This week on “Sunday Morning” (Jan. 18)

The Emmy Award-winning “CBS News Sunday Morning” is broadcast on CBS Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET.  “Sunday Morning” also streams on the CBS News app beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET. (Download it here.) 

Hosted by Jane Pauley

       
COVER STORY: America at 250 — and a reckoning for President Trump
One year into President Donald Trump’s second term in office (which in recent days has seen military incursions in Venezuela, a Justice Department investigation of the chairman of the Federal Reserve, and the fatal shooting of a woman in Minneapolis by an ICE agent), “Sunday Morning” national correspondent Robert Costa talks with Lindsay Chervinsky, executive director of the George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon; Washington Post columnist George F. Will; and Atlantic staff writer Vivian Salama, about what this coming year – the 250th since the colonies declared their independence – will mean for America’s future.

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ALMANAC: January 18
“Sunday Morning” looks back at historical events on this date.

ARTS: Theaster Gates on the artist’s ties to hometown Chicago
Working out of an old airplane parts factory, the internationally-acclaimed artist Theaster Gates has refused to fit inside a box – from creating works out of discarded objects, to making paintings out of tar. He talks with Mark Whitaker about his role as an artist; his stewardship of neglected buildings in his Chicago neighborhood; and his work commissioned for the forthcoming Obama Presidential Library. 

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MOVIES: Stellan Skarsgård on acting: “It is like being a child … you never grow up”
Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård has been in 150 films and TV shows, from “Breaking the Waves” and “Good Will Hunting,” to “Mamma Mia!” and the “Star Wars” series “Andor.” He just won a Golden Globe Award for his performance in “Sentimental Value,” playing a filmmaker-father trying to reconcile with his estranged actress-daughters. Skarsgård talks with Seth Doane about why he’s never bored making films; being a father of eight; and working with the effects of a 2022 stroke.

To watch a trailer for “Sentimental Value” click on the video player below:

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HEADLINES: Expert: Iran now “a ticking time bomb,” after regime puts down mass uprising
In Iran, a lethal crackdown by a seemingly panicked regime has resulted in thousands killed. Now, Tehran’s streets are quiet, suggesting an enforced business-as-usual. Middle East expert Dr. Sanam Vakil talks with Elizabeth Palmer about why, despite this latest show of force, the regime may be close to a breaking point.

     
HEADLINES: The week in Minnesota

     
PASSAGE: In memoriam
“Sunday Morning” remembers some of the notable figures who left us this week.

     
THESE UNITED STATES: Voices of the civil rights movement
As we mark Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday, Martha Teichner talks with some of those who were engaged from the very beginning of the civil rights movement: Arthenia Joyner, who was a Black high school student who took part in a sit-in at a Whites-only lunch counter in Tampa, Fla.; Jawana Jackson, who as a child participated with her mother in the Selma-to-Montgomery march in the wake of “Bloody Sunday”; and attorney Fred Gray, who won four civil rights cases before the Supreme Court by the age of 35.

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MOVIES: Judd Apatow on comic genius Mel Brooks: “Probably the funniest person of all time”
As a young boy, Judd Apatow says he wanted to grow up to be like Mel Brooks, the filmmaker of such comedy classics as “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein.” Now Apatow has co-directed a two-part HBO Max documentary about his idol, “Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!” Apatow talks with Tracy Smith about the World War II veteran who broke comedy taboos by lampooning Nazis and racists, and about Brooks’ long friendship with another comic legend, Carl Reiner.

To watch a trailer for the documentary “Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!,” click on the video player below:

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TRAVEL: Peak travel: Viewing the U.S. from each state’s highest point
“Highpointers” are people with a quirky goal: summiting the highest point in each of the 50 states, from Mt. McKinley in Alaska (elevation: 20,310 feet above sea level), to Florida’s Britton Hill (elevation: 345 feet). Conor Knighton talks with some intrepid travelers whose mission is to view the United States from the unique perspective of each state’s tallest peak.

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U.S.: “Hail to Indiana!”: Jane Pauley on her alma mater’s gridiron success and school anthem
On Monday night the Miami Hurricanes take on the Indiana Hoosiers in the highly-anticipated national college football championship game – and Jane Pauley, a fifth-generation Hoosier on both sides, will be watching. She reflects on Indiana University’s come-from-behind underdog story, from holding the NCAA Division I record for most losses, to this year’s 15-0 record – IU’s first perfect season in 139 years – and fondly remembers the school anthem, “Hail to Old IU.”

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NATURE: Woodpeckers in Florida

WEB EXCLUSIVES:

MARATHON: Howdy! Welcome to Texas (YouTube Video)
“CBS Sunday Morning” travels through the Lone Star State, exploring its rich history, exceptional people, and beautiful places. Featuring: 

• Animal rescue sanctuary in East Texas 
• Buc-ee’s: A Texas institution with a national footprint 
• Texas police recruit stands tall 
• Texas BBQ with a foreign flavor 
• An untold legend of the Old West 
• A unique travel destination in West Texas 
• Bracken Cave Preserve for bats 
• Tennessee woman brings grieving Texas family hope 
• 82-year-old pole vaulter at the Texas Express gym 
• Texas students compete in Mariachi festival  

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Ben Nighthorse Campbell (YouTube Video)
Ben Nighthorse Campbell, who represented Colorado in the House of Representatives and the Senate, as both a Democrat and a Republican, died on Dec. 30, 2025. In this May 31, 1987 “Sunday Morning” report, Campbell, a member of the Northern Cheyenne tribe, a former judo champion, rancher, and jewelry maker, talked with Robert Pierpoint about his political reputation as a maverick, and of adjusting to life in Washington.

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Grateful Dead co-founder Bob Weir (YouTube Video)
Bob Weir, co-founder of the landmark band The Grateful Dead, died on Jan. 10, at age 78. Watch this collection of “Sunday Morning” stories featuring Weir, including:

• More than two decades after Jerry Garcia’s death, Anthony Mason talked with Bob Weir about a reshuffled version of the fabled group, Dead & Company, coming to life. (2016)
• Bob Weir and John Mayer talk about the “living entity” that is the Grateful Dead catalog. (2016)
• Bob Weir and John Mayer discuss Dead & Company. (2016)
• In an extended interview, Bob Weir talks about adapting the Dead’s music to performance by a symphony orchestra, and the unfinished business resulting from bandmate Jerry Garcia’s passing. (2022)

The Emmy Award-winning “CBS News Sunday Morning” is broadcast on CBS Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. Executive producer is Rand Morrison.

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