PBS NewsHour; December 31, 2014 6:00pm-7:01pm PST

Captioning sponsored by MacNEIL/LEHRER PRODUCTIONS

>> Ifill: PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD BID FAREWELL TO 2014, AS THEY RING IN THE NEW YEAR GOOD EVENING, I'M GWEN IFILL. JUDY WOODRUFF IS AWAY. ALSO AHEAD THIS WEDNESDAY. STORMY WEATHER HINDERS EFFORTS TO RECOVER REMAINS FROM THE AIR ASIA JETLINER THAT CRASHED OFF THE COAST OF INDONESIA, AS OFFICIALS SEARCH FOR MORE CLUES ABOUT WHAT LED TO THE DISASTER. PLUS, ROSE BOWL OPPONENTS FLORIDA STATE AND OREGON TEAM UP TO PUSH FOR MORE RESEARCH INTO A RARE BLOOD DISORDER FEW AMERICANS EVEN KNOW EXISTS.

>> WHEN WE LEARN SOMETHING ABOUT F.A., WE LEARN SOMETHING ABOUT WHAT CAN CAUSE CANCER, WHAT CAN CAUSE BONE MARROW FAILURE. SO OUR VERY, VERY BRAVE PATIENTS AND OUR VERY, VERY BRAVE FAMILIES ARE OFTEN OUR BEST TEACHERS.

>> Ifill: THEN, WE CONTINUE OUR "BREAKTHROUGH" SERIES WITH A LOOK AT ONE DOCTOR'S MISSION TO CHANGE THE WAY PHYSICIANS TREAT PATIENTS, BY USING BIG DATA TO DETERMINE WHAT'S MOST EFFECTIVE.

>> WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS USE THE DATA TO REALLY DRIVE DECISIONS IN REAL TIME SO THAT PATIENTS' VALUE SYSTEMS CAN REALLY BE THE BIGGEST DRIVER. HE'S GOT THE POWER AND AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED THAT'S THE WAY IT OUGHT TO BE.

>> Ifill: AND, ONE FILM "BOYHOOD," TOOK 12 YEARS TO MAKE, WHILE ANOTHER, "SELMA" TOOK 50 YEARS TO TELL. JEFFREY BROWN LOOKS BACK ON THE YEAR AT THE MOVIES. THOSE ARE SOME OF THE STORIES WE'RE COVERING ON TONIGHT'S PBS NEWSHOUR.

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>> Ifill: SEARCH EFFORTS IN THE AIR DISASTER OFF INDONESIA MADE LITTLE PROGRESS TODAY, IN THE FACE OF ROUGH CONDITIONS AT SEA. THAT LEFT RELATIVES OF THE 162 PASSENGERS AND CREW TO ENDURE ANOTHER DAY OF WAITING FOR THE REMAINS OF THEIR LOVED ONES. SOLEMN AND QUIET, A MILITARY HONOR GUARD CARRIED THE FLOWER- LADEN COFFINS, MARKED SIMPLY ONE AND TWO, DOWN THE TARMAC IN SURABAYA INDONESIA. THE BODIES OF A MAN AND A WOMAN WERE THE FIRST RETURNED FROM AIR-ASIA FLIGHT 8501. THEY WERE TAKEN TO A LOCAL HOSPITAL FOR IDENTIFICATION. BUT EFFORTS TO CONTINUE THE SEARCH FOR VICTIMS WERE HINDERED BY STRONG WINDS AND HEAVY RAINS. BY MID-AFTERNOON, OFFICIALS CALLED OFF AIR OPERATIONS.

>> ( translated ): THE WEATHER NOW IS BAD OVER THERE. IT WOULD NOT BE POSSIBLE FOR DIVERS TO GO INTO THE WATER. OUR PRIORITY NOW IS NOT TO SEARCH FOR THE PLANE, BUT THE RETRIEVAL OF VICTIMS.

>> Ifill: THE SEARCH IS FOCUSED IN RELATIVELY SHALLOW WATERS OF THE JAVA SEA, OFF BORNEO, WHERE THE JETLINER DISAPPEARED SUNDAY, EN ROUTE TO SINGAPORE. THE FIRST BODIES AND PIECES OF WRECKAGE WERE SPOTTED YESTERDAY, AND TODAY, SONAR DETECTED LARGE OBJECTS ON THE OCEAN FLOOR THAT COULD BE PART OF THE PLANE'S FUSELAGE. THERE WAS NO SIGN OF THE BLACK BOX RECORDERS THAT COULD SHED LIGHT ON WHAT CAUSED THE CRASH. ON SHORE, THE FOCUS WAS ON THE VICTIMS AND THEIR LOVED ONES.

>> Ifill: AND AT A NEARBY CRISIS CENTER, FAMILY AND FRIENDS PRAYED FOR THEIR LOST RELATIVES.

>> ( translated ): WE BELIEVE THAT OUR LIFE AND DEATH ARE IN GOD'S HANDS. WE MUST ALWAYS PREPARE EVERYTHING BECAUSE WE NEVER KNOW WHEN WE WILL DIE.

>> Ifill: IN THE WAKE OF THE TRAGEDY, MANY INDONESIAN CITIES CHOSE TO CANCEL OR TONE DOWN THEIR NEW YEAR'S EVE CELEBRATIONS. SO FAR, SEVEN BODIES HAVE BEEN RECOVERED. SOME WERE STILL FULLY CLOTHED, SUGGESTING THE JETLINER WAS INTACT WHEN IT HIT THE WATER. THAT, IN TURN, COULD INDICATE THE PLANE STALLED IN MID-AIR AND THEN PLUNGED INTO THE SEA. A WEDDING PARTY IN AFGHANISTAN ENDED IN A BLOODBATH TODAY, WITH 26 DEAD. A ROCKET STRUCK THE GATHERING IN HELMAND PROVINCE, DURING A FIREFIGHT BETWEEN GOVERNMENT FORCES AND TALIBAN INSURGENTS. AND IN YEMEN, A SUICIDE BOMBING KILLED AT LEAST 23 PEOPLE AND WOUNDED 48, AT A CULTURAL CENTER WHERE SHIITES WERE GATHERED TO CELEBRATE THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD'S BIRTHDAY. THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY MOVED TODAY TO PURSUE WAR CRIMES CHARGES AGAINST ISRAEL. PRESIDENT MAHMOUD ABBAS AGREED TO JOIN THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT, SETTING THE STAGE FOR BOTH WAR CRIMES CASES AND CHALLENGES TO JEWISH SETTLEMENTS. ABBAS ACTED A DAY AFTER THE U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL REFUSED TO DEMAND AN END TO ISRAELI CONTROL IN THE WEST BANK AND EAST JERUSALEM.

>> ( translated ): WE GOT REJECTED. THIS IS NOT THE FIRST AND NOT THE LAST TIME. WE ARE STEADFAST UNTIL WE GET BACK OUR RIGHTS. THEY DON'T WANT TO GIVE US OUR RIGHTS. BUT THE SECURITY COUNCIL IS NOT THE END OF THE WORLD, AND THE LAST SESSION IS NOT THE END.

>> Ifill: ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU CONDEMNED THE PALESTINIAN MOVE, AS DID THE U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT. KURDISH FORCES IN NORTHERN IRAQ LAUNCHED A LARGE-SCALE OFFENSIVE AGAINST ISLAMIC STATE FIGHTERS TODAY. THE TARGET WAS AN EXTENSIVE AREA EAST OF MOSUL. THE CITY HAS BEEN HELD BY THE MILITANT GROUP SINCE JUNE. U.S. AND COALITION PLANES CONDUCTED A SERIES OF AIR STRIKES IN ADVANCE OF THE KURDISH ASSAULT. NEW YEAR'S CELEBRATIONS TURNED DEADLY THIS EVENING IN CHINA. STATE NEWS REPORTS SAID 35 PEOPLE WERE KILLED IN A STAMPEDE IN DOWNTOWN SHANGHAI, SHORTLY BEFORE MIDNIGHT. ELSEWHERE, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA WAS ONE OF THE FIRST MAJOR CITIES TO WELCOME 2015. MORE THAN A MILLION SPECTATORS TURNED OUT FOR A LAVISH FIREWORKS DISPLAY IN THE CITY'S FAMED HARBOR. AND CROWDS IN NEW YORK CITY LINED UP EARLY AND BRAVED THE COLD, TO SECURE A PRIME VIEWING SPOT WHEN THE BALL DROPS IN TIMES SQUARE AT MIDNIGHT.

>> I'M REALLY COLD ALREADY AND I HAVE FOUR JACKETS ON AND FOUR PAIRS OF PANTS AND I HAVE FOUR BLANKETS AND LEG-WARMERS. SO I'M HOPING THAT I DON'T FREEZE OR GET TOO HUNGRY, BUT I THINK I'M GOOD!

>> Ifill: SECURITY IN NEW YORK WAS ESPECIALLY TIGHT IN THE WAKE OF WEEKS OF PROTESTS, AND THE KILLING OF TWO OFFICERS. BACK IN THIS COUNTRY OUTGOING MARYLAND GOVERNOR MARTIN O'MALLEY ANNOUNCED HE'S COMMUTING THE SENTENCES OF THE LAST FOUR INMATES ON THE STATE'S DEATH ROW. INSTEAD, THEY WILL SERVE LIFE IN PRISON WITH NO PAROLE. MARYLAND BANNED THE DEATH PENALTY IN 2012. THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL IS WARNING THAT THIS YEAR'S FLU SEASON HAS ALREADY REACHED EPIDEMIC LEVELS. OFFICIALS SAY 15 CHILDREN HAVE DIED ACROSS NINE STATES SO FAR, FOUR WITHIN A SINGLE WEEK. MORE THAN 100 CHILDREN DIED IN THE LAST FLU SEASON. U.S. OIL COMPANIES WILL BE ALLOWED TO EXPORT CRUDE, FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 40 YEARS. THE COMMERCE DEPARTMENT QUIETLY ANNOUNCED TUESDAY THAT IT'S BEGUN APPROVING A BACKLOG OF REQUESTS. THAT COULD MEAN SHIPMENTS OF UP TO ONE MILLION BARRELS A DAY BUT IT STOPS SHORT OF FORMALLY ENDING THE EXPORT BAN. WALL STREET ENDED 2014 ON A LOSING NOTE, AFTER OIL PRICES FELL AGAIN. THE DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE SLUMPED 160 POINTS, TO 17,823. THE NASDAQ LOST 41 POINTS, TO CLOSE AT 4,736. AND THE S&P DROPPED 21, AND FINISHED BELOW 2,059. BUT FOR THE YEAR, THE DOW GAINED SEVEN PERCENT, THE NASDAQ WAS UP 13%, AND THE S&P ROSE 11%. THE ACTOR EDWARD HERRMANN DIED TODAY, OF BRAIN CANCER, IN NEW YORK. HIS CAREER SPANNED FILM, TV AND THEATER, INCLUDING A LONG- RUNNING ROLE ON THE "GILMORE GIRLS" IN THE 2000's. IN THE 1970's, HE EARNED EMMY NOMINATIONS FOR PORTRAYING FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT AND WENT ON TO PLAY HIM ON FIVE SEPARATE OCCASIONS, INCLUDING THIS YEAR, AS THE VOICE OF ROOSEVELT IN THE KEN BURNS SERIES ON PBS. EDWARD HERRMANN WAS 71 YEARS OLD. STILL TO COME ON THE NEWSHOUR: THE PUSH TO RELEASE PRISONERS FROM GUANTANAMO. COLLEGE FOOTBALL'S TOP TEAMS JOIN FORCES OFF THE FIELD TO RAISE AWARENESS OF RARE DISEASES. ONE DOCTOR'S PRESCRIPTION TO USE DATA TO IMPROVE HEALTHCARE. A LOOK AHEAD TO WHAT LIES IN STORE FOR 2015. AND, A LOOK BACK AT THE BEST MOVIES OF THE YEAR.

>> Ifill: THE PENTAGON ANNOUNCED TODAY FIVE MORE DETAINEES WERE RELEASED FROM GUANTANAMO. THE THREE YEMENIS AND TWO TUNISIANS, WHO HAD BEEN HELD FOR MORE THAN A DECADE AT THE U.S. MILITARY PRISON, HAVE BEEN FLOWN TO KAZAKHSTAN FOR RESETTLEMENT. ALL TOLD, 28 DETAINEES HAVE BEEN MOVED FROM THE FACILITY THIS YEAR, THE MOST SINCE 2009. BUT 127 REMAIN. WE'RE JOINED NOW BY A REPORTER WHO HAS LOGGED MORE TIME AT THE DETENTION SITE IN CUBA THAN ANY OTHER, CAROL ROSENBERG OF "THE MIAMI HERALD." CAROL, WE CAN WITHUM TO THE "NewsHour". AGAIN, FIVE PRISONERS, TWO YEMENEES, TWO TUNISIANS, TRANSFERRED TO KAZAKHSTAN. WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THAT DESTINATION?

>> I THINK THAT ILLUSTRATES JUST HOW FAR FLUNG THE STATE DEPARTMENT EFFORTS HAVE BEEN TO GET THE MEN WHO ARE CLEARED FOR RELEASE OUT OF GUANTANAMO. THAT'S THE 20th NATION TO AGREE TO TAKE IN ON ALMOST REFUGEE STATUS AS A RESETTLEMENT MEN WHO CAN'T GO HOME. YOU SAID THEY'RE FROM YEMEN, WHICH WE'VE HEARD EARLIER THERE WAS MORE VIOLENCE TODAY AND THEY'RE FROM TUNISIA, AND THE U.S. WAS NOT COMFORTABLE ALLOWING THEM TO RETURN TO THEIR HOMELANDS. SO THEY LOOKED AROUND THE WORLD AND KAZAKHSTAN AGREED TO TAKE THEM IN.

>> Ifill: AND JUST RECENTLY WE HEARD ABOUT FIVE MORE THAT WENT TO URUGUAY, ANOTHER UNUSUAL DES NEIGH.

>> YES URUGUAY IS ANOTHER FASCINATING MODEL BECAUSE THEIR PRESIDENT DECIDED HE WOULD NOT ONLY BRING THEM IN HE WOULD TAKE IN THEIR FAMILIES. SO WE'RE WAITING FOR THE SYRIAN FAMILIES OF SOME OF THE DETAINEES TO JOIN THEM IN URUGUAY. THE GOAL IS FOR THESE MEN TO SETTLE DOWN AND START NEW LIVES IN THESE COUNTRIES AND TO PUT BEHIND THEM THE DOZEN OR SO YEARS THEY SPENT AT GUANTANAMO. AGAIN, IT ILLUSTRATES THE INABILITY TO BRING THEM TO THE UNITED STATES AS THEY LOOK AROUND THE WORLD FOR COUNTRIES THAT WERE RESETTLED. THE MEN WHO HAVE BEEN CLEARED TO LEAVE FOR YEARS IN YOUR URUGUAY.

>> Ifill: SHOULD ANYBODY BE WORRIED ABOUT THEIR RELEASE?

>> ONE OF THE MEN WHO LEFT YESTERDAY WAS EVALUATED TEN YEARS AGO AS A LOW RISK WITH A HEART CONDITION AND BAD HEALTH AND COULD NOT GO BACK TO TUNISIA. SO THE EVALUATION IN 2004 WAS THAT HE NEED NOT BE AT GUANTANAMO BUT IT ILLUSTRATES JUST HOW HARD IT IS TO FIND PLACE FORCE THEM TO MOVE AND START NEW LIVES. ALL FIVE OF THESE MEN NOT ONE HAD BEEN CHARGED WITH A CRIME. THEY WERE ALL CLEARED BY THESE NATIONAL SECURITY TASK FORCES THAT MET IN 2009, AND IT WAS A MATTER OF FINDING LOCATIONS FOR THEM. IT'S NOT CLEAR, YOU KNOW, THAT THEY NECESSARILY ARRIVED THERE AS HATING THE UNITED STATES BUT AFTER ALL THESE YEARS, THE GOAL IS TO GET THEM TO THE NEXT PLACE WHERE THEY WON'T LOOK BACK AT THEIR PERIOD AT THE DETENTION CENTER BUT LOOK FORWARD AT WHATEVER'S BEEN ARRANGED FOR THEIR NEXT LIFE. WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY WILL HAVE IN KAZAKHSTAN.

>> Ifill: WE'VE NOW SEEN 28 DETAINEES RELEASED THIS YEAR. IS THIS A TREND SOMETHING PURPOSEFUL GOING ON WITH THIS ADMINISTRATION AND IS IT SOMETHING THAT CAN CONTINUE CONSIDERING THE FACT THERE IS SO MUCH RESISTANCE TO THIS IN CONGRESS?

>> SO 28 ARE GONE BUT 127 REMAIN, OF WHICH 59 ARE CLEARED. SO THE ONLY WAY TO CLOSE GANT MO -- GUANTANAMO IS TO MOVE SOME OF THEM TO THE UNITED STATES. SO IF THE GOAL IS TO GET THE DETENTION CENTER EMPTIED AND CLOSED, YOU CAN FIND COUNTRIES LIKE KAZAKHSTAN, BUT THE REAL SOLUTION IS TO BRING THEM TO THE STATES, WHICH AS WE KNOW, CONGRESS HAS FORBIDDEN AND IT WILL BE UP TO THE ADMINISTRATION TO EITHER PERSUADE THEM TO CHANGE THEIR MIND OR MAKE A DECISION ON WHETHER TO DEFY THEM. GUANTANAMO DOESN'T CLOSE UNLESS SOME OF THOSE DETAINEES COME TO THE UNITED STATES. REMEMBER, SOME OF THESE MEN ARE ON TRIAL FOR THE 9/11 ATTACKS AND ONE IS ON TRIAL FOR THE U.S.S. COLE ATTACK. THESE MEN ARE NOT IN A POSITION TO BE SENT TO OTHER COUNTRIES AND RELOCATED ELSEWHERE. THE QUESTION WILL BE IF THEY ARE HELD AND TRIED AT GUANTANAMO, OR IN THE UNITED STATES AND, IF CONVICTED WHERE THEY WILL SERVE OUT THEIR SENTENCES OR IN SOME INSTANCES YOU KNOW, THESE ARE DEATH PENALTY CASES.

>> Ifill: AND OF THE 60 WHICH ARE CLEARED, WE ARE ANTICIPATING TO SEE THEM RELEASED IN DRIPS AND DRAGS ALL AT ONCE IN THE NEXT FEW MONTHS?

>> 52 ARE YEMENI. IT IS A CHLOE PROCESS TO FIND NATIONS TO TAKE IN YEMENIS. I THINK ANYONE WHO'S BEEN SORT OF SEDUCED BY THE IDEA THAT THEY HAVE 59 SLOTS OUT THERE FOR THE MEN WHO HAVE BEEN CLEARED FOR RELEASE ARE A LITTLE BIT NAIVE. THE STATE DEPARTMENT IS LEAVING THE JOB AS OF TONIGHT, STILL HAVING DEPP MATS TRAVELING THE WORLD TRYING TO FIND LOCATIONS. BUT THIS IS FAR FROM CLOSED AND THE MEN CLEARED FOR RELEASE ARE FAR FROM GETTING ON PLANES TO GO.

>> Ifill: CAROL ROSENBERG ON CASE FOR THE "MIAMI HERALD," THANK YOU SO MUCH.

>> THANK YOU, GWEN.

>> Ifill: TOMORROW ON ONE OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL'S BIGGEST DAYS, THE FOCUS WILL BE ON SPORT, BUT ALSO ON A VERY DIFFERENT KIND OF BATTLE. THE SPECIAL CHALLENGES FACED BY THOSE DIAGNOSED WITH A RARE DISEASE, AND THEIR FAMILIES. HARI SREENIVASAN HAS THE STORY.

>> Sreenivasan: THERE'S EVEN MORE AT STAKE THAN USUAL IN TOMORROW'S 101st ROSE BOWL GAME. THE NUMBER-TWO OREGON DUCKS WILL FACE THE NUMBER-THREE FLORIDA STATE SEMINOLES FOR A SPOT IN THE NATIONAL TITLE GAME. BUT THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR SUPPORTERS ARE ALSO FINDING COMMON GROUND OFF THE PLAYING FIELD, IN FIGHTING A RARE BLOOD DISORDER CALLED FANCONI ANEMIA. IT AFFECTS FEWER THAN 1,000 AMERICANS. BUT, AS FATE WOULD HAVE IT, BOTH FLORIDA STATE AND OREGON'S COMMUNITIES HAVE BEEN AFFECTED. ON THE FLORIDA STATE SIDE, ETHAN FISHER, NINE-YEAR-OLD SON OF HEAD COACH JIMBO FISHER AND HIS WIFE CANDI, SUFFERS FROM THE DISEASE. FISHER HAS PUSHED FOR INCREASING AWARENESS.

>> THAT'S HOW THINGS ARE DEFEATED: YOU HAVE TO PRESENT THEM, YOU HAVE TO BRING THEM TO THE FOREFRONT SO PEOPLE CAN HELP YOU. AND THAT'S THE WAY SO MANY OTHER DISEASES IN THIS WORLD HAVE BEEN CONQUERED. AND THAT'S OUR GOAL. WE'RE GONNA CONQUER THIS DISEASE-- IT'S NOT GOING TO DEFINE ETHAN OR OUR FAMILY AND WE'RE ON A MISSION TO FIND A CURE.

>> Sreenivasan: FORMER UNIVERSITY OF OREGON PRESIDENT DAVE FROHNMAYER AND HIS WIFE LYNN HAVE LOST TWO CHILDREN TO FANCONI ANEMIA, AND A 27-YEAR- OLD DAUGHTER IS NOW FIGHTING THE DEADLY DISEASE. BOTH FAMILIES HAVE CREATED AND HELPED FUND RESEARCH ORGANIZATIONS-- THE ONLY TWO IN THE UNITED STATES FOR FANCONI ANEMIA. AND DURING TOMORROW'S ROSE BOWL EVERY TIME A TEAM SCORES A TOUCHDOWN, THEIR RESPECTIVE RESEARCH ORGANIZATIONS WILL RECEIVE A DONATION. IT'S JUST ONE EXAMPLE OF HIGH- PROFILE INDIVIDUALS COMBATING UNDER-FUNDED DISEASES. AMONG OTHERS: FORMER N.F.L. QUARTERBACK BOOMER ESIASON HAS A FOUNDATION THAT HELPS THOSE WITH CYSTIC FIBROSIS. SO HOW DO PEOPLE AFFLICTED WITH THE RARE DISEASE MANAGE TO FUND MEDICAL SEARCH, TRACK DOWN SPECIALIST OR FIND TREATMENT REGIMENS AND HOW MUCH CAN A NATIONAL STAGE LIKE THE ROSE BOWL GAME HELP DRAW ATTENTION TO THE CAUSE? I'M JOINED BY LYNN FROHNMAYER AND DAVID FROHNMAYER CO-FOUNDERS OF THE FANCONI ANEMIA RESEARCH FUND THEY STARTED IN 1989 AFTER THEIR CHILDREN'S FANCONI ANEMIA WAS DIAGNOSED. AND DR. MARSHALL SUMMAR, CHIEF OF DIVISION OF GENETICS AND METABOLISM AT CHILDREN'S NATIONAL MEDICAL CENTER AND IS A RARE DISEASE SPECIALIST. MRS. FROHNMAYER, HOW BIG IS THE ROSE BOWL STAGE TO RAISE AWARENESS FOR THE FANCONI ANEMIA?

>> ANY CHANCE YOU GET TO PUT SOMETHING IN THE PUBLIC EYE THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT BUT RARE AND POORLY UNDERSTOOD, YOU TAKE THE CHANCE AND THE OPPORTUNITY. OF COURSE THE ROSE BOWL IS SOMETHING THAT INTERESTS TENS OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE. IT HAPPENS TO INVOLVE MY FORMER UNIVERSITY WHERE I'M PRESENTLY TEACHING, THE UNIVERSITY OF OREGON AND ANOTHER FAMILY ACROSS THE COUNTRY WHO HAS BEEN DEVOTED TO TRYING TOTURE FANCONI ANEMIA AS WELL. SO THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY MAKE A CASE AND TO SHOW THE HUMAN SIDE OF THE STORY, TO RAISE AWARENESS AND TO RAISE THE POSSIBILITY OF PHILANTHROPY BECAUSE MEDICAL SCIENCES ADVANCE SO RAPIDLY IN ADDRESSING THIS DISORDER ONCE ATTENTION WAS FOCUSED ON IT.

>> Sreenivasan: DR. SUMMAR, THE ATTENTION FOCUS, THERE ARE 7,000 GENETIC DISORDERS, AND I FEEL CALLOUSED SAYING THIS, BUT THE BEST THING THAT HAPPENS IS A CELEBRITY GETS IT.

>> THERE'S SOME TRUTH BUT ALL OF THE DISORDERS BENEFIT FROM ATTENTION TO ONE OF THEM. IF YOU TAKE THE 7,000 DISORDERS, THEY WILL AFFECT 8% TO 10% OF THE U.S. POPULATION SO YOU'RE TALKING 25 MILLION PEOPLE WITH SOME FORM OF A RARE DISEASE. SO NO ONE'S USUALLY NOT HEARD OF MOST OF THE INDIVIDUAL DISEASES LIKE FANCONI ANEMIA. MANY FOLKS, THIS WILL BE THEIR FIRST EXPOSURE TO THIS.

>> IT WAS MINE. AFTER MANY FOLKS HEAR IT THEY GO, WAIT, I MIGHT HAVE KNOWN SOMEONE WHO HAS THAT OR THIS IS SOMETHING THAT TOUCH MESS IN SOME WAY OR I'VE MET SOMEONE ALONG THE WAY. THE KNOWLEDGE GETS OUT, IT HELPS WITH FUNDING, IT HELPS WITH RESEARCH, IT HELPS US MOVE THINGS ALONG. SO WHEN ONE DISEASE GAINS THIS TYPE OF NOTORIETY AND THE ROABLEDZ WAS A PREMIER PLACE FOR THAT TO HAPPEN, IT HELPS OUT THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY.

>> Sreenivasan: LYNN FROHNMAYER, WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE THE ROSE BOWL BEFORE YOU HAD THE NATIONAL STAGE? HOW DID YOU GET PEOPLE INTERESTED AND COMMITTED ESPECIALLY ON THE RESEARCH SIDE?

>> WELL, HARI IT TOOK A LONG TIME, TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH. OUR DAUGHTERS WERE DIAGNOSED IN 1983 AND THE FIRST THING WE HAD TO COPE WITH WAS THE DEVASTATION OF THIS KIND OF A DIAGNOSIS. WE WERE TOLD THAT THEY WOULD EXPERIENCE BONE MARROW FAILURE, PERHAPS LEUKEMIA, THAT THEY PROBABLY WOULD NOT LIVE TO ADULTHOOD, THAT THERE WERE REALLY NO EFFECTIVE TREATMENTS OR A CURE FOR THIS DISEASE. BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT OUTCOMES WERE ABSOLUTELY DREADFUL BACK THEN AND WE WERE TOLD THAT IF THEY DID LIVE TO ADULTHOOD, THEY WERE AT VERY HIGH RISK FOR CANCER. SO THE FIRST THING WE HAD TO COPE WITH WAS THIS ABSOLUTELY DEVASTATING NEWS THAT, ULTIMATELY, ALL THREE OF OUR DAUGHTERS -- WE HAD FIVE CHILDREN, THREE WITH FANCONI ANEMIA -- HAD THE SAME DREADFUL, DREADFUL DISEASE. IT TOOK US TWO YEARS TO FORM A FAMILY SUPPORT GROUP AND WE DID THAT IN 1985. IT WASN'T UNTIL 1989, SIX YEARS AFTER THE DIAGNOSIS, WHEN WE FINALLY HAD THE COURAGE AND STRENGTH TO BEGIN TO WORK ON, OKAY, WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT THE HORRIBLE DIAGNOSIS? YOU'VE GOT TO BE ABLE TO PICK YOURSELF UP OFF THE FLOOR DUST YOURSELF OFF AND SAY WHAT CAN WE DO TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE? AND WE WERE ABLE TO DO THAT FINALLY, BUT IT WASN'T OVERNIGHT NOT AT ALL.

>> Sreenivasan: DR. SUMMAR, WHAT ABOUT THESE OTHER 7,000 DISEASES? HOW DO THEY GAIN ATTENTION ESPECIALLY FROM THE PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES? RIGHT? I MEAN, I HATE TO BE A CAPITALIST ABOUT IT, TOO, BUT WHERE'S THE MARKET IF IT'S ONLY 1,000 PEOPLE OR 500 PEOPLE, DO DRUG COMPANIES SAY OKAY WE'LL TAKE THAT RISK AND PUT IN ALL THAT MONEY INTO RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT AND TRY TO FIND A CURE VERSUS GOING AFTER DIABETES OR CANCER?

>> WELL, THAT'S ACTUALLY A GREAT QUESTION BECAUSE HISTORICALLY, THEY DIDN'T. THEY STAYED AWAY FROM THE RARE DISEASE FIELD. THEY FIGURED THERE WEREN'T THAT MANY PATIENTS AND THERE WASN'T THAT MUCH MARKET. A GROUP OF FOLKS GOT TOGETHER 35 YEARS AGO AND PASSED THE ORPHAN DISEASE ACT CREATING MARKET INCENTIVES INCLUDING EXCLUSIVITY AROUND THE USE OF THE DRUG EXCLUSIVITY ON THE PATENT FOR ADDITIONAL YEARS AND THINGS LIKE THAT THAT MADE IT FINANCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY VIABLE FOR COMPANIES TO COME INTO THE RARE DISEASE FIELD. WE ARE ACTUALLY SEEING A LOT MORE INTEREST NOW. WE'RE SEEING A GROWTH OF THE RARE DISEASE MARKET EXPAND 25% TO 27% PER YEAR, WHEREAS THE REGULAR DISEASE DRUG MARKET EX PARENTS AT 20% TO 23%. WHY? AFTER WE DEAD THE HUMAN GENOME, WE FOUND COMMON DISEASES WERE SEPARATING INTO SMALLER AND SMALLER GROUPS. TAKE PANCREATIC CANCER, YOU HAVE NUMEROUS SUBTYPES OF PANCREATIC CANCER THAT BECAME RARER AND RARER SAME WITH PROSTATE CANCER AND OTHERS. SO THE COMMON DISEASE MARKET IS STARTING TO LOOK LIKE THE RARE DISEASE MARKET. SO MANY OF THE PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES RECOGNIZE THERE'S A SPECTRUM HERE BETWEEN THE COMMON DISEASES AND RARE DISEASES AND NEED TO BE IN BOTH MARKETS. SO WE'RE SEEING A LOT OF INTEREST AND INVESTMENT IN THAT MARKET. THERE'S PROBABLY ONE OTHER THING THAT DRAWS FOLKS IN, TOO, AND TAKE FANCONI ANEMIA, FANCONI ANEMIA, FOR EXAMPLE WHEN WE LEARN SOMETHING ABOUT FANCONI ANEMIA, WE LEARN SOMETHING ABOUT WHAT CAN CAUSE CANCER WHAT CAN CAUSE BONE MARROW FAILURE. SO OUR FAMILIES ARE VERY, VERY BRAVE PATIENTS AND FAMILIES ARE OFTEN OUR BEST TEACHERS IN THE FIELD OF MEDICINE ABOUT THINGS BECAUSE BY HAVING MAYBE ONE GENE, TWO GENES THAT CAUSE A DISEASE, 15 GENES, ACTUALLY, IN FANCONI ANEMIA, ROUGHLY, WE LEARN A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS, WHAT HAPPENS WITH BONE MARROW FAILURE, WHAT HAPPENS WITH CANCERS. DOWN SYNDROME IS A GREAT EXAMPLE. FIRST GENES MAPPED FOR ALZHEIMER'S WERE ABOUT HALF OF DOWN SYNDROME PATIENTS IN 20s AND 30s DEVELOP EARLY ONLINE SET ALZHEIMER'S. SO THESE ARE TEACHING US SOMETHING FOR THE REST OF THE POPULATION.

>> Sreenivasan: DAVID FROHNMAYER, WHAT ABOUT WHEN YOU ARE STARTING OUT AND YOU FIND OUT THIS DEVASTATING NEWS AFTER YOU GET OVER THE GRIEF, WHAT SORT OF A SUPPORT NETWORK EXISTS? HOW DID YOU DECIDE TO MODEL YOUR FOUNDATION AND GET INTO IT AND MAKE SURE THAT YOU WEREN'T KIND OF REPLICATING THE WORK THAT OTHERS HAD DONE?

>> WELL ACTUALLY A GOOD QUESTION. THERE WASN'T ANYTHING ELSE FOR FANCONI ANEMIA. AND A RESEARCHER AT ROCKEFELLER UNIVERSITY SUGGESTED THAT LYNN AND I FORM A SUPPORT GROUP. SO THIS IS PRE DAYS. WE WROTE LETTERS, RECRUITED FAMILIES AND THROUGH THE SLOW PROCESS, IT BALLOONED INTO FASTER AND FASTER NETWORKING THAT GOT TOGETHER. WE HAD ENORMOUS HELP FROM DR. NANCY WEXLER AND THE HUNTINGTON'S DISEASE PEOPLE WHO FORMED HEREDITARY DISEASE ORGANIZATION MAYBE TEN YEARS BEFORE OURS AND WERE VERY GENEROUS WITH THIS, SHARED IDEAS, TOLD US THE IMPORTANCE OF GETTING SCIENTIFIC EXPERTISE OF THE TOP QUALITY, THEY TALKED ABOUT BRINGING PEER REVIEW IN, HAVING CROSS DISCIPLINARY SCIENTISTS BECAUSE ALL THESE DISEASES ARE COMPLICATED AND THERE'S NOT A SINGLE MEDICAL SPECIALTY THAT ADDRESSES EVERY ONE OF THE PHENOMENON OF FANCONI ANEMIA. SO WE HAVE GOOD MODELS. AND PEOPLE MODELED THEIR DISEASE EFFORTS AFTER THOSE LYNN AND I HAVE HELPED TO SPONSOR. SO I THINK THERE'S A COMMUNITY OUT THERE OF PEOPLE WHO SAY WE CAN'T GO IT ALONE, WE'LL LEARN FROM OTHERS, WE DON'T WANT TO REINVENT THE WHEEL, AND IF WE COPY WELL AND IMPROVE, THAT'S ONE OF THE BASIC THINGS WE CAN DO TO IMPROVE HEALTH GENERALLY.

>> Sreenivasan: DAVID FROHNMAYER AND LYNN FROHNMAYER, THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.

>> Ifill: YOU CAN FIND MORE ABOUT FANCONI ANEMIA AND OTHER RARE DISEASES, AND THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT HELP FUND AND SUPPORT THEIR TREATMENT, ON OUR WEBSITE AT pbs.org/newshour.

>> Ifill: NEXT, A SECOND STORY LOOKING AT HEALTH CARE. IT'S THE LATEST IN OUR "BREAKTHROUGH" SERIES. TONIGHT, HOW ONE DOCTOR IS TRYING TO USE DATA TO REVAMP THE WAY HE AND HIS COLLEAGUES TREAT NOT-SO-RARE DISEASES. SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT JACKIE JUDD REPORTS. (SIREN)

>> HAVE YOU HAD ANY SIDE EFFECTS?

>> NO. SOMETIMES PEOPLE GET A LITTLE LOOPY.

>> NO. WELL THEN YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY.

>> Reporter: DR. DAVID NEWMAN IS A DISRUPTER HOW DOCTORS PRACTICE MEDICINE AND HOW JUNG DOCTORS THINK ABOUT EFFECTIVE TREATMENT AND HOW PATIENTS INTERACT WITH DOCTORS.

>> ANYTIME I GO TO A DINNER PARTY THERE'S ALWAYS AT LEAST ONE STORY I HAVE TO HEAR ABOUT SOMEBODY WHO WENT TO THEIR DOCTOR AND IT'S USUALLY A VERY DISSATISFIED CUSTOMER. SO WE ALL KNOW THAT THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF STRIFE BETWEEN THE MEDICAL CULTURE AND THE PATIENT COMMUNITY. SO WE HAVE BEEN SORT OF GROWING APART AND I THINK WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS INFORMATION SYMMETRY.

>> Reporter: A FANCY WAY OF SAYING INFORMATION SHARING. IN THIS CASE THE INFORMATION IS ON THE WEB SITE THE NNT.com CREATED BY NEWMAN AND A FELLOW DOCTOR.

>> WHAT'S THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE YOU NEED TO TREAT WITH AN ASPIRIN SO SAVE A LIFE? WE'LL DO A COUPLE OF OTHERS.

>> Reporter: THE NUMBER NEEDED TO TREAT IS A CONCEPT DEVELOPED BY EPIDEMIOLOGISTS OVER 20 YEARS AGO BUT NOT LIKELY USED. IT IS THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO NEED TO RECEIVE AN INTERVENTION FROM MEDICATIONS TO AN MRI, FOR ONE PERSON TO BE HELPED. FOR EXAMPLE, EIGHT PEOPLE HAVING ASTHMA ATTACKS WOULD HAVE TO BE TREATED WITH STEROIDS FOR ONE PERSON TO IMPROVE AND AVOID A HOSPITAL VISIT. SO THE NNT FOR THE TREATMENT IS 8.

>> THE LOWER NUMBERS TO TREAT ARE BETTER BECAUSE MEANS YOU ONLY NEED TO TREAT A FEW FOR ONE TO BENEFIT. IF YOU HAD TO TREAT HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OR EVEN DODDSS, IT BECOMES MORE OF A CRAP SHOOT ANYBODY WILL BENEFIT FROM THE INTERVENTION.

>> Reporter: NEWMAN WHO PRESIDES OVER THE ORGANIZED OF CHAOS OF THE E.R. AT MOUNT SINAI IN NEW YORK CITY HAS A PASSION FOR LINKING PATIENTS TO TREATMENTS THAT ARE PROVEN TO BE EFFECTIVE. THAT MAY SOUND RATHER BASIC, BUT NEWMAN SAYS DOCTORS ORDER QUESTIONABLE TESTS AND TREATMENTS EVERY DAY.

>> IT FEELS CRAZY THE WAY WE HAVE BEEN TAUGHT. IT FEELS CRAZY TO SAY NO TO ANYTHING ON THIS LIST. IN REALITY, IT'S NOT ONLY CRAZY BUT IT'S GOING TO BE A LITTLE BIT OF A LOTTERY YOU'RE THE ONE IT WOULD ACTUALLY HELP.

>> Reporter: ACROSS THE COUNTRY AT STANFORD UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL IN PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA A YOUNG DOCTOR SAW A 7-YEAR-OLD IN THE E.R. WITH EAR PAIN. HE USED THE USUAL TOOLS A STETHOSCOPE, A THERMOMETER AND SOMETHING NOT SO USUAL.

>> ONE IS MY FAVORITE PIECES FROM THE E.N.T. THAT I LIKE TO NOT ONLY TEACH BUT SHOW PARENTS IS THE IDEA THAT ANTIBIOTIC MAY MAY NOT BE HELPFUL IN EAR INFECTIONS IN KIDS WHO ARE OTHERWISE HEALTHY. ACTUALLY IT MAY NOT BE HELPFUL IN HELPING WITH PAIN IT MAY ACTUALLY CAUSE DIARRHEA. I USE THAT ONE...

>> HOW ARE YOU DOING?

>> Reporter: NEWMAN AND PARTNER READ THE THE NNT WEB SITE TO GIVE EVERYONE IN THE MEDICAL PIPELINE FROM PHYSICIANS TO PATIENTS ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND ANALYSIS AND TO FRAME THAT INFORMATION AROUND WHAT'S BEST FOR THE PATIENT.

>> THIS IS A WIDESPREAD PROBLEM IN MEDICINE THAT WE DON'T HAVE EASY ACCESS TO SIMPLE, AGGREGATED VERSIONS OF WHAT THE SCIENCE SAYS. WE OFTEN DON'T KNOW WHERE TO GO TO FIND THAT SIMPLE VERSION OF THE INFORMATION THAT CAN TELL US YES OR NO OR HOW HIGH HOW LOW HOW GOOD HOW BAD.

>> Reporter: SINCE LAUNCHING THE WEB SITE IN 2010 THE FOUNDERS AND DOCTORS HAVE ANALYZED RESEARCH CRUNCHED NUMBERS AND POSTED INFORMATION ON ABOUT 200 ILLNESSES AND THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE CONVENTIONAL TREATMENTS. TO SIMPLIFY THE INFORMATION EVEN MORE, THE TREATMENTS ARE COLOR CODED GREEN, YELLOW, RED AND BLACK.

>> IN THE CASE OF P.S.A. TESTING IT'S PRETTY CLEAR THE HARMS OUTWEIGH THE BENEFITS. SO THAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF A SCREENING TEST WHERE THE HARMS ARE MORE POWERFUL AND MORE IMPORTANT AND MORE COMMON THAN THE BENEFITS. SO THAT'S A BLACK. HOW ARE YOU DOING? HOW ARE YOU FEELING?

>> Reporter: THIS DAY IN THE E.R., PHILLIP APPEARED HE WAS POSSIBLY HAVING A HEART ATTACK. NEWMAN WHO NEVER WEARS A WHITE JACKET AND ALWAYS TOUCHES HIS PATIENTS TO INDICATE THEY'RE IN THIS TOGETHER WANTED TO GO SLOW AND HE DREW ON THE NNT TO EXPLAIN WHY.

>> I THINK THE CHANCE THAT THIS IS A HEART PROBLEM GOING ON TODAY OR YOU'RE IN DANGER FROM A HEART PROBLEM ARE LESS THAN 1%. SO IF THE BLOOD TESTS ALL LOOK GOOD AND THE E.K.G. LOOKS GOOD WOULD YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE GOING HOME AND FOLLOWING UP WITH YOUR DOCTOR OR DO YOU WANT TO THINK ABOUT GOING FURTHER FOR THAT 1% CHANCE?

>> I WANT TO GO ONLINE. WHAT IF HE SAID YES THE 1% SCARES ME ENOUGH THAT I WANT TO KEEP GOING?

>> IN THIS CASE WE'RE USING THE DATA TO DRIVE THE DECISIONS IN REALTIME SO THAT PATIENTS' VALUE SYSTEMS CAN BE THE BIGGEST DRIVER.

>> Reporter: IN A WAY, YOU'VE REVERSED THAT RELATIONSHIP. IF HE HAD SAID, THE 1% SCARES ME YOU WOULD HAVE BEEN THE ONE WHO HAD TO CAPITULATE.

>> IT'S VERY TRUE. HE'S GOT THE POWER AND AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED THAT'S THE WAY IT OUGHT TO BE. WE USE THE DATA AS BEST WE CAN TO LET HIS VALUES BE THE POWERFUL ONE IN THE CONVERSATION. YOU ARE SMOKER?

>> YES, HOW MUCH.

>> Reporter: THE EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE BEGAN IN THE '80s. THE EVIDENCE IS NOT ALWAYS ROUGH BEST. THE NNT IS A FORMULA BASED ON EXPERIENCE OF MANY PATIENTS, NOT THE SINGLE PATIENT SITTING IN FRONT OF THE DOCTOR.

>> OKAY.

>> Reporter: SO NOT EVERYONE IS A FAN OF NEWMAN'S APPROACH. A FELLOW DOCTOR ARGUED ON AN E.R. WEB SITE THAT THE NNT HAS VALUE FOR COMMON MEDICAL PROBLEMS, BUT NOT SOMETHING UNUSUAL LIKE DIAGNOSE AGO BRAIN HEMORRHAGE. WE HAVE TO BE CAREFUL, HE WROTE WITH HOW WE APPLY THE NNT. DESPITE THE LOW YIELD, I DON'T THINK WE ARE READY TO ABANDON THE SEARCH FOR THESE NEEDLES IN THE HIGH-RISK CASE STACK. BUT FOR THE DISRUPTIVE NEWMAN RUFFLING FEATHERS IS ALL PART OF THE GAME PLAN.

>> HE DEFINITELY HAS A LOT OF GUTS. I THINK IT'S HARD TO GO UP IN FRONT OF THE MEDICAL COMMUNITY AND SPEAK ABOUT CONTROVERSIAL SUBJECTS, BUT I THINK HE HAS THE RIGHT COMBINATION OF INTELLIGENCE, EXPERIENCE, AND ALSO A WILLINGNESS TO REALLY GO AGAINST THE GRAIN.

>> Reporter: DR. DAVID NEWMAN HOPES EVERYONE IN THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM WILL GO ALONG WITH HIM.

>> IF PEOPLE ACTUALLY GO TO THE WEB SITE AND SEE THE NUMBERS AND START USING THOSE NUMBERS IN INTERACTIONS WITH PHYSICIANS OR WITH PATIENTS WE WOULD BE DELIGHTED.

>> YOU MEAN THE PATIENT SIDE? I MEAN EVERYBODY. I DO MEAN THE PATIENT SIDE, THE CONSUMERS, BUT I ALSO MEAN DOCTORS WHO NEED THIS KIND OF INFORMATION AT THEIR FINGERTIPS, I MEAN INSURANCE COMPANIES I MEAN HEALTH POLICY PEOPLE, I MEAN PEOPLE WHO WRITE LAWS. SO I'M TALKING ABOUT EVERYBODY. I'VE GOT GOOD NEWS. THE BLOOD TESTS LOOK GOOD.

>> OKAY.

>> Reporter: JACKIE JUDD IN NEW YORK FOR THE "NewsHour".

>> Ifill: THE FIREWORKS AND CHAMPAGNE CORKS ARE ALREADY POPPING IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD, AS 2014 LEAVES, AND 2015 ARRIVES. SO WHAT SHOULD WE BE EXPECTING DURING THE NEXT 12 MONTHS? WE THOUGHT WE'D ASK. HARI IS BACK WITH THE QUESTIONS.

>> Sreenivasan: EVERY DECEMBER 31, THE WORLD ARRIVES AT A TIME OF REFLECTION T.S. ELLIOTT SAID NEXT YEAR'S WORDS AWAIT ANOTHER VOICE. THE WRITER ROBERT CLARK SAID THE NEW YEAR IS EXACTLY THE SAME AS THE OLD YEAR JUST COLDER. DEFINE 2015'S VOICE AND DISCUSS IF IT WILL BE ANY DIFFERENT THAN 2014, WE BROUGHT TOGETHER JEFFREY GOLDBERG, HELENA ANDREWS AND EVAN McMORRIS SANTORO. LET'S START WITH SOMETHING WE DON'T TALK ABOUT TOO MUCH ON THE PROGRAM WHICH IS ENTERTAINMENT AND REALLY THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE SONY APP WE WERE TALKING ABOUT OFF CAMERA. WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL BE THE GIANT REPERCUSSION? ON THE ONE SIDE WE SAW HOW SONY EXECUTIVES THINK AND TALK ABOUT THEIR ACTORS BEHIND CLOSED DOORS. ON THE OTHER SIDE, WE LAUNCHED A MOVIE WITHOUT HAVING 3,000 THEATERS AND DIDN'T DO SO BAD.

>> I THINK THE MOST INTERESTING THINGS ABOUT THE SONY HACKS WERE E-MAILS OF EXECUTIVES MAKING FUN OF THE PRESIDENT, SHOULD I ASK HIM TO FINANCE, DO YOU DO YOU LIKE DJANGO UNCHAINED, AND OTHER THINGS. IT'S LIKE A ROLLERCOASTER. WE'VE GOTTEN MORE DIVERSE MOVIES AND TV SHOWS, HONESTLY, BUT YOU SEE ON THE BACK END THAT SOME OF THAT OLD, LIKE TOTAL DISCRIMINATORY STUFF BEHIND THE SCENES IS ACTUALLY GOING ON. SO WITH SONY BACKTRACKING WE'LL SEE WHAT IS INTERESTING LIKE, INDY MOVIES FEATURING DIVERSE CASTS SAYING BY THE WAY, WE'RE REALLY NOT RACISTS.

>> Sreenivasan: KOREAN HEAVY CASTS. (LAUGHTER)

>> FROM THE BUSINESS SIDE OF THAT QUESTION, IT'S AMAZING THAT THE NORTH KOREANS MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE FORCED SOME SORT OF HUGE CHANGE IN THE WAY WE GET MOVIES. IF THIS WORKS, IF PEOPLE ARE JUST DOWNLOADING DIRECTLY, IF I WERE A THEATER OWN OWNER I WOULD BE QUITE WORRIED BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW HOW THIS IS GOING TO CHANGE IN THE NEXT YEAR. BUT IF THIS IS A VIABLE WAY OF SENDING MOVIES OUT THEY WILL DO IT AND BE BETTER.

>> I THINK NEXT YEAR YOU WILL SEE THE STUDIO BRIBE A GOVERNMENT TO HACK THEM SO AS TO BOOST PUBLIC INTEREST.

>> "THE INTERVIEW" WOULD HAVE COME AND GONE PROBABLY NOW IT'S A HUGE CULTURAL MOMENT.

>> IT'S ONE WE'LL REMEMBER IN A YEAR.

>> I'M SURE OF THAT.

>> Sreenivasan: 2015 PREDICTIONS FOR THE INTERIM ENTERTAINMENT WORLD.

>> WILL PEOPLE STOP SUBSCRIBING TO CABLE? POSSIBLY. I WATCH MY APPLE TV PROBABLY MORE.

>> I WAS HAPPY TO SEE THE RETURN OF VINYL IN A HUGE WAY. WITH ANY LUCK, NEXT YEAR WE MOVE BACK TO EIGHT TRACK.

>> OH, WOW! I REALLY LIKE THE THROWBACK YEARS.

>> THE WAX EDISON TUBES. N LIVE PERFORMANCES IN YOUR HOUSE.

>> I THINK IT'S ALL GOOD NEWS FOR ENTERTAINMENT. ONE OF THE THING WITH ON-DEMAND AND STREAMING, THERE ARE SO MANY NEW SHOWS THAT COME OUT AND NEW VENUES FOR ENTERTAINMENT, I THINK 2015 WILL BE A GREAT YEAR FOR ENTERTAINMENT AND I THINK 2014 WAS GOOD, TOO.

>> Sreenivasan: JEFFERY, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE WORLD WHICH YOU FOCUS ON THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. I.S.I.S., RUSSIA, ISRAEL WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG OR RIGHT IN 2015?

>> RIGHT, UKRAINE IS GOING TO WORK OUT JUST FINE.

>> Sreenivasan: YEAH. YOU KNOW WE'RE IN AN INTERESTING MOMENT AND WE'RE COMING TO A POINT WHERE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE A MORE REALISTIC ASSESSMENT OF -- LET'S TAKE I.S.I.S. FOR EXAMPLE -- A MORE REALISTIC ASSESSMENT OF HOW MUCH DAMAGE WE'LL BE ABLE TO DO TO I.S.I.S. IN THE CURRENT CIRCUMSTANCES. AND IT'S A DEPRESSING CONCLUSION YOU HAVE TO DRAW BUT RIGHT NOW ACROSS THE GREATER MIDDLE EAST YOU HAVE FIVE OR SIX OR SEVEN FAIRLY LARGE SAFE HAVENS FOR AL QUAIDA AND AL QUAIDA-STYLE GROUPS, AND THERE DOESN'T SEEM TO BE A CONCERTED EFFORT ON BAFFLE OF THE CIVILIZED WORLD TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT THEM. SO MY FEAR IS THAT, YOU KNOW WE'RE MOVING TOWARD THE END OF THE OBAMA PRESIDENCY. OBAMA CAME INTO OFFICE PROMISING TO REFOCUS US ON THE WAR ON TERROR, AFGHANISTAN NOT IRAQ. AND WE'RE HEADING INTO THE LAST QUARTER OF HIS PRESIDENCY WHERE YOU JUST SEE THIS MUSHROOMING OF THESE GROUPS AND NO SERIOUS STRATEGY TO DEAL WITH IT. SO THAT'S A PROBLEM. ISRAEL AND PALESTINE HERE'S MY PREDICTION NO PEACE TREATY NEXT YEAR.

>> YOU'RE REALLY GOING OUT ON A LIMB.

>> YEAH, WITH ANY LUCK I'LL BE PROVEN WRONG. THE CONTRADICTION IS YOU SEE THIS EVERY YEAR THIS TIME, THE WORLD IS ACTUALLY SAFER AND LESS VIOLENT THAN MOST PERIODS IN HISTORY PARTIALLY BECAUSE OF OUR INTERCONNECTEDNESS. WE FEEL WE'RE UNDER SIEGE IN A WAY THAT WE'RE JUST NOT. THAT SAID, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE IN ASIA, CHINA HAS CAPABILITY OF BEING QUITE AGGRESSIVE TOWARD NEIGHBORS. RUSSIA IN THE EUROPEAN ARENA, AND IRAN AND A COMBINATION OF IRAN AND I.S.I.S. AND THE MIDDLE EAST, PUT PLENTY ON THE PLATE FOR AN ADMINISTRATION THAT HAS NEVER BEEN THAT INTERESTED IN FOCUSING ON FOREIGN POLICY. SO THERE'S GOING TO BE A HUGE NUMBER OF PROBLEMS COMING UP IN THE NEXT YEAR.

>> EVAN, DOES THE WHITE HOUSE FEEL THIS KIND OF PRESSURE?

>> THEY'VE HAD CHALLENGES THIS YEAR. THEY END OPENED A HIGH NOTE WITH THE CUBA DEAL, AND NEGOTIATIONS WITH IRAN WITH STILL ONGOING. I THINK THE WHITE HOUSE FEELS LIKE FOREIGN POLICY AS A LOT OF PRESIDENTS DO AT THE END OF THEIR TERMS, THEY TURN TO FOREIGN POLICY AND THE PRESIDENT WANTS TO DO THAT AND THEY HAVE PLACES TO GO TO DO SUCCESSFUL THINGS WITH THAT.

>> Sreenivasan: HELENA YOUR BIG PREDICTION FOR THE WORLD?

>> OBVIOUSLY SPEAKING ABOUT CUBA AND ENTERTAINMENT READING RECENTLY THAT THE ARTISTS IN CUBA ARE EXCITED ABOUT ALL THE ART DEALERS THAT MIGHT BE ABLE TO COME TO THE ISLAND AT THIS POINT AND BUY ALL THIS AMAZING ART. THERE WAS A STORY ABOUT WILL SMITH SHOWING UP AT A STUDIO AND PAYING $40,000 FOR A PORTRAYED. WHEN BEYONCE WENT EVERYONE WAS TALKING. A LOT OF ENTERTAINERS I THINK WILL SHOW UP AND WANT TO GET TO CUBA BEFORE IT'S NOT TOOL ANYMORE. I THINK THAT'S ABSOLUTELY GOING TO BE A TREND.

>> OKAY. SO WE'RE ENTERING INTO THE WORLD OF DOMESTIC POLITICS, SURVIVOR SEASON, OR IN THE WORDS OF HIGHLANDER, THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE.

>> OR THERE COULD BE 20. AND IN THE PROCESS YOU'RE ALSO STARTING TO SEE AT LEAST IN THE MAJOR PARTIES, PEOPLE STAKING OUT POSITIONS AND CUTTING EACH OTHER OFF AT THE PASS AND SAYING I'M DEFINITELY GOING TO GET YOU TO SAY THIS ON CAMERA SO I CAN USED IN AN ATTACK AD LATER ON.

>> I THINK LAST YEAR WAS REPUBLICANS VERSUS DEMOCRATS WHICH YOU'VE SEEN FOR A WHILE. NEXT YEAR WILL BE THE BATTLE OF DEMOCRATS VERSUS DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS VERSUS REPUBLICANS. WE'VE SEEN MARCO RUBIO, RAND PAUL, THEY ALREADY HAVE A STRONG BATTLE GOING ON. ON THE DEMOCRATIC SIDE, ATTEND OF THE YEAR ELIZABETH WARREN AND NANCY PELOSI FIGHTING OVER THE SPENDING DEAL PROGRESSIVES ON THETH'S BASE, THAT'S KIND OF STUFF WE'LL SEE. THE G.O.P. IS IN CHARGE OF THE ENTIRE CONGRESS, THEY SURE HOLD THEMSELVES TOGETHER AND HAVE HAD PROBLEMS DOING THAT AND WITHOUT ANY DEMOCRATS TO FIGHT AGAINST THAT WILL BE MORE EVIDENCED. THE DEMOCRATS HAVE THEIR OWN PROBLEMS TRYING TO JOCKEY FOR POSITION AND GET A PLACE BEFORE 2016 KICKS OFF.

>> TWO HILLARY RELATED THINGS I'M WATCHING. THE FIRST IS WHO BECOMES THE MOST CREDIBLE ALTERNATIVE TO HILLARY IN THE PRIMARIES? YOU KNOW, ELIZABETH WARREN IS OBVIOUSLY THE FAVORITE OF PEOPLE TO HILLARY'S LEFT. SHE ALWAYS SAYS I'M NOT RUNNING IN THE PRESENT TENSE. THERE'S A SLIGHT DOOR OPEN THERE. BERNIE SANDERS AN ADORABLE SOCIALIST BUT PROBABLY NOT A SERIOUS CANDIDATE. SO WHAT I'M WATCHING IS WHO'S JOCKEYING AND HOW, BUT WAITING TO SEE IF HILLARY MAKES ANOTHER KIND OF MISTAKE THAT GIVES SOMEBODY ON THE LEFT THE REAL OPENING. YOU KNOW SHE HAD A COUPLE OF MISSTEPS WHEN SHE TALKED ABOUT LEAVING THE WHITE HOUSE AND HER CLOSENESS ALLEGEDLY TO WALL STREET. SO THAT'S INTERESTING. THE SECOND PIECE IS I'M CURIOUS TO WATCH HOW HILLARY CLINTON POSITIONS HERSELF BOTH AS AN ALLY OF PRESIDENT OBAMA AND SOMETHING DISTINCTLY DIFFERENT AND THAT'S ALWAYS SOMETHING INTERESTING TO WATCH AS WE MOVE THROUGH. THIS SHE HAS TO DO IT AT A CERTAIN POINT. HOWEVER, HE IS BECOMING MORE POPULAR. SO IT BECOMES A SLIGHTLY MORE COMPLICATED POSITION FOR HER.

>> Sreenivasan: HELENA, YOU'VE AVOIDED THE POSSIBLY PREDICTION JEFFERY WOULD MAKE IS DEMOCRAT WILL COME OUT --

>> MICHELE OBAMA LOST A FIGHT IN TERMS OF THE SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM. WHOLE GRAINS OR HALF GRAINS, RIGHT? AND WE GOT ALL THE INSTAGRAMS OF THE SAD LUNCHES KIDS ARE HAVING TO EAT NOW AND IT'S, LIKE, THANKS MICHELLE OBAMA. I THINK THERE'S GOING TO BE INTERESTING THINGS BETWEEN MICHELLE OBAMA AND THE REPUBLICAN PARTY WHICH HILLARY CLINTON FOUND HERSELF IN WHEN SHE WAS FIRST LADY, SO MAYBE NOSTALGIA --

>> AND YOU WASN'T TO BOLDLY PREDICT SHE'S GOING TO RUN.

>> I WANT IT MORE THAN SHE ACTUALLY WANTS IT.

>> I'M GOING TO PREDICT THAT BERNIE SANDERS WILL BE A TEACHER BY THE END OF THIS SEGMENT.

>> ON THAT NOTE, HELENA ANDREWS JEFFREY GOLDBERG AND EVAN McMORRIS SANTORO, THANKS FOR JOINING US.

>> Ifill: WE CLOSE TONIGHT WITH A LOOK BACK AT THE YEAR AT THE MOVIES. JEFFREY BROWN HAS THAT.

>> Brown: WE TALK FAVORITE FILMS, BEST PERFORMANCES AND MORE WITH FILM CRITICS DANA STEVENS AND MIKE SARGENT. WE ASKED EACH OF YOU TO PICK A TOP FILM YOU WANTED TO RECOMMEND. I KNOW IT'S HARD TO WHITTLE BUT DANA YOU CHOICE "BOYHOOD." TELL US BRIEFLY WHY.

>> FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS CONVERSATION I CHOSE "BOY HOOD." I NEVER LIKE TO RANK THE MOVIES BECAUSE I LIKE TO CHOOSE A DIFFERENT. BOY HOOD IS OUTSTANDING. IT'S RICHARD LINK LETTER'S OPUS ABOUT A TEXAS FAMILY THAT TAKES PLACE OVER THE COURSE OF 12 YEARS AND FILMED OVER THE COURSE OF 12 YEARS SO IT TRACKS THIS ONE BOY AND THE ACTORS PLAYING HIS FAMILY. I GUESS HE'S SIX OR SO UNTIL HE LEAVES FOR COLLEGE AT AGE 18. SO MORE THAN ANY FILM, I THINK IT'S AN AMBITIOUS EXPERIMENTAL PROJECT AND ONE THAT WORKS.

>> Brown: I WANT TO SHOW YOU A CLIP. THIS IS THE DAD WITH TWO CHILDREN, DIVORCED AT THIS POINT ABOUT FOUR YEARS INTO THE FILM.

>> THESE QUESTIONS ARE HARD TO ANSWER.

>> WHAT IS SO HARD TO ANSWER ABOUT WHAT SCULPTURE ARE YOU MAKING?

>> IT'S ABSTRACT. DIDN'T KNOW YOU'RE INTERESTED IN ABSTRACT.

>> I'M NOT. DADDY, WHY IS IT ON ALL US? HOW ABOUT YOU? HOW WAS YOUR WEEK? DO YOU HAVE A GIRLFRIEND? WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN UP TO?

>> LET ME SEE YOUR PHONE.

>> Brown: THAT'S A FILM SHOT OVER 12 YEARS. MIKE SARGENT, YOUR TOP CHOICE WAS A VERY IMPORTANT MOMENT IN CIVIL RIGHTS HISTORY, RIGHT?

>> YES, IT WAS, THE MOVIE "SELMA" WHICH I CHOSE, AND SIMILAR TO YOU DANA IN THAT IT'S HARD TO CHOOSE A FAVORITE FILM. I CAN USUALLY CHOOSE A TOP FIVE. BUT I CHOSE IT BECAUSE IT'S SIGNIFICANT IN MANY WAYS. IT'S A STORY ABOUT MARTIN LUTHER KING'S MARCH FROM SELMA TO MEMPHIS TO SECURE VOTING RIGHTS FOR ALL OF AMERICA DIRECTED BY AN AMERICAN FEMALE FILM WRITER DUVENAY. IT'S SIGNIFICANT BECAUSE IT'S THE FIRST TIME MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. HAS EVER BEEN PORTRAYED ON SCREEN. THERE AREN'T MANY WOMEN MAKING MOVIES ANT DEFINITELY NOT THAT MANY OF COLOR. ONE THING SHE DID I FOUND POWERFUL, NOT THAT IT'S JUST MOVING AND COULDN'T BE MORE TIMELY OF WHAT'S GOING ON IN AMERICA, IS SHE REALLY CAST A LIGHT ON THE PEOPLE WHO WERE ALSO PART OF THE MOVIE NOT JUST MARTIN LUTHER KING, BUT ALSO THE WOMEN WHO WERE INVOLVED, SOME OF THE OTHER PEOPLE INVOLVED.

>> HERE'S A SHORT CLIP. THIS IS MARTIN LUTHER KING IN A SELMA CHURCH.

>> THOSE THAT HAVE GONE BEFORE US SAY NO MORE!

>> NO MORE! THAT MEANS PROTEST! THAT MEANS MARCH! THAT MEANS DISTURB THE PEACE! THAT MEANS JAILS! THAT MEANS RISK!

>> Brown: HE CAME UP TO BOTH OF YOU WHEN WE ASKED ABOUT GREAT PERFORMANCES OF THE YEAR. DANA, ANOTHER ONE YOU MENTIONED WAS TIMOTHY SPALL PLAYING JOSEPH TURNER IN "MR. TURNER." LET'S LOOK AT A SHORT CLIP OF THAT FIRST AND THEN YOU TELL US ABOUT IT.

>> WOULD YOU LOOK OUT OF THE WINDOW.

>> WHAT AM I LOOKING AT? THE TIP OF YOUR NOSE TO THE BRIDGE AND YOUR BROW, YOU PUT ME IN MY LITTLE GREEK SCULPTURE GODDESS OF LOVE.

>> Brown: THAT WAS FULL OF GRUNTS AND GROANS, STRANGE CHARACTERS, AN ARTIST WALKING THROUGH LIFE. WHAT DID YOU LOVE ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE?

>> THE CLIP YOU CHOSE TO SHOW WAS PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST VERBAL SCENES MR. TURNER HAS IN THAT ENTIRE MOVIE. HE ESSENTIALLY GRUNTS HIS WAY THROUGH LIFE AND IS VERY INARTICULATE AT TIMES BUT EXTREMELY INTELLIGENT AND SENSITIVE AND WELL SPOKEN ARTIST WHEN HE WANTS TO BE. UNLIKE NEARLY EVERY ARTIST BIOPIC I CAN THINK OF IS IT MAINTAINS THE MYSTERY OF THE ARTIST AND HIS ART. YOU NEVER QUITE UNDERSTAND THE CHARACTER TURNER HE PLACE AND YET YOU BECOME SO FAMILIAR WITH HIM OVER THE YEARS OF HIS LIFE. EXTRAORDINARY PERFORMANCE BY TIMOTHY.

>> Brown: ONE OF THE PERFORMANCES YOU CITED WAS BY JULIANNE MOORE FINDS SHE HAS ALZHEIMER'S. "STILL ALICE."

>> I WAS SO DEFINED BY MY INTELLECT MY LANGUAGE, MY ARTICULATION AND NOW SOMETIMES I CAN SEE THE WORDS HANGING IN FRONT OF ME AND I CAN'T REACH THEM AND I DON'T KNOW WHO I AM AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M GOING TO LOSE NEXT.

>> Brown: TELL US WHY THAT PERFORMANCE STOOD OUT FOR YOU, MIKE?

>> WELL, I THINK IT STOOD OUT BECAUSE IT'S VERY POWERFUL SUBJECT AND SHE HANDLED IT VERY WELL. THERE COULD BE THE TENDENCY TO OVERDO IT BUT I THOUGHT THERE WERE A LOT OF MOMENTS OF RESTRAINT AND EMOTION SHE CONVEYS VERY WELL. THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS GOING ON WITHIN HER AND A LOTTO THINGS SHE DOES. TOWARDS THE END OF THE FILM SHE'S NOT SPEAKING THAT MUCH BUT YOU GET WHAT SHE'S GOING THROUGH. I THINK IN A YEAR WHERE THERE WEREN'T AS MANY STRONG FEMALE PERFORMANCES AS IN MANY YEARS, I FELT THIS WAS A VERY MOVING PERFORMANCE.

>> Brown: YOU BOTH SAID HOW HARD IT IS TO PICK A TOP PERFORMANCE. LET ME MAKE IT EASIER. DANA, YOU TALK ABOUT OTHER FILMS, BUT ESPECIALLY WHAT I WANT TO ASK YOU ABOUT, PERHAPS SOME HIDDEN GEMS THINGS THAT WE DIDN'T GET A CHANCE TO READ ABOUT OR SEE.

>> IN THE NAME OF ADVOCACY, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE BOY HOOD HAS BEEN SO POPULAR, I WANT TO RECOMMEND THE BOBADUKE WHICH IS AN AUSTRALIAN HORROR FILM THE DEBUT FILM OF JENNIFER CANTON, PREVIOUSLY AN ACTRESS IN AUSTRALIAN TV AND MOVIES AND AN ASTONISHING DEBUT. IF YOU JUST ADMIRE ROSE MARY'S BABY OR AN ARTFULLY DONE ART MOVIE THAT'S ABOUT MORE THAN JUST IS THE MONSTER GOING TO GET SOMEBODY, ONE THAT HAS ALLEGORICAL DEPTH TO IT, I RECOMMENDED IT, A PARABLE ABOUT MOTHERHOOD. IT'S EXTRAORDINARY.

>> Brown: MIKE SARGENT, CAN YOU TOP THAT?

>> I DON'T KNOW IF I CAN TOP THAT, BUT I DEFINITELY HAVE TO SAY A FILM THAT'S GOTTEN FORGOTTEN BY THIS TIME OF THE YEAR AND THAT'S "GET ON UP" STARS CHADWICK BOSON PLAYING JAMES BROWN. MOST PEOPLE REMEMBER HIM WHERE HE WAS NOT QUITE THE MAN HE ONCE WAS. BUT I THINK CHADWICK GAVE A PHENOMENAL PERFORMANCE. FOR ONE YOU COMPLETELY FORGET YOU'RE WATCHING AN ACTOR. YOU'RE JUST WATCHING JAMES BROWN TO HIS THICK.

>> Brown: THE SHORT LOOK AT 2014, MIKE SARGENT AND DANA STEVENS. THANK YOU SO MUCH. HAPPY VIEWING IN 2015.

>> THANK YOU. FOR HAVING US.

>> Ifill: AGAIN, THE MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS OF THE DAY. STORMY CONDITIONS PREVENTED MUCH PROGRESS IN THE SEARCH FOR THE VICTIMS OF THE AIR-ASIA CRASH OFF INDONESIA. THE PLANE WENT DOWN SUNDAY IN THE JAVA SEA, WITH 162 PEOPLE ON BOARD. THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY JOINED THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT, IN A BID TO BRING WAR CRIMES CHARGES AGAINST ISRAEL. THE ISRAELIS CONDEMNED THE MOVE. AND NEW YEAR'S CELEBRATIONS IN CHINA TURNED DEADLY. STATE-RUN MEDIA SAID A STAMPEDE IN SHANGHAI KILLED AT LEAST 35 PEOPLE, AND INJURED DOZENS MORE. ON THE NEWSHOUR ONLINE RIGHT NOW, SNOWY OWLS ARE MAKING RARE APPEARANCES THOUSANDS OF MILES SOUTH OF THEIR ARCTIC STOMPING GROUNDS. WHAT'S BEHIND THEIR MOVEMENT, AND WHERE ARE YOU MOST LIKELY SPOT ONE? FIND OUT IN TODAY'S "SCIENCE WEDNESDAY" OFFERING, WHICH IS ON OUR HOME PAGE. AND HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW 2014 SLANG? WE PUT TOGETHER A QUIZ BASED ON NEW ENTRIES TO THE ONLINE VERSION OF THE OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY. IF YOU'VE EVER "BINGE-WATCHED" YOUR FAVORITE SHOW WHILE "SUB- TWEETING" YOUR FORMER BEST FRIEND FOR "MANSPLAINING" ON A RECENT PODCAST, THEN YOU'LL DO JUST FINE. ALL THAT AND MORE IS ON OUR WEB SITE, pbs.org/newshour. AND THAT'S THE NEWSHOUR FOR TONIGHT. ON THURSDAY, WE'LL EXPLAIN WHY THOSE END OF THE YEAR RESOLUTIONS ARE SO HARD TO KEEP AND HOW MARSHMALLOWS CAN PROVIDE CLUES TO MASTERING SELF CONTROL. I'M GWEN IFILL, WE'LL SEE YOU ON-LINE, AND AGAIN HERE TOMORROW EVENING. FOR ALL OF US HERE AT THE PBS NEWSHOUR, THANK YOU AND GOOD NIGHT.

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>> THIS PROGRAM WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING. AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU. THANK YOU. Captioning sponsored by MacNEIL/LEHRER PRODUCTIONS Captioned by Media Access Group at WGBH access.wgbh.org REPORT" WITH TYLER MATHISEN AND SUSIE GHARIB. FUNDED IN PART BY -- THESTREET.COM AND ACTION ALERTS PLUS WHERE JIM CRAMER AND FELLOW PORTFOLIO MANAGER STEPHANIE LINK SHARE THEIR INVESTMENT STRATEGIES, STOCK PICKS AND MARKET INSIGHTS. YOU CAN LEARN MORE AT THESTREET.COM/NBR. >>> STRONG YEAR FOR STOCKS. INVESTORS CLOSE THE BOOKS ON 2014 WITH ANOTHER YEAR OF GAINS. DESPITE TODAY'S TRIPLE DIGIT DECLINE FOR THE DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE. >>> JANUARY EFFECT. ARE STOCKS A GOOD BUY AT THE START OF THE NEW YEAR? WE HAVE THE NAMES THAT HAVE HISTORICALLY DONE WELL WHEN THE CALENDAR CHANGES. >>> AND PAY RAISE.