This week Matter of Fact travels to Dearborn, MI speak to Arab Americans who say they can’t support either major presidential candidate. Plus, a voting expert discusses the challenges of replacing the electoral college. And, a New York grassroots program gives kids access to bike racing.
Nelson Vails was the first Black person to medal in cycling at the Olympics. He stands out as one of the very few Black professionals in a sport that is notably undiversified. According to Forbes, the average number of Black cyclists competing in the three Grand Tour races, including the Tour de France, is between 0-1%. Correspondent Alexis Clark traveled to San Diego to talk to Vails about his history-making career and the barriers to succeeding in the sport.
In 1976, Bob Dole and Walter Mondale took part in the first formal vice-presidential debate. Nearly 50 years later, vice presidential nominees JD Vance and Tim Walz are meeting on the debate stage. George Washington University professor and political historian Matt Dallek says a lot has changed in that time. He joins Soledad O’Brien to explain why these picks for vice president are more significant than those of the past and how their performances in the debate could impact the success or failure of their tickets.
Ahead of Election Day, national polls show economic issues are a top concern for voters. This is especially true in the battleground state of Arizona, where the high cost of living has some residents in a financial bind. Rental prices there jumped more than 70% between 2010 and 2022, according to an Arizona State University study. A housing shortage is also driving up prices, making homeownership unattainable for many young people. Correspondent Dan Lieberman travels to the Grand Canyon State to find out how this anxiety over the economy could play out politically.
This week Matter of Fact travels to Arizona where voters are expressing their concerns about the high cost of living. Plus, a political historian talks about the significance of vice–presidential debates. And, a Black professional cyclist on the barriers to participating in the sport.
Sunday 6:00 a.m.
Saturday 8:30 p.m.
The Artemis II crew will spend 10 days in the Orion spacecraft as they venture around the moon. To prepare, Christina Koch and the three other astronauts set to take part in the mission have been training in a mockup of the capsule. During Soledad’s visit to the Johnson Space Center, she got a special tour of the Orion mockup and found out what life will be like for the astronauts on board.
On Election Day, you won’t just be voting for the next president. Millions of voters also get a chance to weigh in on ballot initiatives. From reproductive rights to raising the minimum wage, ballot measures let Americans vote directly on the issue. But how do they make it to your ballot? And who writes them? Anne Whitesell is a political scientist at Miami University. She joins Soledad O’Brien to explain the basics of ballot measures.
Astronaut Christina Koch holds the record for the longest spaceflight by a woman – spending 328 days at the International Space Station. In 2025, she’s set to make history again as the first woman to fly around the moon in NASA’s Artemis II mission. Soledad O’Brien visits Koch at the Johnson Space Center in Houston to find out what this upcoming mission means to her and how she’s preparing for it.