PBS NewsHour

Up and down the Pacific Coast, starfish are dying by the tens of thousands and no one knows why. Special correspondent Katie Campbell reports from Seattle on how researchers and citizen scientists are investigating the spread of the mysterious and distressing syndrome.

In 2008, huge crowds showed up in Berlin to get a glimpse of then-senator Barack Obama during his first presidential campaign. But six years later, German enthusiasm has waned, largely because of evidence that the NSA has spied on German citizens and leaders. Margaret Warner talks to German politician Philipp Missfelder about the impact of U.S. spy programs on transatlantic relations.

While President Obama pushed his economic agenda on the road, House Republicans met to discuss their way forward on major issues, including immigration. Gwen Ifill gets views on the year’s political outlook from Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson, Neera Tanden of the Center for American Progress and Andrew Rudalevige from Bowdoin College.

In our news wrap Thursday, Federal prosecutors announced that they will seek the death penalty against Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, accused of bombing the 2013 Boston Marathon, where three were killed and more than 260 were wounded. Also, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio dropped his city’s appeal in a court battle over stop-and-frisk tactics used by police.

Tonight on the program, a winter storm walloped the South, senators Tim Kaine and Jeff Flake respond to the president’s State of the Union, viewers add their reactions to President Obama’s address, German chancellor Angela Merkel underlines stress of U.S. spying, Researchers make stem cell discovery by studying tissue stress and repair, and Poet Carolyn Forché gathers 500 years of suffering in new anthology.

Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks talk to Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff about what to expect in President Obama's annual address to the nation, and how it may set the tone for politics in 2014.

A central figure of American music, Pete Seeger touched the lives of generations with his long list of folk and protest songs that became cultural landmarks of various social movements. Jeffrey Brown talks to Peter Yarrow, friend of Peter Seeger and member of the folk group "Peter, Paul and Mary," for more on Seeger's influence.

In response to unwavering opposition, the Ukrainian government has started to make some significant concessions. Judy Woodruff gets analysis from the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Steven Pifer of the Brookings Institution on whether the protesters now have the upper hand and how Russia perceives the unrest.

Ukraine's parliament met for an emergency session to address the national unrest and repeal anti-protest laws that triggered violent retribution. Jonathan Miller of Independent Television News reports on the resignation of the prime minister and how these developments are playing among the Ukrainian public.

After two years of work and battle, Congress seems close to a farm bill deal. Gwen Ifill talks to Bloomberg News' Alan Bjerga about what's in the bipartisan compromise -- including changes to farm subsidies and $8 billion in cuts to food stamps -- and how the fight was uncharacteristically partisan.

While finishing touches are being put on the Olympic facilities in Sochi, Russia, the U.S. State Department has urged caution for anyone traveling to the games. How will athletes be protected? Judy Woodruff gets perspective from Andrew Weiss of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and Dan Richards of Global Rescue.

Gwen Ifill gets a preview of the State of the Union from White House press secretary Jay Carney, who says President Obama has an optimistic outlook for the economy and bipartisan collaboration. Carney says the president will encourage Congress to legislate as well as use his executive authority to accomplish his plans for 2014.

In our news wrap Tuesday, the southern U.S. got a taste of bitter cold and wintry weather as snow, ice and subzero temperatures descended on states from Texas to Virginia. Also, ousted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi went on trial for charges related to the 2011 revolution. Transcript url:

Tonight on the program, we preview President Obama's fifth State of the Union address and talk to Press Secretary Jay Carney. Also: Russian security to be regimented at Sochi games, Congress nears a compromise on a farm bill, Ukraine's parliament meets in special session to address protesters, remembering musician Pete Seeger and Shields and Brooks offer State of the Union predictions.

Filipino divers disappear into water as opaque as chocolate milk as they blindly dig in search of gold trapped in muddy sediment. It's risky business: As miners go deeper, underwater tunnels could collapse or the compressor that provides air may fail. Hari Sreenivasan reports on a dangerous venture undertaken by adults and kids.