_celebrates_the_fall_of.html government history socialstudies world Berlin Wall Cold War Communism education Europe Germany government lesson plan newshour newshour extra newshour with jim lehrer Russia social studies Soviet Union teacher Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:00:23 +0000 The economy lost another 190,000 jobs last month sending unemployment to 10.2 percent -- the first double digits since 1983. But a new and growing trend may be even more important: a whopping one third of all workers, according to the General Accounting Office, are now freelance-- meaning that they are not formally working for a company and no longer have the safety net of unemployment insurance. Sara Horowitz is trying to protect this large group of workers in a freelancer's union, providing health, dental, disability and life insurance, a 401(k) retirement plan, and lobbying to make laws more freelancer-friendly. The union's organizing campaign has already signed up 175,000 members to create a "new deal" for the new insecurity of work. In this report, NewsHour Economics Correspondent Paul Solman talks to freelance organizers and workers about why they have made the choices they have, and how they plan to survive in the down turn. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/freelancers_struggle_in_changi.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/freelancers_struggle_in_changi.html economics socialstudies us benefits freelancers jobs unemployment unions work workers Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:36:23 +0000 Loud and often politically controversial TV and radio talk show hosts are dominating the ratings and influencing the way that Americans think and talk about politics. Show anchors like Glenn Beck, known for their over-the-top style and extreme political views, attract huge audiences. Ratings for programs with conservative anchors far exceed the numbers of liberal talk show hosts (although conservatives argue that news organizations such as CNN, MSNBC and the New York Times have a liberal slant). Talk show hosts such as Rush Limbaugh are often harshly critical of President Obama and his policies. This summer, Glenn Beck helped rally Obama opponents to attend last summer's rowdy health care town hall meetings. Limbaugh and Beck critics say that they provoke uncivil and possibly dangerous rhetoric while supporters argue that advocacy and free speech have always been a part of American media. In this video, NewsHour correspondent Jeffrey Brown examines the impact of television and radio talk show hosts and how they affect the way Americans think about politics. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/tv_radio_hosts_stir_up_controv.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/tv_radio_hosts_stir_up_controv.html government history socialstudies us arts classroom english Glenn Beck journalism Keith Olbermann language arts lesson plan media newshour newshour with jim lehrer radio Sean Hannity social studies teachers television Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:04:14 +0000 In this report from Learning Matters television, correspondent John Tulenko reports on the education programs in Rochester City public schools that have received federal stimulus dollars. During the last fiscal year, Rochester City Schools had a $50 million budget shortfall and was expecting to fire about 500 employees, which would have cut significant programs for the city. But the federal stimulus program signed by the president in February sent $100 billion to the nation's schools to be spent over two years. Rochester received $30 million, enough to restore jobs and continue the work of unique education programs that many students and parents rely on. Stimulus funds run out after two years, however, and districts will have to find the money to continue sponsoring school programs. In this video, John Tulenko talks to city officials, educators and the students directly affected by funding from the national stimulus program. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/stimulus_dollars_helping_schoo.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/stimulus_dollars_helping_schoo.html economics government socialstudies us Barack Obama classroom current events economics economy education government lesson plan newshour recession schools stimulus Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:49:07 +0000 One year since the onset of the financial crisis, some signs of recovery have already taken hold. But is this financial meltdown really any different from crises of the past? "No", say economists Kenneth Rogoff and Carmen Reinhardt in their new book, "This Time Is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly". Reinhardt and Rogoff combed through over eight centuries of global financial data and found cycles of boom and bust, of arrogance and ignorance in all continents over time. They identified inflow of foreign debt, deregulation of markets, and short term debt as key indicators of a crisis looming. Now you too can submit your own questions to Ken Rogoff and Carmen Reinhart "here":http://www.pbs.org/newshour/businessdesk/2009/11/ask-rogoff-and-reinhart-questi.html. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/800_years_of_financial_crises.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/800_years_of_financial_crises.html economics government history us world arrogance crisis economics financial crisis history meltdown world history Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:51:01 +0000 The Solix Biofuels Company out in the Colorado Desert is one of about 200 companies trying to find a way to make biofuels out of algae by extracting its natural oils. The company has found an investment partner in the nearby Southern Ute Indian Tribe, whose reservation sits on top of an enormous natural gas field, providing Solix with the land, carbon dioxide and water that their process needs. But according to Solix CEO Doug Henston, the success of the project will ultimately depend on how cheaply they can produce this alternative form of energy to compete with the price of traditional oil. In this video from the NewsHour's Science Unit, correspondent Tom Bearden reports on efforts by scientists to turn algae into clean fuel. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/turning_pond_scum_into_fuel.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/11/turning_pond_scum_into_fuel.html economics environment government science socialstudies us classroom climate change current events earth science environment lesson plan newshour NewsHour with Jim Lehrer science technology us Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:09:57 +0000 Dr. Kinari Webb runs an environmentally friendly health clinic on the Southeast Asian island of Borneo that offers patients living in extreme poverty access to affordable health care. Health in Harmony allows patients to pay for treatment in everything from baskets to seeds to manure. The clinic uses these payments to treat, not just patients, but the rapidly receding rainforest. Dr. Webb hopes that the clinic's green practices - like teaching villagers to farm organically - will help stop the deforestation that brings disease and famine to the villages of Borneo. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/borneo_clinic_helps_patients_a.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/borneo_clinic_helps_patients_a.html environment health science socialstudies world Asia Borneo classroom earth environment green health health care lesson plan newshour NewsHour with Jim Lehrer organic science social studies teachers Thu, 29 Oct 2009 18:16:22 +0000 The American labor movement has changed dramatically over the last few decades. Unionization has decreased form 35 percent of workers in 1949 to 12.5 percent today, and public support is shrinking. In this video, Richard Trumka, the new president of the largest group of unions, the AFL-CIO, says he hopes to change the image of the AFL-CIO as overwhelmingly old, male and white by attracting younger workers, more women and people of color. He also has to deal with divisions within the movement, such as the formation of the rival Service Employees International Union four years ago, and big hurdles in Congress, where unions are fighting for health care reform and major labor legislation that would make it easier for workers to form a union. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/labor_leader_richard_trumka.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/labor_leader_richard_trumka.html AFL-CIO business card check civics Congress current events economy history labor lobbying recession Richard Trumka social studies unions workers Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:00:10 +0000 In this video, Gwen Ifill talks to New York Times reporter David Rohde, who was kidnapped by the Taliban nearly a year ago while working on a book in Afghanistan. After setting out to meet with a local Taliban commander, Rohde, his driver and an Aghan journalist were captured and held prisoner in Afghanistan and in the tribal regions near Pakistan. Rohde eventually staged his own escape and told his story in a five-part series for the New York Times. He discusses, among other things, the relationship of the Taliban to the rural population of Afghanistan and United States operations in the region. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/journalist_kidnapped_by_taliba.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/journalist_kidnapped_by_taliba.html government history socialstudies us world Afghanistan classroom David Rohde lesson plan New York Times newshour Social studies Taliban teachers World Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:48:42 +0000 The leader of the extreme right-wing British National Party appeared on a popular political show, "Question Time,"on BBC Television last week prompting a heated national debate over the the free speech rights of extremists in Britain. British National Party leader Nick Griffin has made comments endorsing the deportation of two million non-white immigrants and denying the Holocaust. His party has had recent electoral success, winning two seats in the European parliament and one seat in the local London legislature. Though Anti-racism protesters demonstrated outside the studio the BBC irefused to cancel his appearance, arguing that the BBC was committed to "due impartiality." In this video, NewsHour correspondent Simon Marks reports on the controversy that swept Britain last week, looking at the national conversation about free speech in extremism and how it works in a country with no written First Amendment rights. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/politician_defends_extremist_v.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/politician_defends_extremist_v.html government history socialstudies world britain civics classroom current events education england extremism free speech government lesson plan newshour newshour with jim lehrer nick griffin social studies teacher united kingdom world Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:42:35 +0000 Author Sherman Alexie grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation; much of his work centers around the intersections of mainstream American and tribal culture. In this part of the NewsHour's series on poets and poetry, Alexie talks about his new book of poetry called "Faces" and his short story collection, "War Dances." He also reads several poems, including one about his dad, an alcoholic who died early. "I grew up in that space between my father's enormous potential and everything he did not accomplish. And I think that's what my poems and stories are all about, in some way, even when I'm writing about anything else," he explains. This video would be terrific for an English class, or culture lesson. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/native_american_poet_sherman_a.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/native_american_poet_sherman_a.html arts history socialstudies us arts classroom english jim lehrer language arts lesson plan newshour newshour extra poetry sherman alexie social studies teachers us Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:55:10 +0000 In this video, NewsHour Health Unit correspondent Betty Ann Bowser reports on concerns over the possible H1N1 flu vaccine shortage that is causing chaos at hospitals as flu season approaches. She visits a Maryland public health clinic where about 2,000 area residents have lines up to get vaccinated against H1N1, but the county had only 249 doses of injectable swine flu vaccine. Health officials say that pregnant women, very young children and people who are already sick are most at risk. They will be first to receive the vaccine. The Center for Disease Control says that while production of the vaccine is behind schedule, they expect widespread availability by mid-November. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/h1n1_vaccine_shortage.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/h1n1_vaccine_shortage.html government health science socialstudies us classroom current events education flu government H1N1 health lesson plan science social studies swine flu teachers Thu, 22 Oct 2009 16:47:48 +0000 The University of California at Berkeley is under pressure to fire tenured law school professor John Yoo, who wrote several memos as a lawyer for the Bush administraton saying that the U.S. could legally torture suspected terrorists for information. In the years after 9/11, the U.S. interrogated suspected terrorists at places like Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay, military prisons that have since become lightning rods for criticism of the Bush administration's torture policy. When Yoo worked at the Justice Department from 2001 to 2003, he wrote that controversial techniques like waterboarding and sleep deprivation were legal. Protesters and some students and faculty are calling for the university to fire the professor for work done outside the university while others argue that the principles of academic freedom dictate that professors should not be punished for their opinions. In this video, NewsHour correspondent Spencer Michels reports on Yoo's case and the larger question of whether the country should continue to investigate interrogation policies of the Bush administration. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/berkeley_professor_under_fire.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/berkeley_professor_under_fire.html government history socialstudies us world abu ghraib civics classroom ethics extra government guantanamo bay john yoo law lesson plan newshour newshour extra newshour with jim lehrer politics social studies teachers tenure torture university of california Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:09:46 +0000 To study the history of climate change, scientists from 14 nations gathered in the far north end of Greenland to drill into the 1.6-mile core of solid ice. The goal of the North Greenland Eemian ice drilling project, or NEEM, is to study the information locked inside layers of ice like atmospheric composition, temperature, mean ocean temperature and dust. Researchers are looking at the Eemian time period, about 130,000 years ago, when the earth was actually five degrees warmer than it is today. Its a representation of what a warmer earth might look like years from now. Climatologist and Climate Central correspondent Heidi Cullen looks at the way scientists are looking at the past to study the future of climate change. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/climate_scientists_dig_deep_in.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/climate_scientists_dig_deep_in.html environment history science socialstudies classroom climate change current events earth earth science environment global warming lesson plan science Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:24:09 +0000 Military units stationed at the Fort Carson army base in Colorado have had to cope with the particularly heavy loss of soldiers to their ranks from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq Since fighting began in 2002, 279 Fort Carson soldiers have been killed, most of them in Iraq. But as the war in Afghanistan becomes increasingly dangerous, troops from the Colorado base are being transferred there. In a high profile battle in Afghanistan earlier this month, eight soldiers from Fort Carson were killed in the remote Nuristan province. 3,500 more troops from Fort Carson will head to Afghanistan next summer. In this video, NewsHour correspondent Tom Bearden talks to military officials, base workers and family members at Fort Carson about how they are dealing with the trauma of loss from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/military_town_suffers_heavy_lo.html http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/video/blog/2009/10/military_town_suffers_heavy_lo.html government socialstudies us Afghanistan army civics classroom colorado current events government Iraq lesson plan military social studies soldiers us Mon, 19 Oct 2009 17:23:38 +0000