Transcripts For KQED PBS NewsHour 20240622

Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by and the william and flora hewlett foundation, helping people build immeasurably better lives. And with the ongoing support of these institutions this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. And by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Ifill nato ambassadors convened a rare emergency meeting today in brussels on the Islamic State threat in turkey, after a string of attacks. Representatives from 28 nations gathered at nato headquarters for the special session, at turkeys request. Afterward, the alliances secretarygeneral spoke to reporters. All allies stand in solidarity with turkey. We strongly condemn the terrorist attacks. We express our condolences to the turkish government and to the families of the victims in suruc and other attacks against police and military officers. Ifill at the same time, turkey faced more violence from kurdish militants. A turkish soldier was shot in the head near the border with iraq. In retaliation, turkish jets hit kurdish rebel sites in the southeast. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the Peace Process with kurds is on hold for now. translated i dont think its possible to continue a Peace Process with those who take aim at our National Security and brotherhood. There should have been National Unity and brotherhood. Brotherhood comes above the Peace Process. Ifill the Kurdistan Workers Party or p. K. K. Said the airstrikes against them rendered the Peace Process meaningless. But they stopped short of formally pulling out. The p. K. K. And its affiliates are part of the effort to fight isis in syria. Woodruff Obama Administration officials today made their second pitch to congress over the Iran Nuclear Deal this time before the House Foreign Affairs committee. There are conclusions that have been drawn that dont in fact match with the reality of what this deal sets forth. Woodruff secretary of state john kerry began his testimony well aware hed face challenging questions from lawmakers over the nuclear deal with iran. He was joined by Energy Secretary ernest moniz, and treasury secretary jack lew. Committee chairman ed royce claimed the deal, which lifts sanctions on iran in return for curbs on its nuclear program, would only strengthen tehran. If this agreement goes through, iran gets a cash bonanza, a boost to its international standing, and a lighted path toward Nuclear Weapons. Woodruff kerry as he has repeatedly equated walking away from the deal to giving iran a fasttrack to the bomb but he had a hard time making his points you know, we hear these complaints, we hear, well, this agreement doesnt do this. It doesnt stop their terror this agreements gonna give them some money, this agreements gonna do this. What this agreement is supposed to do is stop them from having a nuclear weapon. Now i want to hear somebody tell me how theyre going to do that without this agreement. Whats the next step for the United States . Nobodys answering that question. Woodruff at times, kerry was visibly frustrated as lawmakers peppered him with their doubts about the deal. Your time has expired. Ive suggested to the members ask the questions and leave time for response. Woodruff members from both parties also expressed concern over the fates of four americans in iran three held by the regime, one whereabouts unknown and over irans support for militant groups. They support hamas, hezbollah and houthi, and those are just the organizations that begin with the letter h. Woodruff congress began a 60day review period on the deal last week, and secretary kerry leaves later this week for the middle east to discuss the agreement with arab allies. The deal did pick up critical support today from democratic representative sander levin of michigan. Hes jewish and a strong supporter of israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called the agreement a historic mistake. Ifill in his last day on the continent, president obama pushed African Leaders to do their part to make africa more stable and economically attractive. During a speech during the African Union in ethiopia, the president called on his counterparts to support human rights, prioritize job creation and clean up corruption. Nothing will unlock africas economic potential more than ending the cancer of corruption. When someone has to pay a bribe just to start a business or go to school or get an official to do the job they are supposed to be doing anyway, thats not the african way. It undermines the dignity of the people you represent. Ifill the president also said, nobody should be president for life remarks aimed at African Leaders who have held onto power long after their terms expire. Woodruff the son of late libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi was sentenced to death by firing squad today in tripoli. Saif alislam gadhafi was convicted of war crimes committed during the 2011 uprising that forced his father out of office. Gadhafis son was not in the courtroom when the ruling was handed down. Hes been held for four years by a militia in western libya that has refused to hand him over. Ifill back in this country, an upstate new york prison worker pleaded guilty today to helping two killers escape. Joyce mitchell wept as she entered her plea today in plattsburgh. The former prison tailor admitted to smuggling hacksaw blades and other tools to the men inside frozen hamburger meat. Richard matt and david sweats daring prison break last month triggered a threeweek manhunt. Mitchell could face up to seven years in prison. Her sentencing is set for late september. Woodruff more than a thousand scientists and tech experts warned today of the danger of an Artificial Intelligence arms race. In a open letter, the signatories called for a ban on autonomous weapons that are beyond meaningful human control. Technology could make robots on battlefields a reality within years, not decades. Stephen hawking, Apple Co Founder Steve Wozniak and elon musk, the c. E. O. Of tesla motors, were among those who signed the letter. Ifill archeologists in jamestown, virginia have discovered the remains of four of the first colonial leaders in america. The burial sites were found in 2013 in the earthen floor near the altar of whats left of americas first protestant church. The men were buried between 1608 and 1610 alongside various artifacts a rare practice at the time. It included a small silver box with bone fragments and a holy water container a mysterious catholic find for the anglican religion of the colony. Woodruff the National Football league officially has its first female coach. The Arizona Cardinals hired 37 yearold jen welter to coach inside linebackers during their preseason training camp. Welter who has a p. H. D in psychology previously coached and played for the indoor football leagues Texas Revolution team. Ifill the fourgame suspension against new England Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady will stand. He was suspended by the league for his role in using underinflated footballs during last seasons a. F. C. Championship game. Brady and the team have denied the charges. N. F. L. Commissioner Roger Goodell also said today that brady had his cell phone destroyed on the day he was due to meet with an independent investigator in the deflategate scandal. Woodruff a wave of strong corporate earnings reports coupled with a rise in the price of oil boosted stocks on wall street today. The Dow Jones Industrial average gained more than 189 points to close at 17,630. The nasdaq rose 49 points and the s p 500 added 25. Ifill still to come on the newshour parole for Jonathan Pollard after 30 years in jail for spying for israel, the boy scouts of america lift a ban on gay scout leaders, but allows religious exemptions, the city of boston terminates its bid for the 2024 olympics, why playing host doesnt always pay off and much more. Woodruff lawyers for convicted spy Jonathan Pollard announced today that the u. S. Government will be granting the 60yearold parole. The former Naval Intelligence analyst was convicted of selling classified information to israel, and has been in prison for nearly 30 years. Israeli leaders have been asking for pollards release for decades. Reporter Devlin Barret has been covering the story for the wall street journal and joins me now. Welcome back to the program. Hi, thanks. Woodruff remind us who Jonathan Pollard is and why he was sent to prison life. He was sentenced to life after, in 1985, he was arrested and charged with passing suitcases of classified documents from his work at the navy to the israelis, and it was an amazing case in a lot of ways because, you know, the u. S. Is very close to israel and traditionally speaking, the u. S. Feels nations that are this close dont spy on each other this aggressively. When he was sentenced in the navy h he received a life sentence and set off decade of disagreement and pressure from israel to release him before he died. Woodruff he pleaded guilty. Right. Woodruff what was the argument by israel that he should be able to leave . He was spawned for an ally. He didnt actually harm u. S. National security the same way a spy for the soviet union would because those secrets were taken by a friendly nation. I think one of the quirks of the pollard case is, in a lot of spy cases, we swap them for our own agents that we want back. For pollard, unluckily, i guess, there was no one ever to swap for him, so thats part of the reason hes remained in prison all this time. Woodruff how much is known about what was in the material that he took and gave to israel . The defense secretary at the time, casper weinberger, said he could not imagine a case that did more harm to National Security. I think there is some debate within the Intelligence Community about that because certainly spice like Aldridge Ames are credited with giving up information that directly led to deaths of agents and got people killed. That be a debate around pollard that the government has never specifically made that accusation against him. Woodruff today the u. S. Parole board is saying there is no connection between this decision to let him out in november and whats going on with iran. The israelis, obviously, very upset with the u. S. s deal on Nuclear Weapons with iran. You talked to u. S. Officials who give you different i spoke to multiple u. S. Officials who believe there is some connection, that thats not the sole reason, but part of the thinking behind releasing him now. I will say that Obama Administration officials adamantly deny that as being in any way related to a Foreign Policy consideration. Whats sort of funny about that is if that were true, that would be the first time in this mans life maybe in 30 years, that he wasnt part of a Foreign Policy discussion. Hes basically been a human bargaining chip for the last 20 years. Woodruff is this supposed to have a sol dare effect on u. S. Israeli relations . I think it could, but i think anyone who thinks this significantly affect the way israel views the iran deal is mistaken, that it may create some good will just in the general israeli population maybe among israeli leaders, but, in the end iran is bigger than pollard. As important as pollard may be to israel, the iran deal is simply bigger than pollard. Woodruff what happens to Jonathan Pollard once he gets out of prison . Me very much wants to go toirlz. Israel granted him citizenship in 1995. The u. S. Government has to decide whether to let him do that. His lawyers said, if he cant leave the country, which is sometimes a condition of parole, he will move to the new york area. Woodruff but that has to be worked out. Thats still to be worked out. His official release date is november, so theres a little time to work that out, still. Woodruff all right, Devlin Barrett with the wall street journal, we thank you. Thank you. Ifill after years of debate the boy scouts of america voted last night to end a ban on adult leaders who are openly gay. The policy still would allow churchsponsored scout units to maintain an exclusion for religious reasons. The scouts decided two years ago to allow openly gay youth. Several religious organizations are either apprehensive or oppose the new policy, including the church of jesus christ latter day saints, which sponsors more scout troops than any other denomination. Mormon leaders said in a statement they will reexamine their ties to the boy scouts. We invited several religious organizations to appear tonight, but they declined. Zach wahls is the executive director for scouts for equality. Thank you for joining us. Welcome. So how big a deal is this . Weve seen this coming bit by bit for a time. This is an historic step by the boy scouts of america. They first implemented this policy in 1978, 37 years ago and for them to go from that policy which they adopted in the 70s to voting last night to end the ban even though there is a religious exemption as you mentioned, still a pretty big chapter for the boy scouts to move on to. Ifill how did it happen . We heard robert gates used to be secretary of defense now head of the boy scouts said maintaining the old policy was no longer sustainable. What does that mean sustainable . I think in this context gates was referring to the fact the boy scouts policy was under essentially assault from legal challenges being pace placed in new york and chicago. But also this is the kind of event that will create stories that will illustrate the damage the ban was creating. For example, in april of 2012, Jennifer Terrell from bridge bridgeport, ohio, was banned from her sons boy scout troop. We heard earlier in new york a gentleman had been hired to work in their summer camp and up until this point the boy scouts refused to hire gay adults. Ifill what kind of impact will this have on the culture of scouting . Its hard to say with specificity because we dont have allowable polling data. But since james gale was removed in 1990 from the boy scouts, the boy scouts have seen a precipitous decline in membership since 1990. Ifill in coming to this agreement, the boy scouts agreed to allow for exemptions for religious organizations. Do you find that acceptable . Our position is discrimination at any level sends a harmful message to youth, gay or straight alike, and discrimination has no place in scouting. Its important to recognize this is a big change for the boy scouts and makes sense to find a compromise with their religious partners. Ifill so the churches, mormons as we described earlier, they decided to pull out of boy scouting entirely. Doesnt that undermine scouting as well is this. We hope the mormons dont leave. We believe scouting is stronger when it is more deverse fide in its members. We think the mormons baptists, catholics should stay. It should be open to everyone who is willing to live by the scout law. Ifill so the hope is conversations will agree between you and the people who believe as you and the Church Organizations . Yes. Ifill have there been discussions . Weve heard from the yiewn tarrian association which says they will be trying to reestablish relationship with the boy scouts. Were also reaching out to other organizations including the union for informed judaism. We hope the church of christ will increase its commitment to the boy scouts. Were excited about building a stronger more inclusive boy scouts moving forward. Ifill what do you say to people, whether a scout member or leader, that sexuality shouldnt be an issue in these cases. I agree sexuality shouldnt be an issue. I have two moms, jackie and terri, i dont know if theyre watching at home but they were a small part of my scout experience when we were growing up because we lived in a progressive community, but in bridgeport, ohio where Jennifer Terrell is from, it was an issue. No scout should be denied entrance because their parents are gay. Ifill zach wahls executive director of scouts for equality, thank you for joining us. Thanks, gwen. Woodruff hosting the Olympic Games has become a kind of olympian feat in itself. Many cities have struggled with it, while others have said the outcome is well worth it. But bostons ambivalence about hosting the summer games and the decision it announced yesterday is casting a fresh spotlight on these questions. This is a commitment that i cannot make without assurances that boston and its residents will be protected. Woodruff with that announcement yesterday, bostons bid to host the 2024 summer olympics came to an end. Mayor marty walsh i refuse to mortgage the future of the city away. I refuse to put boston on the hook for overruns. And i refuse to commit to signing a guarantee that uses tax payers dollars to pay for the olympics. Woodruff the move follows a monthslong, multimillion Dollar Campaign that preceded even januarys selection of boston by the u. S. Olympic committee as americas candidate city. High profile athletes with boston ties made pitches, and planners envisioned venues spread across metro boston and the state of massachusetts. But the bid soured soon after boston was picked. As bostonians learned of the cost details, their support plummeted. In a statement yesterday the u. S. Olympic committees c. E. O. , scott blackmun, said the u. S. O. C u. S. Olympic officials now have until september 15th to name a replacement candidate city. One possibility is los angeles which hosted the games in 1932 and 1984, and has already expressed interest. The u. S. Hasnt hosted a summer olympics since atlanta in 1996 or any olympics since the 2002 Salt Lake City winter games. Bostons doubts and decision underline the great costs borne by olympic host cities. Rio de janiero which will hold next years summer games is spending about 12 billion on the event. And russia spent upwards of 50 billion to organize the 2014 winter games in sochi. The question that many are asking in the wake of boston is whether it ultimately is worth hosting a games. There are various ways of measuring that and we get two different takes George Hirthler has been a Communications Strategist for ten olympic campaigns, including atlantas successful 1996 bid and vancouver in 2010. And Andrew Zimbalist, a professor of economics at Smith College and author of the book circus maximus the economic gamble behind hosting the olympics and the world cup. And we welcome both of you. So lets talk about boston first. Andrew zimbalist, to you, what would you add to what was just reported about what went wrong in boston . Why were they chosen and then what fell apart . I think from the very beginning when boston was selected back in january and by the way, it was said boston was selected because it was the most walkable of the four competitors. Ever since the announcement was made that boston was selected the boston 24 committee came out with a lot of incomplete, deceiving and misdirectionoriented information and, over the last several months every couple of weeks, some new piece of information has been released that i think has lessened the trust of bostians and sit sens of massachusetts, who, after all, just a few years ago, went through the big dig construction in boston which was supposed to cause 2 billion and ended up costing over 20 billion. Woodruff George Hirthler, anything to add to that about what went wrong in boston . What went wrong, judy, was the public narrative pretty mitch controlled by professor zimbalist and his coheart cohort of colleagues. They kept the public focused on the Financial Risks of the games so the public never had a chance to consider what it would be like to have athletes from 200 countries around the world living in an Olympic Village in their midst. The games would have been extremely walkable for 90 of the fans coming into the boston. But because the economic argument kept going, a lot of fear was introduced and bids dont usually get their economic numbers well worked out until well into the International Phase which doesnt start till september. Boston was at a great disadvantage. It had gone through a domestic phase, then just looking at preliminary numbers. Professor zimbalist and dempsey and others attacked the numbers and kept the public focused on risk and fear. So the people havent had a chance to look at the overall benefits and aspects that might have been delivered in the game. Woodruff i want to move on to the larger the question we raised burks professor system zimbalist, let me give you an opportunity to respond. I want to thank george for making me out to be so powerful. I dont think we had nearly that impact, but look heres the reality, every single olympic game since 1960 that we have Financial Data for has had a cost overrun. The average cost overrun of the summer olympics since 1980 has been 3. 5 times which means if you compare the initial bid numbers to the final numbers you have to multiply them by 3. 5. They talk about the last three Olympic Games in the United States were in sur plays, in profit, they say. In fact, there are three buckets of money that gets spent hosting the olympics. The first bucket is the operations budget of the 17 days of the games. Then there is the venue budget then an infrastructure bucket. The last three games had a sur plurks but not an overall surplus and doesnt mean a lot of public money is going into the games. Woodruff do you want to respond george . Then well move on to tbirg question. The obvious example i can talk about are the economics of atlanta, a little bit anecdotally. Since the flame went out in atlanta, judy and by the way, the venues were built out of marketing rev revenues in atlanta. There wasnt a separate bucket for the development as professor zimbalist said. We built eight competition venues for 520 million out of the marketing revenues for the atlanta games and still ended up with a profit. Since the flame went out in atlanta, judy, there have been 3. 2 million of investments around Centennial Olympic Park that served as a catalyst of the economic redevelopment of downtown atlanta. Last year we hopped the center of hill and human rights next to coke, the georgia aquarium, geeks to hotels and condos and businesses all of which came to atlanta because to have the Olympic Games. Professor zimbalist might add that the games dont help raise the image of the city internationally. Today atlanta has 18 fortune 500s headquartered here up from 12 before the games, primarily because of the image enhancement we got out of the Olympic Games. This reminds me or the story woodruff i want to brond this out, and ask you is your argument that theres a better model for deciding where the games go or that the u. S. Shouldnt be bidding for them, period . I think its a very difficult proposition to come out economically neutral when you host these games very difficult. Los angeles obviously did it in 1984 under very special circumstances. I think barcelona achieved some positive economic results from hosting in 1992. Also because of some very special circumstances. I wouldnt say you should never bid. I think its possible that a los angeles bid might make sense. They have most to have the venue infrastructure and the transportation infrastructure already in place, so the amount of investment they would have to make would be quite small. Thats something we have to see when the plans develop and whether or not mayor garcetti is willing to sign the guarantee to the i. O. C. That they will cover cost overruns or revenue shortfalls. Woodruff george, is there a better model . Clearly, some cities have struggled with the cost that is required to put these games on, and there are real questions. There were questions in boston. There are new models judy, and boston would have invented a new model, im sure, in line with the agenda 2020 reforms that the International Olympic committee has recently begun to implement. But forethat forget that, there is a better story, the story of the Olympic Movement and its value to our world and you never hear about it in the economic, financial risk stories of the opponents of the games. Right now, the Olympic Movement is at work in 200 countries around the world, 365 days a year, instill the values of excellence friendship and respect, respect for opponents, other cultures differences, and in millions of Young Children around the world. In our world, we need a positive force at work around the world. The Olympic Movement invests a billion dollars every year in development of sport around the world and that money flows directly from the sponsorships and broadcast rights sold for the cities that are hosting the games. So money from the host cities in order to develop sport globally. I would like to know what the value of development of sport, giving kids to choose sport, whats the Economic Development of that . Woodruff let me turn in the little time we have, Andrew Zimbalist, what about this bigger bin benefit you hear mr. Hirthler describing. What doesnt that outweigh some of the financial questions youre focused on . Look, the Olympic Movement is a good thing. Olympic values is a good thing. Nobody is contesting that. Is issue were talking about is whether or not it makes economic sense for cities to host the loirchg games, whether or not those the Olympic Games, whether or not it pays off to do that. All of the academic literature all of the serious unpaid for literature, finds its not a good investment for cities to make. Thats the argument im representing here. All right, were going to have to leave it there. We thank you both for joining us Andrew Zimbalist and George Hirthler. Thank you. Woodruff stay with us. Coming up on the newshour slavery, theft and lawlessness in International Waters and, oh the things you can read how a once lost dr. Seuss book got published. Ifill this month marked the 70th anniversary of the first test of a nuclear bomb. It was a milestone for science and credited with leading to the end of world war two. But one group isnt celebrating. They call themselves the downwinders because they lived downwind of the blast site. Special correspondent Kathleen Mccleery reports from South Central new mexico. Reporter the solemn reading of names at a candlelight vigil. This one with traditional new mexican luminarias is in a baseball field in the village of tularosa. These are victims of a different kind of loss. Theres just just too much cancer here. So many tears. Reporter Gloria Herrera knows about cancer from her friends, her neighbors and her husband, henry, whos had three different kinds. The herraras blame the disease on a day etched in henrys memory. He was 11 years old. Kaboom, that thing exploded and i mean it was a big explosion. It wasnt like these regular ones wed be hearing. Reporter in july 1945, scientists worked in secret on the worlds first atomic bomb in a part of new mexicos desert called Jornada Del Muerto or journey of death. They hoisted a 19 kiloton device called the gadget on top of a 100 foot tower. At 5 29 in the morning on july 16th, a tremendous flash came first, and then a Mushroom Cloud stretched seven miles high. It was the same size and power as the plutonium bomb that would be dropped 24 days later on the japanese city of nagasaki killing tens of thousands. July is the rainy season in new mexico. Hours after the blast, the skies opened up. No one told residents to evacuate, even as radioactive ash poured down on livestock, crops, water cisterns and laundry hanging on lines. It was just black, black real, real fine dust, cause momma had just hung up her clothes, white sheets and pillowcases and the white clothes she washed first. And it was on the roof. We got it into the the cistern. It was on our food. It was on our chickens, our cows, our rabbits. Reporter a 2010 report from the centers for Disease Control examined radioactive fallout from several nuclear tests. For trinity, the study found some radiation levels were almost 10,000 times what is currently allowed in public areas. People here believe the radiation caused a spike in numerous cancers among those who lived downwind of the site. There isnt a family in tularosa. Ill bet you ten dollars to a doughnut, that dont have somebody in their family with cancer, maybe one two maybe the whole family you know. We were the first people that the atomic bomb was used on. We were the first downwinders. The government came into our backyard and used us as guinea pigs, they experimented with us. And they left. Reporter the hinkle family was one of the hardest hit. Edna kay hinkle is a breast and skin cancer survivor. Her grandparents had a ranch 27 miles away from the blast site. My dad and his uncle were out there, sleeping on the front porch and the a bomb went off and woke them up. And they saw the mushroom. Every one of my grandparents kids were affected. Why were there 14 in that one family, you know, and then you add grannys siblings, well theres 20 in one family. Thats a lot of cancer. My brother died of cancer. My oldest son from my first marriage had a brain tumor. It was a very rare tumor. Reporter ray cordova is the mayor of tularosa, which sits around 40 miles from ground zero, population about 3,000. He says the numbers affected by cancer are climbing. Most americans have family and friends who have battled cancer. One in two men and one in three women will contract the disease during their lifetimes. But are cancer rates higher here in the towns and villages near the trinity test site . If you like the analogy of war on cancer, we are the people who are drawing the map for that war. Reporter Chuck Wiggins heads the new mexico tumor registry and his data does not show higher cancer rates in the area around the test site. When you compare anglos in the trinity site area to anglos in other parts of new mexico the rates are really quite similar. Same with hispanics and natives the rates really are are quite similar to other parts in the state. Reporter wiggins says there is a link between radiation and certain cancers. But exposure can occur in many ways, for example xrays and other diagnostic tests, flying in airplanes, tanning or smoking cigarettes. Cancer is the leading cause one of the leading causes of illness and death in new mexico. What i would say is that thats true in tularosa, its also true in Santa Fe County and many other counties throughout the state. Reporter but that argument doesnt fly in tularosa. I do not believe that. Not for one minute. Reporter tina cordova the mayors niece and a Thyroid Cancer survivor has organized the tularosa basin downwinders consortium. Theyve collected Health Surveys from hundreds of people and compiled names of the dead. Gloria herrera is one of the listmakers. What if i give you a list of 285 people that we know, weve attended their funerals, weve seen them, weve gone to take food to the families. 285 people that we know of, and theres probably more. Our goal has always been basically two things number one to get the government to acknowledge and apologize to the people in all of these small communities, in and around trinity, and the number two to include us in the radiation exposure compensation act. Reporter that act passed by congress in 1990 apologized and awarded 50,000 to 100,000 to miners and participants exposed to radiation in nearly 200 Nuclear Weapons tests. But downwinders were only compensated in three states nevada, utah and arizona. They forgot about new mexico. They didnt do nothing about us. They forgot all about new mexico. Nothing. Zilch. Reporter it will now take a congressional amendment to change that. Something senator tom udall has worked on since he was elected to congress in 1998. This year, on the anniversary of the trinity test, he again urged his colleagues to make amends to the people of his state. They deserve justice. They deserve compensation. And they are still waiting. 70 years later. Still waiting. Reporter people in tularosa arent counting on getting a check from the government any time soon. Theres not enough money in this whole wide world to compensate the people in tularosa, we could fill a lake with the tears and the prayers. Reporter at the White Sands Missile range, an obelisk marks the spot where the bomb stood. The ranch house where it was assembled is two miles away. Tiny pieces of green glass litter the ground, melted sand thats still slightly radioactive. The National Cancer institute is embarking on an assessment of what people ate and how they lived in an effort to determine how much radiation they got. But those results arent expected until at least 2017. In tularosa, theres skepticism about a government study. The Cancer Institute is coming to question us . 70 years later . What happened ten years afterwards . 20 . Think about how many people weve lost this year. Im not certain we need more studies. In my mind, what we need to put money into is compensation. Is healthcare. Is screening, is helping people who need help. Reporter im Kathleen Mccleery for the pbs newshour in tularosa, new mexico. Ifill the trinity site is open to the public only twice a year, but you can take a tour with us in a slideshow of images on our web site. Thats at pbs. Org newshour. And, later tonight on pbs a new film takes an indepth look at the race to produce the first atomic bomb, the ethics of using a weapon that could end human civilization, and the lives of those who built it. The bomb airs tonight on most pbs stations. Woodruff now a look at some Uncharted Waters and the dangers faced by those out at sea. William brangham reports. A warning the story contains some graphic images. Reporter its easy to overlook just how dependent our lives and the entire Global Economy have become on shipping and the seas. Today, several million ships carry roughly 90 of the worlds goods. But a New York Times series shows how little we know about the lawless seas. Migrants, stowaways and fishermen disappear often killed in accidents, or worse theres evidence of murders taking place offshore. And tens of thousands of workers are essentially enslaved each year. All the while, International Maritime law seems wholly inadequate and few authorities ever step in. Ian urbina reported this series and he joins me now. In the first part of your series you talk about a particular ship, the dona laberta, and you document a whole manner of crimes, treatment of crew, stowaways overboard, dumping oily residue into the water, you can name the owner of the ship, but nothing is done, why is that . Number one a lot of these companies are p. O. Boxes and shells of shells of shells and that was the case here. So just pinning down the owing company was tough. Secondly you have a boat that has ten different nationalities in terms of the crew, the captain from another nation, the company, a third nation, its flagged to a fourth nation and passing through intl waters figuring out who would prosecute or investigate a crime is tough. And the last part is no one wanting to investigate these matters, when crimes occur, its usually against crew, the environment, the crew are from poor countries and those countries dont have the wherewithal to prosecute. Reporter is there a governing body, an organization that is supposed to have jurisdiction over these matters . The flag that ship flies that ultimately the country that should take responsibility, but those flags are businesses and they dont have enforcement wings, they dont have police they dont have investigators and they dont have much incentive really to investigate their clients. There are overarching bodies like at the u. N. And the International Maritime agency but again its not an Enforcement Agency so complaints have been filed, but they usually sit there on record. Reporter you document in your series some, the conditions for fishing boat workers, and video . The way you describe it is many of these workers are in essence slaves, who are these men and how did they end up in the circumstances that theyre in . Thats a story we focused on in the South China Sea where this problem is most acute, most of the vessels we looked at were thai flagged trawlers, fishing vessels, they are smaller boats, and the crews come from predominantly laos, cambodia and there are many burmese. And they are trafficked into the country over the border illegally often under the pretense they will get a job in construction or some land based job. Next thing they know they are at the port and they are shuttled onto a ship and the traffickers essentially sell them to the boat captain, and they are indentured on the boat and working till their debt is cleared, but once you get out to sea, its not a realm of bookkeeping, exact account. Reporter you cant just get off. Right, so they stay there. Reporter you document a horrible incident that happened i believe in the indian ocean, this very graphic cell phone video of men being shot in the water, this is pretty clear evidence of a graphic, horrible crime, how come no one is held to account for this . How do you explain that . Its pretty amazing, this cell phone video that was found. It shows a clear case of murder. There are four men floating in the water, and over ten minutes they are shot, at the end of the video and the most striking part, those involved in the shooting are taking selfies. Reporter theyve just shot men to death, in the water, and here they are taking selfies of themselves. And the video ends up on the internet, so the question is how is it possible with this much evidence, there were four large tuna, longline vessels in the area, so that means there were dozens of witnesses, with the video on the internet with the culprits. It gets to the heart of the issue that you raised before there is no Interested Party that has the wherewithal to prosecute or investigate, and at the end of the day the seas are this sprawling space, and so pinning down when and where things occurs out there when there are so few other people that werent party to the crime is difficult reporter the environmental crimes you document are also quite stark. You write what is being done to combat those types of crimes . Not a whole lot because while there are rules on the books, rules are only as good as their enforcement. And thats where the high seas become especially difficult, because its super costly to put boats on the water, its such a huge area to patrol and no nation has the jurisdiction to do that on the high seas because it belongs to everyone and no one, so there are strong rules on the books forbidding that kind of behavior, but there is no one there to stop it. Reporter ian urbina of the New York Times, thank you very much. Thank you. Ifill finally, dr. Seusss popular empire is about to grow once again. A newly published book of his immediately shot up to number one on the amazon bestseller list day. Jeffrey brown has more on its interesting back story and the enduring appeal of the childrens author. Brown ah, the choices that life presents. For example we want a pet. We want a pet. What kind of pet should we get . The opening lines of a new book. Actually, an old book, never finisheduntil now by Theodor Geisel, who as dr. Seuss, wrote and illustrated such classic childrens books as the cat in the hat and green eggs and ham. 44 books in his lifetime he died in 1991 that have sold more than 650 million copies and counting. Now comes what pet should i get, discovered in a box in 2013 and completed by cathy goldsmith, who worked with Theodor Geisel as a designer and art director for his last six books. She continues to work at random house, which has just published the new book. Also with us is author and illustrator greg pizzoli. His debut picture book, the watermelon seed, won the Theodor Seuss geisel award in 2014. Brown so cathy goldsmith, let me start with you. Let me ask, what do you make of this book and what should we make of this book . Why did Theodor Geisel set it aside . Well, i think he set it aside mostly because he got involved in other things. He was famous for always working on more than one project at a time, and i just think this was one that he wrote and moved open almost immediately afterwards to one fish two fish. Brown how much work did you have to do on it to bring it to publication . Well, in the box, we found the complete line art and manuscript. What we did not find were the color specs for the book. Brown therefore, what did you do . So i backed out to try to work out a color scheme for this book that would be consistent with what ted himself might have done if he were still with us today. Brown which meant look at that time work around that time . How did you figure it out . Because its so closely related to one fish two fish, i started with the color pallet for that book and worked out what needed to happen in this book to make this bookwork. Brown there are two children in the book, trying to decide on a pet start with a dog and cat and then, in dr. Seuss fashion imagine ever more extravagant types of animals. What did you see in this book . Well, im a cat person so i was hoping for the cat but ive found the dr. Seuss ive loved since i was a child the fun rhyming text, the amazing illustrations and the dr. Seuss that we all love. Brown tell us more. What accounts for that love or that leadership . Well i think, you know, in particularly, when people think of dr. Seuss, they think of his rhyme to verse, they have a very particular imaginative quality they have with language. As an illustrator myself, i was looking at the book today and just marveling at the pen and ink illustrations, and how he was able to do so much in the illustration that wasnt being said in the text itself. As cathy said, the colors look great. Great job. Thank you for that. Brown the line got me and brought me back to reading dr. Seuss as a kid when he says oh, boy, it is something to make a mind up. You know thats correct very human moment or i cant decide but i have to decide. Yes, i think this is it not only about choosing a pet but making a choice and its a problem children and adults have throughout their lives at various times. Brown tell us more cathy goldsmith, about dr. Seuss or Theodor Geisel, the man. Hes described often as a perfectionist. I saw where he said, i know my stuff looks like it was rattled off in 28 seconds but every word is a struggle and every sentence is like the pangs of birth. Thats quoting him. Well, that is a quote that he made, yes. And i think it really described the way he worked. He wrote and rewrote and redrew and seldom actually shared a project with those of us at random house until he was well into it and knew that he was on the path to being finished with it. But he also expected the same thing of those around him, which is why we take taking care of his legacy so seriously at random house. Brown you were talking about the drawing itself. He could have done a lot with his art. I mean he could have done many other things but he put it in the service of childrens books. Right. He did political cartoons during world war ii. He was, you know, a very fantastic sculter. He really could have done anything, and he chose childrens books. He saw childrens books childrens publishing as a legitimate art form worthy of his particular genius, and elevated the fields. I think he should be largely credited for the golden era of picture books were seeing today. Brown cathy goldsmith, any reservations . Was there ambivalence for you or for random house or for his widow for anybody involved here in winning this to the public . Not at all. We have a tremendous respect for the legacy of what dr. Seuss did when he left us, and we would not have published this book if we did not feel it fit very nicely and rep reputably within his work. Brown is there more possibly to come . There was nothing else found in that box that was complete so no no new other new books coming down the line. Brown greg . Signaled the ideas to me cathy. Thats fine. Brown send them to you . Yeah, ill fin them up. Brown greg pizzoli, cathy goldsmith, thank you both so much. Thank you. Woodruff finally tonight our newshour shares of the day. Something that caught our eye which might be of interest to you, too. Our colleagues from kqed in San Francisco profiled vocal rush, a teen Acapella Group from oakland, who used the stage to pay homage to the black lives Matter Movement and acknowledge their own citys troubled history. One, two singing vocal rush has always been a group of diverse kids. Its something were all proud of, too. But this year, the fact that black live woodruff you can find the full report on our arts beat page at pbs. Org newshour. Ifill also on the newshour online right now, twitter may be also on the newshour, read how the micromessaging site is cracking down on plagiarism. Thats on our web site9÷is newshour has been provided by moving our economy for 160 years. Bnsf, the engine that connects us. The ford foundation. Working with visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide. Carnegie corporation of new york. Supporting innovations in education, democratic engagement, and the advancement of International Peace and security. At carnegie. Org. 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