October 5, 2021 - PBS NewsHour full episode

Millions of students returned to campus this fall for the in-person college experience, as the Delta variant continues to impact parts of the U.S. Some schools have strict mandates for vaccination, testing and masking. In other places, that’s not an option. Hari Sreenivasan begins the latest in our “Rethinking College” series at two of America’s flagship universities.

In our news wrap Tuesday, Johnson & Johnson asked the Food and Drug Administration to allow boosters for its single-shot COVID-19 vaccine. The U.S. Coast Guard now says something dragged a pipeline that spilled oil off Southern California over the weekend. An independent commission in France estimates 330,000 children were sexually abused in the country's Roman Catholic Church over 70 years.

Facebook is under fire Tuesday following testimony by a former employee before a U.S. Senate committee. Frances Haugen alleged the company too frequently turns a blind eye to potential harm for the sake of profit. Facebook denied that in statements to the PBS Newshour and said it is working to make its platforms safer. William Brangham has our report.

President Joe Biden spoke in Michigan Tuesday on the need for his infrastructure and social spending plans, as negotiations over both bills are underway on Capitol Hill. Yamiche Alcindor talks to two leaders in the state about what Michiganders need and the potential impact of the Biden agenda.

A key focus of President Joe Biden's spending plan centers around addressing climate change and expanding universal pre-K. California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday signed a $123 billion bill that would, among other things, expand pre-K and provide an extra year of kindergarten for some children. Judy Woodruff speaks with Newsom about these issues and how the California law plans to address them.

As the United States continues to manage the fallout from its withdrawal from Afghanistan, in Moscow there's a sense of deja vu. Russia's departure after the Soviet war there led to a protracted period of chaos and civil war, which culminated with the U.S. invasion in 2001. But Russian veterans see some essential differences between both withdrawals. Special correspondent Stuart Smith reports.

The United States has now passed yet another tragic pandemic milestone. COVID-19 has now claimed the lives of more than 700,000 Americans. William Brangham talks to Dr. Scott Gottlieb, a former FDA commissioner and author of new book "Uncontrolled Spread: Why COVID-19 Crushed Us and How We Can Defeat the Next Pandemic" about where the U.S. response failed and how it can do better next time.

Priti Krishtel started her career working with low-income communities in India where she saw her clients suffering, and even dying, because they couldn't afford the lifesaving medicines they needed. Now, she is advocating for a more equitable healthcare system in the U.S. and around the world. She gives us her Brief But Spectacular take on the importance of building a system that works for all.