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America’s Covid-19 vaccination programme is progressing at a staggering pace and states are beginning to reopen. But the country also tops world rankings when it comes to deaths from the virus. As worrying new variants emerge, could they now undermine America’s progress? Across the US, communities of colour have been impacted disproportionately by the pandemic. Despite that, vaccinations of Black and Hispanic Americans have lagged. One person who’s trying to change that is retired clinical social worker, Cynthia Finch, in eastern Tennessee. By keeping an ever-expanding list of people in her community who want vaccines, she’s helped facilitate thousands of jabs. “We have created an access for our people of colour to get into the lines”. Dr. Michael Osterholm is one of the world’s leading epidemiologists. In early 2020 he raised the alarm over the severity of the incoming pandemic. Now he’s warning that if the US doesn’t help vaccinate lower income countries quickly, it will continue to be impacted by dangerous new variants of Covid-19. “I have said for the past few months, that I thought the darkest days of the pandemic were still ahead of us… we are not out of the danger zone yet with this virus on a global level”.

With China on the rise, how will America react? Chinese influence across the world is growing, in economic and political terms. This raises serious questions for the new Biden administration. The US and China are economically interdependent, and need to have shared interests, particularly in trade and climate change. But the rhetoric in recent weeks has been anything but friendly. The two superpowers are going head-to-head in trade wars, retaliatory sanctions, and accusations of human rights abuses. Katty and Carlos take a step back and look at what is at stake for both sides, and whether there is a chance for a future of peaceful coexistence. Katty and Carlos’ guests are: Kaiser Kuo, Editor-at-Large at SupChina, a media company that focuses on explaining China to the West. He’s also founder and co-host of the Sinica podcast, a show that discusses all things China. He spent 20 years working and living in Beijing and is now back home in the US. Robert Daly is the Director of the Kissinger Institute on China and the United States at the Wilson Centre. He’s a former diplomat who spent eleven years based in China where he worked on an array of cultural exchange programmes, including the translation of Sesame Street into Chinese. A co-production from the BBC World Service and OZY Media.

It was in 2017, with numerous allegations against Harvey Weinstein, that #MeToo went viral around the world. One of the most outspoken people was the actress Rose McGowan, who accused Weinstein of raping her. A number of other women also accused the disgraced movie producer. He was found guilty of rape and sentenced to 23 years in prison in February 2020. Katty Kay and Carlos Watson speak to Rose McGowan about her personal story, and what drove her to speak out and “fight the system.” They also discuss what more needs to be done to prevent sexual abuse – of girls and women, and of boys and men. A co-production from the BBC World Service and OZY Media.

How can we feel good again? It goes without saying that it’s been a tough year, but as things start to open up again, can Americans regain some sense of positivity, or has the traditional idea of American optimism been changed forever? Dr Cicely Horsham Brathwaite is a therapist and career coach. Many of her clients are African American, and she says the constant discussions around racism add an extra layer of stress and anxiety to an already impossible year. She says getting involved in activism, volunteering and reading positive stories about your community can help. Adam Grant is an organizational psychologist and author of the new book Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know. He argues this may be time for us to change our attitudes. A co-production from the BBC World Service and Ozy Media.

Once again, the cryptocurrency Bitcoin is making headlines for rocketing in value. As more companies back it, could it be here to stay? And if so, how is it changing our world? Katty Kay and Carlos Watson look at Bitcoin’s latest price surge and discuss how it and other digital currencies are being adopted around the globe - from the U.S., to Venezuela, to China. Nathaniel Popper is a New York Times technology reporter and author of Digital Gold: Bitcoin and the Inside Story of the Misfits and Millionaires Trying to Reinvent Money. He’s been following the Bitcoin story for nearly a decade, and explains how it is changing our relationship with money. Lily Liu is an entrepreneur who has worked with cryptocurrencies for more than five years. In 2018 a company she co-founded was sold to one of the largest cryptocurrency trading platforms for more than $100m. She says companies are backing Bitcoin as an alternative to gold. A co-production from the BBC World Service and OZY Media.

In the last 15 years, America has lost around 25% of its local and regional newspapers. Many others have shrunk dramatically in size. This has led to an increasing number of so-called “news deserts” across the US. There is growing evidence that this has a detrimental impact on local democracy, as well as the local economy. Emily Brindley is a 25-year-old reporter on the country’s longest continuously published newspaper, the Hartford Courant, in Connecticut. The paper has recently lost dozens of newsroom staff, as well as its physical newsroom, and is set to be taken over by a hedge fund that is notorious for making swingeing cuts. Penelope Abernathy started her career in local journalism, before moving to the business side of newspapers, including working for the New York Times and helping it expand nationally and internationally. She has written a number of reports on the state of local media in the US.

At the height of the pandemic, Native Americans were dying of Covid at twice the rate of white Americans. Huge inequalities have been highlighted, not just in terms of health, but also housing, education and wealth. Twenty-three percent of Native Americans live below the poverty line, compared to 10 percent of white Americans, and Native Americans are 19 times more likely to live without running water in their home. But there’s some good news too. If confirmed, Deb Haaland will make history as the first Native American in a cabinet secretary role. She’ll be the Secretary of the Interior, which oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Could this historic appointment change the fate of Native Americans today? There’s a lot of history to undo. Jonodev Chaudhuri, ambassador for the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, explains how his mother was forced to go to a boarding school where she was forbidden from speaking her native language, and her arm was broken by her teachers. The poor education she received didn’t set her up well in life. He says the federal government has broken promises made in treaties to safeguard the health, education and safety of his people in return for their land. Amber Crotty, a tribal council delegate in the Navajo Nation in Arizona, tells how her tribe were left out of agreements over who had the right to the water that ran through their land, so today they can’t lawfully use it. One-third of her nation live without running water in their homes, and there are just 13 grocery stores on the 71,000 sq km reservation, meaning they have to drive for hours to buy food. She’s working hard to get her citizens vaccinated against Covid, and says the tide is now starting to turn. She hopes having a Native American head up the Department of the Interior, which oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs, will help address many inequalities they face.

America has been involved in plenty of wars in recent decades and is proud of its military and veterans. But are veterans getting the support they need?

How are Generation Z shaping your world? They are the generation born from 1996 to the present day. As the oldest members are turning 24, they’re already shaking things up in the workplace and at the ballot box. Social justice is the most important issue for them and their demands that companies take a stand on political issues is causing a debate in the workplace. Deja Foxx was the youngest staffer working on Vice President Kamala Harris’ election campaign, working on social media strategy. She is the founder of Gen Z Girl Gang, which promotes inclusivity and diversity. At 17, she founded a sex education organisation helping teens at risk of homelessness and those formerly in prison with access to birth control. Maya Penn started her own sustainable fashion brand Maya’s Ideas at only 8 years old. She is also the author of ‘You Got This’, a handbook for other would be teenage CEOs and is an award winning environmental activist and artist. As the most diverse generation America has seen, it’s no wonder that inclusivity is important to them. Deja and Maya discuss how they feel empowered to build a more just and vibrant world…with a little help from their smartphones. This is a co-production between BBC World Service and Ozy Media.

America was built on immigration, but is it still a good place for immigrants? Katty Kay and Carlos Watson discuss immigration, acceptance and assimilation with a top chef and a hip hop music manager. Marcus Samuelsson was born in Ethiopia but brought up in Sweden by his Swedish adoptive parents, before moving to America in the 1990s. He now has a chain of restaurants across the US, including the famous Red Rooster in Harlem. Sophia Chang was born in Canada to Korean immigrant parents. She moved to the US in her twenties and has been living in New York for more than three decades. She is known as “the first Asian woman in hip hop.” Amongst others, she has managed three members of Wu Tang Clan. Both discuss their journeys and reasons for coming to America, their experiences of trying to fit into American society, and what they feel about America’s attitudes to immigrants. They also talk about America’s cultural mosaic, opportunities, what immigrants bring to the US, and racism. This is a co-production between BBC World Service and Ozy Media.

Even before Covid, four out of every 10 American adults admitted to feeling anxiety and depression, and up to 70% of young Americans said they were lonely. Now amid growing concerns of an emerging mental health crisis because of the coronavirus pandemic, Carlos Watson and Ritula Shah (standing in for Katty Kay) tackle the subject with the help of two leading health experts - Dr Altha Stewart, former head of the American Psychiatric Association and Dr Deepak Chopra, a prominent alternative medicine advocate. Together they explore how loneliness affects people of a different age, race and gender, and offer some solutions and advice as to how Americans can learn to cope, even after the pandemic has passed.

It’s all change at the White House, with the new president promising a fresh start on a host of key issues: from vaccines and the economy, to race and climate change. But is President Biden offering too much, too soon, and can he live up to his pledge to unite a divided America? At the end of inauguration week, Katty Kay and Carlos Watson are joined by Valerie Jarrett, long-term adviser to Barack Obama, and by John McLaughlin, a former deputy director of the CIA. Together they discuss some of the major challenges facing the incoming Biden administration, from relations with the Republican party, to dealing with Iran and China.

Katty Kay and Carlos Watson ask how Americans of differing views can restart their conversations. Partisan politics has broken up friendships, love affairs and even families. But is it up to the politicians to take the lead on restoring trust and respect, or should everyone play a part in reaching out across the aisle? Katty and Carlos are joined in the discussion by community organiser Maureen Hetherington, who led a unique project to heal the wounds left by decades of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland;,and by Francesca Polletta, professor of sociology at University of California, Irvine, who argues that making people like each other isn’t fundamental to bringing Americans together.

Katty Kay and Carlos Watson look back on a tumultuous week in US politics, and ask: where now for American democracy and America’s democratic institutions? Republicans are divided over support for Donald Trump, so what does that mean for the GOP? What should President-elect Biden do to heal the divisions of the past four years in the political establishment and the country? Katty and Carlos are joined by veteran political strategists Ron Christie and Doug Sosnik, a Republican and Democrat respectively, to seek answers from the week’s events, and to look at America beyond the Trump presidency.

Over the past year the Black Lives Matter movement went global, with protests against racial injustice taking place in over 60 countries. Katty and Carlos speak to co-founder of the movement, Opal Tometi, about the roots of the organisation, its goals, and what its priorities are for 2021. We hear some of the criticisms levelled at the movement, asking what has been achieved by the high-profile protests which have taken place across America, and reflect on its influence on civil rights activism around the world, exploring the movement's role in tackling issues beyond police brutality.

In the week that the Electoral College confirmed Joe Biden as the next US President, Katty Kay and Carlos Watson take a look at the future of the Republican party. The Trump presidency might be over, but there is no sign that Republican leaders are ready to jettison Trumpism, especially after securing more than 72 million votes in November’s elections. Katty and Carlos are joined by Brian Lanza, who was part of President Trump’s 2016 transitional team, and by Michael Steele, the first African-American to hold the post of chairperson of the Republican National Committee, to discuss what role Donald Trump will play in the party’s path ahead; and, if not a Trump, then who else will seek to steer the GOP into the 2024 presidential run-off?

Multiple conspiracy theories are circulating about Covid-19 - but how widely are they believed and what influence do they have? From QAnon to the death of Jeffrey Epstein, conspiratorial thinking seems to be everywhere right now - is this the era when fringe ideas have gone mainstream? Katty Kay and Carlos Watson speak to political scientist and conspiracy theory expert Prof Joseph Uscinski to explore why people believe in them, and what the potential consequences for wider society might be. They hear directly from those who believe in them, as well as people who have been subjected to personal attacks from conspiracy theory extremists.

One of the major stories of the past year was the death of George Floyd in May, following his arrest outside a store in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The whole world saw the video of police officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck, pinning him to the ground for more than 8 minutes. Chauvin has now been charged with murder - one of only a few American police officers to be charged with murdering a civilian. George Floyd’s death was the result of a standard encounter between police officers and a member of the public, which unnecessarily spiralled out of control - a tragically familiar tale when it to comes to the police and minority communities. What can America do to better tackle the problem of police brutality, and why does it seem so hard to bring bad cops to account? Guests: Leon Ford, a social justice campaigner from Pittsburgh who was paralysed after being shot by police during a traffic stop in 2012 Chief Art Acevedo, City of Houston Police Department Redditt Hudson, former St Louis police officer, and co-founder of the National Coalition of Law Enforcement Officers for Justice Reform and Accountability Editor: Hugh Levinson Production team: Luke Radcliff, Maeve McGoran, Iyore Odighizuwa, Jonelle Awomoyi, Pamela Lorence

Covid-19 has dramatically changed the way we live our lives, exposing fractures in our communities - but what's America's exit plan from the pandemic? Carlos Watson and Philippa Thomas (standing in for Katty Kay) speak to journalist and author Fareed Zakaria about the dramatic and sudden shift in society this year. What are the lessons we need to learn to cope better in the future? Carlos and Philippa also explore how President-elect Biden may tackle the pandemic, speaking to Dr Nicole Lurie, a public health expert who was an advisor to Joe Biden during his election campaign. Working under President Obama as assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the United States Department of Health, Dr Lurie planned for public health emergencies like the one we are living through right now. What does she think needs to be done to bring the pandemic under control? Editor: Penny Murphy Production team: Luke Radcliff, Maeve McGoran, Iyore Odighizuwa, Jonelle Awomoyi, Pamela Lorence

Joe Biden says he will immediately re-join the Paris agreement on climate change, which Donald Trump withdrew from. Donald Trump has also repealed many of President Obama’s environmental laws. In the meantime, cities and States across the US have been taking their own action on the environment and climate change, irrespective of what’s been happening in Washington. President-elect Biden has said that climate change is the number one issue for humanity and for him. But will he be able to change much? Carlos Watson and Ritula Shah (standing in for Katty Kay this week) speak to Wisconsin’s Lieutenant Governor, Mandela Barnes, about what his state has been doing and what obstacles it faces. They’ll also be speaking to Jody Freeman, professor of environmental law at Harvard, who was an advisor to the Obama administration, about the difficulties Biden could have getting his climate agenda passed. Also taking part will be the mayor of Carmel, Indiana, Jim Brainard, who describes how being a Republican does not conflict with taking action on climate change. Production team: Editor, Penny Murphy. Producers: John Murphy, Luke Radcliff, Maeve McGoran, Iyore Odighizuwa, Jonelle Awomoyi