ptioning sponsored by wnet >> sreenivasan: on this edition for sunday, march t, the latest crash of ethiopian anrlines, the second boeing 737- max crash in less year; the administration is set to unveil a new budget proposal; reand timeless music in na amphitheater. next on pbs newshour weekend. ur >> pbs newseekend is made possible by: bernard and irene schwartz. sue and edgar wachenheim iii. seton melvin. the cheryl and philip milstein family. dr. p. roy vagelos and diana t. gelos. the j.p.b. foundation. rosalind p. walter. barbara hope zuckerberg.

corporate funding is provided by mutual of america-- designing customized individual and group retirement products.w that we're your retirement company. additional support has been provided by: and by the corporation for public broadcasting, and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. from the tisch wnet studios at lincoln center in new york, hari sreenivasan. >> sreenivasan: good eveningthnd k you for joining us. u.s. investigators will head to the scene of a plane crash in t ethiopt killed all 157 teople on board this morning. search and rescus found no survivors at the scene of the crash, 40 miles south of ethiopia's capital of addis ababa. the ethiopian airlines plane was a four-month-old boeing 737 maxs eight, the nmodel of the popular commercial airliner. and the same model as anio indonesianair flight that crashed in october. kenya's transport ministerhe confirmed thatargest number of passengers were from

kenya, where the plane was headed.th amon157 people on board, there were numerous nationalities including eight americans and 18 canadians. >> there were at least 35 nationalities and regrettably kenya is the highest with 32 passengers onboard. >> senivasan: the airline's c.e.o. tewolde gebremariam visited the site of the cras ethiopian airlines reported the senior pilot onboard had more than 8,000 flight hours. the crash investigation will include representatives from boeing and the u.s. national transportation safety board. and you can watch our extended conversation with an aviation analyst on our instagram @newshour. geria's president return home today as protesters continue to demand he step down before upcoming elections. president abdelaziz bouteflika flew back from geneva where he was receiving medical treatments for the past two weeks. the 82-year-old is running for a fifth term. he suffered a stroke in 2013 ane has rarely bee in public since then. in algiers, thousands ofns

demoators again took to the streets demanding bouteflika leave office.t the presidenissued a statement last week saying he will run, but will then call new elections which he would not be a candidate. russians rallied in moscow and two other cities today protesting new legislation that would put restrictions on inrnet access. ousands gathered in moscow chanting "hands off the internet" and listening to speeches. m lath russia's lower house of parliament passed a bill that would route russian web traffic and data through points controlled by the state. the bill still needs approval in the upper house. supporters say it gives russia" y" over the internet opponents say it is another attempt by the government to curb intnet freedoms. in north korea millions went to the polls today to give their stamp of approval to pre- selected candidates for the next national parliament. north korean leader kim jong-un cast his vote in the election that is more of an endorsement than a competitive contest. there is only one state- sanctioned candidate per seat. the vote happens every five years and is marked with danci and celebrations. turnout in past elections was

reportedly more than 99%. tomorrow the white house will release its proposed 2020 budget and, according to senior administration officials, it will include a request f f $8.6- billi new funding to build is is in addition to more thanre $6.5-billiondent trump has already ordered redirected from federal agencies for borderri se. even before the details aboutor spending border wall emerged, democrats called the president's budget a "non- starrsr." for ctive on the battle between the white house and congress and the 2020 presidential campaigblwe turn to rean strategist frank luntz. where are voters on the wall right now? its 's interesting that tht phrase, nonstarter, that is part of the problem, that's not part of the soution. the goal in this, the mission in ngs of this is to find thi that every american can support and find that common ground between us. and no one is seeking it any more. the president continues to call it a wall. 40% of americans support i,

which means a majority don't. but a majority do support a barrier. the public does not want to support donald trump's position, but they want border security. and if you combine a barrier and human intelligence and technology, you're u in the mid 70s. >> of people who would support it. >> of people without wou sport it, because to them that's genuine border security, it's not politics, they're not looking for a trump budget,ki threr's not lo for a democratic budget, they're looking for people in washington to get along, and get something done. and that he's not the fokal point.y and if i ma, because i believe strokly in this, there have bean cks on these democratic women tha ate out of control. they have every right to sayy what they sbout israel. they have every right to say, to criticize a pact. they have every right to talk about the system of government being broken and to chaen those who want to silence them.

whether or not we agree or disagree. since when do we demonize and destroy and dehumanize members of congress simply because we disagree with them. i don't cahre what tey say, they got the right to say it. >> you talked to all sorts of pople across the country. what does it mean to be a ay?ublican tod >> if you are a republican today you are a strong supporter of donald 26r7. he has a greater degree of support within his party than any republican the president has ever had since they started polling. >> sreenivasan: is this the same party tht pretrump. >> this is a party that used to care about the federal debt and the debt is much bigger now than it was. this is a party that believed in open iree trade and nowt's a party that has come to sport terrorists. and yet if i can be candidate with you, even my own position has changed on an iss that.ke i do see the threat from china. i do believe that the policies of replicans and democrats as the public does have failed. and the public is tually

saying and agreeing with trump that unless we hold chinaac untable, unless we get tough which may include tariffs, then we're going to lose and lose and lose and los again an again, year after year. he sreenivasan: just this weak theres with a mojones article that was looking too whether or not one of trump's supporter, theoman who originally set up the massage parlors that robert kraft, the owner of the patriots and supporter of the president got caught at. she not only h selfies wit the president but had a side business where she was selling access to the white house, the president, his family. is something like that likely to resonate with voters? because it seems that hisor supporters sayt it. >> they look at all of this, they look at, and they say the same things about the democrats and double standard stvment all a double standard.e what we shoulding is talking about getting something done. the reason why congress has such a low approval rating, it's their own fault. ivwe are not produany more, in politics and it requires the business leadership to set up.

education leaders to step up and say enough is enough. we're not republican and democrat, we're american. >> sreenivasan: the incentiveme structure fobers of congress or leadership in this country seems to be stacked in the absolute opposite diecron. mening it is not about bridging, building bridgescross the aisle because if you do, are you going be pry married from your own party. >> we are not he warding honesty and intority. we aret rewarding people who get things done. we're rewarding people who choo sides. but also, with all due respect, and not here, but it happens inh media as well. "the new york times" publishes the most extreme positionsn both sides. what do we get from cnn, msnbc d fox, the most extreme positions. they put them out there and then they pill ore then. and the public thinks that everyone is nuts right now. they think we're all nuts. and we have a responsility in imtoos like this to put all of that aside, be honest, be truthful and try to union fie.

>> sreenasan: frank luntz, good note to end on. thanks so much for joining us. >> thank you. >> sreenivasan: preparatns for summer music festivals are in full swing across the country-- tand in moab, utah, some t planning involves scouting locations and routes for their unique musical performances which are a merging of acoustic music and spectacular natural settings. pbs newshour's chris booker reported this past fall on utah's moab music festival, where getting to the location requires comfortablealking shoes and staying hydrated. >> reporter: the hike to the middle earth waterfall just outside of moab, utah is part- limbo, part balancing act-- a half an hour spent ducking under branches and sliding alongside rock faces. but the challenge is worth it. the destination a dead end of polished red rock, that is nothing short of spectacular.

for years, moab's ethereal desert landscape has served as a hollywood backdrop anday ound for outdoor eenthusiasts, but today, walls of stone will serve as one of the most breathtaking amphitheaters in the world. ♪ ♪ >> one of the most important f thin me is the silence. >> reporter: michael barett is co-founder and music director of the moab music festival. >> if you get far out into the wilderness, you have a kind of silence that we just never get to experience in our modn lives and to have music come o of silence and to break thes silence is-- iough to make you weep.

>> reporter: for the past 26 years, the moab music festival has been using utah's layered rock formations as a stage for music from brahms, bach and today, chinese-american composer bright sheng. >> the first one is called "four seasons." ♪ ♪ >> reporter: performed by celloist clancy newman, bright sheng's composition "seven tunes heard in cgina" was olly written for cello virtuoso yo yo ma in 1995. it originates, sheng says, from his teenage years spent in the sweeping plains of tibet during mao tse tung's cultural revolution. ♪ ♪ >> when i was in tibet, i could never imagine this day. it reminded me of my youth. and many of my compositions were inspired by the folk music and the environment of theair

environment and-- when i hear it every time, when it's performed right, my heart pumps. >> reporter: the night before, sheng's hot pepper for violin and marimba kicked-off opening night at moab's star hall, a tiny performance space in downtown moab. part of the thematic bookends of this year's festival, the program-- callewedme acari--ns wa composers who, like sheng, had immigrated to the united states and become american citizens. >> it's looking at their music, how they've interpreted their own american experience, what their musical voices are. have they taken from their home countries, and somehow integrated that into their american lives? ♪ ♪ >> reporter: this year's theme oivividly reflects what is on around the country. the day before the festival'sin op the moab's "times- independent" newspaper ran two stories on its front page.

abovthe masthead, a story about the moab music festival's celebration of "new americans" and below, a story about local panic following recentndce arrests ofumented immigrants. coming back to the development of this year's theme, was there any worrabout getting political? >> i have to be careful about that because it is easy to let your own political convictionser elm the program, but when we play chamber music, we talk about it as having a conversation. conversation with the audience, conversation musician to musician. lot of people are really dug in right now. and i think we need more grey area in our belief system right now and more tolerance. >> reporter: do you feel like you're part of-- a broader conversation that's taking place within america? and-- and if so, how do you think music contributes to that conversation? >> as you see for tonight's opening concerts, there are

composers from very different backgrounds-- some of them migrants like me. and-- so we-- i think it's-- it's part of this great texture that makes the fabric of american art and american culture unique and-- and distinctive and i'm very proud to be part of it. ♪ ♪ut >> reporter:n locations like middle earth, the landscape, the sky, all of the elements of moab's wonder create something far more than a conversation. something moab music festival artistic-director and viola player leslie tomkins says can be difficult to explain. >> even in photographs-- in--de just-- the-- you miss one entire dimension of it, which is hard to describe, but that makes it such a complete experience to be surrounded by this other- worldly landscape.

>> it's like a-- s-- a spiritual home that music can liven, and then when it becomes expressed, when it gets off the page and a musician brings it to life, acoustically it's-- i don't know, it's extraordinary. ♪ ♪ >> what is the arts in society? what's the f art has to touch the audience, re touch the people. maybe not the enime, but a certain moment of your composition. there are moments that the audience should be moved-- ideally moved to tears, but if not tears, but they moved. and if that made them forget about their existence even for a few seconds, and you succeeded.

>> so that's the beauty of- being able to examine aspects of life and living together, is that we agree on these things,of on the beautusic, and how to create it, and how to express it, and how to share it with our community. >> sreenivasan: today marks 60 years since the tiberising against chinese rule. learn more at pbs.org/newshour. >> sreenivasan: the legendary, memphis-based record label stax records played a critical role in nurturing a who's who of musical superstars in e 1960s and beyond. there was mavis staples, otis redding, isaac hayes and the famous house band, booker t. and the m.g.'s. today, the label's legacy continues with the stax music academy, a non-profit program of after-school programs and summer camps to help nurture the next generation of young people in memphis through music and leadership.

and, as you'll see in this story that we first broadcast last july, the academ reflection of the city's rich history and musical traditions. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> my name is johnathon lee and i'm 18-years-old. oui can relate to a lot of music and a lot ofospel. i'm able to communicate my emotions and i'm able to exude that to the audience when i sing. ♪ ♪ >> my name is adrianna christmas and i'm the director o music academy. they learn music theory, music chnique as well as performance. if you have never touched an instrument before you can come learn piano, guitar and bass. we also have some students tha come in that have been singing all their lives in church.

♪ ♪ >> the church was a place where people went to tell their troubles during the civil rights movement. and people used gospel and soul music to communicate the stories that they had to tell when they were struggling. ♪ ♪ >> being able to share the stax legacy with the students, they have this pride, like, yes, i come from memphis. i come from this spirit of innovation and creativity. so i want them to walk away being proud of that legacy, and i also want them to carry it on. using their art to bring healing, but also using their art to say some things and stir the pot sometimes whenstt needs to bred. >> so, we havetio analyze polly what was going on and why the artist chose to talk abt a specific subject. they all have a story. there was a struggle.

to be able to have black artists orm their songs or write their own songs. during the civil rights movement, we did marches. so being able to have a march and then use music as a form to stax songs have so muchach is history to them. everybody was treated as equal because music was that connector, it's what we try to create at stax, where it's definitely, doesn't matter where edu come from, you're acce you belong here, this is a place for you. we were delving deer into m.l.k.'s legacy and we decided to try to go into song may have influenced him on his journey, what was released when the sanitation workers went on strike, what was released when they marched on selma and th also talk about what was stax records doing at that time. ♪ ♪ the discussions really start

with the music. so when the staple singers released got to be some changes madewe're going to learn tha song but we're also going to talk about why they were saying goto be some changes made. and then go a step further to say do you feel that way now. in america 2018, do neu feel like w to make some changes, and what scale and how ll we do that. ♪ ♪ >> music is really that key that we have with the students for them to explore who they really are. they're writing their n original music this year, actually the middle school ensemble started writing a song about change. like you remember all the pain and suffering from 1968, but we still have s these things today. and that's what their song is about. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ n 70% of ur students come financial need. they have a lot of difngrent things gn in the home, but

they're so resilient and i think it's because of music. y because they can come, tn express themselves. >> i have grown, grown, and grown. you learn how to control your voice, you learn how to build confidence. and it's like an elevation, you elevate every time and get better and better. ♪ ♪ fr ♪ being able to lear different people, different vocalists, they offer a sound that i didn't have, and i fered something that they might not have had. it's not a one-man show. i see myself doing broadway, i see myself putting out an album or two, maybe 50, who knows. a music anguage that

everyone can understand. music is my passion, it's my love, it's my soul. >> sreenivasan: that's all for this edition of pbs newshour weekend. i'm hari sreenivasan. thanks for watching. have a good night. captioning sponsored by wnet captioned byce media group at wgbh access.wgbh.org ur

>> pbs newshoeekend is made possible by: bernard and irene schwartz. sue and edgar wachenheim iii. seton melvin. cheryl and philip milste family. dr. p. roy vagelos and diana t. vagelos. ithe j.p.b. found rosalind p. walter. barbara hope zuckerberg. corporate funding is provided by mutual of america-- designing customized individual ro and group retirementcts. that's why we're your retirement company. additional support has been provided by: and by the corporation for public broadcasting, and by

contributions to your pbs ik station from viewersyou. thank you.

narrator: hidden in the hills of northern california, a few miles south of san francisco, lies woodside--one of the wealthiest towns in the united states. it is home to a host of celebrities, including a western lowland gorilla named koko... [koko growling] whose life challenges what it is that makes humans unique. over 4years ago, penny patterson set out to discover if humans and gorillas could ever communicate. woman: everyone when they're a child has that dr. doolittle moment where they think, you know, if only we could talk to animals. and here was a chance. narrator: what began as a ph.d. to teach sign language to koko