September 7, 2020 - PBS NewsHour full episode

In our news wrap Monday, eight people in Saudi Arabia were sentenced to prison for their roles in the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. A UN investigator had criticized the trial, which did not convict any senior Saudi officials. Also, two members of a Belarus council calling for a transfer of power and a leading opposition activist are missing.

NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report join Amna Nawaz to discuss the latest political news, including campaign messaging from President Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden around the pandemic and the economy, whether Black voters could make the difference in key Midwestern states and the significance of voters casting ballots early by mail.

A record heat wave is scorching California, where about two dozen wildfires are currently burning. Nearly 15,000 firefighters are battling steep terrain and extremely dry conditions as they struggle to control the raging infernos. On Sunday, temperatures in Los Angeles County reached 121 degrees. Amna Nawaz reports and talks to Leah Stokes of the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Both President Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden made campaign pitches this Labor Day, discussing the pandemic, among other topics. Biden met with labor leaders in Pennsylvania, while the president spoke from the White House. Meanwhile, both vice presidential candidates were in Wisconsin, lately roiled by protests over race and police violence. William Brangham reports.

As schools across the country resume, parents and educators are debating the relative merits of at-home and in-class learning. But what do the students themselves think? Our Student Reporting Labs program teamed up with Detroit Public Television for a series of video diaries to document this very unusual school year as it unfolds. Here are students’ perspectives, in their own words.

As with much of the world, superstar Gloria Estefan has been isolating at home during the pandemic. But she hasn’t remained silent during that time. In fact, Estefan has taken an old hit song of hers and converted it to a public service announcement to encourage people to wear masks. She joins Amna Nawaz to discuss avoiding political debates and maintaining family closeness during time apart.

The British city of Leicester has spent more than two months as the United Kingdom’s most notorious coronavirus hot spot. Its problems originally sprang from a district that houses garment factories -- where some unscrupulous owners have been accused of operating sweatshops during the pandemic. Special correspondent Malcolm Brabant reports on an industry some critics call "modern slavery."

As summer comes to a close, the United States is averaging about 830 coronavirus deaths per day, along with tens of thousands of new cases. Although testing for the virus has improved, problems with access and obtaining expedient results persist. But Dr. Atul Gawande of Brigham and Women’s Hospital has a plan for how testing can be improved. He joins Amna Nawaz to discuss.