♪ >> on "the newshour" tonight, a federal judge sets a date for the classified documents case against former president trump in the thick of the 2024 election season. a reporter on the ground in ukraine uncovers evidence that american companies are still supplying parts used in russia's war effort, despite strict sanctions. and efforts to monitor sharks in the northeast are ramped up after a recent wave of encounters. >> this new species from down south that now because of climate change are moving into the area.

>> major funding for "the pbs newshour" has been provided by -- the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. and friends of "the newshour," including jim and nancy build there and kathy and paul anderson. >> the john s. and james l. knight foundation, fostering an informed and engaged communities. more at kf.org. ♪ >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions and individuals. and friends of "the newshour." this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs

station from viewers like you. thank you. >> good evening and welcome to "the newshour." a federal judge today ordered that the trial in the classified documents case against former president trump began on may 20, 2024. the u.s. district judge rejected the justice department's bid to try the case in december as well as the former president's request for a delay until after the 2024 election. the trial in florida is one of many legal obligations trump faces going into the 2024 election cycle, including federal and criminal state probes. let's turn to jessica roth, also a professor of law at cardozo school of law. what is your assessment of this may 2024 trial date? which side does this scheduling

benefit? >> nobody got exactly what they wanted. former president trump wanted the trial postponed indefinitely, so it was a defeat for him in that regard, but the department of justice did not get what it wanted exactly either. they wanted to try the case in december. i think the may 2024 date is reasonable. i think it is consistent with other similar cases, and i think just as importantly, the reasoning the judge explained in her order setting the new schedule was legally sound given the extent of the discovery and the legal issues that will have to be litigated with respect to the use of classified information. i say that because i think it is important in the context of this case. the judge issued rulings in previously related matters that were not legally sound, that were probably reversed by the appellate court, and that strongly suggested she was showing presidential treatment to former president trump. i think the fact that the ruling was legally sound, in my opinion, is significant.

the real next test will be if the judge holds the defense in particular to the schedule she has now set or if she will let it slip further. >> looking at the schedule, this may date falls pretty far into the 2020 four election season. the vast majority of state primaries will be finished by that point. there will likely be a presumptive republican nominee at that point, and it could very well be donald trump. how, if at all, could that affect this case? >> the judge reserved judgment on if you would at future point take into consideration the status of former president trump as potentially a future nominee in further scheduling considerationsor this trial. she did not have to address that now for purposes of setting the schedule going forward, but she left open the door such that perhaps if he is seeming to be a likely nominee at that point, his lawyers could raise the issue of if the campaign

schedule made it a hardship for him to actually have the trial as scheduled in may or would make it hard to see an unbiased jury. it remains to be seen if you would entertain those arguments for a postponement at that point, but it is important to note that if the trial were to slip past the general election, there a very real prospect that it would not happen at all because if former president trump became president again, he would likely direct his attorney general to drop the prosecution, so there's really a lot at stake for when this trial happens if it is postponed beyond any election. voters will not have any information if he has been convicted of these very serious charges when they cast their vote, if that matters to them, but also it may impact if he is actually held accountable in a court of law for this conduct at all. >> thanks so much for your insight. always a pleasure to speak with you. >> thank you.

stephanie: here are the latest headlines. extreme weather continues to plague much of the nation. northeastern ohio was cleaning up today from intense thunderstorms that hit last night and blistering heat afflicting europe and the u.s.. experts warn heat waves are here to stay. >> we are on trend seeing a rise in temperatures. that will contribute to heat waves seeing a rise in frequency and intensity. what also happens is they spread given time. we have likely indications that they are already growing out into spring as the area in which we are seeing the strongest growth in heat waves. >> russian forces continued heavy bombardment of ukraine's odessa region today. cruise missiles took out farm

storage buildings and pounded grain terminals. the russian navy located any ukrainian grain shipments. moscow withdrew this week from a united nations deal that was allowing the shipments. meantime, russia's foreign ministry says it is ready to consider ways to restore the deal in cooperation with turkey. >> the format you propose, a new deal with turkey, is probably possible but only after our demands are met. if they are met, we are ready to consider any options. we are ready to consider any variations of the deal that would consider -- that would continue grain supplies to the markets, both grains and fertilizers. >> the humanitarian aid chief warned that blocking grain exports from ukraine means millions of the in developing countries will go hungry. north korea hired several cruise missiles toward the sea this evening. it follows two ballistic missile launches earlier in the week. the launches are in apparent protest to the docking on

tuesday of a u.s. nuclear armed submarine in south korea. back in this country, lawmakers in alabama have refused to create a second majority black congressional district, a move that may defy a recent supreme court order. the state's voting map will likely face a new round of legal challenges. a helicopter carrying alaska state workers crashed in the north slope region, killing all four on board. it was reported overdue thursday night. wreckage was found in a shallow lake, but no bodies have been recovered. still to come on the newshour, and investigation finds sexual assault claims against immigration officials are routinely ignored. jonathan capehart and gary abernathy weigh in on the week's political headlines. director christopher nolan discusses his new film about the father of the atomic bomb. and we remember the life and legendary career of senior tony

bennett. >> this is "the pbs newshour," from w eta studios in washington and in the west from the walter cronkite school of journalism at the arizona state university. >> again today, ukraine suffered a barrage of russian missile strikes, part of a deadly summer of attacks, but as our special correspondent has discovered, many of the russian-made cruise missiles would not be able to find their targets without the help of american companies. his investigation is supported by the pulitzer center. >> in a village about 25 miles north of the western ukrainian city of kaminski, ukrainian officers show us the remains of a recent russian missile strike against their country, a scene that has become all too familiar in over 500 days of russia's full-scale war. this missile did not hurt

anyone. it was shot down by one of the western russian air defense systems donated to ukraine in recent months. these officers' job is to collect the fragments and bring them back to the capital for analysis. they granted "newshour" unprecedented access to film their work so we could find out for ourselves where the components that help these missiles find their targets come from. >> this looks like it might be part of a flight control unit. this will be really interesting to get a closer look at once it is brought back into the laboratory and cleaned up a little bit. it is motherboards like these that we often find western made microchips in. >> she runs a hospital lab on the other side of the break. president volodymyr zelenskyy's hometown. last month, she lost the thing most dear to her in a russian missile strike. >> i had an only daughter. she lived.

i raised her. i educated her. they took away my meaning of life. >> on june 12, a barrage of missiles including kh 10 one is raining down on the city. >> when the neighbors were escaping, everyone knocked on the door of their apartment, but the door was jammed, and they could hear screaming, and then i heard nothing. that was it. >> a total of 13 people were killed in the attack. >> as a mother, i blame myself. and mother's mission is to keep her safe. why did i not feel in my heart that there was danger? >> you can't blame yourself. >> russia's ability to fire long-range missiles at ukraine has brought the terror of war two cities far from fighting, regularly triggering air raid sirens, shaking the calm of

otherwise peaceful cities. one of the most common use is the airplane-launched kh 101, designed originally by a russian aerospace firm to carry tactical nukes but now fitted with a conventional warhead and an upgraded guidance system. when the kh 101's at densely populated cities, they may be committing a war crime, but does blame for such attacks and their -- end there? ukrainian officials increasingly believe that companies whose components are being found in russian missiles need to be held to account. >> to 315 is characteristic of kh 101's. >> we are at a secret location where technicians analyze fragments recovered from the battlefield. they have cut the flight control unit out of this section, and we are going to look at what they

found inside. if you look at the outer casing of the flight control unit from this kh 101 missile, you see russian parts all over, it looks like a russian computer, but once you open it up and start looking at the motherboards that are hidden inside, put it underneath the electronic microscope, you start to see what the brains of this machine are actually made up, and it is full of american components. >> we look here, we see imported components and not a single domestically made one. this is all tara, analog devices, texas instruments. >> in this instrument alone, we found products made by five american companies, the most recently manufactured of this is this spartan six microchip made by santa clara-based andy in 2020. the company told "newshour" it had no record of the sale of the

chip and suspected the markings on it may have been altered. microchips manufactured after brescia's full-scale invasion started -- after russia's full-scale invasion started have also turned up. >> russia launched the microelectronics war -- russia lost the microelectronics war and this is how it is trying to get by. think about it. all of the mathematics are in one computer and without one little microchip, they could not assemble it. >> it is clear they have been able to assemble it, even though sanctions have been in place against the russian arms industry for almost a decade. i ask the director general for economic diplomacy and sanctions policy at ukraine's ministry of foreign affairs what the u.s. and its allies were doing wrong. quickstep overly cautious with their dialogue and enforcement.

they should explain what will be the punishment if they circumvent or do not comply with sanctions. >> a director at the royal united services institute in london and one of the authors of a report from the russian defense industry's reliance on imported semiconductors echoed the ukrainian view that there was little obvious enforcement of russia sanctions. >> we do have huge fines on some of the large brands. they were all essentially failures in due diligence. if it continues or images that some companies really did not follow any sort of due diligence , it could happen. >> according to russian state records, the kh 10 one is onboard computer is made by a

russian computer maker at a cost of around $9,000 each. >> [speaking foreign language] >> moscow's central research institute of automation and hydraulics purchased 20 units in 2013. it is a leading company in russia in the field of air and ground-launched cruise missile manufacturing. we sent the parts to their american manufacturers to try to find out who they were sold to, but none of the companies were willing or able to provide the information. >> at texas instruments, we are much more than one of the world's leading semiconductor providers. >> this is not entirely surprising. american technology giant texas instruments whose components are turning up in multiple weapons platforms used by russia, including the missiles we saw, voted down a proposal to report internally on misuse of their

company's products at its annual shareholders meeting in april. that is texas instruments' chairman. his board of directors recommended to vote against the proposal because of the belief the company already had a sufficiently robust compliance system in place and "complete traceability and tracing product misuse is unachievable." >> not only do they not know where their parts are going, it sounds like they don't want to know. >> tracing supply chains can increase cost, but i think that really is something that a lot of manufacturers and companies should look very closely at. these components are still ending up in russian weapons. >> texas instruments told "newshour" it complies with the law and does not support or condone the use of its products in applications for which they were not design. in the meantime, irina consoles

herself with the thought that accountability will eventually come to the people who made the missile that killed her daughter. >> the people who do this, they must understand that innocent people are killed by the missiles they make. no, i am not filled with hate. i just believe that people who bring people will get what they deserve. >> not everyone is as patient. demands for companies to take more responsibility and u.s. companies to go after those that don't will only grow louder as the civilian death toll grows bigger. >> immensely invisible -- a new investigation by the pulitzer prize-winning organization

shines a light on allegations of sexual abuse and assault brought by migrants in u.s. immigration detention facilities. we spoke earlier this week with a reporter who has been covering this since 2021. tell us about the investigation into allegations of sexual abuse filed by migrants in immigration detention facilities. what did you find? >> what struck me the most was the story of three women of color, immigrants held in detention centers, and how they came forward to speak about the abuse they face. they spoke about sexual voyeurism, open showers, and they also talked about how they were assaulted by a medical professional while they were held in one of these facilities. >> you never have to worry about sharing no shower, none of that.

>> you used to see a shadow like you could see it was a male. >> how often did this happen? >> like, every day. >> he tells me to lower my pants, and he placed the stethoscope there. he was saying, like, good, good, and doing strange gestures and he was smiling and looking at me. i was quiet the whole time. for a moment, i was staring off into space and thinking, my god, what is happening? >> when i was looking at myself and battling with myself, i was thinking, i don't deserve to wear these clothes, and i don't deserve to wear this makeup because i don't matter, and i felt immensely invisible. >> what facilities in particular emerged as the problems in your investigation? >> the last two women you just heard were held at stewart county detention center in

georgia. these women have alleged that one male nurse, the same one who was supposed to look after them at the clinic inside the facility, assaulted them, and these are not the only ones who have brought the allegation. there are several other women who made similar allegations. they complained to ice about it. they complained to the private company that runs this particular detention facility. it has been a year this month since they filed their public complaint, and they have not heard anything yet. the other woman would heard from was at a detention facility in florida. she experienced voyeurism. she also experienced harassment by psychiatrists at the facility, and medical professional. these women don't really know each other, but what they have told us is strikingly similar. beyond these women, at least a dozen immigrants who have been interviewed across the country have also talked about similar patterns of abuse, complaints of

invasive touching of genitals. it also does emerge that this is not a problem which is isolated to one facility or one state. >> you teamed up with a veteran journalist who talks about how she has been doing this reporting, looking into this problem for more than a decade. >> ice has found new ways to deal with the challenges of people in detention complaining about sexual abuse. what we were able to uncover is that one of the ways in which they are dealing with this is by transferring people, transferring migrants and refugees from one detention facility to another as a way of addressing or not addressing complaints of sexual abuse and assault in immigrant detention facilities. >> your investigation found that ice transfers detainees who make these complaints. how does that play out? >> if you may remember in 2021,

there were headlines that came out of a detention center in georgia. that is a place where nonconsensual treatments were conducted. the women who were detained there were not released. most were transferred to a facility in georgia with the two women who changed their names -- those two women faced alleged assault by that nurse. similarly in florida, we had a woman who filed complaints. there were many other complaints of abuse apart i'm sexual abuse that were also released. ice had to shut down the facility. women were transferred to baker county detention center. there they faced similar problems if not worse.

immigration activists say this has become a pattern that ice has adopted of transferring migrants from one place to another. >> what is the path forward for these women? >> these women wanting to hear back on their complaints. we followed up with the law enforcement agency that took up the case and had promised to conduct a thorough investigation. they said they have concluded it. the da's office has it. the da's office has not released conclusion yet. 60% of these complaints have no update on if an investigation was conducted. the problem we are highlighting is not only the abuse of immigrants in detention centers. the fact that it may be happening with impunity, the fact that there is a possible lack of accountability, the fact that most of these cases are not

being thoroughly investigated, that's what we need to change and that's what we hope will be the outcome of our story. >> thank you very much for sharing that report with us. you can read more of her work and find a link to the full podcast immensely invisible on our website, pbs.org/newshour. after a recent spate of shark encounters, new york state is ramping up efforts to monitor the apex predator off the coast of long island. in massachusetts, experts are raising awareness about the surging population of great white sharks off cape cod. science correspondent miles o'brien has the story. >> in early july around 5:00 in the evening off the southern shore of long island, 15-year-old peter and his friend joe went out for an evening surf session. the pair were 35 from shore when

they noticed the water was extra murky. >> all, like in the blink of an eye, the shark is there, putting really intense pressure on my foot. it was really scary. i'm trying to wiggle my foot out, call my friend help, eventually got out, ran up to the beach, found a good samaritan. i did not really want to look at it. found my foot was gone. it was just all numb. >> peter was one of for people bitten by a shark on july 3 off the coast of long island. each occurred on fire island beaches. it is a concern. george gorman's regional director for long island estate

arcs. >> prior to five years ago, never would have thought you would see a shark. i started my career many years ago, and there would be a shark report every maybe two or three years, but that was it. >> due to a steady increase in shark activity, the governor of new york increased surveillance across long island beaches, providing more water crafts and drones to be on the lookout for sharks and funding to cover the cost of training. >> seeing the change in shark behavior, we knew early on we had to take preemptive steps. >> as beachgoers walked to the white sand, shocks -- sharks, too, are swimming off the coast of new york's most popular beaches. at least one beach delayed opening after drones spotted dozens of sand sharks off the coast. drones to make sharks easier to spot. lifeguards have more time to clear the water.

a supervisor at jones beach state park in nassau county. >> when you are up in the elevated lifeguard station or lifeguard stand, you can see up and you can see out, but you cannot see straight down. >> while all this causes alarm, those who study sharks say they are likely making a mistake if they bite you. >> people are not on the menu. sharks are not interested with interacting with people or biting people. we mainly think this is a result of sharks' natural food generally being closer to beaches where there's a lot of people in the water. it is a very unusual dynamic, but it is not unusual at all that this sharks in new york. >> a fishing management specialist with the national oceanic and atmospheric administration says warming waters are leading sharks to expand their horizons. >> most sharks of new york are smaller individuals. also there's new species from down south.

things like spinner sharks are species that generally remain south of these waters but not with climate change are moving into the area. likewise, some species are moving further north. >> as beaches in new york remain on alert, larger great whites are surging off the coast of cape cod, swimming in the shallows to raise awareness of the increased population, atlantic white shark conservancy developed a shark activity app where users can record sites and encounters, but why has cape cod quickly become one of the largest hotspots for great whites in the world? >> we are losing habitat. in the u.s., waters on the east coast, we have a bit of a different story. >> a seascape ecologist for the center for coastal studies says there are more great whites in

these shallow waters because there are more seals there. one of their favorite meals. >> seals we had almost hunted down to extinction. it has taken about 50 years to recover that population. >> sharks are necessary to maintain healthy biodiversity in our oceans and encounters overall are decreasing. in 2022, the u.s. saw 41 unprovoked shark attacks, one of which was fatal. that's down from 47 attacks in 2021, but if you find yourself face to face with a shark -- >> most of the time when sharks bite a person, they realize they made a mistake. this is not their normal food. but if that is not the case, to fight back, hit the shark on the

nose for the eyes. those are very sensitive areas. >> peotter's encounter left him with fracture in three places and a torn achilles. he hopes to get back on the board in a few weeks. i'm curious what mom thinks about this. are you ready to let these two go hang 10? >> i have the worst fear of the water to begin with, so this has deepened my ear, but as a mom, i feel the best way to overcome this fear is to get back on that board and continue to serve -- continue to surf. we live on a beautiful island. we should be able to share the water together. >> something peter can't wait to do again. >> now to further discuss how

investigations into the former president were affecting the 2024 presidential race and more, we turn to the analysis of capehart and abernathy. that's jonathan capehart, associate editor for "the washington post," and gary abernathy, also a "washington post" contributor. the classified documents case against donald trump now has a trial date. the judge ordered it to start as early as may 20, 20 24. what do you make of this potential scenario where donald trump could potentially be the presumptive republican nominee, and he is also facing a criminal trl? this mid-may date is after most of the primaries and before the nominating conventions. >> i thought from the very beginning that there would be no distinction between donald trump 's campaign appearances and donald trump's going in for his various court appearances for

the various trials that he is part of. all i know is this -- i'm glad that there is a date set before the general election, assuming he is the republican nominee for president, but i'm also happy and glad that there is a data set because no matter what happens to donald trump in terms of the 2024 republican presidential nomination, donald trump is now going to be held publicly accountable through a trial for his role, assuming again that there is indeed -- well, don -- in the document case, he will be held accountable for withholding, taking classified documents, including nuclear secrets -- this is very, very serious, and i'm glad he will be held accountable for it. >> donald trump faces as many as six criminal and civil cases in this election cycle. doesn't this in some ways incentivized his republican rivals to stay in the race longer than they might be

inclined to or have the support to because they are waiting for a potential donald trump candidacy collapse? >> as we have seen so far, every time he is indicted, it just makes him stronger. if there are six indictments, how strong will that make him because it seems to rally republicans around him more and more. and i think his opponents, except for chris christie may be, are not taking the right tack. they are still defending trump and complaining about the charges at the same time they are trying to run against trump. that does not make a lot of sense, but the trial date has been interesting timing. you are also looking at another indictment possibly on the january 6 issue, which i thought the documents indictment was a mistake, not because he did not do anything wrong, but just because i think it will be bad for the country and this obviously, i think, going to be an indictment coming on his actions on january 6, which i also think a mistake -- >> because what?

>> here's the thing, i think you don't have to just prove that donald trump tried to reverse an election result, but in essence, they have to prove he tried to basically overthrow a duly elected government, and i think you get into issues of free speech, and just going down a road that i don't think we'll be healthy for the country to have this debate while donald trump is probably going to be your republican nominee for president. >> i suspect you see this matter differently as we await potential indictment from special counsel on donald trump's role in january 6. >> absolutely. i disagree wholeheartedly. do not hold donald trump -- do not indict donald trump in the classified documents case or potentially as we will find out next week in the january 6 investigation of the special counsel is to not hold him accountable. it is not a mistake to hold the

person who was the leader of the country, the occupant of the oval office -- it is not a mistake to hold him accountable for taking classified documents and not just one or two. there is a report out there that there are 1500 pages, some including the most intimate secrets of this nation, including nuclear secrets. he must be held accountable for that, and i'm glad he was indicted for that. next week or down the road, we will find out what special counsel jack smith is going to do. if an indictment comes down, it is good for the country because the country needs to hear this. the country needs to see this, and a signal needs to be sent to any donald trump wannabes either in this race or in future generations that if you try to overthrow -- overturn a free and fair election, you will be held

accountable. it might not be the next day or months down the road, but you will be held accountable in a court of law by a jury of your peers. >> i think it also has the effect of perpetuating the cycle of retribution. we see that going on right now in congress. we see that going on with the jim jordan/james comer weaponization of government investigation. you went after trump, so we are going to go after biden. just someone needs to end this, and hopefully, as i have argued, it needs to be the voters that end this. what makes trump stronger all the time is this notion that it plays into his complaint that there is a deep state conspiracy out to get me, and this is just going to perpetuate that and reinforce that idea. >> on that point, the former president seems to be getting some backup from his republican

rivals on the trail. here's how a couple of them responded to the news that donald trump received this target letter from the special counsel related to the january 6 investigation. >> i think it was shown how he was in the white house and did not do anything while things were going on. he should have come out more forcefully, of course, but to try to criminalize that, that is a different issue entirely, and i think that we want to be in a situation where, you know, you don't have one side constantly trying to put the other side in jail. >> when it comes to the prospect of an indictment, i hope it doesn't come to that. i'm not convinced that the president acting on the bad advice of a group of crank lawyers that came into the white house in the days before january 6 is actually criminal. >> taking what the former vice president, mike pence, had to say, given that he was targeted by donald trump and his

supporters on january 6, he, of all of the republican candidates, would be able to draw the strongest, the biggest contrast on that particular issue, and yethe chooses not to. >> yeah, he chooses not to, and it is shameful. his life was in danger that day. 500 members of congress, their lives were in danger that day. the fact the only person in the republican race right now is governor chris christie who is willing to say things as the way they are shows how far the republican party has fallen. i'm old enough to remember donald trump on the campaign trail in 2016 saying it would be a mistake for the american people to vote for someone who is under a federal investigation. donald trump now has two criminal indictments, may be others coming down the road, and yet, he's got a party that is circling the wagons around him, including a guy whose own life was threatened by it.

it is unbelievably shameful. one thing about what gary said about, you know, let's end this cycle of retribution, the retribution started with donald trump, and ending the cycle would be surrendered to authoritarian forces trying to take over our democracy. >> what donald trump did on january 6 and i said everything he did after losing that election, to deny losing that election has been bad for this country and bad for democracy, but being bad for democracy is not the same as being criminal. i think it is bad for this country when you are the biden doj, going after your primary political opponent has a very bad look to it. >> we have a couple of minutes left and i want to raise the trip the vice president made to florida today. it was a last-minute trip. she was tackling changes to the

state's education standards that appear to play down the horrors of slavery. the florida education department voted to include instruction on how slaves actually benefited from slavery because they learned some skills. i see you shaking your head. >> it is ridiculous. i don't know what the fear is of teaching black history, teaching the horrors of slavery, teaching what a horrible chapter in our history was. there's nothing to be afraid of. we have downplayed it too much in the past, and it is absolutely -- i'm going to agree with kamala harris in a rare instance. i have never understood what desantis' problem is or anyone else with teaching the accurate history of slavery in this country. >> how do you see it back on line and tell me more about the vice president's role in tackling education issues. >> wow, gary and i are in 100%

alignment on this. why are we afraid to talk about the nuances and complexities of your history, of american history, of black history? the vice president going to florida right to the heart of the matter to talk about this is a great thing because she is uniquely qualified to talk about this as the first black woman, the first south asian american to hold the office of vice president. when she speaks about issues of race, when she speaks about issues of culture, when she speaks about issues of choice, she is speaking on the heart, and that is the most genuine she can be, and it is an asset to the biden-harris ticket as they go into a presidential election in 2024 where those issues will be paramount. >> quite a conversation on this friday evening. thank you both. have a good evening.

>> thanks. >> robert oppenheimer was one of this country's greatest scientists, father of the atomic bomb, a victim of the mccarthy witchhunts, a complicated and fascinating man, and he is now the subject of a new film by director christopher nolan. we spoke to nolan earlier this week for our arts and culture series "canvas." >> robert oppenheimer comes to very large live in a film that is star-studded and action-packed. for director christopher nolan, it was the internal human conflict at its core that first grabbed him. >> it is jan yuli the first dramatic story that i know of -- it is genuinely the first dramatic story that i know of, so to me, taking on this person

who changed the world irrevocably -- i really want to the challenge of trying to jump into his head. >> i understand you even wrote the script in first person. >> instead of saying oppenheimer comes down -- comes into the room and sits down at his desk, i wrote, i come into the room. i sit down at my desk. >> nolan based his drama on "american prometheus," the 2006 pulitzer prize-winning biography highlighting the ethical choices that played out in the very real time of world war ii. >> what do you think it will mean? >> point of no return, massive

explosive force, but this time, the chain reaction is not stopped. it might start a chain reaction that destroys the world. >> i wanted to put the audience in the position of scientists ask by the government to help in a race against the nazis. in a situation where you truly have no choice because you cannot allow the nazis to have a nuclear bomb or to be the first to have a nuclear bomb. what then are your responsibilities as a scientist? along with consequences that if intended or not are inevitable. it raises questions about the contributions of creators about the technology that they

unleashed on the world. >> nolan is a powerhouse in his world with blockbuster hit but -- blockbuster hits like "inception" and "interstellar" that span time and space, "the black night" trilogy, and the historical epic "dunkirk." for "oppenheimer" he took on new cinematic challenges, forgoing computer-generated imagery, combing all the effects using newly developed black and white as well as color imax film. >> they look and experience you are giving us, are giving us, are they as important to u.s. the story, or do they somehow go hand-in-hand? >> to nd-i me,ha tndhe.soy ablylute cinema is this fusion of sound and music, humanity, shift in

perspective from the subjective to the objective. shoot on film because it is still the closest analogy to the way the eye sees. even when it came to things like oppenheimer's visualization of atoms, the quantum world, and the threat of that running through to its ultimate expression in the atomic bomb, i wanted those to be real things. >> the first atomic bombs were dropped on hiroshima and nagasaki in august 1945, ending the war. the debate has continued as to if japan was already set to surrender. the final death toll, uncertain as well, was at least 200,000. oppenheimer was left in a public hero, a world famous figure. he would argue against the

creation of the even more powerful hydrogen bomb and see his loyalty challenge in the 1950's and in a final humiliation, have his security clearance revoked. he is well aware of the advent of ai, a potentially world changing technology unleashed without an understanding of potential consequences. do you worry history is repeating itself? >> i take some comfort in learning that the leading ai researchers literally refer to this moment right now as their oppenheimer moment. they are looking to hiory, for some kind of guidance, but of course, as a filmmaker, not as a documentary maker or politician, i'm trying to give the audience a thrill ride. it is weird to use the word

"entertainment" in relation to a story that is so serious, but entertainment in cinema is about engagement with the story, and my job as a filmmaker is to pull the audience in for this very dramatic story, and i think it raises a lot of relevant questions but does not provide any of the answers. >> "oppenheimer" is a huge story, a hugely important story. it is a three-hour film. you are an ambitious storyteller, filmmaker, an ambitious man. >> what i love about movies and cinema is movies can tell any kind of story. certainly there has always been an understanding in the history of movies of this kind of story can be told on a scale for the audience -- and i ambitious to go ahead and do that -- yes, certainly, but also, history is on my side in terms of there are a lot of great examples that are

more serious and do present a different type of entertainment -- as i said, i prefer the word engagement, but that's what we are doing, telling a very big story using the tools to put it on the biggest screen possible. >> robert oppenheimer died in 1967 at age 62. christopher nolan is now telling his story in theaters worldwide. >> finally tonight, remembering tony bennett, one of the greatest singers of american standards. bennett died today at the age of 96, following a seven-decade-long career. he recorded more than 17 albums and picked up 19 grammies, most of those after the age of 70. tony bennett came back to new

york in 1946 and was signed by columbia records in 1950, but it was not until the 1960's when he truly broke through as a major star after becoming known for his signature song, "i left my in san francisco." >> ♪ i'm going home to my city by the bay i left my heart in san francisco ♪ >> in the decade that followed, he devoted much of his work to singing the works of cole porter, duke ellington, and others, along with jazz standards, which he often referred to as the great american songbook. more recently, he was known for his duets with contemporary artists and a long collaboration with lady gaga that led to

albums and concerts. tony bennett was diagnosed with alzheimer's in 2016 but performed even after that. >> my father died when i was 10 years old. all my relatives -- aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, they would come over every sunday, and my brother, my sister, and myself would entertain them. they made considerable drunk -- considerable ruckus. it was just at the time being 10 years old and wondering, what am i going to new -- to do in life? my family would say we like the way you sing, so they created a passion in me of always trying to improve, and here i am 88, and i'm still working to try to get better and better at what i'm doing. >> you still feel that?

>> absolutely. i was blessed under the g.i. bill of rights when i came out of the service. i joined the american theater, and they allowed us to continue school that we missed during the war. the main thing i learned from them was never compromise. don't just try to get a hit record. do something that's going to last. it is the only great art form that has ever been created in the united states by the african-americans in new orleans. theynvented it. elongated improvisation. it is a wonderful art, sohat'e s hat newo reach t

thaudience, for the first time n their lives, to hear wonderful songs that swing and last forever. it has been great american songs that were done in the 1920's and 1930's. >> ♪ yes, i've got you under my skin ♪ >> he was one of a kind. that is "the newshour" for tonight. have a great weeke.nd >> major funding for "the pbs newshour" has been provided by -- ♪

>> moving our economy for 160 years, bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. and friends of "the newshour," including kathy and paul anderson. the walton family foundation, working for solutions to bring back water during climate change so people and nature can thrive together. the william and flora hewlett foundation, for more than 50 years, advancing ideas and supporting institutions that promote a better world. at hewlett.org. and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. ♪ and friends of "the newshour."

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that's one small step for man. one giant leap for mankind. >> donald trump's growing legal challenges test american democracy. >> the doj has become a weapon for the democrats, and absolute weapon. >> former president trump is put on notice by the special counsel again, this time related to january 6 and election interference. >> no person is above the law, including donald trump. >> the likely indictment is one of many legal challenges confronting the 2024 republican front runner as a judge sets the start of the classified documents trial well into primary season next. >> this is "washington week." corporate funding is provided by -- >> for 25 years, consumer cellular's goal is bee