PBS News Weekend full episode, Sept. 14, 2024

Intro Val: Tonight -- Lisa: Tonight on pbs news we can. A success story for veterans and what it says about how to tackle homelessness and the issues remaining. And how would neural requirement can identify more breast cancer cases and save lives. And the story of Palestinian babies born just outside gaza who remain separated from their parents. >> I'm not sure she recognizes me on the phone. The nurses told me she does. I hope she will remember my face so when we finally meet, she won't feel like I'm a stranger. ♪♪ >> Major funding for pbs news weekend has been provided by. And with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. ♪♪ and friends of the news hour. This program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. News Wrap Lisa: Good evening. I'm Lisa Desjardins. John yang is away. I thousands lined the streets in Turkey to pay respects to the Turkish American woman killed in the west bank last week. The 26-year-old from Seattle was shot dead by an Israeli soldier during a demonstration against Israeli west bank settlements. Her hometown turned out in droves for her funeral. Turkey and the U.S. Have condemned her killing. Israel's military said she was shot indirectly and unintentionally. A witness says she posed no threat and was shot when things were calm. New Israeli airstrikes hammered central and southern gaza today. Gaza's civil defense ministry reported at least 14 people killed as the war between Israel and hamas approaches the one year mark. Another bloody conflict. Russia and Ukraine exchanged 206 prisoners today. Freed Ukrainian soldiers stood at an undisclosed lococion wrapped in a national flag. Separately, Russian serviceman stepped on a bus heading back to ssia. It is the second prisoner swap in today's negotiated by the United Arab Emirates. Ongoing foreign wars played a part in the U.S. Presidential campaign with former president trump making this pledge to voters during a campaign stop in Las Vegas. >> I will end the chaos in the Middle East and settle the warning Ukraine. I will settle that. As president elect. Would anybody like to be at war with Russia? If necessary, we would. But -- preferably not. Lisa: Vice president Harris in her first solo TV interview since coming democratic nominee said she offers a new generation of leadership with a different purpose than her opponent. >> Most Americans want a leader who brings us together as Americans. And not someone who professes to be a leader who is trying to have us point our fingers at each other. I think people are exhausted with that approach, to be honest. Lisa: Harris campaign in Washington, D.C. Trump is in Utah for a fundraising event this evening. In Arizona, a civil war era ban on abortions is now off the books. The 1864 law criminalized all abortions except when the life of a mother was in jeopardy. The court had temporarily blocked the law from going into effect. The state legislatures total repeal went into effect today. In November, voters will decide if a right to an abortion should be added to the state constitution. A damming report out from investigators in Hawaii who found no evidence of -- officials prepared for the wildfire that swept across maui in 2023. The report said even though officials had days of warnings conditions were right for fires, lack of planning meant evacuation efforts came too late for many in lahaina. 100 two people died in the fire. Still to come. How would federal requirement could help identify more breast cancer. And gazan parents separated from their babies by war. >> This is pbs news weekend from W eta studios in Washington, home of the pbs news hour. Weeknights on pbs. Homeless in America >> Now to a problem across the country and one bright spot of improvement. On any given night last year in the U.S., some 653,000 people were homeless. That is according to government data. Up from 2022. A 12% increase. One group has seen improvement over the last 15 years. Veterans. Much can be credited to a government housing program in the department of housing and urban development and veterans affairs. The program combines housing department vouchers for rent with individual focused casework from the veterans department. Since 2009, the program has led to a 52% drop in hopelessness -- homelessness among veterans. The CEO of the national alliance to end homelessness. Before that, she spent time with the housing and development. Thank you for having me. I want to talk about homelessness in this country. Where are we right now? >> About 653,000 people any given night are experiencing homelessness across the country. About 35,000 of those folks are veterans. Folks who have served in our military. What we have seen over the last several years, especially since 2016, an increase in the number of people living unsheltered in this country. I mean folks living on the streets or in tents, cars, rvs. >> Don't have a permanent place, they are moving around. >> All of that. Lisa: You mentioned 35,000 veterans on house or on the street. Let's look at what has happened with that trend. This is the one population there has been improvement. You can see this over time. Especially in the 2010s. What do think the role is in seeing this kind of improvement? >> What we know from my experience and the national experience working to end homelessness at large is the easiest way to make it harder is to make it partisan. And solving veterans homelessness has been a bipartisan issue for a long time. And in part, that is the reason we have the resources in place in order to serve veterans who have experienced homelessness and to get them into safe and stable housing and the services they need to meet their goals in life. >> There was an expansion from the program from the original version. Why did it expand and how significant was it? Tracy: >> In the very early to thousands, there was a small version of the program that was relatively successful. In 2008, about 10,000 vouchers per year -- Lisa: To use for anyone who qualifies? >> That is right. It is allocated across the country based on relative need in different areas. That program has grown from the early years of 10,000 vouchers to about 113,000 vouchers now. Since 2012, it served 180,000 veterans who have been experiencing homelessness across our country. >> Was that expansion brought about because of the increase in demand, or an increase in awareness that this was a program that could help, or both? >> I think both. But also an increase in attention from our leaders. What we've seen from our leaders is three things. Leadership on the issue of veteran homelessness. In the 2010s, there was a lot of local leadership, mayors working to end homelessness, governors. The white house was working in concert to end veteran homelessness locally and nationally. Good policy. Housing and services veterans want and need is called housing first. That policy really is the driver behind the decreases we have seen among veterans experiencing homelessness and resources is the third one. We have been allocated resources every year since 2008, and it has grown over time because folks on capitol hill within the administration and in communities all over the country are really committed to ending veteran homelessness. >> I want to look back at the graph we showed indicating where veteran homelessness is. It is a steep decline. On the others of the coin, it is flatlining. There has not been continued decline. Why is it hard to get past the 35,000 point? >> We know that the market for safe and affordable rental homes has been getting tighter since 2016. We have seen an increase in unsheltered homelessness among all populations. Starting in 2016 every year. Even though veterans have access to theseseesources, it is hard to use that voucher sometimes, the housing choice voucher that provides rental assistance. Sometimes it is hard for them to find a unit and they need more help to find those kinds of units as the market gets tighter for veterans and for everybody. Those increasing rents across the country are impacting everybody. They are also impacting veterans. Lisa: In our last 30 seconds, this has been a problem in our country for a long time. It is a multilayered problem. Is there some hope there can be solutions coming? >> I have to have hope every single day when I come to work great I know we can end homelessness among everybody and veterans. Because we have resources tailored to the neeee of veterans experiencing homelessness. What I say to folks when they ask me this question is we know how to end homelessness. Safe and affordable housing coupled with services like mental health services, substance use treatment services, physical health services, and all of those things are available to veterans who qualify through the V.A.. So if we could provide access to those kinds of services and housing to everybody experiencing homelessness, I think we would see sharp declines in other populations as well. Lisa: It may not be easy, but is doable? >> It is doable, takes intention, takes time. We have to do it over years. We have seen it. Lisa: Thank you for joining us. >> Thank you for having me. ♪♪ Detecting Cancer Lisa: A sobering number. About one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. One reason doctors recommend women get a yearly mammogram beginning at age 45. For some women, mammograms will not detect cancer. Which is why a new fda requirement could identify more breast cancer cases and save lives. >> Earlier this week, the fda began requiring all mammogram reports disclose information on a patient's breast density. Higher breast density not only puts patients at a higher risk of developing breast cancer, can make cancers more difficult to detect. Meaning patients may require additional screening. Joanne pushkin is executive director of DEMs breast info. Door and advocate and breast cancer survivor herself. Why is breast density such a crucial thing to know about for anybody who has breasts? >> They are common and normal. Most women have some level of breast density in their breasts. As density increases, so does the likelihood of cancer will be missed if it is present. Breast density in and of itself is an independent risk factor for the development of breast cancer. Women with dense breasts, it can increase their risk. So they need to know this information. >> Now that these new requirements have gone into effect, will it mean it will be more plain English, or a standardized language that will be used? >> Es, some state laws did not even tell the woman she had dense breasts, or that she was at increased risk. The new notification includes four components. It definitely tells a woman if she has dense breasts, the second tells her it can hide cancer, that it increases her risks, and other tests might detect cancers that mammograms may miss and she should speak to a doctor about the additional screening. What everyone should do from this point forward when they get there mammogram results letter is read the paragraph carefully. It will be new information for everyone in the way it is worded in the content in contains. >> If a woman finds out she has dense breasts, what should she do and expect her physician would do? >> There is no one-size-fits-all screening protocol. Women need to sit with their providers to discuss breast density. There are other risk factors for developing breast cancer. And a discussion about what might be appropriate. Other imaging exams such as open -- ultrasound or mri's are typically recommended as additional screening tools. Lisa: What led you to cofound desperate's info.org and go down the advocacy was your experience with breast cancer and breast density. Tell me about your journey and how it led you down this path. >> I was 45 years old and had been getting mammograms since 40 every five years prior to that. I never missed one and I was a faithful patient, exercise, ate healthy. One relative had breast cancer. During a self exam, I felt a lump. I was not too concerned because I had a very recent, normal mammogram. But they tell you if you feel something, call your doctor. I did. I went. He found the lump and sent me on for a diagnostic mammogram and an ultrasound the very same day. Now I'm waiting in the little room for them to come back and hopefully give me the all clear. The tech comes in and says we did not detect anything. I was a little confused because I knew I felt something, but it was a large facility with multiple waiting rooms. I assumed she had a come back into the wrong room. I said I'm the lady with the lump so big I can feel it. She said that will be a hard find for us, you have extremely dense breasts. I remember sitting back and going what? -- I'm sitting in the alter sound 15 minutes later, and there it is quite obviously. What was not available on the mammogram was detectable on the alter sound. Lisa: You had gone routinely for mammograms up until that point in your cancer was not detected. Does it mean if you had been aware of your breast density, your cancer may have been detected earlier? >> Certainly, by size it was estimated to have been growing for three to five years undetected every single one of them by mammography. Women are often shocked to learn in dense breast, a mammogram report does not reliably need -- mean a cancer is not there. >> Updated guidelines will help women find out more about their bodies. Another hurdle remains, insurance coverage of additional screenings. What is the state of that fight? >> If a woman is a doctor or health provider says there's need to have imaging, her insurance will cover it, co-pays and deductibles may apply. Several states, 33 states right now have expanded coverage for the mammogram. Not without co-pay and to -- deductible necessarily. Women really need a consistent standard for insurance coverage. Like the fda has standardized the notification. No need to standardized insurance coverage for women. >> Joanne pushkin, executive director of breast info.org and advocate and breast cancer survivor. Thank you for joining us. ♪♪ Separated by War Lisa: A group of parents in gaza have described heartbreak as they remain separated from their babies who were born prematurely in Jerusalem over a year ago. He needed specialized care and their parents were supposed to reunite with them. But the war has kept them separated, meaning shaky video calls and the closest contact they have with the children are from those calls. Rachel younger has this report from Jerusalem. >> Meet triplets, a handful of mischief at almost 30 months old. And little --, who was born a few weeks before them. It should be their parents playing with them. Unbelievably, having born just outside gaza and now stuck on different sides of the impenetrable wall that surrounds it. The only time they get to see their faces are during the fleeting minutes they get a connection to one of the most dangerous places on Earth. Daddy, they shall, as she reaches out for the father she's never had. The hospital can't get hold of his parents today. Back in gaza, they have been displaced to a tent and with no phone service, often owned photos and the only condition they had to their daughter. I'm not sure she recognizes me on the phone. But the nurses tell me she does. I hope she will remember my face. So when we finally meet she will not feeling I'm a stranger. >> Like the triplets parents, she had waited so long for a daughter. Born prematurely at the end of last summer, even then the level of neonatal care here was not available in gaza. >> They come, they get their babies delivered here, then they can stay for a few days or a week or so, then they have to go home because they have limited periods. >> They were due to come back on the eighth of October. But the war means every day, they are missing irreversible milestones. They are starting to crawl, learning the drums, attempting to blow first kisses. >> Each one of us, it would be a very interesting moment to see the child taking first steps in walking around and talking. They missed those moments. >> All staff can do is build bonds between baby and parent. What happens when she sees the television? >> Mama. X across the corridor, other lucky parents watch every moment of their newborns progress. Her and the triplets were equally tiny, they never even got the chance to hold them. >> That was Rachel younger of independent television news. Where in the World? Finally tonight, a popular online geography game that takes players around the globe one Google street view image at the time. Our own puzzle master John yang has our look inside the world of geo guesser. >> Would you believe that -- just found us. >> At the second geo guesser world cup in Stockholm, players were virtually dropped that random spots around the world and challenged to see how quickly they could identify the location. The clues were obscure details like signs, buildings, even the plants and trees. The game has been described as incredibly addictive. It heads tens of millions of player accounts. You said you and the general you, anyone can do this as fast as you can. I will disprove that right now. >> I did not say how long anyone can do that. >> I sat down with around for perhaps the game's most famous player. I'm going to put my reading glasses on for this. This looks European because of the crosswalk -- pedestrian sign. >> Bursaries are more climate in the north. >> Shame on me for not knowing flora. How do you play the game -- >> It looks sick it is going to curb -- >> What told you it was kurdistan? >> Looks a eastern Romania. >> You said it looks like Romania. >> It is like somewhere in my brain I have seen something that looks like this before in this area. It is all up there somewhere. You just have to find it. >> He discovered it during the pandemic, watching YouTube videos and studying Google street view. >> Especially coal would when you could not go anywhere. The game with my plane ticket, really. A new phone curiosity and appreciation for the different countries that candidly I did not know much about at all. >> Social media videos of him playing the game have millions of views and legions of fans. Whether simply looking at the soil. >> This looks like -- that red soil and -- >> Or pixelated details. >> Brazil. >> Sometimes only seeing an image for a 10th of a second. >> Iceland. >> I don't think I'm some sort of superhuman in the sense of this. A lot of it is practice and pattern recognition. I know how to look for the one distinct thing, whether a telephone pole, distinct redlines in a single country, the vegetation, a certain mountain. All things combined that you have 24. >> Netherlands. >> A community of players has built up around the game. >> Also just curious. That is what you have to be to succeed in this game. We get people from all walks of life, India, China, Europe. South America. It is a global game and global community. That is awesome. Goodnight Lisa: That is our program for tonight. Ein Lisa Desjardins -- I am Lisa Desjardins. For all, see you tomorrow. >> Major funding for pbs news week and has been provided by. >> Consumer cellular, this is Sam, how may I help you? This is a pocket dial. Some buddies pocket thought I would let you know with consumer cellular, you get nationwide coverage with no contract. That is kind of our thing. Have a nice day. >> And with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. This program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. ♪♪