Jan 01 Watch Volatile Fuel Prices Shift Off-shore Drilling Debate The past year's volatile gas prices are impacting the ongoing debate on whether to drill for oil off the coasts of Virginia and California. Spencer Michels reports on how the price swings and new technology are affecting the controversy. Continue watching
Dec 26 Watch Economic Downturn Threatens California’s Health Care System Recent economic problems have created budget shortfalls in many states, but California is worse off than most. Faced with a massive deficit, state lawmakers might have to raise taxes or cut health care services. Betty Ann Bowser reports. Continue watching
Nov 13 Watch World’s Oceans Face Problem of Plastic Pollution Some researchers believe that more than 5 million square miles of the Pacific Ocean has become a soup of plastic confetti. Now, scientists are trying to quantify the problem and are studying how plastic affects fish, marine mammals and birds. Continue watching
Aug 22 Watch Something Old, Somthing New in California Weddings California's State Supreme Court decreed same-sex marriage legal in May and thousands of gay couples have headed to the altar this summer. Essayist Anne Taylor Flemming reflects on the old and the new in this wave of nuptials. Continue watching
Jul 04 Watch Calif. Locked in Water Wars as Drought Worsens As California faces one of the worst droughts in decades, Spencer Michels examines the growing struggle over water rights in the state. Continue watching
Jun 26 Watch California Community Hit Hard by Economy’s Fall Residents of a once-prosperous California community are feeling an economic pinch as home foreclosures, the credit crunch, low consumer confidence and high oil prices have hurt the U.S. economy. Continue watching
Jun 25 Watch Extended Interview: Mary Nichols, California Air Resources Board Spencer Michels talked to Mary Nichols, head of the California Air Resources Board, in April about the board's recent decision to cut the number of zero-emission vehicles the state will require car manufacturers to build. The board aims to encourage… Continue watching
Jun 18 Watch Calif. Gay Marriages Raise Legal Questions Nationwide The laws governing marriage nationwide are a complicated state-by-state patchwork, with little or no interstate recognition. The recent ruling in California legalizing same-sex marriage adds another layer of complexity to the legal landscape. Legal experts examine these questions. Continue watching
Jun 17 Watch Same-Sex Couples Begin Marrying in California Hundreds of gay and lesbian couples filled county clerk offices across California Tuesday and exchanged marriage vows on the state's first full day of legal same-sex nuptials. Spencer Michels reports on the day and the legal battles ahead. Continue watching
May 06 Little-known Drug Draws New Scientific, Legislative Attention By PBS News Hour Most of what the public knows about the hallucinogenic drug salvia divinorum comes in disturbing snippets from a growing collection of online videos. Continue reading