About Sam @samkweber
Sam Weber has covered everything from living on minimum wage to consumer finance as a shooter/producer for PBS NewsHour Weekend. Prior joining NH Weekend, he previously worked for Need to Know on PBS and in public radio. He’s an avid cyclist and Chicago Bulls fan.
Sam’s Recent Stories
Nation Mar 27
Under Biden, will offshore wind finally drive major energy gains in the U.S.?For decades, scientists have seen vast potential for offshore wind energy. Despite this, offshore wind in the U.S. barely exists, as projects have faced local opposition and concern about how they would affect ocean habitats and fisheries. But with a…
Economy Mar 14
Extra space, flexibility, luck: For restaurants that survived the pandemic, it could take all threePre-pandemic, 10% of Connecticut's workforce was in restaurants. Since COVID-19 at least 600 of the state’s restaurants have closed and tens of thousands remain unemployed. For those still open, the road ahead is still uncertain. In our “Roads to Recovery”…
Arts Feb 14
A new sculpture in the ‘heart’ of New York City symbolizes hope, nods to this past yearIn the middle of New York City's Times Square, a new interactive sculpture was unveiled earlier this week as part of an annual Valentine's Day-themed design competition. But this year, in the middle of a pandemic, with so many communal,…
Arts Feb 07
Stephen Malkmus on his prolific career and making new music in a pandemicFor over 30 years, Stephen Malkmus has been celebrated and respected. His output—in bands and as a solo artist—has left a sizeable footprint in the independent music world, but as Newshour Weekend's Christopher Booker learned, the new world that we…
Economy Feb 06
Go big or go home: America’s multi-billion dollar sports betting businessSuper Bowl Sunday is the biggest sporting -- and betting -- event of the year. Despite the pandemic, bookkeepers are expecting wagers worth more than $4 billion this year. Since its expansion outside Nevada in 2018, the legal betting industry…
Nation Jan 30
How zoning can restrict, or even prevent, affordable housingIn this next installment of our series, “Roads to Recovery,” Christopher Booker reports on efforts to reform Connecticut's land use laws, and the complicated mix of history, politics, and racial dynamics that impact who gets to live where. Advocates say…
Nation Jan 17
Police on horseback, drones: PA Capitol grounds tighten securityAs states across the nation tighten security for possible demonstrations ahead of Joe Biden’s inauguration on Wednesday, downtown Harrisburg, which houses Pennsylvania’s State Capitol, is filled with police on horseback, guards and the press with businesses boarding up and locals…
Science Jan 09
In previously protected Alaskan refuge, auctions begin for drillingIn a live-streamed auction in Anchorage, Alaska on Wednesday, federal officials accepted bids for leases to explore oil and gas across 1.6 million acres of land—land that, until 2017, had been protected from fossil fuel development as part of the…
Nation Dec 26
In a CT county, tenants and landlords brace for eviction tsunamiThe first installment of our “Roads to Recovery” series focuses on renters and landlords in Fairfield County, Connecticut — and how, since the pandemic started, they’ve navigated a patchwork of eviction moratoriums and limited financial support. NewsHour Weekend’s Christopher Booker…
Nation Dec 26
Roads to Recovery: One community’s journey back from the economic brinkAs vaccines slowly start to roll out and 2020 finally comes to a close, there are glimmers that the COVID-19 pandemic may eventually end. But with lingering social, economic, and public health damage, PBS NewsHour Weekend is launching a series…