PBS NewsHour

The town of Westminster, Mass., could become the first in the nation to ban the sale of tobacco products if a proposal from the city's board of health passes in December. The unprecedented pitch would ban the sale cigarettes, chewing tobacco and e-cigarettes within the city. Proponents cite the benefit of the reduced health risks from tobacco, whereas some residents and local businesses say jobs and consumer freedom is at stake. NewsHour Weekend's William Brangham reports.

Following a growing list of aggressive moves made by Russia against the West, what is Putin's plan? Kimberly Marten, a Russian scholar and professor at Barnard College and Columbia University joins Hari Sreenivasan to provide insight into what may be behind Putin's recent behavior.

Hari Sreenivasan reads comments from viewers about a recent report involving compensation -- or lack thereof -- for people who've been wrongfully convicted of crimes.

When the Nazis occupied Czechoslovakia in 1939, tens of thousands of Jews applied for visas to anywhere. Among them, Paul Strnad and his wife Hedy, a dress designer. Ultimately, neither would get a visa to leave Czechoslovakia. Now, in an exhibit called "Stitching History from the Holocaust," the Jewish Museum of Milwaukee is displaying the dresses Hedy once designed and could never realize. NewsHour special correspondent Martin Fletcher reports in collaboration with Milwaukee Public Television.

Millions of acres of farmland in the U.S. have been affected by herbicide-resistant weeds, rendering some fields unable to be farmed. And the problem is spreading, which could mean more lost crops and lost profits. The EPA approved a new herbicide to be used with USDA-approved genetically modified seeds, but opponents have sued, warning it could harm the environment and human health. NewsHour Weekend's Megan Thompson reports.​

In our news wrap Friday, the Republican-controlled House approved the final phase of the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline for the ninth time. It's never gotten through the Democratic-controlled Senate, but that may be changing after the midterm elections. Also, Iraqi forces claimed new success over the Islamic State in the oil refinery town of Beiji.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel announced a shake-up of the management of the American nuclear weapons stockpile after concluding that the country's aging nuclear infrastructure needs more support. Margaret Warner explores the some of the lapses, and Hari Sreenivasan discusses the potential overhaul with former Defense Department official David Trachtenberg and Bruce Blair of Princeton University.

Hospital officials in Omaha, Nebraska, are preparing to treat a surgeon who was reportedly infected with the Ebola virus while treating patients in Sierra Leone, where the outbreak continues to be dire. In Liberia, infections rates seem to be slowing, but cases have emerged in Mali. Jeffrey Brown gets an update from CDC director Dr. Tom Frieden about Ebola in West Africa and the U.S.

Casinos have been Atlantic City’s lifeblood. Now, they’re bottoming out at alarming rates -- four have already closed this year, leaving thousands unemployed. Economics correspondent Paul Solman explores the gamble that elevated Atlantic City in its prime, and how residents and businesses are trying to cope with its decline as a capital of the gambling industry.

Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks join Hari Sreenivasan to discuss the week’s news, including the carbon deal between the United States and China, legislative action on the Keystone XL pipeline and how Republicans may respond if President Obama issues an executive action on immigration reform.

In 2009, journalist Maziar Bahari was held for months in solitary confinement in a Tehran prison after being charged with being a spy. He turned his real ordeal into a memoir, which has now been dramatized as "Rosewater," a new movie by Jon Stewart. Jeffrey Brown talks to Bahari and Stewart about appreciating how humor can humanize brutality and the importance of protecting press freedoms.

In our news wrap Thursday, Liberia’s president lifted a state of emergency that restricted citizen movement, citing progress against Ebola. More than half of the more than 5,000 people who have died from the disease have been from that country. Also, The New York Times reported that President Obama will issue an executive order on immigration, drawing fresh warnings from Republicans.

Despite claims from Iraqi officials that the leader of the Islamic State had been wounded or killed, a 17-minute recorded message was released in which he taunted the U.S.-led coalition. Meanwhile, in a House hearing, lawmakers questioned and criticized Pentagon officials about the Obama administration plan to defeat the militant group. Chief foreign affairs correspondent Margaret Warner reports.

For a deeper look at the Obama administration’s strategy to defeat the Islamic State in Syria, as well as the regional challenges of implementing that strategy, Gwen Ifill talks to former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq James Jeffrey and Phyllis Bennis of the Institute for Policy Studies.

The European Space Agency’s Rosetta spacecraft lander had a bumpier ride than initially thought when it tried to settle on the surface of a comet. When its landing equipment failed, it bounced twice, and is now believed to be sitting on its side, raising questions about the future of the mission. Alok Jha of Independent Television News reports.