Crystal blue caribbean sea. Nonstop flights are available from most major airports. More information for your vacation planning is available at aruba. Com. And now, bbc world news america. Rajini this is bbc world news america. Reporting from washington, im rajini vaidyanathan. Talking tough about russia and hacking. Donald trumps pick for the cia comes out stronger than the president elect. This was an aggressive action taken by the Senior Leadership inside russia and america has an obligation and the cia has an obligation to protect that information. Rajini adding to tensions is the deployment of thousands of american troops in poland. Moscow describes this as a threat to National Security. And we pay a visit to la la land and hear from the director about why musicals still matter. Viewerswelcome to our on Public Television in america and also around the globe. With just under a week until Donald Trumps inauguration, he and his cabinet nominees are not reading from the same page. His choice for the cia, mike pompeo, told a Senate Committee today that he strongly endorses the work of the Intelligence Community, hours after his future boss criticized it yet again. And general james mattis, the nominee for defense secretary, accuses russia of being a threat to europe. A far cry from the president elects calls for closer ties. Our correspondent nick bryant reports nick . Nick nick a week before Inauguration Day is usually an air of expectancy on capitol hill. Next friday they will be playing hail to the chief as donald trump takes center stage. The mood now is more feverish and surreal. Frontpage allegations swirl that russia has compromising information about the president elect that could make him susceptible to blackmail. Today, Donald Trumps choice for new cia director was on capitol hill, claiming new allegations are unsubstantiated but agreeing the kremlin tried to interfere with the election. It is pretty clear about what took place, russian involvement in efforts to hack information and have an impact on american democracy. I am very clear eyed about what the Intelligence Report says and have every expectation as we continue to develop the fact that i will relay those not only to the president of the team around him and you all, so we can have a robust discussion about how to take on what is an enormous threat. Nick as for the latest allegations contained in the unverified dossier i promise i will pursue the facts wherever they take us. Nick also on capitol hill, the incoming defense secretary, james mad dog mattis, taking aim at vladimir putin. Putting russia at the top of his list of threats to america. General mattis im all for engagement, but we have to recognize reality and what russia is up to, and the decreasing number of areas where we can engage cooperatively an d an increasing number of areas where we have to confront russia. Nick from trump tower yesterday, the president elect rejected the unverified allegations that russia has dirt on him in strong and colorful language. President elect trump you are fake news. Nick after speaking to director of National Intelligence james clapper, he was just as vehement on twitter. Nick but intelligence chiefs have made no determination about the credibility of the claim. The Intelligence Community has not made any judgment that the information is reliable and we did not rely on it in anyway for our conclusions, said clapper in a statement. I emphasize this document is not u. S. Intelligence community product, and i do not believe the leak came from within the Intelligence Community. The ongoing rift with the Intelligence Community and open disagreement with senior appointees over russia are not Donald Trumps only problems. He is also being slammed by the u. S. Government ethics chief. It is over his plans to hand control of the Business Empire to his sons. But for 40 years president s have created independent blind trusts to avoid conflict of interest. The presidency is a fulltime job and he would have had to step back anyway. The idea of setting up a trust to hold his operating business adds nothing to the equation. This is not a blind trust. It is not even close. Nick washington is a city used to ethics questions and alleged scandal. But nothing like this on the eve of an inauguration. Nick bryant, bbc news, washington. Rajini as we heard it there, Donald Trumps pick to fill vital cabinet posts stake out positions somewhat at odds with the president elect. A former cia counterterrorism analyst joined me a short time ago. Thanks very much for joining us. You were in those hearings, mike pick for cia head, had a different position to donald trump when it came to russian hacking, for example. What do you think the Trump Administration is going to do when it comes to pursuing russia and claims of hacking . Very interesting. One of the things the trump folks said they would do is want is once he takes office he will issue a 90day Cyber Security report on hacking. It is unclear what that means. Does that mean we are going to determine what happened over the course of the last year and there will be recommendations . We dont know. Trump has not given us information. Now, mike pompeo, nominee for c. I. A. Director, and james mattis for defense secretary, have come out strongly against russia. It is actually quite interesting to see whether the individuals who run the bureaucracy at odds with the president. Rajini what do you think that means for the Trump Administration policy on russia . You sat in the hearings and heard different language from his picks. Some of the individuals are quite moderate and in line with what the Intelligence Community and the National Security state really thinks of russia and their efforts not only in the United States but all over the world. Whether you have donald trump saying things through twitter, through his pronouncements, that are at odds, we will see maybe a rift between those who run the bureaucracy and the white house. Ts. Ini lets stay with rif donald trump has sparked a bit of a rift, you could say, with the Intelligence Community, after he blamed them for leaking the unverified dossier. As someone who is excia, what is the Intelligence Community saying about this . It is actually interesting to read the 35page document released by buzzfeed. This has been floating around gress,c. Community, in con staffers, some journalists in the city have read this before. It is a lot of very strange and salacious material. Whether donald trump is willing to accept that potentially the russians have compromised him when he was in moscow over the course of the last 30 years or not, that remains to be seen. But the fact that the russians are playing a very strong game and if they have any information on the future of the president of the United States, they are going to use it to their advantage. Rajini but is the Intelligence Community angry . How will this affect the relationship Going Forward . It remains to be seen. The Intelligence Community are professionals in what they do and will do a professional job. It is unclear whether donald trump himself will use the professionalism to the best of his ability. We still dont know. Still early. Rajini a lot of things we still dont know about the upcoming president. Thank you very much for joining us. Thank you very much. Rajini lets get more on the dossier that rattled the u. S. Political landscape this week. The former mi6 officer widely named as its source is gone into hiding. Christopher steele is thought to have left his home earlier this week and has not been seen since. Here is our security Gordon Corera on the british connection to this american drama. Gordon the murky world of intelligence gathering in moscow. A secret dossier on allegations about donald trump and russia all written by a former member of mi6, the British Secret service. This is christopher steele, the author, a man used to keeping a low profile, now the center of international controversy. His house was unoccupied today. The 52yearold was supposed to have told neighbors to look after his cats. He is said to be lying low, fearing for his safety. In the 1990s, he worked in moscow undercover for mi6 and became one of their russian experts. In london, after leaving mi6, he and a former colleague founded a private intelligence company. It is headquartered here. There is no sign of steele. Companies like this try to keep a low profile and rely on their contacts sometimes from their past in the intelligence world to gather information. Last year Donald Trumps opponents, republican and then democrat, commissioned investigators to see what damaging material they could find. Among those was christopher steele, whose work on earth allegations about trumps sex life, business dealings, and campaign relations with the kremlin. These were passed into the news media, who tried to investigate but couldnt confirm allegations. Details were passed to the fbi and politicians, who began asking questions. Last week u. S. Intelligence briefed trump about the existence of the memos without saying they were true. That led to a news outlet publishing the memos 2 days ago. Because he was an exmi6 officer, steele was unlikely to have been able to travel to moscow himself, so instead would have relied on intermediaries. Moscow is a difficult place to work in. The russians have a history of secrecy and deception. The other court vacating complicated factor is if youre going to give someone money to something, there is a strong possibility they will tell you what you want to hear. Gordon Alexander Litvinenko also investigated the kremlin for private Intelligence Companies and was working for mi6 when steele was there. He was poisoned by radioactive polonium on the orders, it is thought, of the kremlin. His widow tells me that the investigations carry real risks. I believe it is very dangerous, particularly after the death of my husband. When you report specific information, particularly when the information goes to powerful people, you might be in line and and you just easily might be killed. Gordon the russian dossier was not written for public consumption, and the extraordinary allegations have not been proven. Its author never expected to be in the spotlight. But in the feverish atmosphere of american politics today, secrets are no longer as safe as they were. Rajini as if there wasnt enough happening in washington, today the u. S. Justice department opened an investigation into the fbis activities in the runup to the american election. In particular, they will look into director james comeys decision to reopen a probe into Hillary Clintons emails just 11 days before the election. Democrats say that helped donald trump the surprise victory. The president elect maintains it had no impact on the outcome. Russia says a significant American Military buildup in whole and a threat to americas National Security. Tanks and Armored Vehicles are being deployed along natos eastern front. It is the biggest u. S. Military enforcement in europe in decades. Our defense correspondent Jonathan Beale has been watching the american contingent arrive and sent us this report. Jonathan the americans are coming, back into europe in force. We joined an armored convoy from germany into poland, nearing the end of the journey that started in colorado. This is the proof that the u. S. Is ready to defend nato allies. What signal do you think it will send to moscow . That we are ready to do anything. It is a normal military job to defend country, to defend family, to defend the world. Jonathan they came by road and by rail. An entire armored brigade of 3500 troops and hundreds of vehicles. Three years ago come in less tense times, the last american tanks left europe. Now they brought more than 80 of them back. While they often welcomed with open arms, the decision to send them was taken by president obama. As he prepares to hand over power, the question will the next president soon be telling them to return home . You dont expect to get orders to turn around . No, sir, we are focused on this mission right now and are very proud to be here. The soldiers are very proud to be here. The formation is great. Very strong. Going great. We are going to remain committed to that, because it is important. Jonathan over the next few days a steady stream of trains carrying u. S. Heavy armor will be arriving here in western poland. All part of the largest u. S. Military buildup in europe since the end of the cold war. And while america has said this is all about reassuring nato allies, russia sees it as a direct threat. It is obvious that the goal of these efforts as well as the hasty deployment of military efforts in europe is an attempt of the Outgoing Obama Administration to complicated as much as possible this bilateral relation. Jonathan britain, too, is boosting defense in eastern europe, taking command of the highreadiness force and planning to send hundreds of troops to estonia and poland. The Nato Alliance wants to send a strong message to russia. But that will largely depend on donald trump. Jonathan beale, bbc news, western poland. Rajini you are watching bbc world news america. Still to come, asking the right questions is an art form, and tonight we find out what it takes to get the answer you are after. Whales and humans are almost unique in the animal kingdom. Females of both species go through menopause in their 40s or 50s. Now fourdecade study of the population of orchids is helping researchers understand why any species, including us, might have evolved to stop having babies early in life. Here is victoria gill. Ia chasing an evolutionary mistreatment is researchers have been documenting the lives of killer whales here for four decades. And the findings have revealed new insight to things that we humans share with him now also very different with a mammal so very different from us. Workers and humans are 2 mammals that stop producing halfway through our lives, and this study of killer will society has shown that grandmothers play a leaving and, helping the family survive. Scientists have used this unique data set that recorded births familyths in every orca here to prove that one grandmothers stop having babies of their own the daughters offspring has a significantly higher chance of survival. The benefits are not enough to explain why human menopause has evolved. It is only when you consider the conflicts and the competition within the family group, you can explain why menopause has evolved. Avoiding this socalled reproductive conflicts between generations seems to give babies the best possible chance. Really interesting just how important that bond is victoria that could finally explain the evolutionary story of human menopause. The highly intelligent and now endangered animals have close family bonds, and this careful observation of killer whale society could change our perspective on our own. Victoria gill, bbc news. Rajini asking the right question at the right time, it is a skill that many successful people share. What goes into crafting the perfect inquiry . That is the topic of frank sesnos new book. The veteran journalist spoke to some of the best in their fields to find out which questions elicit the best answers. The result is ask more. A brief time ago i spoke to him about it. Thanks very much for joining us. Frank my pleasure. Rajini your book is called ask more. But what more should we be asking . Frank oh gosh, more at every level. We should be asking more of ourselves as citizens and friends and colleagues and observers of the world, as learners. We should be asking more of our Public Officials, demanding accountability and answers, demanding explanation. I like how and why questions. Why is something being done in a certain way . How is this going to work . Who is this going to affect . And we should ask more of ourselves as a culture. I have a chapter in the book on science. Science goes into the unknown and it embraces all the uncertainty. Look what we discover when we do that. Maybe that approach to life would serve us well with our kids or partners or work. Rajini your book analyzes the art of asking questions. Most People Struggle with the difficult questions. What have you learned through writing this book about asking a very difficult question in a difficult moment . Frank we can all do it better. We can all listen better. I think we should rename q a we talk about questions and answers we should rename it q l, questions and listening, because so much of this is about listening. Whether it is a difficult question, whether it is at work, family, start with an openended question like the doctor does. How are you feeling today . What is going on here . You follow people with that. That is where listening comes in. And you have a deliberate approach, as you do as a journalist, with a followup question. You are not just asking once and moving on. You ask and listen and ask again, with the goal. Whether it is to figure out a problem or find out who is responsible for something, or to solve a mystery. When you put the pieces together, the questions become easier. Rajini what about not a politician or official, but just asking a difficult question of someone you know . Frank especially when it is not a politician or public official. I didnt write this book about Public Officials and politicians. I cite them, but it is about how we connect as human beings. We say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. In many ways, questions is the sincerest form of flattery, because it is my way of saying i care, i listen. The fact that you got me here means you are somewhat interested in the book and what im saying and how we can all be better at this. If you are talking to a child or parent or friend or partner, just as when you are going people go to therapy and talk to their therapist. The first thing is establishing that appointment. Now is the time we are going to talk. Both people have that expectation. Second is conveying empathy through your questions, that you listen and care about the response. Third is what i call intimate distance caring enough to lean in and listen but enough distance so you can be an observer. Through that listening and next question, finding out more. Rajini everyone was watching Donald Trumps press conference yesterday. What question would you like to ask donald trump, man who has been asked a lot of questions . Frank how do you know what you know . Where does this all come from . And i would like to know specific to any given policy, who do think is going to be helped and how, who is going to be hurt and how, and how do you make that calculation . The book divides questions into 11 categories. One is confrontational questions. That is what donald trump is setting up with the press for, a confrontational relationship or every question he is asked takes on a confrontational tenor. What we really need more of with donald is the figureitout type questions. Diagnostic questions what is the problem and how do we know, how have you identified these issues . Specifics of strategy where are going and how we get there . Rajini i think a lot of journalists will be wanting to read the book. Frank i hope so and others rajini thanks for joining us. Frank my pleasure. Thank you. Rajini la la land was the big winner at the Golden Globes this past weekend, scooping up a record seven awards. The film, which stars ryan anling and emma stone, is ode to oldtime hollywood and takes place against the backdrop of modern los angeles. We spoke to the films director. City of stars are you shining just for me reporter welcome to la la land, the hollywood musical starring emma stone and ryan gosling which looks like it is going to sing and dance itself to oscar glory. It is a genre of filmmaking that its 31yearold writer and director thinks is unfairly derided. Damien this idea of musicals still being and vital i dont think theyre outdated thing they are labeled as. I dont think they are a purely fantastical thing. I think musicals can say a great deal about real life and real emotions and humanity and where we are now. And the need for dreams. Here is to the ones who dream reporter from the writer and directors point of view, what can you do in this film that you cannot do in the script . Damien i think of a song in a musical as a reflection of a persons innermost feelings. It is feelings that cannot be described in dialogue or action. It is feelings that need the outlet of a song. Damien we had about a 34month rehearsal period where every day ryan and emma were in dance lessons, singing lessons, piano lessons. It is also part of the fun if you are working with movie stars them outsidet their comfort zone and see their vulnerability. Reporter Damien Chazelle is not yet 32 but is already being widely applauded and lauded for his talents. He is a Young Filmmaker living his own la la land dream. Rajini that brings todays show to a close but you can find much more on all the days news on our website. From all of us here at world news america, thanks very much for watching us. Please tune in tomorrow. Make sense of International News at bbc. Com news. Funding of this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation. Newmans own foundation, giving all profits from newmans own to charity and pursuing the common good. Kovler foundation, pursuing solutions for americas neglected needs. And aruba tourism authority. Planning a vacation escape that is relaxing, inviting, and exciting is a lot easier than you think. You can find it here in aruba. Families, couples, and friends can all find their escape on the island with warm, sunny days, cooling trade winds, and the crystal blue caribbean sea. Nonstop flights are available from most major airports. More information for your vacation planning is available at aruba. Com. Bbc world news was presented by kcet, los angeles. Raul im raul and i love saving lives. When youre going out on a call, driving down the road with your lights and sirens on, its incredible when you actually save somebodys life. Anybody know what it feels like a rock star . Peg totally rock out raul if you rescue people, you feel that every time. In the fire service, team is very important, and we all work together. Martin kratt and koki oh yeah team chris kratt and aviva woo hoo raul firefighters, were a family, so we call each other brothers and sisters. Were always ready. We gotta constantly keep training, studying. Just like you guys study in school, that makes us better prepared for anything. firetruck sirens when i was little, i had a little firetruck. Id dress up on halloween as a firefighter, but id never think i was gonna be a firefighter, but look at me now. Daniel tiger look, i see more helpers. Raul dreams do come true. If you want to be a firefighter, youve got to get good grades and stay in shape. And learn teamwork