April 16, 2020 - PBS NewsHour full episode

Mexico has a rich history of cinema. But in recent years, a number of Mexican filmmakers have found remarkable success on the international stage. For Canvas, our ongoing arts and culture series, Jeffrey Brown shares a story produced before the widespread international response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the White House, President Trump is releasing new guidelines for ending pandemic shutdowns. But across the country, more than 32,000 are dead from the novel coronavirus, and millions have lost their jobs -- erasing years of economic gains. State and local officials warn that without a vaccine or treatment for COVID-19, it is not clear whether businesses can safely reopen. Amna Nawaz reports.

Small businesses constitute the primary engine of the U.S. economy -- and they are among the hardest hit by the novel coronavirus pandemic’s fallout. They suffered a new blow Thursday when the massive $349 billion relief program established to support them revealed that it is already out of money. Lisa Desjardins joins Judy Woodruff to discuss the predicament and how Congress might respond.

U.S. job losses resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic are simply staggering. So far, they are roughly equivalent to the number of jobs created since the last painful recession. Elise Gould, senior economist with the nonprofit Economic Policy Institute, joins Judy Woodruff to discuss which economic sectors were hit first, how losses have cascaded from there and why women might be affected more.

The U.S. is experiencing a sudden spike in unemployment not seen since the Great Depression. In about a month, 22 million lost their jobs, with many more cuts yet to come -- and a sense that even these staggering numbers don’t represent the full picture of economic devastation. Here are voices of struggling Americans out of work or forced to cut back their businesses because of the pandemic.

One of the business sectors hit hardest by the novel coronavirus pandemic has been air travel. Passenger volume is down a stunning 96 percent in the U.S., while airline losses have topped $300 billion worldwide. Despite canceled flights, travelers are not easily able to get their money back. Meanwhile, pilots and other staff worry for their safety. Economics correspondent Paul Solman reports.

One of the most important pieces of safety gear for health care workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic is the N95 mask, designed to filter out 95 percent of airborne particles. But the surge of patients with the highly contagious disease has meant way more demand than supply. Now, scientists are exploring whether it’s possible to decontaminate and reuse the essential coverings. John Yang reports.

From the moment the novel coronavirus was identified, there were questions about its origin. This week, reports suggest U.S. diplomats are concerned about a lab in Wuhan, China -- the city where the outbreak began. Nick Schifrin reports and talks to Dr. Luciana Borio, who served on the National Security Council under President Trump, about what scientists do and don’t know about this deadly virus.

Maria Lobifaro is a nurse at a VA hospital in Brooklyn that has been converted to care only for coronavirus patients. Already, more than 30 deaths related to COVID-19 have occurred there. Lobifaro, a member of the largest union for registered nurses in the country, joins William Brangham to discuss how her job these days involves too little protection, too much risk -- and too many deaths.

At the evening White House briefing of the Coronavirus Task Force, President Trump laid out a phased approach to reopening the U.S. economy. He also emphasized that governors would be able to make their own decisions about when to lift pandemic restrictions in their states. Yamiche Alcindor joins Judy Woodruff to discuss the details of Trump’s plan and why COVID-19 testing continues to be a worry.

California therapist Kat Zwick tested positive for COVID-19 in mid-March, about a week after returning from a New York City conference. Her symptoms worsened to an “almost unbearable” level of severity as she isolated in her bedroom. Now recovering, Zwick hopes her story will encourage others to take the illness seriously and stay home. This is her Brief But Spectacular take on surviving COVID-19.