In his 31 years producing for PBS FRONTLINE, Martin Smith has covered the world: from revolution in Central America and the fall of communism in Russia, to the rise of Al Qaeda and the war in Iraq.

For the perhaps the first time since 1864, all four major federal institutions of power were in play in the last election. When the two national conventions met last summer, Democrats had a real chance to win control of the House, Senate, Presidency, and Supreme Court.

Steve Coll, Dean of Columbia Journalism School, Author of Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power, and a regular contributor to the New Yorker magazine. Steve Coll is the author of seven books of nonfiction, and a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize.

If you think today's high school students think of nothing but social media and video games, wait until you see the mini-documentaries they are producing this year as part of the Civic Life Project. This program is designed to encourage area high school students to investigate current topics and find out how government involvement works.

After seeing the Grand Canyon in 1908, Teddy Roosevelt uttered the five words that would save it: “Leave it as it is.” Unfortunately, it is no longer an option to leave most of our country as it once was.

The number is so large most of us can't comprehend the scope of the crisis. 65 million people have been displaced in the global refugee crisis. Since the civil war exploded in 2011 more than 11 million people have fled their homes in Syria alone. More than 4 million refugees have fled the country for Jordan, Turkey and other neighboring states.

Newtown is a riveting new documentary detailing the trauma and tribulations of families and community members dealing with emotions and life after the massacre of 20 children ages 6-7 years old and six adult staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut by 20 year-old Adam Lanza.