william: good evening. i'm william brangham. amna: and i'm amna nawaz in uvalde, texas. on the newshour tonight, families mark one year since the mass shooting at robb elementary as they wrestle with still unanswered questions about the police response and where their community goes from here. william: then, florida governor ron desantis announces he's running for president. how his bid could shape the republican race. amna: and ngo has pushed the taliban amid a worsening humanitarian crisis. >> it's beyond catastrophic, really, because we are probably having the highest number of people in acute need of

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william: one year ago, today, a gunman entered robb elementary school in uvalde, texa killing 21 people, including 19 children. it was one of the worst school shootings in u.s. history. amna: here in uvalde, those 21 families are still mourning their loss. the survivors are living with trauma. and a community is still searching for answers. among those we spoke to, javier cazares, whose 9-year-old daughter jackie was among those killed today. one year later, he says, he's struggling to move on. how often do you think about that day? >> every day. amna: every day. >> it's nonstop. it's a nightmare, we, i can't wake up from. amna: one year ago, javier cazares frantically waited with other parents outside robb elementary as gunshots rang out. trapped inside, his 9-year-old

daughter, jackie, who loved dancing, and dogs, and dreamed of one day going to paris. >> she was the light of our life. sassy, funny, a little jerk sometimes. she just had that spark in her life where she touched people. amna: jackie was one of 19 fourth-graders and two teachers killed by an 18-year-old gunman with an ar-15 style rifle in one of the worst mass shootings in texas history. you dropped her off that day. do you remember the last thing you said to her? >> i blew her a kiss goodbye. and she did the same. and that was the last time i saw her. amna: dr. roy guerrero was at the hospital that day as children were brought in. >> i still don't believe it. i still can't believe what i saw. these are nine, ten-year-old

little kids ripped apart that they had to, you know, in some instances smear blood on themselves to survive amna: dr. g, as he's known, is uvalde's only pediatrician. five of the victims were his patients. many of the survivors still are. >> by no means are any of these children back to normal. i have kids that are terrified to even step back in the classroom again. i have kids that are in full blown ptsd, you know? i mean, nightmares and, you know, being paranoid and seeing the killer and feeling that he's coming after them. i don't think there is true healing from this, even in the long term. amna: in the year since the shooting, residents and media have fought for more information like security camera and body camera footage to be released. questions remain about why it took nearly 400 officers on the scene and an astonishing 77 minutes before they confronted the gunman, even as emergency

calls poured in, some from students stuck inside. >> he's inside the school shooting at the kids. >> there's a school shooting, robb elementary school. >> send help, some of my teachers are still alive but they're shot. amna: days after the shooting, the head of the state's public safety department admitted waiting was a mistake. >> from the benefit of hindsight, where i'm sitting now, of course, it was not the right decision. it was the wrong decision, period. amna: an investigation by texas lawmakers later found systemic failures. but families of those killed want answers and accountability. they've packed school board meetings, demanding officers be fired and security improved. they filed a class-action lawsuit against the city, school district, and multiple law enforcement agencies. >> raise the age. raise the age. amna: and they've pushed for gun violence reform, like raising the age to purchase a semi-automatic weapon in texas from 18 to 21. that effort failed in the state

legislature. >> why do these people who sit in power sit there and do absolutely nothing while our children are slaughtered? amna: brett cross's ten-year-old son uziyah garcia was killed that day. >> i'm not a political person. all i want is justice and accountability for my son, his classmates and teachers. that's all i want. and i don't want any other child to go through what my son did. i don't want any other parent to have to have a funeral for their child. amna: robb elementary is shuttered. officials plan to demolish it. last fall, uvalde students returned to other classrooms, but not all of them. do you ever miss being in school, being in a classroom? >> kind of. amna: nine-year-old zayon was at

robb, in second grade during the shooting. since that day, he's refused to return to a classroom, and only attends virtually. >> imagine if you were a child, an eight, nine or ten-year-old child, and you know that your friends got slaughtered to where you couldn't even identify them. amna: his father adam, raised in uvalde, has become an activist and a leading voice for parents whose children survived that day. >> you'll see a lot of survivors guilt. people hold it in because they're like, well, my son survived, my daughter survived. so a lot of times they're afraid to speak out. but it hurts when you hold it in and sometimes you just got to say what you feel. because he was there and he's not the same child anymore. >> it catches her eyes beautifully. amna: every week, javier visits jackie's mural downtown. he's on a mission to remember, and fight for change. >> and it hasn't happened. and it is saddening because, i mean, what more does it take? it's our babies. amna: he checks on her cross at the town square memorial. that's the same photo that you have on your shirt? >> yes, ma'am. amna: what's that from? >> her first communion.

she had it for communion, on mother's day of last year. and that's the dress we buried her in as well. amna: and back home, he's kept her room exactly as she left it that day. you haven't touched it in the last year? >> no. amna: why not? >> well, i mean, that's how she had it. and then she was particular, but i mean, she had her things nice and neat she has her, you know, shirt and shorts folded up nice and neat. and so i didn't want to bother that. it is something that if i change, i'm going to miss. amna: do you go in the room? i go in there maybe two or three times a day. i go in there before bed, i pray like when she was there. sometimes i just go and talk. i just walk around and look at

everything. i'm sure fathers say this all the time about their daughters, but she was special. amna: the pain is still so fresh air for these families but now there are divides about how to move forward, not just on accountability, but also on gun violence prevention. william: meanwhile back here in washington, president biden also marked the anniversary of this tragedy, and he again appealed for congressional action. pres. biden: how many more parents live their worst nightmare before we stand up the gun lobby? establish universal background checks? establish a national red flag laws? require safe storage of firearms and end immunity from liability for gun manufacturers?

the only major corporate entities that's immune to liability. even a majority of responsible gun owners support these common sense actions to save lives and keep our community safe. william: the concern about guns, and the violence done with them, is growing in this country. our latest newshour-npr-marist poll finds that 4 in ten americans believe schools in their own communities are not safe from gun violence. half of all u.s. parents with kids under 18 know someone who has experienced gun violence. and six out of ten americans now say it's more important to control gun violence than to protect gun rights. that's up 11% since the sandy hook massacre. but republicans and democrats have long had very different views about what practically can be done, and that brings us back to amna in uvalde. amna: former republican congressman will hurd is one of the few in his party calling for meaningful gun reform. he represented uvalde for 6 years while serving texas' 23rd congressional district, and i

spoke with him moments ago. you have heard of some of the frustration from the families about the lack of action. what is your message today? >> the message to the families is i am sorry and keep fighting, keep telling the stories because that is what will ultimately get elected officials to come around. i cannot even begin to imagine the loss of a child. it is the worse -- worst pain anyone could ever have and i unfortunately saw that at a young age. different story and different issue but having to talk to parents when i was 22, i do not know how any elected official talking to a parent who has suffered the worst loss they will ever have just is not

willing to do some of these common sense things that could solve the problem. we know that if you change the age from 18 to 21 four a high caliber rifle, that alone would have changed uvalde and the lives of 21 families so to the parents, i know it is hard for them to wake up during the day and sit in a room of their nine-year-old child who is gone, but it will be their efforts and telling their stories that will see change. we saw that in texas at the statehouse. the legislation was not signed into law but it was movement and it was because of the parents. amna: let me ask you about

things you have been calling for. measures like raising the age from 18 to 21, red flag laws, criminal background checks, have broad support. when you were in congress you were one of just a handful of republicans to vote for that. if your republican colleagues couldn't vote for it then, what makes you think they would vote for it today? >> it's a good question and i wish i had the answer. i think i was one of eight back when that happened and the reality is responsible gun owners believe in background checks. i do not know anyone who owns a gun who has not been through a background check. whether it is their livelihood or they do it for sport, responsible gun owners believe people should have a background

check. a lot of republicans are concerned that they will have people on social media criticize them and be like, this is going to impact you in an election and potentially lose a primary. that is ultimately the fear. and i do not think it is valid. i always tell people, listen, i have the same sort of problems in a primary that anyone else has and i was still able to survive. you have to be willing to go and explain why these things matter. and i'm sorry, you just cannot look a parent in the eye and if someone says there is nothing you can do, they are lying. there are several common sense steps supported by republican primary voters and democratic

primary voters that prevent this medicine -- metamorphosis of someone into a mass murderer. amna: you have called for mental health. after the shooting there were some gun control measures and funding for mental health and the majority of republicans voted against it. how do you see the actions of republican colleagues matching up with the cause for more mental health resources? >> the proof is in the pudding. people talk a big game but it depends on your actions. we need to start treating mental health in the united states as health. do people know who to call? if someone this afternoon sees something on social media that someone they know is exhibiting dangerous behavior, do they know what to do and who to call? and does that person have the

resources to response to the call and prevent it from happening? this basic infrastructure is not in place and that basic training we do not have in schools and businesses on how to respond ha, more than half of our teenagers are worried about going to school that they will get shot. that is 25 million kids. that's insane. add the parents on top of it were equally concerned. if you do not think that is a problem, if you are not concerned, you need to -- if you do not think that is a problem, if you are concerned, go and vote. i do not care about your political affiliation. you have to say enough is enough and there were always people in the primary who are probably a

little bit better than what our options are in november. that is the kind of activism we need if we are going to see change. amna: are you joining the presidential primary? >> if i have the opportunity to serve my country i will and i plan on making the decision soon. amna: thank you for joining us. >> thank you. william: in the day's other headlines, talks on raising the nation's debt limit, and republican demands to curb federal spending in exchange, shifted to the white house, but there is no deal yet. this morning, house speaker kevin mccarthy said negotiators remained far apart. but both sides said they're still hopeful.

>> i am not going to give up. we're not going to default. we're going to solve this problem. i will stay with it until we can get it done. but, let's be honest about this. we have to spend less than we spent last year. >> they remain to be productive. we believe that if they continue to work in good faith and recognize that neither side is going to get what they want, we can get this done. william: later, speaker mccarthy said things went better in this afternoon's talks. if there is no agreement, the nation could begin defaulting on its debts around june 1. a super typhoon pounded guam today with sustained winds of 140 miles an hour and torrential rains. it crawled across the island's northern tip as the most powerful storm there in decades, and then headed west. forecasters warned that guam could get as much as 25 inches of rain, on top of a storm surge that's 4 to 6 feet high. many communities lost power, and

at least one hotel was wrecked. there were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries. germany's government has launched a crackdown on climate protesters who have blocked roads and glued themselves to various artworks across europe. today police raided 15 properties links to activists in a group called first generation. this is after the german chancellor granted the group completely nutty. >> today's measures show that the rule of law does not allow to being taken for a fool. the police and the judiciary do not accept crimes, but they act as is their duty. the red line in the constitutional state is quite clear, legitimate protest always ends where crimes are committed and the rights of others are violated. william: the activists insisted they will not be cowed, and will instead keep pressuring governments to do more to address climate change.

in sudan, sporadic clashes broke out today in khartoum and elsewhere, despite a ceasefire between the army and a rival paramilitary group. the u.n. migration agency reported that these five weeks of fighting have forced more than 1.3 million people to flee their homes. of those, some 320,000 have crossed into neighboring countries, as the humanitarian burden spreads across the region. back in this country, the texas legislature has approved new standards for letting school libraries ban books that are deemed sexually inappropriate. the republican bill went to the governor last night, despite objections that it is vague and could be used to target any works with lgbtq content. meanwhile, montana's republican governor signed a bill that bans anyone in drag costume from reading to children in public schools and libraries. the supreme court's chief justice, john roberts, now says the court must do more to address ethics concerns.

that follows reports of justice clarence thomas accepting expensive trips and other gifts from a texas businessman, but not disclosing them. roberts addressed the issue last night in a speech in washington. he didn't mention thomas or offer any specifics. >> i want to assure people that i am committed to making certain that we as a court adhere to the highest standards of conduct. we are continuing to look at things we can do to give practical effect to that commitment. william: the justices recently signed a statement of ethics, but that has done little to quiet the demands for stronger action. and, on wall street, worries about the debt ceiling talks weighed on the market again. the dow jones industrial average lost 255 points to close below 32,800. the nasdaq fell 76 points. the s&p 500 gave up 30. and, a legendary performer in the music industry has died.

tina turner passed away today at her home in switzerland. stephanie sy looks back on her remarkable life and career. ♪ stephanie: she was the undisputed queen of rock 'n' roll, a black woman who conquered every stage with sexuality, power, and raw emotion.

in a career spanning 8 decades, tina turner sold more than 100 million records, won 12 grammys and in 2021 was inducted into the rock 'n' roll hall of fame. born in the tennessee delta, turner rose to fame with ike turner. the “ike and tina turner revue” broke out with a bevy of hits, including “proud mary”. turner's soulful rasp and stage presence enthralled fans. but behind the scenes, she was a victim of domestic abuse. turner endured more than a decade of husband ike turner's beatings and infidelity. the late ike once broke her jaw. she left him in 1978. years later, she explained why she stayed as long as she did in the relationship to australian 60 minutes. >> became a way of life. i had put everything on hold because it was existence of children involved. nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. my advice is make up your mind, and don't go back. i was prepared to go through whatever i had to go through with ike turner, even if it was

death, because i would never go back. ♪ stephanie: she did initially struggle getting a solo recording contract, but when she did come back, it was by storm with the 1984 album “private dancer.” by then in her mid-40s, the album's song “what's love got to do with it” became her best-selling single. after her comeback, she published a groundbreaking autobiography. “i, tina” was adapted to the silver screenwith tina turner played by angela bassett. as a live performer, turner was an originalinspiring the likes of mick jagger and beyoncethe moves and that voice. she was simply the best. william: tina turner was 83

years old. still to come on the newshour, how the taliban's restrictions on women are hindering the delivery of much-needed foreign aid. and, actor rainn wilson shares what he's learned from his jourys around the world in search of well-being. the race for president has a new big-name candidate. florida's governor ron desantis officially announced his campaign today in a conversation, on twitter, with ceo elon musk. desantis: in florida, we prov

that it can be done. we chose facts over fear, education over indoctrination, law and order over rioting and disorder. we held the line when freedom hung in the balance. we showed that we can and must revitalize america we need the courage to ld and the strength to win. william: the republican governor is a headline-generating machine, shaping national fights over covid policies, education, corporate speech, and immigration. but, he faces an uphill climb against his former ally, now turned antagonist donald trump. lisa desjardins reports. desantis: florida is where woke goes to die. lisa: he heard cheers early as a florida kid making it to the little league world series. a baseball player at yale as well. he then went on to harvard law school. from there, desantis chose the military. as an officer with the navy's judge advocate general, he worked at the guantanamo bay prison in cuba. one former detainee alleges desantis oversaw beatings and force feedings of prisoners,

which he has denied. friends of ron desantis he also served in iraq and was awarded a bronze star. in 2012, desantis rode the tea party wave into congress where he opposed obama administration policies, but rarely stood out. then 39, desantis made his move running for governor of the sunshine state. initially trailing in the primary, desantis launched an all-out blitz for then-president trump's endorsement, putting his young family and the most famous ad of the year. he won trump's endorsement, the primary and then a razor-thin victory in november to become governor. >> all i can promise is the sweat off my brow, a full heart, my best judgment and the courage of my convictions. lisa governor desantis made a : national name for himself in the covid pandemic quickly ending stay-at-home orders, and opposing mask and vaccine mandates. the state saw a wave of deaths

but a boom to the onomy. >> if you are trying to lock people down, i am standing in your way and i am standing for the people of florida. lisa that kind of cultural : confrontation has become his brand. in 2021 the state's department of education enacted a ban on teaching critical race theory in schools, though it had not part of state curriculum. he used state resources to fly migrants from the southern border to places like martha's vineyard. in 2022 he signed the parental rights in education act banning talk of sexual orientation and gender identity before fourth grade. critics call the "law don't say gay." when the walt disney company, florida's largest employer, openly opposed the law, desantis launched a new fight. desantis this state is governed : by the interests of the people of the state of florida. it is not based on the demands of california corporate executives. lisa: disney and desantis have wrestled ever since, with the company recently pulling out of a billion dollar development in the state. this year he signed a law banning abortion after six-wks

of pregnancy and has questioned the u.s. involvement in the war in ukraine. through it all, his policies became a blueprint for other republicans. but one ally has turned cold. trump: the problem with ron desanctimonious is that he needs a personality transplant. and those are not yet available. lisa: time will tell if governor who has driven conversation on the right can steer his way to the white house. for more on how ron desantis's campaign launch could shake up the gop primary race, i'm joined by another florida man, republican carlos curbelo, who served in congress with desantis. let's start with the unique announcement, audio only, on twirler test twitter. >> i think desantis wants to create a generational distinction between him and donald trump so this is his way of saying i am different, i am

new, i am a younger, better version and i can appeal to the rising generations of voters, which republicans will increasingly need to rely on if they are going to win national elections. lisa: a year ago the name desantis was echoing but not now. even in the last few days, some running against him are mocking him. nikki haley has an ad out showing his hands next to trump's hands. they are saying he is trump light. >> one of the challenges for desantis is he peak to last november. he had a big reelection here in florida, winning 60% of the votes. a lot of people would argue he has pushed florida into becoming a red estate or at least a pink state so desantis was on top of the political universe and a lot

of people would call that peaking too early. he had some stumbles, trump's started aggressively attacking him and he was kind of making the case for a long time that he was basically the same as donald trump, just a little better, a little more disciplined, and it does seem that that would be a difficult argument to make if you want to make a compelling case for change, if trump is so popular and you want to convince people to choose you instead of him, the argument desantis was making was not resonating. lisa: he has become a cultural warrior on issues like what teachers can say about race in their classroom, he has a lightning rod and targeted the lgbtq community. that has helped him with some but what do you think? >> ironically desantis has been

telling people for a while that he needs to be the nominee because donald trump can't win and now trump and his campaign have kind of flipped the argument, saying desantis has gone so far to the right on a lot of these social and cultural issues that he is the one who would have trouble gaining centrist voters support in a general election. to give you an idea of how far ron desantis went to the right, donald trump is criticizing him on abortion and for his brawl with disney, which has now convinced or dissuaded the company from investing $1 billion in florida and creating 2000 new jobs here so certainly what ron desantis did during the last legislative session to build his record for a primary electorate could end up hurting him in a general election and

his chief rival and former mental donald trump is making the same argument. william: who should democrats be most afraid of? >> conventional wisdom is that a new, fresh republican face that can bring in new people into the republican coalition and will not scare away critical suburban swing voters is the most dangerous candidate for biden because they would be a huge contrast in terms of age and generational differences. you ron desantis be that candidate? it seems that -- cad ron desantis -- can ron desantis be that candidate? it seems that way six months ago . it will be critical for him to show that he can be the

candidate that brings all republicans together, consolidates their support, and to bring in the some swing voters and maybe some moderate democrats into the republican coalition. lisa: thank you so much for talking with us. >> thank you. william: afghanistan is facing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. nearly two years since the taliban took power, afghans are facing extreme levels of poverty and many are dependent on aid for their survival. but the taliban's crackdown on women makes delivering that crucial help even harder. the taliban's takeover of afghanistan has hurt many but there role has cut women the deepest. many here in the factory try to

earn a living as tailors. the person in the back used to be a law student. >> the worst situation is when your dreams are shattered and you are punished for being a woman. we are not even allowed to study and get educated. william: what women are allowed to do depends on the taliban strict interpretation of law. they are barred from most forms of employment. they cannot go to school beyond six grade and they are barred from working for any ngo. including the u.n..

this has upended their lives, but also those of the afghans whose survival depends on the delivery of humanitarian aid. >> let me be crystal clear. we will never be silent in the face of unprecedented systemic attacks on women and girls rights. william: but experts tell pbs newshour un agencies are now divided on the best path forward, and in some cases have resumed male-only operations we spoke to one un worker. (she asked to remain anonymous for fear of losing her job. >> some females, they're the

only persons who financially support their families. so if they cannot work, so how can they support their family financially? everyone is worrying and they are concerning about their jobs. actually, here i cannot express totally every girl, every woman, what we are feeling. every girl, every woman, they really lost their hope. @01:15 they cannot educate, they cannot go to the courses, even they cannot go to the parks. william: meanwhile, the humanitarian crisis in the country fueled by drought, and a is worsening fueled by drought, and a, cratered economy. 97% of afghans now live in extreme poverty. earlier this year the un launched an appeal for 4.6 billion dollars, but that remains largely unfunded. foreign aid groups like the norwegian refugee council, or nrc, are calling on the taliban to lift restrictions so they can continue to deliver humanitarian assistance. nrc secretary general jan egeland met with key taliban officials this week to try and press them to reverse the ban. i spoke with him earlier today from kabul. jan egeland, thank you so much it has been almost two years now for being here. since the taliban took over. and we know that conditions are worsening in afghanistan can you . can you give us a sense of the humanitarian situation right now? >> it's beyond catastrophic,

really, and it is very strange that there is not more of the limelight on afghanistan because we are probably having the highest number of people in need of humanitarian aid anywhere in the world. 28 million to 30 million people need help. millions and millions are now acutely malnourished. i'm talking about children breast-feeding mothers. it's it's it's beyond belief, the suffering. and at the same time, we have problems in accessing a population because of the ban on our female workers. and we have a donors who are turning their back to afghanistan. william: can you explain why the ban on women working for organizations like yours makes it hard to do your work in afghanistan? >> really two reasons. first is we cannot work without a women because according to the afghan tradition, long before the taliban, many men could not really contact work with women , outside of the family. so when they say, work with your men only the men cannot go to , the widows, to single mother

households and so on. we would not do good work. the other reason is also we we will not cast aside half of our of our workforce. what kind of precedent with that set for afghanistan and for other countries that may contemplate that. so we forced work or we was we felt we were stopped to work the day after christmas when this came. little by little, we've been able n to get exemptions, so now we're back to three quarters of an operation of what we had at the end of last year, but we really have had a much bigger operation because the needs are growing. william: you recently met with taliban officials, and we know the taliban is an atomized organization, but do you have any sense that the leadership in kandahar or kabul actually has control over the entire country? >> i think, yes, it's perhaps a more coherent movement than we believe. but it is very clear that they disagree on a number of things. ministers here in kabul, where i

am now, disagree with the decision made by the emir in kandahar, which was a ban on females working in our organizations, and secondly, higher education actually and primary school for girls and women. they say we disagree. william: the u.n. secretary general, antonio guterres, referred to what the taliban is doing there as as gender-based apartheid. do you share that characterization? and in your conversations with taliban leadership, do you have any sense that they're that they will modify those positions at all? >> i a.call it apartheid, call u know, egregious, systematic gender discrimination. when i talk to my female colleagues here, basically they say they took away cultural activities for us, they took away the education for our

daughters, and now they took away our work. the hopelessness is heartbreaking. but at the same time, it's possible for us little by little to operate, so when i met with thoday, a majority of them have been involved now in some kind offf s work. we have exemptions for education, we have for health work, we have for some activities in some provinces. some can work from home and go to t fields, but not to the office, etc. what they also told me, however, was that they're very disappointed with the western donors who gave all of these phenomenal promises, and where are they now, they ask. we see donors funding dwindling and that is why nrc have had to lay off male and female staff is not the taliban. it's the donor cuts that forced us to lay off work now.

i came out of kandahar actually with promises of guidelines now soon that could enableheal to d specific agreement in kandahar, which is one of the most conservative places in afghanistan, for an interim measure that would allow a females to come back and work for women in the in afghanistan. william: on that issue of donors pulling back their aid to organizations like yours, when you talk to those donors, how do they justify that to you, given the extent of the need there? >> many of these are female ministers of development who say, no, how can we fund a country with that kind of a regime that systematically tramples on the rights of women? we need to hold money back. but my point is we are then politicizing humanitarian relief, which is not going to the well-fed taliban soldiers or leaders, this is going to women and children.

so it's the miss misconstrued belief that you are sort of punishing taliban when you're really actually undermining work for very poor people. william: someone who has dedicated their career to humanitarian issues like you have, i don't want to put words in your mouth, but this has got to feel like an, i don't know, frustrating or infuriating circumstance. >> absolutely heartbreaking. i was first time in afghanistan during the previous taliban regime where we tried also at that time to get girls education going and we couldn't. then came the 20 plus years of nato's american led operations. trillions spent on a failed military campaign. and now seeing the lack of interest, it is ukraine morning, evening, of course, it's now also for all of us, sudan, etc..

we cannot go away from the 40 million civilians whom we left behind, who they left behind. we did not leave. we are here. they left behind 40 million civilians and went for the door in august of two years to go. william: john egeland of the norwegian refugee council, thank you so much for being here. >> thank you. william: there's a new series out this month about traveling the wide world looking for the happiest places on earth. but you might be surprised by the travel guide, a man many know for being stuck at a desk job, in an office. geoff bennett caught up with actor rainn wilson during this mental health awareness month to discuss his personal and professional journeys. it's part of our arts and culture series canvas. >> how are you feeling? >> i don't want to be this cold. i'm scared. reporter: wilson travels far and

wide from iceland to ghana. and beyond in a six part series. wilson is recognizable to many as dwight schroot from "the office," the critically acclaimed mokumentary sitcom series that ran for 9 seasons on nbc. over the years, he has taken on other projects from films such as juno, to more recently weird: the al yankovic story. while he continued the comedic work he also turned inward, , asking bigger life questions through a media company he founded called soul pancake,

and, now with a book "soul boom", why we need a spiritual revolution released this spring. rainn wilson joined me from a recording studio, to explain why he took the plunge. so with this new series, you wanted to find the key to inner happiness and you went around the world looking for it. what did you discover? >> so we went to four countries in this first season. iceland, ghana, west africa, bulgaria and thailand. and then back to los angeles to see if i could take what i found about bliss, joy, happiness, well-being and apply it to my life back at home. and, you know, to boil it all down, it's not any great mystery. the thing that i really came away with in my heart about finding bliss is it's all about connection. it's all about community. it's not a big surprise. the people that were the most vital and lived the most meaningful lives did so in relationship with others. reporter: it's interesting. i use the word happiness and you use the word bliss. do you see a difference between the two things? >> i do. i have a personally, i have a problem with the word happiness, because happiness is a result of certain things being in place. you know what i mean? like you, you lick an ice cream

cone and a butterfly lands on your shoulder and you feel happy. or the next day you can go like an ice cream cone and wait for a butterfly and maybe feel miserable and anxious and worried about the next day. so what are actions that you can take in your life? what are initiatives that you can take? what's an outlook that you can shift, a perspective to tweak, in order to achieve what experts in that field really call well-being? you know, that sense of being connected, grounded, joyful, and alive and vibrant on the inside. reporter: in this series, you lay bare your personal challenges publicly. how did you feel about that initially? was there any reservation? >> you know, maybe i've just been in therapy for too long. i have no problem talking about my struggles come my issues, my traumas difficulties that i've , had. and i talk about my anxiety disorder and depression and other issues. and so for me, this journey was

a personal journey, as well as anything else. i wanted to find out some of these answers that, you know, we americans, we can be a little arrogant sometimes. maybe we've got something to learn from the people of ghana and the people of thailand and the people of iceland. and i was excited to try that out both on myself as kind of a guinea pig and to share my findings. reporter: traveling to find contentment or bliss is not something that most people can do. based on your travels, how can people find that closer to home or within? >> what we're trying to do on the show is not to say, hey, happiness is what's going to make you. what we're trying to say on the show is not that travel is going to make you happy, but what can we learn from other cultures that we can apply at home? and i think that there there is of a wealth of evidence out there for all kinds of the things that we're discovering. for instance, in iceland, i did a cold plunge in the arctic ocean with a group of powerful, amazing viking women that every morning they sing songs and hold

hands and they walk into the arctic ocean. cold plunge therapy is something that you can do at home. you can do it in your shower. you don't need to have a fancy cold plunge in order to do it. and the vikings have been doing it for thousands of years. reporter: there is a spiritual thread throughout your recent work, rainn. you also have a book calling for a spiritual revolution. the book is called "soul boom" and you write that we as a culture have discounted spirituality, that we've moved away from faith, we've moved away from the sacred, and that we need to return to it. tell me more about that. >> well, the thesis of the book is that we've kind of thrown the spiritual baby out with the religious bathwater. in western culture, especially in big city america, we've so uniformly rejected religion for a lot of times for very good reasons. you know, we've suffered a lot of trauma at the hands of religion. some terrible acts of barbarity

have been done in the name of an all-loving god. and i understand why people have left. but there are spiritual tools at the foundation of all of the world's great faith traditions that we can draw from that can transform our lives, and more importantly, that we can use to help transform our society. reporter: how does being spiritual, being faithful translate to the work you do in hollywood? >> well, that's a great question. they're often at odds. but i do feel that in the spirit of the divine creator, the creative force that pulses through every molecule in this physical plane and an infinite other number of planes past this one, that the act of entertaining can be a service. and i think people that have loved and watched "the office" for decades now feel a great sense of peace and calm and serenity in the watching of the show. and it uplifts their hearts and souls. and i get to be a part of that. so there's a service element and

that essential element of creating something where there's nothing, being an artist, there's a blank page, there's a blank stage, there's a silent room, and you get to be a part of creating something beautiful, rich, and magical. i think that is a divine process. i think there's a sacredness and a sublimity to it. reporter: i'd never thought of it in that way, that the work you do as an actor in some ways is a ministry. on the other hand, to lots of people, you will forever be associated with your standout character on "the office," dwight schrute. as you see it, is that a blessing or a burden? >> [laughter] a little bit of both. i mean, i've played dozens of roles before i played dwight and i've played a good dozen or more since i finished playing dwight. that's the one that has found a nerve with audiences, and they love me for it. and listen, i'm so grateful, i wouldn't have been able to write a book. it has opened so many doors for me. reporter: rainn wilson, a real

pleasure to speak with you. thanks for your time. thanks for having me. real pleasure. william: when we talk about climate change, one major issue that's often overlooked is agriculture. science correspondent miles o'brien is focusing on that topic tonight in a special live on our website. miles is here with a quick preview, joining us from the university of illinois at urbana-champaign. tell us about what we can expect tonight. >> we are at the university of illinois sitting on some of the most productive soil in the world and we are going to take a deep dive looking at what agriculture can do to adapt to climate change, and how it might be able to mitigate climate change and all the while continue production. we expect 10 billion people on the planet by 2050 and it will be a warmer climate. but how can they thread the needle? it is extremely complex.

we will take a deep dive with experts, including the head of the senate agriculture committee . join us on the livestream after the broadcast. william: thanks miles. ,you can join that livestream right now on pbs.org/newshour. and that's the newshour for tonight. i'm william brangham. amna: and i'm amna nawaz in uvalde texas, where a community will gather later tonight to remember the 21 people killed in a mass shooting one year ago. we want to thank the residents and families of uvalde for welcoming us back to town and speaking with us, even as they grieve. they've asked us to ask you to not forget what happened here. for all of us at the pbs newshour, thank you for joining us. >> major funding for the "pbs newshour" has been provided by --

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