Friday, Oct. 1, 2004

Battle Lines
President Bush and Senator Kerry hit the campaign trail a day after coming face-to-face in the first presidential debate. Kwame Holman reports on the candidates' campaign day.

How It Played
A group of likely voters from North Miami, Florida watched Thursday night's presidential debate with Spencer Michels.

Debating Points
Jeffrey Brown talks about the debating styles and skills of President Bush and Senator Kerry with James Fallows, national correspondent for the Atlantic Monthly, and Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

World Views
Ray Suarez leads a discussion on how the presidential candidates advanced their ideas on Iraq last night with P.J. Crowley, Director of National Defense and Homeland Security at the Center for American Progress, and Kenneth Adelman, a member of the defense policy board that advises Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

Shields and Brooks
Margaret Warner speaks with syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks about the first presidential debate of 2004.

Thursday, Sept. 30, 2004

Struggle for Security
Two car bombs and a roadside bomb killed more than 40 people in Iraq on Thursday. Terence Smith gets an update on events in Baghdad with Karl Vick of The Washington Post.

Taking Hostages
Ray Suarez discusses the recent wave of kidnappings in Iraq with Bernard Haykel, Assistant Professor of Middle Eastern Studies at New York University, and Mark Levine, Assistant Professor of Middle East History at the University of California at Irvine.

Nixing Vioxx
Merck & Company pulled its arthritis drug, Vioxx, off the market Thursday after trials showed an increased risk for heart attacks and strokes. Susan Dentzer examines the impact of the drug recall.

Childhood Obesity
Jeffrey Brown speaks with Dr. Jeffrey Koplan, former Director of the Centers for Disease Control, about a new report on why more kids are overweight.

Presidential Debate Preview
Margaret Warner speaks with syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks about tonight's presidential debate between President Bush and Senator Kerry.

Drawing Fire
In the first of two special reports, Stephen Hess, Professor of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University, discusses political cartoonists' interpretation of the presidential campaign.

Wednesday, Sept. 29, 2004

The Debaters
Ray Suarez discusses President Bush's and Senator Kerry’s previous debating records with James Fallows, national correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly, and Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

The Coveted Keystone State
Pennsylvania has voted Democratic in the last three presidential elections but is now too close to call. Margaret Warner looks at the presidential campaign in the swing state.

Havoc in Haiti
Haitians are struggling to survive in the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Jeanne. Jeffrey Brown leads a discussion on relief efforts in Haiti with Peter Bell, president and CEO of Care International, and Jared Hoffman, regional director for Latin America and Caribbean Operations for Catholic Relief Services.

Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2004

Campaign Snapshots
President Bush and Senator John Kerry spent the day preparing for Thursday night's debate while their running mates did the campaign work. Kwame Holman reports on the presidential campaign.

Debating Lessons
Jim Lehrer spoke with former Presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton about presidential debates four years ago for a documentary the NewsHour produced for PBS. Tonight's encore features excerpts of what the presidents had to say about their experiences.

Then, Margaret Warner gets historical analysis of the impact presidential debates have had on past campaigns from Andy Kohut, president of The Pew Center for the People and the Press.

Afghanistan's Presidential Election
There were new questions today about the upcoming presidential election in Afghanistan. Organizers warned that Taliban remnants have threatened Afghan refugees in Pakistan to keep them from voting. And the group "Human Rights Watch" reported Afghan warlords are trying to hijack the election. Ray Suarez leads a discussion about the situation.

Shaken Giant
Jeffrey Brown takes a look at Fannie Mae, the financial giant of the American housing market that finds itself under fire. Stephen Schurr, U.S. Markets Editor of the Financial Times newspaper, joins him for a discussion.

Monday, Sept. 27, 2004

Campaign Day
With only five weeks left until Election Day, the presidential candidates hit the campaign trail again Monday. President Bush campaigned in Ohio and presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., held a town hall meeting in Wisconsin. Kwame Holman provides an update on the race.

Then, Gwen Ifill discusses the importance of the presidential debates, the first of which is Thursday, with Adam Nagourney of the New York Times.

Nuclear Challenge
Tensions continue to grow over Iran's nuclear development program. Ray Suarez discusses the country's nuclear project with Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi.

State of Siege
Florida is once again trying to recover from the latest hurricane, Jeanne, which battered the already overwhelmed state over the weekend. Jeffrey Brown discusses Jeanne's impact on Florida with Michael Brown, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and then gets a scientific perspective from Dr. Gerry Bell, lead scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Seasonal Atlantic Hurricane Outlook.

Essay: Acting White
Essayist Clarence Page talks about the ramifications of using the term "acting white" and about taking personal responsibility.

Friday, Sept. 24, 2004

Rebuilding Iraq
Even as daily attacks continue in Iraq, strong efforts are being made to rebuild the devastated country. Ray Suarez discusses the efforts being taken to rebuild Iraq with John Deblasio of Sally Port Global Holdings, which provides security consulting services and logistical support to the military and private contractors in Iraq, and Farshad Rastegar, chief executive officer of Relief International, a humanitarian agency that has been involved in efforts to rebuild schools in southern Iraq.

Campaign Day
The presidential candidates were on the campaign trail today. President Bush traveled to Wisconsin, and presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., spent the day in Pennsylvania. Kwame Holman wraps up the day on the stump.

Shields and Lowry
This week Jim Lehrer speaks with syndicated columnist Mark Shields and Richard Lowry of the National Review about the campaign and political ramifications of the middle class tax cut and ongoing struggle in Iraq.

Picking a Winner
In a less-than-scientific way to look at the election campaign, business correspondent Paul Solman of WGBH-Boston has fun with some unusual election forecasters.