November 17, 2020 - PBS NewsHour full episode

In our news wrap Tuesday, U.S. coronavirus infections have hit another record, with 166,000 new cases reported in the last 24 hours. That represents an 80 percent increase in just two weeks, prompting more states to take action. Also, Georgia’s top election official says he’s being pressured by fellow Republicans, and that Sen. Lindsey Graham implied the state should discard legitimate ballots.

Two social media CEOs appeared virtually Tuesday before a Senate Judiciary Committee on censorship, disinformation and the 2020 election. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter’s Jack Dorsey faced a barrage of questions from lawmakers about their content restrictions and classifications -- but the tech executives argued their policies have come a long way in the past year. Amna Nawaz reports.

President Trump and his allies continue to sow doubt over the American electoral process, questioning the intentions of election administrators and poll workers and falsely claiming rampant voter fraud. How do these essential workers, who represent both parties, feel about their jobs, Trump’s accusations -- and the integrity of the election? William Brangham talks to several of them to find out.

The United States is moving to reduce its troops in Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia over the next two months. As national security adviser to President Trump, retired Lt. General H.R. McMaster was at the center of the administration’s military decisions. He joins Nick Schifrin to discuss why he’s concerned about U.S. security strategy in Afghanistan and beyond.

Despite denial of the election results by President Trump, the transition to a Biden administration is moving forward. One of Biden’s closest allies in the Capitol is Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware, who reportedly is under consideration to become secretary of state. Coons joins Judy Woodruff to discuss his concerns about U.S. military moves in Afghanistan and Trump’s refusal to concede.

The first known case of infection from the novel coronavirus was recorded one year ago, in China’s Hubei province. The city of Wuhan was infamous the world over as the original virus epicenter, seeing more than half of China’s reported cases and deaths. Now, reminders of COVID-19 in Wuhan reflect the story the Chinese government wants to tell. Special correspondent Patrick Fok reports.

The Boy Scouts of America’s process of dealing with decades of sexual abuse allegations has entered a new phase. Now that the deadline for abuse survivors to file claims has passed, the organization will work with a bankruptcy judge to form a victims compensation fund. As membership drops, survivors say they want overdue justice. John Yang talks to Tim Kosnoff, an attorney representing survivors.

For the million people living with Parkinson’s disease in the United States, medication is the most common form of treatment. But some doctors are now prescribing dance as a way to slow the symptoms -- and bring joy to patients in the process. Special correspondent Shana Fischer visits a ballet class for Parkinson’s patients.

President Trump announced in a tweet Tuesday night that he was firing Christopher Krebs, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Krebs has been credited by many for securing American elections from fraud and foreign interference -- but drew Trump’s disfavor by defending the election’s integrity from Trump’s false claims. Nick Schifrin joins Judy Woodruff to discuss.