Barbara hope zuckerberg. Corporate funding is provided by mutual of america designing customized individual and Group Retirement products. Thats why were your retirement company. Additional support has been provided by and by the corporation for public broadcasting, and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. From the tisch wnet studios at Lincoln Center in new york, megan thompson. Thompson good evening and thank you for joining us. The longestserving member of congress, 88yearold john conyers of michigan, announced today hes giving up his post as top democrat on the house Judiciary Committee, but he wont resign. The move follows last weeks disclosure by buzzfeed that conyers settled a Sexual Harassment claim by a former staff member in 2015 with a confidential 27,000 payment. The House Ethics Committee is now investigating the payment. Conyers denies the allegations. Conyers said today in a statement i cannot in good conscience allow these charges to undermine my colleagues in the democratic caucus, and my friends on both sides of the aisle in the Judiciary Committee and the house of representatives. Today, House Democratic leader nancy pelosi defended due process in these cases and said Bipartisan Legislation to require antiharassment and antidiscrimination training on capitol hill will be voted on this week. Women have spoken out. Their concerns will be addressed in a way that i think will give comfort, as well as end this behavior. Thompson with two weeks until the special u. S. Senate election in alabama President Trump is again aligning himself with embattled republican candidate roy moore. Today on twitter, the president called moores democratic opponent, former federal prosecutor doug jones, weak on crime, weak on the border, bad for our military and our great vets, bad for our 2nd amendment, and wants to raises taxes to the sky. The tweet echoed comments supportive of moore the president made when he left the white house to spend thanksgiving in florida. The 70yearold moore, a former chief justice of alabamas supreme court, has denied published allegations that he pursued romantic relationships with at least seven teenage girls, when he was a District Attorney in his 30s, and that he sexually assaulted two of them. Jones didnt respond to the president today but did issue a statement calling moore unfit for office. Senator john thune of south dakota, the third ranking republican in the senate, said today the president should ask moore to step aside in favor of a writein candidate. If roy moore wins and comes into the senate in january, theres immediately going to be an ethics investigation, which is going to be a cloud that hell be operating in, and its going to be a distraction for us and for our agenda. Thompson an investigation published today by the Associated Press reveals the f. B. I. Did not alert hundreds of american officials that Russian Hackers had targeted them and tried to break into their personal gmail accounts in 2015. The same kremlinconnected hacking operation, known as fancy bear, stole thousands of emails from the Democratic Party during last years president ial campaign. To explain more about what the ap found, im joined via skype by reporter raphael satter, whos in london. So first, rafael, can you just help us understand what is fancy bear and who were they targeting grm fancy bear is the name that was commonly assigned to a group of hackers that the u. S. Military has applied to the kremlin and Russian Military intelligence. We got from a exeant called secure works, a list of about 19,000 malicious links that fancy bear had been using over the last kim of years. We crunched the data and were able to identify about 4700 unique people of which 500 or so are in the united states. So then you began contacting these people . Yeah, it was extraordinarily laborious work, we went about contacting these people and asked them many simple questions. Number 1, were you aware that fancy bear was targeting you, were you aware of the investigation by the fbi and the overwhelming answer was no. I understand some were government officials, some with security clearance. Thats right. It ran the gamut. We have spoken to all kinds of people. Former navy seals, people in nato who are exgenerals, former policy makers, a lot of people who retired from the military or retired from the state department. But weve also spoken the active duty soldiers and some of the people who havent spoken to us include people active in government work to this day. What did the fbi say when you asked them had they notified the people that were targeted . They said more or less they make every effort to contact the people that are hacked, but the overwhelming majority of the people just hadnt heard from the fbi at all. If you know at all what is fancy bears goal with targeting people . They are targeting a lot of people in nato, people who work in the military, people who work in the state department, people who work for military contractors. This suggests they are very interested in people who work in the military and maybe military technology. They may be interested in keeping an eye what diplomats speak about personally, what dc links and potentially classic intelligence gathering. Rafael satter of the Associated Press, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you for having me. Thompson Christmas Holiday season shopping is off to a stronger start online than in person. Foot traffic in u. S. Retail stores was down by 2 on thanksgiving and the day after, compared to last year. But us retailers reported 7. 9 billion in online sales. Thats up 17. 9 from a year ago. 40 of fridays Online Purchases were made from mobile phones. In another singleday u. S. Record, the f. B. I. Conducted 203,000 instant background checks for gun purchases on friday, but the number of guns sold is likely higher, because one buyer may purchase multiple guns. New advertisements paid for by the nations four Largest Tobacco Companies start running today during prime time tv shows and in newspapers, and they discourage smoking. Smoking kills on average 1,200 americans every day. More people die every year from smoking than murder, aids, suicide, drugs, car crashes, and alcohol combined. Thompson in 2006, a federal judge found altria, r. J. Reynolds, lorillard, and Philip Morris had long deceived the public about the effects of smoking and ordered the ads as corrective statements. The Tobacco Companies appealed the ruling for 11 years. In syrias sixyear civil war, Government Forces are pressing their offensive to retake the last rebel stronghold near the capital of damascus. Government air strikes in that area killed at least 23 civilians today and 127 people in the past two weeks, according to the britishbased syrian observatory for human rights. The syrian army of president Bashar Alassad is still being supported by russian forces. Russias Defense Ministry said today that six of its longrange bombers struck isis targets in northeast syria. This week in geneva, the United Nations is convening a new round of peace talks between the Syrian Government and opposition leaders. Pakistans largest city, karachi, was effectively shut down today by islamist protesters blocking major intersections. The protests, which began three weeks ago in the capital of islamabad, stem from a proposed new version of the oath taken by elected lawmakers. The oath omits mention of the prophet muhammad. Yesterday in islamabad, police in riot gear fired tear gas to clear access to a main highway that had been blocked by 2,000 protesters. Six protesters died in the clashes, and 200 were injured. The minister who omitted the prophets name from the oath says it was a clerical error and has since apologized, but protesters are demanding his resignation. Thompson tomorrow, a jury in washington, d. C. , resumes deliberations in the first trial stemming from the september 11th, 2012 terrorist attack on the u. S. Consulate in benghazi, libya. That attack killed four americans, including u. S. Ambassador christopher stevens. For the past seven weeks, federal prosecutors have tried to prove defendant Abu Ahmed Khattala was a ringleader of the attack. Yesterday, i spoke with New York Times reporter adam goldman whos been covering the trial. So chris lets just start out, who is abu ahmed katalla and . He is simply accused of orchestrating the attacks inon september 11th, 2012 on the u. S. Diplomatic mission in which the intor was killed and in a secret cia base in which two cia contractors were skilled. I understand that building the case against him was very complicated. There was even an informant who was paid 7 million. Can you talk to us a little bit about that . Sure, this was an extraordinary difficult case to build against katalla, mainly because the fbi couldnt get into benghazi, they actually had to hand it off to military commandos who snuck into libya and debriefed the informant every four months. They started working will informant the end of 2012, it took a long time for him to get what he needed from ka tfertionalla before they were satisfied they could move forward with the prosecution. Thompson you attended several days of the trial. Could you talk about what it was like . I understand some of the witnesses had to testify in disguise. Yes, a couple of the guys who worked for the cia, they wore wigs and disguises, they were protected, katalla is there every day, not in shackles, he sits quietly with his lawyers. You really see the power of l the federal courts. Thompson why was the decision made to try him in federal court rather than military . He is not affiliated with al qaeda, at least people havent presented the case that he is. But he was prosecuted he was charged about the department of justice, with 18 counts, involving the murders of these four americans, and i think it was important to the department of justice and the fbi to hold somebody responsible and to bring him impact and prosecute him in civilian court. They have been dealing with terrorists for a very long time and katalla is one of many foreign born terrorists who face trial and are successfully prosecuted. Thompson if hes found guilty where will he end up . Probably the frommax in colorado, probably spend the rest of his life, 23 hours a day in solitary confinement. Thompson there are any others who are accused of having a roam in the benghazi attack who will be tried . The phish has charged more than a dozen people, delta force apprehended one of the suspects near misrata in libya, near the coast, and brought him back and they intend to prosecute him. It was katalla himself who identified mustafa al amin. Thompson thank you very much for being here. Thompson Joni Mitchell, who just turned 74, is one of the most acclaimed singer songwriters in modern times. She won a Lifetime Achievement grammy award in 2002, and her albums, from the late 1960s through the early 2000s, have sold millions of copies and influenced many musical artists. The new biography reckless daughter a portrait of Joni Mitchell, has received strong reviews, and one reason is the author, david yaffe, had extraordinary access to the normally reclusive mitchell. Newshour weekends Phil Hirschkorn recently spoke to yaffe about his book. Ive looked at love from both sides now, from give and take, but still somehow, its loves illusions i recall reporter growing up in rural canada, singersongwriter Joni Mitchell taught herself to play guitar and piano and became a voice of the generation that came of age in the 1960s. Biographer david yaffe sees her approach to songwriting as painterly. In a great rembrandt painting, in a great rembrandt portrait, you are not only seeing representations of people, youre somehow looking into their souls. And i feel like Joni Mitchells songs are like that. They go right to the core of who people really are, not who they want to present themselves as being, but who they really are, maybe who theyre hiding. Reporter early songs like both sides now show a certain maturity and having lived life, at least the lyrics do. Yes. I think part of it was that she had survived polio as a 10year old, and then she gave up her daughter and couldnt talk about it, which meant that she hadnt lived the typical life of a 21 yearold when she was writing these incredible songs at 21, 22, 23. Circle game is a great example. And the seasons, they go round and round, and the painted ponies go up and down reporter how did giving up her baby for adoption change the arc of her career and her life . It was the start of her career. This songwriting began after she gave up her daughter. Shes in this unhappy marriage, then shes repressed, and so all of this expression of melancholy and beauty comes out. Reporter Joni Mitchell was supposed to play at woodstock. She didnt get there. But yet she writes the anthem that becomes the song woodstock, better known by crosby stills and nash. But her version is more interesting, i think. The lyrics are not really a celebration, especially when you hear the way she sings it, its a dirge. We are stardust, we are golden, and weve got to get ourselves back to the garden shes saying, we have fallen. We have to get ourselves back to the garden. But that is not whats happening. i am on a lonely road, and i am traveling, traveling, traveling, looking for something, what can it be reporter this summer, when npr compiled a list of the 150 best albums by women, Joni Mitchells blue came out on top. Why is that . Well, ill start by saying that joni never likes being genderized, which is a word she uses. But blue, over time, has this legend about it. And theres nothing like any of it but especially the darkest songs on there, the title track, for example. Blue songs are like tattoos i just think theres such an intimacy to it that when we hear that voice, we hear that it is singing directly to us. Reporter you call her as a singersongwriter martyr. How is that . To her, the point was not to confess, the point was to reveal. With joni, its more like disclosure. Help me, i think im falling, in love again after her biggest hit, court and spark, she hired a jazz band to be her band. And joni had these musicians that she liked working with, and she started to experiment. Theres comfort in melancholy, when theres no need to explain but she started to lose her audience. And she ended up making music that doesnt really have a category; it wasnt jazz, but it was not quite pop either. It was Something Else it was Joni Mitchell music. And when she collaborated with Charles Mingus on his final project a lot of people in the jazz world attacked it, because its not a jazz record. Reporter in the 1980s, mitchell turned to rock n roll, but her record sales did not rebound much. Or when she returned to a stripped down sound in the 1990s. What do you think happened . You know, the times were changing, and so joni was of her time in the 70s, and she could go through those changes and her audience would stick with her. The sales started to drop after court and spark. But she still had an audience. Don juans reckless daughter was still a gold record. It was the last one. Reporter mitchell won the best pop album grammy for her 1994 release turbulent indigo but by 2000, she stopped touring and later released rerecordings of her old songs. Dont it always seem to go that you dont know what youve got til its gone they pave paradise and put up a parking lot because of her four pack a day smoking habit, her voice was changing quickly; it dropped an octave and became much more brittle. But one thing i want to say about those albums is that there are some times when youre feeling ravaged, and you want to hear a voice thats been through things, because thats how you feel. Reporter in the pbs american masters documentary she says at one point, they were putting me on a pedestal, and i was wobbling. did she have a hard time handling all the fame and accolades that came her way . She did, but not for the typical reason. I think it was because when she would play folk clubs she could make eye contact with people and the audience, and she could sort of see everybody and communicate with everyone and do that thing that she does, which is being so real. And so when shes up on the larger stage, it could be a little confusing or alienating, because she was still taking in, it was too much to take in. Reporter so in the 1990s, Joni Mitchell rediscovers the daughter who she gave up for adoption as a baby, and they meet. How did that work out . At first it was like a love affair. And theyre so giddy and happy and high. And finally the circle is closed in my life. Shes got these wonderful grandchildren. And then she and the daughter are off and on after that. Reporter what would you say is Joni Mitchells legacy . As someone who started out in folk, then turned to pop, and then experimented with jazz she really elevated the pop song to an art song. Its high art even when its fun. California im coming home im going to see the folks i dig, ill even kiss a sunset pig california when i get home thompson read more excerpts from our interview with Joni Mitchell biographer david yaffe at pbs. Org newshour. Thompson finally, 2,000 travelers are stranded on the indonesian island of bali due to a volcano. Mount agung erupted this weekend, sending ash and steam 13,000 feet into the sky. After indonesia raised its volcano aviation warning to the h