PBS News Hour - Full Show - December 2, 2025 – PBS News Hour full episode

Episode Date: December 3, 2025

Tuesday on the News Hour, more details emerge about the deadly U.S. strikes on alleged drug boats as tensions rise across the region. An interview with American Mohammad Ibrahim and his father after the teen spent nine months in an Israeli jail. Plus, music power couple Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz are spotlighting giants of contemporary art in a new exhibition drawn from their private collection. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

Good evening. I'm Jeff Bennett. I'm the Navaz, is away. On the news hour tonight, more details emerge about the deadly U.S. strikes on alleged drugboats off the Venezuelan coast as tensions rise across the region. An exclusive interview with Muhammad Ibrahim and his father, after the teen, who was a U.S. citizen, spent nine months in an Israeli jail. He even asked us, am I dreaming? Am I really out? We told them, yes, you're out. It's done, it's over. You're back saved with your family. And our conversation with music power couple, Alicia Keys and Swiss Beats,

who are spotlighting giants of contemporary art in a new exhibition drawn from their private collection. There are sculptures in here. There are all these incredible different mediums, and all of them will take your breath away. Welcome to the News Hour. It was the first attack in the Trump administration's new campaign in the Caribbean, and it has become the most contentious.

A U.S. official tells the PBS News Hour tonight the U.S. military struck an alleged drugboat four times on September 2nd. And today, President Trump and Secretary Pete Hegeseth defended the attack, but also distanced themselves from the follow-on strike that targeted people who weren't killed by the first strike. Nick Schifrin joins us now. So Nick, what have you learned about what happened on September 2nd? Well, exactly what you just said, Jeff. The U.S. military struck that boat on September 2nd four times, according to a U.S. official speaking to me today. The official said that after the first strike, there were people on board who were not killed. The second strike targeted them. The third and fourth strikes were designed to sink the boat.

Now, why is this important? As of last week, all we knew from President Trump is that there had been a single strike on a boat that he said carried 11 narco terrorists. Then last week, we learned of a second strike was reporting in the Washington Post and others, but we didn't know until today that the military needed four strikes to destroy the boat, which will be crucial when it comes to the legality of these strikes. And also, as you said today, President Trump's Secretary of Heggseth speaking at the White House today, really distancing themselves from that second strike to kill the people not killed by the first strike.

And it was ordered by then Joint Special Operations Command Leader, Admiral Frank, Mitch Bradley. I watched that first strike lot. As you can imagine at the Department of War, we got a lot of things to do. So I didn't stick around for the hour and two hours, whatever, where all the sensitive site exploitation digitally occurs. So I moved on to my next meeting. A couple of hours later, I learned that that commander had made the, which he had the complete authority to do.

And by the way, Admiral Bradley made the correct decision. to ultimately sink the boat and eliminate the threat. He sunk the boat, sunk the boat, and eliminated the threat. I did not personally see survivors, but I stand, because the thing was on fire. It was exploded and fire or smoke, you can't see anything, you got digital, this is called the fog of war. So, Heggseth pushing, sorry, backing up, but at the same time pushing down responsibility for that second strike to Admiral Bradley, and a defense official reiterates to me today

that Hexac did not give any additional orders between the first and second strikes. Now, as for the overall mission, the Pentagon said today that there had been 21 strikes that it killed 82 people. The administration describes this as an effort to stop drugs from coming to the United States. And today, President Trump reiterated what the mission is, at least, when it comes to these boats. I can say this. I want those boats taken out. And if we have to, we'll attack on land also, just like we attack on sea.

attacks on land, Jeff, of course, that could target Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who the U.S. calls ahead of a narco state that the U.S. is pressuring the leave office. And on the matter of legality, Nick, why is it significant that it took four strikes to sink that boat? You and I have both recently spoken to former military lawyers who say that this attack was illegal. There are specific passages of the Geneva Convention that say people who are at sea who are shipwrecked, even if they are combatants and their ship has been wrecked by a U.S. missile must be rescued, not targeted. But if their ship is still seaworthy, if they still have communications, if they still are carrying drugs on this boat, well, does that change things? That's the question

I posed to Jim McPherson earlier today. He's the former Navy Judge Advocate General, the former top uniform lawyer in the Navy, also under Secretary of the Army under the First Trump administration. So we'll assume for our conversation that we are engaged in a legal conflict. During that conflict, if a boat is engaged and that boat is destroyed, in other words, it's no longer operational, it's a shipwreck, there are individuals on board who are survived and are in the water, they have become a non-target, if you will, they've been taken out of combat. They don't have the capability to engage in hostilities. But if that boat was simply hit and was damaged, it's still seaworthy, it's still float. And if the intelligence

has shown that it still contains the drugs that we are trying to combat from coming into our country. And the individuals on board are mobile. They can act. They can operate the boat. They can communicate with another boat, those sorts of things. And that remains a legitimate target. And they remain a legitimate target. That said, as McPherson suggested at the top of his statement, he and other former military lawyers, we speak to, do question the legality over the overall campaign? But Admiral Bradley will have his say to Congress speaking to them Thursday. Well, let's shift our focus now to Ukraine in the scene at the Kremlin today, where it was apparently all smiles as Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner,

the president's son-in-law, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. What do we know about what transpired? Yeah, you see it there. We have not received a readout from the U.S. side. The Kremlin says it was five hours long. Tonight, one Putin aid said there is no compromise over Ukraine yet, this aid saying there are some American developments that are acceptable, some that are not suitable, and peace, quote, is no closer, but no further away.

Look, Ukrainian and U.S. officials do say that in the last 10 days or so they've been meeting, they have made progress toward this peace deal that the U.S. has been pushing Ukraine to accept. But at the same time, European officials tell me that the U.S. is still pushing one of the most difficult items for Ukraine, and that is giving up parts of the Donetsk province in eastern Ukraine. You see it flashing there that Ukraine still holds. Russia has failed to capture despite 11 years of war. Earlier today, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky tried to portray Putin as the one blocking peace

but did endorse the U.S. outreach to Moscow. Putin, I mean, now he's thinking how to find new reasons not to finish this war and we count on pressure from the United States. And they said that we have to work on this plan and they will pressure on both sides. Of course, we wanted them to be more on our side, but, okay, mediator, then mediator. And they began to pressure both sides, and we supported the ideas.

Mediator is mediator. Whitkoff and Kushner now fly to Europe from their meeting in Moscow to meet Zelens. The Kremlin's saying that peace is no closer yet no further away is quite a line. I mean, what does this all mean for the front lines right now in Ukraine? I mean, Zelensky himself has really admitted that it's difficult. And today, Russia claimed that it captured the city of Prokrovsk and eastern Donetsk. It's a key hub. Ukraine denied that. But look, take a look at this map with data from the Institute of Study of War. It shows multiple cities where Russia is making slow gains, even at great cost.

Pekros, Volsksk, Kupians. These are the cities that Putin is arguing to the U.S. We are inevitably going to take over militarily, so you should just push Ukraine to give them up diplomatically. Nick Schifrin, reporting out two major stories today. Our thanks to you, as always. Thank you. In the day's other headlines, the Trump administration is preparing an immigration enforcement operation that would primarily target hundreds of undocumented Somali immigrants in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.

According to press reports, the operation could begin within days. The move comes as President Trump has disparaged Somalis with increasing. increasingly inflammatory rhetoric, including in today's lengthy cabinet meeting at the White House. The president made a point of singling out Minnesota Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who is Somali. We're going to go the wrong way if we keep taking in garbage into our country. Ilan Omar is garbage. She's garbage. Her friends are garbage. We don't want them in our country. Let them go back to where they came from and fix it.

Local officials, including Minneapolis, Mayor Jacob Frye, forcefully condemned both Mr. Trump's comments and the impending operation. Minnesota is home to the nation's largest Somali community. Michael Dell, the billionaire founder of Dell Technologies and his wife have pledged more than $6 billion to the Trump administration, with the funds designated for investment accounts for children known as Trump accounts. We believe the smartest investment that we can make is an investment in children. The Dell's donation will provide $250 each to 25 million eligible children under the age of 10, who live in zip codes where the median household income falls below $150,000. Mr. Trump's tax bill created the accounts, which will be rolled out next summer.

Withdrawals from the accounts cannot be made until a child turns 18. The Pentagon today held its first briefing in nearly half a year as it faces bipartisan backlash over that September attack on an alleged drug trafficking, boat in the Caribbean. The credentialed attendees were a host of right-wing media figures, including Laura Lumer and former Florida Congressman Matt Gates. Gates is now a host on the pro-Trump Network, O-A-N. It follows a major overhaul of Pentagon Press rules this fall that required journalists to sign a restrictive new policy, and that prompted an exodus of traditional news outlets from the building. Millions of Americans woke up this morning to their first snow of the season,

as windy, icy weather rolled across the northeast. The National Weather Service issued winter storm warnings across New England, where some areas have already received more than half a foot of snow. Several other states will see a mix of snow and rain, like in Pennsylvania, where wet, slushy conditions led to hundreds of accidents. The storm already hit the Midwest, creating more treacherous travel after the Thanksgiving holiday. This pile up in central Missouri yesterday brought highway traffic to a standstill. Forecasters say another storm could bring winter weather to the Mid-Atlantic later this week.

Turning overseas now to Israel, forensics experts are examining what are believed to be the remains of one of the last two hostages inside Gaza. Palestinian militants via the Red Cross handed over the remains, which Palestinian media said were uncovered in northern Gaza. Meantime, Palestinians and Kahn Yunus mourned a freelance videographer who was one of at least four people killed today by Israeli fire across the territory. Israel's military said they were fired upon because they believed they had crossed into areas that Israel controls and posed a threat. Pope Leo XIV has completed his first trip abroad as Pontiff with an appeal for peace after spending three days in Lebanon.

The path of mutual hostility and destruction in the horror of war has been traveled too long with the deplorable results that are before everyone's eyes. He led Mass along Beirut's waterfront, urging dialogue and reconciliation as the country sees renewed fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Earlier in the day, the Pope prayed at the site of the 2020 port explosion that killed 218 people and caused billions and damages. A disaster for which no officials have ever been held accountable, and the Pope called for justice. Returning to the Vatican aboard his plane, Pope Leo also urged U.S. leaders to refrain from threats of military action. against Venezuela. Two fashion giants are now one. Prada has bought its long-time rival Versace

for nearly $1.4 billion. It completes a deal that's been in the work since April. Prada says the Versace brand offers significant untapped growth potential. Meantime on Wall Street today, stocks bounced back to across-the-board gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added nearly 200 points. The NASDAQ added more than half a percent, and the S&P 500 also closed slightly higher. This came to Washington, D.C.'s National Mall this afternoon. Five, four, three, two, one. There you go. House Speaker Mike Johnson and the Nevada Congressional Delegation turned on the Capitol Christmas trees

nearly 6,000 LED lights, which glittered against its 23,000 handmade ornaments. This year's red fur stands 53 feet tall and is the first ever capital Christmas tree harvested from Nevada. The People's Tree, as it's called, has brightened the Capitol Lawn for five decades. Still to come on the News Hour, why more traditional four-year colleges are offering two-year associates degrees. A new exhibit showcases the work of black contemporary artists from the collection of musicians Alicia Keys and Swiss Beats. And a group of elementary school journalists work to reverse falling test scores and decaying classrooms.

News Hour from the David M. Rubinstein studio at W.E.T.A. in Washington, and in the west from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. The day before Thanksgiving was the real celebration for an American family living in the occupied West Bank. 16-year-old Muhammad Ibrahim was released from nearly 10 months in an Israeli prison, arrested in February in the dead of night at his family home for allegedly throwing stones at Israeli vehicles. His family was. was unable to speak or even see him for his entire detention. The American Embassy advocated for his release after his health had declined.

Finally, last Wednesday, he was freed. Amna spoke with Muhammad and his father for an exclusive sit-down TV interview. After more than nine months in an Israeli jail, this was 16-year-old Muhammad Ibrahim's first hug with his father, freed and finally home. Back with his family in the occupied West Bank, he sat down with his father, Zahir Ibrahim, to speak to the news hour. So, Muhammad, I have to start with you because a lot of people have been waiting to hear from you. What can you tell us about how you're doing and what it's like to be back home? So good. I feel safe now, and I miss everyone and everything. What was the very first thing that you did when you arrived back home, Muhammad?

I see my family. Gave everybody a big hug. That's one thing that he did. And Zahar, we saw that video of your first embrace with him after nine months of being apart. What can you tell us about what that moment was like for you? That was probably the best day of my life, the best moment of my life, you know, nine months and a half,

you know, haven't heard his voice or seen him, you know. So, you know, it was like, from hell to heaven, you know, that second, it was, can't even express my feelings about it. The truth, when we first gave him a hug, you know, when you give him a hug, you can feel his bow, he can feel his body, his back, you know, he's very, very, very skinny. And we took him to the hospital to have him, have him checked, you know, and he even asked us, am I dreaming, am I really out? We told him, yes, you're out.

It's done, it's over. You're back safe with your family. was just 15 years old when he was arrested in February from his family home in the middle of the night, charged with throwing objects at Israeli vehicles. His father says U.S. pressure, as Muhammad's health deteriorated, helped secure his release. Most of these charges that they throw at these children are bogus charges. That was the pressure from the U.S. government and senators and congressmen. They played a big role in the release of Muhammad. You know, at the end of the And when the U.S. Embassy visited the Muhammad three weeks ago, and they called me, and they said,

Muhammad, you know, I'm going to just tell you straight out, he's not doing good, you know. He lost more weight, and, you know, physically, mentally, he looks ill. Even the U.S. Embassy feared for his life, you know, he said he's not doing good at law. And that's when we've seen more movement, and that's when the lawyer went in, and things changed, you know. So then they said, you know, before something happens to him, he has to be released and he got released. We should underscore here. Muhammad is a U.S. citizen, right? Do you have an explanation that's satisfying to you about why it took U.S. authorities over nine months to get him released?

Ambassador Huckabee called me, you know, after the release of Muhammad. And he says, you know, I'm sorry, it took so long, you know, it's something we've been working on from day one. We didn't expect it to last this long. But I really think if the U.S. State Department wanted Muhammad released from the beginning, they could have put more pressure from day one. But I think they just let it slide until, you know, months and months and months. But when they seen his health, it was getting worse and worse and worse. And as you can tell from the pictures, you know, before and after for Muhammad,

before he got arrested and how he walked out, you know, is a big difference, you know. His face size, you know, his body, his weight. You know, just by the pictures, you know, they say a lot of words. And what's said is all the, you know, the whole, everybody in jail is the same situation, you know. You have another three, 400 kids in there that's going through the same thing that Muhammad was going through. Back home, he is surrounded by family, showering him with love and plying him with home-cooked meals after the teen lost significant weight over the last several months. Their food is basically junk and barely enough to survive, scabious, stomach virus. You know, they went through a lot.

You know, when he told me what they went through, you know, it's hard to believe that, you know, this country will do that to individuals, you know, starve him almost to death. He had one of his mates that was in his same cell, you know, his same age that died in front of him in jail. Zahar, just to clarify, are you saying that Muhammad saw another teenager who was with him in prison die in front of him? He died in front of his eyes. He had the scavious and he had a real bad stomach kind of virus. and they, you know, they asked for medical attention, but they never get it. So at one point, he just fainted and fell to the ground, and that was it. And they asked for medical attention for him, and they didn't get nothing,

then they pronounced him dead, you know. So this happened in front of his eye, you know, and this is a kid that was in his room. The boy was 17-year-old Walid Khalid, a Palestinian teenager who died in Israeli custody in late March. And just moments after he was freed, Muhammad learned his cousin, 19-year-old Palestinian-American Seifullah Masalat, had been beaten to death by Israeli settlers in July while Muhammad was in prison. You know, that was a hard for Muhammad, you know, when he got the news, it was like, it was very hard. You know, we had to stop the car. he couldn't breathe you know it was like it was we had put water on his face um so you know

these instances you know it has to stop you know the Israeli government has to stop all these Israeli settler attacks on these uh on the the towns around us because every day is getting worse and worse you know you could be in your own house or a neighbor's house in the village and you cannot be safe because you don't know who's going to come at night and attack your house or your family, your car. So this is the life that they live every day now here. Every day for Muhammad now means rebuilding his new life and reconnecting with the old one.

Muhammad, we've also seen video of you reconnecting with your friends back in the United States. Talking to them on the phone. Can you tell us what you talked about with them, what that was like? It was so good. I talked about them, about the jail, about anything, about everything.

I ate and everything. And Zahar, I know Mohamed turned 16 while he was in detention, and your family told us earlier, you didn't celebrate his birthday, obviously, while he was still in jail. Do you have plans to celebrate his birthday now that he's free? He just has to wait until his next birthday, maybe. He's good. We'll do a birthday every day for him as long as he's home, and that's, you know, so, you You know, his grandmother's birthday was today, so we brought him cake for them today.

So he got his cake today. After everything you've been through, what's it like to have him sitting there next to you? Oh, it feels good. And, you know, as a father, my duty is to keep him safe, you know, and make sure he stays safe. And, you know, get his weight back up and get him back to the stage where he can, you know, he missed a year now of school. So he has to catch up on studying. you know, get his drive his license, get his part-time job, and, you know, start his life. Well, we know you're anxious to spend as much time as you can with him.

We'll let you get back to that. We thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us today. That's Zahar and Muhammad Ibrahim. Mohammed, welcome back home. Thank you. Thank you. About one and four college students are both first generation and from low-income backgrounds, making the path to a college degree especially challenging. At Boston College's Messina College, a new two-year, fully residential associate's degree program,

a wide range of support is helping change that. John Yang visited the Brookline, Massachusetts campus to learn more as part of our ongoing series, Rethinking College. For a second-year Messina College student, McKenzie Robertson, who goes by Lou. Time with her mother, Evelyn, and her older brother, Lukens, is the perfect way to celebrate the end of midterm exams. While she misses home and her close-knit family, she says she felt comfortable the very first time she set foot on this campus when she was a high school senior. I came home to my mom and I was like, Mom, like, this is where I want to be. This is where I feel like I belong. And having seen her mother deal

with health issues, she knew what she wanted to do. Study to become a nurse. That motivated me to want to be in the health care because I want others to know that they're not alone in the hospital. Messina is the two-year associate degree program of Boston College, a nationally ranked private liberal arts school. If students finish Messina with a 3.4 grade point average or better, they're guaranteed a spot in BC's bachelor's degree program. Messina enrolled its first class in 2024, and 96% returned this year. Messina College is tailored for low-income and first-generation students. The very students' research shows who are least likely to finish college.

The big reason for that is lack of familiarity with the unwritten rules of college life, things like office hours, networking, and balancing work in academics, and they don't have anyone in their families they can turn to to explain it. At first, I was like office hours? Is it an office? It was an office with, I don't know, timing. And when my professors were explaining me what office hours were, I was like, I'm someone who needs that type of support.

So this had been a college campus before? It had been, yes. Founding dean, Father Eric Beriazza, was a low-income, first-generation college student himself. It was a sink or swim model. You sort of figured it out or didn't. we know a whole lot more now, you know, 20 years later. And I think what we know is there's scaffolding of support that we can offer. It includes a generous need-based financial aid program that limits loans to $2,000 a year. All students get free housing, meals, textbooks, even laptops

that are theirs to keep. In my college experience, the residential piece was critical because, you know, there's so much that goes on after your class time. That's, you know, seem to be part of, and that contributes to their formative experience at a Jesuit university, but any university, for that matter. There are similar programs at a small but growing number of private four-year liberal arts universities, many of them religiously affiliated. We need more strivers. We need more lower-income students, more first-generation college students, because that is what

America is. Professor Anthony Jack, also a first-generation graduate, studies higher education leadership at Boston University. My question is, have we extended the invitation without preparing for the occasion? We are extending invitations to eager, able, excited youth to become members of our community, but are we doing the necessary work to make them be able to be just that full members? Boston College spends about $40,000 a year per Messina student. Not every school can afford that kind of investment. It's not just providing what people normally think of when it comes to, like, being on campus.

It's like all the other support services that are needed to make sure, again, you're not just meeting students where they are, what kind of services they need, but also when the services are offered, given the population of students have responsibilities that your traditional 18 to 21-year-old does not. Messina enrols only 100 new students a year. Small class sizes allow professors to foster students' confidence in academic success. Attendance is closely monitored. A missed class triggers a check-in call. The academic year runs from July to May. That gives first-year students the summer to adjust to campus life. It also reduces the number of classes students take each semester.

It doesn't matter who gets first, second, or third. Rihanna Diaz is a psychology professor and student advisor. She, too, was a first-generation college student. We go through these, like, hidden curriculum. things. How should you advocate for yourself to your professor? How should you study? What do you do if you fail? Like that's probably going to happen in college and how can you bounce back in a productive way? Associate Director of Student Success, Genevieve Green, knows that every student has individual strengths and challenges. A lot of them have worked or

they're helping out at home. They've got a lot of responsibilities and so they're not necessarily used to asking for help. So our primary goal is really just to get to know every student. They joke with us that we know their blood type. Get to know them really, really well so that we can tailor a plan that really works for them. Second-year student Michael Mello is majoring in applied psychology and human development. To be honest, college wasn't something that was in my mind. His mother died in the summer before his freshman year in high school, leaving him and his older sister on their own. He worked as many as 30 hours a week to help support them. His grades suffered. But instead of defeating him, he says the hardships motivated him.

It ruined me, but it made me into a better person because the reconstruction that it built where I realized that I need to be present, I need to also be there, I need to do as much as I can to kind of get to that next step, get to that next milestone to become my own legacy. With his anticipated BC bachelor's degree, Mello wants to be a therapist. Just interacting with people that are either already went through college or people that have aspirations to be something. It's like almost inspiring to listen to. This semester, Lou Robertson is taking nursing classes at BC's main campus. At first, she was intimidated. I have classes with both Messina and Boston Collar students. We're both struggling the same way. At Messina, she's tutoring

first year students who also want to be in the medical field. Making sure that they understand it kind of gives them like a clear understanding what they want to do for the future. Sort of passing it along. Yeah, passing it, yeah. Faculty say they see that sense of purpose in many students. There is a lot of intention behind why they're here. There is a lot of richness that the identity I think first-gen carries with them. And they're changing the broader BC community.

Boston College needs you and your perspective and your identity and your lived experience is really important. Do you think or do you hope things that you do here will also influence B.C.? Absolutely. These students are already enriching that campus. The time will tell the impact of that overall. But these students have the ability to create a lot of impact for their families. You know, and the generations of potential college students will follow them because of their example. Growing up in Haiti, Lou Robertson's mom didn't have the chance to go to college. So seeing her daughter as a college student is a dream.

come true. Do you think she's going to make a good nurse? She'll be a good nurse? Yes, good nurse. When I'm coming here, everybody comes here, you can see her, even with students. She's wonderful. And just the sort of student whose life Messina College has the potential to change. For the PBS News Hour, I'm John Yang in Brookline, Massachusetts. The art exhibition with a high profile and a long name, Giants, art from the Dean collection of Swiss Beats and Alicia Keys, recently opened in Richmond, Virginia, after stops in Brooklyn, Atlanta, and Minneapolis. Celebrating the contributions of contemporary artists, it spans 20th century icons like photographer Gordon Parks to today's emerging talent. I sat down with

the music power couple behind the exhibition, Alicia Keys and Kasim Dean, better known as Swiss beats, about how they became art collectors and the meeting behind this expansive collection. It's part of our arts and culture series, Canvas. This is no ordinary museum opening celebration because what's inside the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is no ordinary collection. The exhibition is called Giants, and the couple behind it are giants in music who are now reshaping the art world, Alicia Keys and Swiss Beats. Alicia Keys. She's a 17-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, and producer.

Since her debut album, Songs in A Minor, Alicia Keys has sold more than 65 million albums and generated over 5 billion streams worldwide. This girl is on fire! Her Broadway musical, Hell's Kitchen, has earned multiple Tony Awards and a Grammy. And Swiss Beats, real name Kasim Dean, is a DJ, entrepreneur, and Grammy-winning producer behind some of the biggest songs in hip-hop, R&B and pop, working with artists like DMX, J-Z, Beyonce, and Buster Rhymes. Together, they've built the Dean Collection, now one of the most significant private collections of contemporary art in the world. They took a private tour of the exhibit seeing it installed for the first time.

Around 130 works selected from a collection of more than a thousand. What first sparked your interest in collecting art? You want to take that one? Well, growing up from the Bronx and seeing art everywhere, waking up, coming from school, going to school, seeing graffiti on the walls, it always felt like something that we live with, you know, naturally, just like music, you know.

And I remember wanting to furnish my purpose. place at a very young age and I didn't want posters. And I started going down downtown to look at art. He's always really been very passionate about art, about fine art. He's also an artist, he also paints. Our first date was based around the artist air tape. And so he's always been bringing this into my life.

And that was how I started to even understand, wow, we can do this, we can collect these gorgeous, powerful pieces of artists that we can relate to and that are so unique and masters of their craft. And that was how we started to put together the Dean collection. Do you remember the piece or even the feeling that set you on the path to want to build this collection together? I think the first piece was a 30-foot scope chair. Yeah. She was ready at that time. Yeah. Let's build the Dean collection.

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, that's right. Yeah. It would have been that piece, which is a huge, huge, huge work. 30-foot sculpture, all wood. We got it into our house and they had to take off the side, the entire side of the house, the bricks and everything. Oh, I thought you meant the side of the piece. You mean the side of the house.

The side of the house. In order to get it into the house, they had to take off the side of the house. That was what started this house. idea that we can express in giant ways. We don't have to have a tiny, small painting. We can have those as well as huge pieces like this Amy Sherald. Deliverance. I mean, this, and we were talking about this earlier,

the audacity of these pieces, it's phenomenal. It's phenomenal. What does this, what does that mean to you? What does this Amy Sherald piece deliverance mean to you, Swiss? I mean that she delivered a hell of work. You didn't know this was coming. No.

No way. She didn't even say it was ready. She said, you might want to come to my studio, canceled everything, went to the studio, go upstairs and turn the corner and these two bikes, and I almost fainted. And she said, you know, doing this work for the Dean Collection allowed me to have some fun and do something I wouldn't normally do. Right? So two guys wheeling on a bike. And she said from living in Baltimore, she used to see the rough riders, which is my family's company ride bikes all through her block.

And she always wanted to do something to show, you know, respect for that. There are paintings, photographs, and sculptures throughout the exhibition displayed thematically on the shoulders of giants, giant conversations, and giant presence. The coolest thing about the Dean Collection is because we're both our, artists. There's so much love and understanding that we have about what it takes to make art. And so what he's describing, this studio visit, is not something that's unfamiliar. This happens all the time. Or transactional. Yeah, it's never transactional. Like, there are real relationships that are created because of the respect between artists to artists. And that is such a beautiful thing. But it's not until you walk in the space.

that you can feel what it means and what it feels like. And not only because so many of the works are oversized, but because it's emotional, it's genuine, it's personal, but it's also like powerful. It's like it has all these pieces. It's a family. One member of that family whose work anchors the exhibition is Titus Kaffar, known for reworking art history

to center black subjects long erased from it. We had to fight for 80% of these works in the show. in the show. You mean fight to acquire them? Yes. You would think that if you can afford something, then it's available. It doesn't really work like that. You know, there's waiting list and there's the museums, there's a whole bunch of different

things. The biggest part was building up our relationship with the artists and even letting the galleries in the museum know like, hey guys, we're not flipping art. We're damn there institution ourselves. you know, we're adding to this. We're not coming to take from it. But why be intentional about making it public? It's the right thing to do.

I think it would be selfish for us to have all of this beauty sitting in some storage somewhere or hanging only in a home when you can share it with the world. You know, I think almost a half a million people who've seen this show already and I know from the people that came to see giants left feeling like giants.

Mm-hmm. The goal, they say, is to inspire people from all backgrounds, elevate the work of living artists, and advocate behind the scenes to ensure those artists receive a fair share when their work is resold. The scale of the collection is staggering, in size but also in ambition, monumental pieces that command attention. The two of you are a major entry point to the world of contemporary art for people who might not otherwise have discovered it. Is that why you included your piano and your drum machine,

your beat machine? Yeah, that was a very, very important piece, right? Because when you go into a place like a museum, a lot of people act like they know things or act like they're smart about art or, and it's okay to be a student because we're still students. But having the self-portraits out the gate and make people say, I know them. Those are my friends right there. Seeing the BMX bikes, where I come from the South Bronx, seeing her piano, seeing the turntables, seeing Cool Herk's actual street sign for hip-hop. The BMX bikes are right there, and they're hung so cool, by the way.

But he said, at one time, having a BMX bike was the biggest thing I could have ever done. It was quite the flex. It was like a big, big deal. And when we came in, one of the jobs. gentleman said to us, brick by brick. Yes, he did. He said that walking in. That hit me.

I thought it was a song you wrote. He said brick by brick. He said brick by brick. Literally, all of our stories are something that we've cultivated brick by brick. Every single one. And that's all we can do. And then slowly but surely, it is possible that it can become this. For Alicia Keys and Swiss Beats, the Dean Collection isn't just about owning art.

It's about expanding who gets seen inside institutions that weren't always accessible and ensuring the next generation walks in not as outsiders, but as giants. We'll be back shortly, but first take a moment to hear from your local PBS station. It's a chance to offer your support, which helps to keep programs like this one on the air. For those of you staying with us, we bring you an encore story now of an unlikely partnership between a utility company and climate activists. Science correspondent, Miles O'Brien, has this story. It's part of our tipping point coverage on energy and climate.

Retired schoolteacher Carol Canova has lived in this tidy little house in Framingham, Massachusetts. for 30 years. From this humble perch, she has experienced firsthand a historic energy transition. She started with an oil-burning furnace, then switched to gas, and now heats and cools with an electric heat pump attached to a geothermal well. I was told it would be even heat. I was told it would be efficient and so forth, but seeing is believing. I'd never been in a house that every place in the house was the same temperature. Kanova is part of a first-in-the-nation pilot by Utility Giant Eversource. It's a one-mile network of underground pipes connecting three dozen homes and municipal buildings

to a shared geothermal well. It's called networked geothermal. And if it works here, it could be a blueprint for utilities nationwide. So I thought, oh, electricity is expensive. So I'm expecting it's going to be more expensive. What I find out is it's overall cheaper. Heat pumps live up to their name. They move heat.

In the summer, they pump heat out of your home. In the winter, they bring it in. How hard they have to work and how much electricity they use depends on the temperature difference between inside and outside. The greater the gap, the more energy they need. Shallow geothermal wells tap into the earth's steady underground temperature about 55 degrees year-round. Water with antifreeze circulates through buried pipes,

absorbing or releasing heat at that consistent temperature. A heat pump paired with a geothermal well has less work to do and is far more efficient no matter the weather above. The catch? Drilling a geothermal well is very expensive, but none of the volunteers in this project paid a dime for either the well or the heat pump. Everything else is buried in underground, except for the heat pumps. Nikki Bruno is an Eversource VP.

So right outside this building is what we call the main borefield. Those boars are 600 to 700 pipes that allow the water-based fluid to circulate and exchange energy with the underground. Besides many homes like Carroll's, heat pumps attached to the geothermal network are in use at a school administration. building, a fire station, and a public housing development. It's an $18.6 million project that comes amid significant changes in regulations. Massachusetts and the other states in the Eversource territory have aggressive climate goals

and mandates. How do we start offering something different? How can we produce a decarbonized product for our customers while keeping, you know, safe, reliable, and I'll say as affordable as possible. The idea was born of an unlikely partnership between utility executives and climate activists. Among them, Zaneb Maghavi, the executive director of the nonprofit Heat, the home energy efficiency team. It's a grassroots group that started out by banding together to insulate their homes.

We really became aware of kind of a rock and a hard place problem, where we have a gas system that actually we have pipes in the ground from President Lincoln's time. Their focus on creaky, leaky gas pipes led them to a moment of insight and inspiration. The ground, the bedrock, the water, all around us is thermal energy, which we can tap. And that's kind of an exciting awakening thing to realize. We could potentially build a utility street by street. This infrastructure would be in a way like the roots of our new energy system, right? Even federal researchers are bullish.

A study by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory found that mass adoption of geothermal heat pumps could reduce the demand for electricity by 13% in the next 25 years. But the idea isn't new. This is our living laboratory. Cornell University Engineering Professor Jeff Tester built his home in Ithaca, New York,

as a living lab of efficiency. For about 25 years, Cornell has harnessed a natural thermal engine to keep its campus cool. A district chilling system taps 39-degree water from the depths of Cayuga Lake to cool more than 100 buildings. Now the university is looking to go deeper and warmer. Jeff Tester is the principal investigator on a groundbreaking project to introduce geothermal heating to the campus. In 2022, his team drilled a nearly two-mile-deep test borehole to assess the available heat resources here. I feel like I've been training all my life

for the day when we actually would see this happen on a campus like Cornell. But he's still waiting, looking for money to build a geothermal network of pipes filled with hot water to heat the campus. He says society places great value on fossil fuels and electricity But heat is not viewed that way in the same way, and I think we need a fairer system of what I refer to as an equivalent way to actually look at the benefits from clean heating versus clean electricity versus clean fuels. The Trump administration apparently does value geothermal. Energy Secretary Chris Wright consistently emphasizes it as a priority, making it the only renewable energy source currently in favor. It's something we can agree on. It's the ground beneath our feet. Turns out we have common ground.

And it appears to be growing. Plans are now in place to double the size of the Framingham Geothermal Network starting next year. Common ground may be hard to find these days, but perhaps it's not far beneath the surface. For the PBS NewsHour, I'm Miles O'Brien in Framingham, Massachusetts. In Providence, Rhode Island, public schools have long-faced scrutiny from low test scores and crumbling buildings to persistent challenges communicating with bilingual families. But as Ben Burke of Ocean State Media reports, one city elementary school is pushing back against that narrative thanks to a team of young reporters.

Should it be the goodbye and then a fun fact, or should it be the fun fact? and then a goodbye. Like, it seems like a little thing, but it's not when we start to put the video together. Goodbye, fun fact, then Jokovic. Yes. Does everyone agree with that? Yeah.

At the Alfred Lima Elementary School, the newsday begins with a morning meeting. The journalists, all fifth graders, talk with their publisher, a school librarian about what they want to cover on the weekly show. You guys had mentioned on our calendar up there. What day was National Pretzel Day?

Um, the 7th. Before heading out to report the story, they put on their press passes and test their equipment. On a typical newsday, the news crew roams the hallways looking for teachers and students to interview. This week, they're reporting on media literacy. Three, two, one.

Hello, guys. We're here with Ms. Gonzalez. And we're going to ask her two questions for today. About media literacy, mom. Back in the newsroom, the fifth graders write scripts, and tape the show in two languages in front of a green screen. Are we ready?

Yeah. All right. In three. Later, they'll release the show on YouTube and social media. Good morning or good afternoon again. And welcome back to the new Lima News episode. Hello, good days, good afternoon. De Nouveau and welcome to another episode of Lima News.

Jaden Chichon says it's the kids who insisted on a bilingual news show, which is hard to find in Rhode Island. The entire school is bilingual. All classes are, have album. least a bit of Spanish and English. We want everybody to know about the news, so everybody's informed. The Lima News crew has been putting on a weekly show for about four years now. Narea Estrada, another fifth grader, says their mission is simple. We inform people, students, or teachers about what's happening in the school, because some

teachers or kids or students don't know what's happening. But the Lima News crew has a bigger scope than students first anticipated. Last year, the crew landed interviews with Rhode Island biggest power players. Now we're here with another special guest. We have Governor McGee. Yeah, that's very good. What's it like being a governor? A lot of people want to know.

A lot of people want, you want to be governor? Uh, no, but. Alicia Mejia, who graduated from Lima last year, says interviewing people like the governor, taught her something important. Like, you shouldn't be scared to do something, because what if it's just like a once in a lifetime opportunity? Like, I would just go for it, in my opinion.

Providence Mayor Brett Smiley, also came to Lima last year. Alicia tracked him down in the hallway with a microphone. I asked him if he could, like, I think if he could change one thing, what would it be? Or, like, what is, like, the things he's been seeing? Smiley and Alicia talked about the rising cost of rent in Providence. The conversation made such a big impression on the mayor. He mentioned it that night on local TV.

I had some hard-hitting questions this morning from the Alfred Lima news crew. This is the Lima Elementary School. It's an elementary school here in Providence. They have a news team. This morning by Brinelli, Alicia, and Leah. I appreciate their hard questions, and honestly, I hope one day they're standing in your spot, Kim. It can be nerve-wracking to interview a big shot like a mayor or a governor, but kids like Jaden say they're enjoying it.

It feels blissful, you can say. Like, it feels good to get answers from a question that you want to know badly. The journalism program has an emotional impact on the school staff, too. Tasha White is the librarian and publisher of the Lima News. Even though I might be like, wow, I didn't get to that math lesson today, or I really wanted my students to score this on the last state test, right? But look at all the amazing things that are happening. This seems like a way to reclaim the narrative about what's really going on in a Providence Public School. Oh, hands down, hands down.

And again, I think that a lot of times people just get stuck on scores. And, you know, our students are so much more than a score. The kids and the recent alumni have a lot to say about what they've learned in Ms. White's Newsroom. It's great that I learn more things about my state because, like, who wouldn't want to know more about their state? I learned how to interview people, how to interview them good, and also how to be in front of cameras. It actually helped me with public speaking a lot. I get to learn more about our community, how fun some teachers are. For some students, getting journalism experience is influencing how they're thinking about their future.

What do you guys want to be when you grow up? I would like to be like anything that has to do with art or probably even a journalist. I want to be a journalist or a doctor. And I really do hope that Keisha becomes an artist and Nare becomes a doctor, because if they don't, they might be coming for my job one day. For the PBS News Hour, I'm Ben Burke in Providence, Rhode Island. And my job, too. That's the News Hour for tonight. I'm Jeff Bennett. For all of us here at the PBS News Hour, thanks for spending part.

of your evening with us.