rising prices. squeezing american consumers in casting the shadow over the largest u.s. economy. taking stock, ukrainians returning home from areas liberated. the lives they were forced to leave behind. rethinking college. applications rise dramatically even as nationwide student enrollment walls. >> young people are choosing to be in a place that nurtures

them, that recognizes who they are and really thinks about how they can make this generation succeed. judy: all of that and more on tonight's pbs evening newshour. >> major funding has been provided by. for 25 years,'s consumer cellular has been offering no contract wireless. how the customer service team can help find a plan that fits you. >> with the ongoing support of these individuals. >> clustering informed

communities. >> this program was made by -- possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and contributions from viewers like you. thank you. judy: the august inflation report is out and the upshot is, gas prices have dropped but the bottom line is worse than expected.

the u.s. labor department says consumer prices rose 8.3% from one year ago. the rate of increase for core items not counting full and -- fuel and food surged more than 6%. that was sharply higher than july. the report triggered wall street's worst day since june of 2020, amid fears of more interest rate hikes. the dow jones lost 1276 points to close below 31,105, down 4%. the nasdaq fell 5%. the s&p 500 was down 4.3%. to help us understand i am joined by an economist, the founder of her own firm and a former economist for the fed. welcome back to the newshour. we see gas prices coming down,

other hands that demand may be slowing, why is inflation persistent? >> we had hoped for better from this report. we saw the relief on gas prices and a broad range of other goods and services, those prices kept rising. that came limited improving supply chains, commodity costs declining. all of that led us to hope more of that relief would be passed on to the consumer. we have not seen that. we have not seen areas like new cars and furniture where prices continue to rise despite moderating demand, improved production and supply chain operations. so far, the relief we are seeing at the wholesale level is not being passed are long. judy: you said that twice, not

passed on to consumers. why isn't it? >> we're going to be in a tug-of-war, companies that sell goods the consumers bought in scale during the pandemic because they were in lockdown, those companies enjoyed healthy, strong profit margins. they are trying to hold on to those profit margins and not accept now or margins, so it's going to be up to competitive pressures in markets like cars, furniture's for consumers to express sentiments with their wallets. for bargaining, relief, it's going to be a process that will player probably over a number of months.

judy: a lot of this, much of this is at the discretion for these big companies? >> this is an inflection point in the economy. we are seeing consumers, demand slow, consumer spending has slowed down quite a bit from the soaring numbers of last year. car sales have been quite weak. there is a decision that car dealers need to make if you want to sell fewer cars at higher prices, or more cars at more competitive prices. so far, the dam has not broken in the consumer's favor. at some point there will be enough inventory on hand. it's interesting because we have been hearing through company reports that some major retailers have been talking about rising inventory levels

and the need to discount. it's not showing up in the data in any decisive way. judy: we have been expecting the federal reserve to raise interest rates next week another three quarters of a percent. how is all of this likely to affect their thinking? >> it certainly solidifies the jumbo 75 basis point rate hike next week. that is a done deal. it raises the likelihood that more jumbo rate hikes lie ahead. the market reacted so strongly because had had a string of data that pointed to more of the soft landing scenario. the july inflation report had been quite hopeful, labor market data has been resilient. that data spoke to maybe the u.s. economy will make it through the rate hiking cycle

without going into a recession. this report is a vote on the hard landing side. it suggests the fed will be raising rates until we see broader based relief on the inflation front. judy: in a quick nutshell, the health of the overall u.s. economy? >> we are still growing. the labor market has been strong area the unemployment rate remains well below 40 sent. that's a low unemployment rate. consumers are feeling better from that relief. overall, we are muddling along, not tipping into a recession yet area the risk of that kind of scenario for next year, that's what the market is seeing. the risk of the scenario rising if inflation does not cool off. judy thank you very much.

>> my pleasure. judy: ukraine said its forces have pushed within two miles of the russian border in the northeastern kharkiv region, but in moscow, the kremlin played down criticism. they brushed aside calls. britain's king charles the third traveled to northern ireland as he towards the united kinom since assuming the throne. the king and queen were cheered in belfast and later, charles spoke for healing the region division. >> my mother felt deeply i know, the significant of the role she herself is played in bringing together those history had

separated. and extending a hand to make possible the healing. judy: in scotland, thousands viewed the queens coffin overnight and today, paying their respects. elizabeth will lie in state in london starting tomorrow. back in this country, ken starr led to president clinton's impeachment has died in houston. he had been solicitor general. the probe included the sex scandal involving a former intern. two years ago, he served on president trump's impeachment defense team. he was 76 years old. i major teachers strike is ending. seattle public schools reached an agreement late monday. the lockup began with teachers

demanding better pay and classroom support. alleged security flaws at twitter were back in the spotlight today, a former chief security officer testified at a u.s. senate hearing after being fired earlier this year. he filed a whistleblower complaint two months ago. today, he charged twitter is a decade behind standards. >> the cybersecurity failures make it vulnerable to exploitation, causing real harm to real people. when a media platform can be compromised by teenagers, thieves and spies, when the company creates security problems, it's a big deal for all of us. judy: elon musk has tried to cancel his takeover of twitter, citing security flaws. in return, the company is suing.

cleanup is underway in southern california after tropical storm remnants triggered mudslides. massive amounts of mud cascaded into homes, buildings and vehicles. thousands of people were told to evacuate or shelter-in-place. it happened in mountainous areas where wildfires burned away vegetation. the national basketball association has suspended the phoenix suns owner for workplace misconduct. it also fined him $10 million. it follows allegations he had a history of using racist and misogynistic language and abusing employees. this year's primetime emmy bragging rights go to apple tv's ted lasso. and succession. they love the way at last night's ceremony.

notable first time awardees include sheryl lee ralph for her role in abbott elementary. we would hear from her later in the program. i legendary french printmaker -- filmmaker died in his home and fritz lynn. -- in switzerland. reporter: the unconventional camerawork and storytelling. the 1960 movie helped usher in an influential style of filmmaking. the director was one of cinema's great innovators. beginning in the late 1950's, he and other young filmmakers became known as the french new wave. they made a string of movies that drew from past heroes. it created a new aesthetic.

martin scorsese called in 1963 movie one of his favorite films of all time. quentin tarantino compared him to bob dylan, saying they both revolutionize their forms. he would combine mainstream, experimental and left wings them -- political filmmaking. today the focus was on his way through work. he died at his home in switzerland. the statement gave assisted suicide as a cause of death, saying he suffered from multiple pathologies.

judy: he was 91 years old. why child poverty declined during the pandemic. the decade-long friendship. sheryl lee ralph delivers a rousing speech after winning an emmy for her role. plus, much more. >> this is the pbs newshour. judy: ukraine says hundreds of thousands of people have been free from russian control in recent days and at offensive that has reshaped the battlefield. it began at the end of august. ukraine emphasized the southern region, but treat gave more gains where officials say there are still pockets of fighting.

ukraine has retaken more territory than russia took in the past five months. they recaptured dozens of towns. they found people returning to homes and others morning. >> the road is littered with the reins of a russian withdrawal. in the last few days, the russian military pulled back and the ukrainian military advance. it is ukrainian held, recaptured at great cost. up and down the road, you can see signs of the battle. these places require travel insurance. now that ukrainians have gained access to this territory, they're going to see what the russians left behind. we drove toward the russian border with investigators looking into russian war crimes.

along the route, empty roads and villages. it had a prewar population. today, it's in the dozens. this is the first time you have been home since the invasion. a 37-year-old invited me into his home. there is some damage, but he is lucky. there is no electricity or water. his 18-month-old daughter, six-year-old daughter. >> i woke up in the shooting began. i ran back into the house, grabbed our kids. got into our car and left. that is it. our army pushed the russians all the way to the border so it is

safe here. i decided to come here to feed my dog, my cats. i still don't know what happened to them. >> he checked the outside shed, the backyard. the owners hungers for peace remains unsatisfied area >> my wife and kids won't return here because that is still with happening everyday. there are still strikes everyday and it's not safe to come back. >> we d further north. the recent success allows police but in the past, russia has left behind booby-traps so the bomb

squad looks for tripwires. a few feet away, and unexploded mortar round, reminder of the fighting. in early march, ukrainian family was attacked by a russian machine gun. they come through the debris looking for human remains. all that's left, small bone chips. bringing the perpetrators to justice. >>'s office was destroyed by a

russian rocket yesterday. >> when we hear the stories of what happened here, when we get on site and see the tragedy inflicted on these people, of course it is psychologically difficult but we are holding out. >> here is a 65-year-old. he is not a soldier or police officer. a man and girl were his son and granddaughter. >> she was a schoolgirl. she's to dance and do figure skating. he was an entrepreneur, he traveled a lot. everything is gone now. >> when you look at the scene, how do you feel?

what can you say? it's been half a year, but still. i don't have the strength. >> the whole family was in the car. spoke today. crash -- >> russia is a terrorist state. the whole world should know. we were just civilians. for what did they die?

>> we will work with this team. we will help you find some kind of closure? >> i think yes. i think yes. this is difficult. >> difficult, perhaps impossible to ever understand what russia has left behind.

judy: the child poverty rate in the u.s. fell bnearly half last year. that's the lowest level on record. and based a census bureau record that takes into account cash benefits, tax credits and other kinds of non-cash benefits, many of which increased during the pandemic. meantime, nearly 92% of americans had health insurance for some part of the year. but overall inequality increased and median income remained largely flat. that drop in childhood poverty was preceded by an even larger decline since the 1990's. all this is according to a new analysis done by the nonpartisan research group child trends and the new york times. dana thomson is one of the lead researchers and she joins me now. hello. dropping by nearly half, child poverty.

how did it happen? dana: we are looking at a remarkable success story. in 1980 3, 1 in four kids were experiencing policy. largely thanks to the growth in the social safety net and a healthy economy. judy: that means government programs, what portion of this drop is due to government aids? dana: we included a collection of programs and looked at programs such as the earned income tax credit, social security, unemployment insurance. together, they reduced child poverty by about 44% in 2019 alone. judy: you said some of that is due to improvements in the economy? dana: that's right.

in 2019 we had lower unemployment rates, increases in state minimum wages. each of those were associated with a decline. judy: is it spread evenly among l children? or by some other measure dana: amazingly, saw child poverty declined across all 50 states. we also saw child poverty declined for all children, immigrant families, non-immigrant families. we saw declines across different family types. however, because poverty declined at similar rates for each of these groups, t disparities persisted. for single families and black

and hispanic -- they are still three times as likely to experience poverty. judy: you are not seeing an improvement when it comes to comparing these specific groups. dana: that is correct. judy: in the view of some conservatives who say when you give this kind of government aid, it should be accompanied by a work requirement. how much was there a work requirement in the program you described, and -- dana: the amazing thing is we have seen it fairly robust across multiple administrations. the social safety net is comprised of a mix of programs. some of those had work requirements, some had no work requirements. the earned income tax credit is conditional on work and has been

one of our most effective programs. it's important because it helps boost wages, there were also a host of other programs, many not conditioned on work. the supplemental nutritional assistant program and unemployment. they naturally expand during recessions and are really critical for families facing temporary setbacks. judy: remind us. to what extent are these programs in danger of being cut back or eliminated altogether? what are we looking at in terms of durability, the fact they could continue for years to come? what do you see there? dana: i think we have a robust mix of programs, and again, the

mix of programs has been with us through multiple administrations. i think there is solid packing for a lot of those programs. we have seen during recessions the implementation of a number of temporary measures that have helped families make ends meet in times of increased economic hardships. those include some measures that were implemented during the pandemic such as stimulus to -- payments, the child tax credit, pandemic ebt and mental assistance. those have been critical for a continued increase -- decrease in child poverty. judy: i should say finally, i what you are reporting, over 8 million american children who are still living below the poverty line? in a nutshell, was the difference in the quality of life for them?

dana: it's really important to remember there are real people behind these numbers. as you know, there is a wealth of evidence that shows growing up in poverty impacts child development, from physical and mental health, behavioral health, educational attainment and labor market success as adults. reducing child poverty not only improves well-being for children but benefits for society. judy: dana thompson, thank you very much. the total number of undergraduate college students in the u.s. has dropped by almost 10% during the pandemic. but it's been a different story for some time at many historically black colleges and univerisites, or hbcu's., where

interest and funding have increased. applications were up nearly 30% at many of these schools between 2018 and 2021. and top-tier hbcu's are increasingly becoming the first choice for some of the country's most sought-after students. yet, hbcu's face some fundamental challenges too. special correspondent hari sreenivasan has this rort, the first in our latest series on rethinking college. reporter: >> harvard, yell, dude. >> right down the street. vanderbilt. reporter: these are the places they turned down to come to spelman college, and all limits hcp -- hcp you. -- hcbu. >> we have already shown our

excellence. >> in high school i noticed if i had good academic standing or success it was like wow, i did not know i could do that. reporter: on the premed track, it was her experience that the majority white high school letter here. >> i had the responsibility to represent for the black community and speak for other people about their experiences. it was very exhausting having to represent all of the time. reporter: patrick said her parents were split on her decision. her dad favored harvard. >> the percent of black students at ivies is very small. that could be a daunting statistic for people who look like me, i'm going to have to prove myself at every step of the way.

reporter: in 2014, more than 4000 people applied. in 2021, it nearly tripled with 11,000 applicants. an epidemiologist spent her career in government and nonprofit roles. she views with happening as a reflection of the rapid social change in the country. >> this is a generation that grew up with a black president. has gone through social unrest following the murder of george floyd, the movement around black lives. young people are choosing to be in a place that nurtures them, recognizes who they are in the world and thinks about how they can make this generation succeed. >> the student pool comes as no surprise to a proud alumnus and

chair of the board of trustees. >> talent pools have been very similar to yale and harvard. spelman is a choice. reporter: before becoming ceo of drugstores, she has held top positions at starbucks and sam's club. >> 10% is graduating phi beta kappa. you would not see 50 black women graduate that from harvard or yale. reporter: a first-generation college graduate is one of only two black females running fortune 500 companies. >> there is something deep in my gut around taking on big challenges. i am not afraid of those. reporter: while hcbu's cap for

just 3% of secondary educations, they produce 13% of all african-american undergraduate degrees. >> it's clearly racial justice to attend to the ways in which african-americans cannot attend white colleges. reporter: a professor has been teaching at spelman for more than 50 years. >> they see a black college president and here over and over again this is a place made for you. reporter: more than 60% of students are pell grant eligible, and tuitions 30% lower than predominately white institutions. they also enroll more academically underprepared students. >> we punch above our weight. women think about what we are able to turn out with less

resources than many of our peers . reporter: there are still challenges. with less financial help and for smaller endowments. >> it's been biased from the beginning. you can look at state institutions that are black and white anthere has always been a huge gap. we don't have adequate housing. we don't always have adequate infrastructure. repoer: federal lawmakers have increased funding providing nearly $2 billion since 2017 as well as an additional $2.7 billion this year in emergency relief. alumni and philanthropists have donated $1 billion in recent years, funding scholarships and programs. it is still not enough. >> there have been lawsuits that

found the system was underfunded. reporter: she co-authored a recent report calling for more funding. >> we did a survey and found a majority of institutions had $5 llion in maintenance. we still need those unrestricted funds to take care of the facilities and upgrade institutions in a way where we can retain students who have increased enrollments. >> better known colleges are not in danger. but other institutions have not experienced the same surge in interest. >> one third, 30 to 35 of them were in the red zone. there were tuition-driven. for an institution to be

tuition-driven is like an individual living paycheck to paycheck. reporter: john served as the president of morehouse college and a white house advisor. he is writing a book and says the schools should seize the moment. >> we have seen it come and go in cycles. to a back to the 1980's with ronald reagan, it was more racially hostile. the ideal is for hcbu's of their own magnetism, to not be subject to the whims of the marketplace. reporter: hcbu's play a broader role in society with a history of propelling black students into the middle class. >> social movements have transformed. they can go from the bottom to middle class because of the tools and skills they get. spelman is an incubator.

>> to the extent the u.s. remains hostile to people who are different, you need special mission institutions. you need women's colleges, travel colleges. reporter: despite the challenges, it came down to something basic. >> i am able to look around and feel like the people around me understand me. i can feel a sense of belonging. reporter: it's a powerful reason students will pick hcbu's.

judy: nina totenberg has been covering the supreme court sin the 1970's. it was early in her career she would form a decade long friendship with ruth bader ginsburg. i spoke with her yesterday about her relationship and the focus of her new book, a memoir and the power of friendships. thank you for joining us. one thing that people may not know is that you met ruth bader ginsburg in 1971, 20 years before she was on the supreme court. tell us that story. >> well, i called her up because i didn't understand something. in a brief she'd filed in what turned out to be the firstajor sex discrimination case in which the supreme court said women are covered by the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment. judy: she was a law professor.

nina: and she was a law professor at rutgers. and i called her up and i got an hour long lecture. and after that, i started calling her more and more. and we became first professional friends and then personal friends. judy: and what kind of friendship was it? i an, you have so many stories in the book about times you spent together. how close were you truly to her? nina: well, i think i was most close to her toward the end of her life in the last couple of years, especially during the lockdown, when our house was really the only place outside her apartment that she went. my husband and i cooked dinner for her and me about, i think, 23 or 24 straight saturdays. and they were always reserved for ruth -- we were always close. but i didn't see her every day or even every week. sometimes i saw hefrom a distance on the bench. but we were lifelong friends, essentially from the time we were young women on. judy: there is an overused adage

about this town which goes along this line if you want a real friend in washington, get a dog. it's a reference to how transactional so many relaonships are. but you haven't found that? nina: no. my experience has been quite to the contrary, that if you're interested in people and you like people, they're interested in you and like you back. and i had conservative friends like justice scalia, who are my friends for decades, in addition to ruth and other people that who are not household words. and it was really important to me and i think to them that we were able to be friends despite whatever they didn't like, maybe something i wrote about them or whatever. they could get over it and i

could get over. well, it's not easy sometimes to write critically about somebody you like, but it's your job. and my experience has been that it's better to know the people you're covering and understand who they are than to not know these people at all. but there are boundaries. and when you cover a supreme court justice or a judge, the boundaries are pretty clear. judy: but doesn't being friends with someone make you more disposed to want to see their side of a story of of an argument? nina: well you want to see everybody's side. that's what we're supposed to do. every when i write a story, my

object is to make sure it's fair and that everybody has their say so. and what i think is frankly not relevant. judy: i want to circle back to justice ginsburg. she was well known for her friendship with the late justice antonin scalia, who couldn't have been more different from her, apparently, in terms of their judicial philosophy. is that kind of friendship possible in today's court, do you think? nina: i'm not sure. i mean, the court now today seems quite riven by divisions and there is no center of the court. in the decades that i've covered the court, there always was a center one, two or three people who were not in one camp or another. and and it sort of made everybody try to reach consensus, i think, a little more. that's not true today. there are six very conservative justices. it's probably a court more conservative than any court in maybe 90 years.

and it's it seems to me that after the leak, the celebrated leak especially, that that it's a court with a lot of problems. judy: and what do you think that portends in terms of what this court is going to be able to do? nina: i don't know. i mean, the chief justice has talked about the the people should still trust the court, even when they don't agree. but when the court itself is so internally divided and so unhappy with each other, i think it it doesn't help matters. judy: the last thing i want to ask you about, also related to justice ginsburg is the dobbs decision. you make it very clear in the book how she had this long standing view of women's reproductive rights, even though she thought that the roe decision might have been too sweeping, too much, too fast, but she still had very strong views on it.

do you think if she were still on the court, that we would have seen the dobbs? nina: i don't think that there were the votes. the difference is that if she had been there still, it would have been 5 to 4. and just chief justice roberts, who had a more modest approach to limiting roe, i guess one would say, might well have prevailed. but it's 6 to 3 and they don't need his vote. i mean, he's a very active conservative republican in some areas, but you know, this was just a step too far for him, i think. and he made that pretty clear and he couldn't get anybody to go along with him. judy: well, the book is nina totenberg's dinners with ruth, a memoir on the power of friendships. thank you, nina. nina: thank you, dear friend.

judy: at the emmys last night, sheryl lee ralph won an oscar for avid elementary. her acceptance speech itself won rave reviews as she sang an a cappella version of endangered species. >> family goes to, cheryl lieb brown. -- dme goes to, sheryl lee ralph. ♪

i am an endangered species. i am a woman. i am an artist. ♪ judy: how about that? geoff bennett spoke with sheryl lee ralph last spring. >> it's a workplace comedy focused on teachers at an elementary school in philadelphia. it provided new ways of refocusing audience attention on problems. we're joined by a veteran

actress, cheryl lee. she is known for her breakthrough roles in dream girls. she became a cultural fixture thanks to tv shows and films. welcome. it's great to have you here. we should say, the show is abc's first comedy to quadruple its ratings since it's premier. >> there is something about the way this show with the use of entertainment comedy is talking about something on everyone's minds. that is the teacher or education or lack thereof of america's children. >> what is going on in this classroom?

>> your abandoning the principal. >> abbott elementary is all about paying attention to the needs of some of the most underrated, underappreciated people in america. they deserve more respect. they deserve more support. they deserve to be paid more. more should be given to those who mold the hearts and minds of america's children. do not take what it is they bring to this country. to this community, to the city. do not underestimate that. when you underestimate that, you

underestimate the possibility of america's children. >> is an interesting way to look at these issues and elevate them, people do not know they are learning something. >> that is the magic of our creator. her mother was a teacher, so she went to school with her mother for years, she saw the workings of schools like philadelphia where she is from. >> i was in the gifted program. >> people laugh, they enjoy it. then they have conversations that last for hours once the show is over. comedy is an amazing thing. it deserves more respect. >> it's hard to understand. i'm getting the hang of it. >> you come from a different generation.

it will be understandable if you are having trouble. >> it's tech. i love tech. i once even wrote in a tesla. >> i was like i love this girl, i love her. she and i had met on the set of another show and she spent a great deal of time just looking at me, observing me. it was wonderful 18 months later to get this call of an offer and she wanted me to meet all of the people. >> what do you think in this vantage point, you have opened so many doors and you have folks who are not only stars of their own projects but creators and producers of them? >> it's been a long and rocky road to get to this place.

that he could only be a side hobby. so little that would be made available to me, how would i possibly make a living? i had such incredible mentors that came before me. >> they don't make men like sidney poitier. >> sidney poitier who recently lost castmate in my first film, taught me so much about what it was like to be in an industry that was going to make it difficult for you. >> i love what i do so much. i know the heavy lifng that went on in took place to get us to this beautiful time. >> this past december marks 40 years since dream girls. when you reflect back, how do

you characterize the impact of that role on your career? >> there is something about the lyrics in the song. ♪ >> every girl has her own special dream, and those dreams are about to come true if you just open your eyes to what is in front of you. from then until nowi say to those little girls, look in the mirror, open your eyes and love what you see. >> thank you so much for your time. regulations on your success. judy: thank you.

twin cities presents a documentary on those who struggle with thoughts of suicide, facing suicide explores the stories of americans impacted by suicide and journeys to the front lines to meet those who are working to help people at risk. >> lonely. really lonely. when you're depressed, the only thing you can think about is yourself. i had people looking out for me but i push them away and did not even give them a chance. >> the community has a role to play in preventing suicide. >> you can come around that individual to remind them they are worthy. there is help, there is a way through any challenge. >> if you are thinking about killing yourself, know that you are loved and cared for. today might be hard, tomorrow is

a new day. judy: facing suicide premieres tonight on pbs. that is the newshour for tonight. join us online and again here tomorrow. for all of us, thank you. please stay safe and we will see you soon. >> major funding has been provided by. >> architect. beekeeper. mentor. raymondjames taylor's advice to help you live your life. life well-planned. >> carnegie corporation of new york. carnegie.org.

the target foundation. committed to advancing racial equity and creating the change required that shift systems that accelerate economic opportunity. 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 by viewers like you. thank you.

. hello, everyone and welcome to "amanpour and company". >> we gher today in remembrance of the remarkable span of the queen's dedicated service. >> king charles on honors his mother queen elizabeth and leads the royal family in a moving procession behind her coffin. sir david manning joins me. plus, the former archbishop of canterbury on how the queen's deep rooted faith shapes her life and on elizabeth, the cultural icon. also ahead. >> we cannot allow russia to continue the same occupation that they started back in