After 27 years on the Supreme Court, liberal justice Stephen Breyer is retiring. His departure won't change the balance of the court, but it will give President Biden a chance to put his stamp on it — and cement a new, younger justice in place for decades. NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg explains who might replace Breyer, and NPR political editor Domenico Montanaro outlines how the process will unfold. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Writer-Director Joss Whedon has responded to his former colleagues' accusations of bullying on set. NY Magazine reporter Lila Shapiro interviewed Whedon, and his accusers, for a profile in Vulture called "The Undoing of Joss Whedon."Motherboard's Gita Jackson considers Whedon's influence on his fans and, more broadly, pop culture, and freelance tv critic Robyn Bahr talks about the reasons why she doesn't think she'll ever rewatch Buffy the Vampire Slayer again.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

When we talk about the pandemic, we talk about stress. Burnout. Uncertainty. Isolation. We don't talk as much about trauma. But a growing number of mental health professionals say that's what people are experiencing as the pandemic drags on — and we may need a new way to talk about what they're going through. NPR's Kat Lonsdorf reports. Psychiatrist, neurologist and author Bessel van der Kolk explains how the brain processes and recovers from trauma. His 2004 book The Body Keeps the Score surged to the top of bestseller lists during the pandemic. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A towering figure of the fashion world, André Leon Talley was impossible to ignore. His influence extended well beyond the runway — during his time at Vogue, he was a rare Black editor in a largely white industry, and also a major figure in the LGBTQ+ community.In this episode of It's Been A Minute, host Sam Sanders discusses Talley's influence and legacy with Saeed Jones and Zach Stafford. Listen to more It's Been A Minute with Sam Sanders via Apple, Spotify, or Google.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In Florida and Virginia, Governors Ron DeSantis and Glenn Youngkin are bolstering the right of parents to defy school mask mandates. While some parents are celebrating, others are filing lawsuits opposing the policies that make mask-wearing in schools optional.There are a lot of opinions about how schools should be run during the pandemic, but some key voices are often missing from the conversation – students and teachers. Over the last few weeks, amid a nationwide surge of coronavirus cases, students across the country have staged walkouts to emphasize various COVID mitigation measures they would like to see implemented. We'll hear from some of those students. And we'll speak to a teacher in Arizona who understands how difficult it is, as a parent, community member and school staffer, to find the right balance between physical health, mental health and educational priorities.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The pandemic has led to a huge rise in online shopping. And record spending from last year means record returns. But what happens to the items we send back is often a mystery. NPR correspondent Alina Selyukh reports on the like hood of an unwanted holiday gift making it into another customers hands. And Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi of NPR's Planet Money podcast visits a bargain bin store in North Carolina where dogged resellers rifle through mounds of unwanted items to find something they can turn for a profit. Listen to the full Planet Money episode here. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Today marks one year since President Joe Biden took office. His most immediate challenge was the pandemic, but he also promised action on climate, racial equity, and infrastructure. One year later, NPR correspondents Kelsey Snell and Tamara Keith take stock of Biden's accomplishments and shortfalls. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Federal data released last week showed more than 101,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in a one-year period. This was partly due to the pandemic and disruptions to treatment, as well as a surge in methamphetamine and fentanyl use.But there is some positive news. A recent study on recovery success, co-authored by Dr. David Eddie, shows that three out of four people who experience addiction eventually recover, if they get the care they need.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

During his time in office, former President Donald Trump embraced a Christian nationalist stance; the idea that the U.S. is a Christian country and should enforce those beliefs. Now, despite being out of office for nearly a year, those beliefs continue to spread. NPR correspondent John Burnett reports on the growing movement of Christian nationalism, and the the other Christian congregations that are pushing against it. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

More people are hospitalized with COVID than at any point in the pandemic. But the omicron variant is also causing more Americans to tune out the pandemic and turn away from public health measures right when they're needed most. NPR's Yuki Noguchi reports.Even some vaccinated and boosted Americans are ready to move on from COVID, writes Derek Thompson in The Atlantic — a group he's dubbed 'vaxxed and done.' Thompson spoke to Jane Clayson on Here & Now, a production of NPR and WBUR Boston. Additional reporting in this episode from NPR's Michaeleen Doucleff, who reported on why the omicron variant appears to be less deadly; and from NPR's Will Stone, who reported on hospitals struggling to manage the omicron surge. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Americans' trust in both their government and in each other is declining. That's according to the Pew Research Center, who have been collecting this data for decades. Researchers Bradley Jones and Katerina Eva Matsa discuss how and why Americans are losing trust in two critical institutions: elections and news media. Then, Eric Liu, the co-founder and CEO of Citizen University, and Tony Marcano, managing editor of member station KPCC and the LAist, share the steps they are taking to help citizens engage in civic life and re-establish trust in our country's election systems and news media. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the U.S. is planning "things that we have not done in the past" if Russia invades Ukraine. His comments follow days of diplomatic talks and a deadlock on resolving the crisis brewing along the Ukraine-Russia border, where Russia has massed 100,000 troops with tanks and artillery.Blinken speaks to NPR's Mary Louise Kelly about the current tensions and this week's diplomatic efforts. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The men on death row in Allan B. Polunsky Unit, a maximum security prison in southeastern Texas, spend most of their time in solitary confinement, isolated from each other. Now, a prison radio station is giving them a sense of community and a way to be heard.Keri Blakinger talks about how it started and the impact it's had. Read her piece "The Prisoner-Run Radio Station That's Reaching Men on Death Row" at The Marshall Project.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Many public spaces across the country now require negative COVID-19 tests for entry. But the cost of testing can vary widely, and some say they have had to spend hundreds of dollars to purchase tests.Adam Tanner explains some of the reasons for the drastic difference in at-home test prices. Read his piece 'How Much Should It Cost to Get Tested for COVID-19' on Consumer Reports.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As Democrats are making a push for voting rights legislation in Congress, more faith leaders want Americans to approach it as a moral – even spiritual – issue, including pastor and Democrat, Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia. Warnock explains why he thinks ending the legislative filibuster in the Senate may be a necessary step, a move that President Joe Biden also endorsed while speaking in Warnock's home state on Tuesday. And Warnock describes his spiritual motivation for this voting rights push. He says democracy is the "political enactment of a spiritual idea."In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A surge in COVID-19 cases fueled by the Omicron variant has meant many school districts across the country have considered or committed to returning to remote learning for the time being.WBEZ reporter Sarah Karp spoke with parents in Chicago where a standoff between the teachers union and mayor has resulted in no teaching happening in person or virtually for the last few days. And we hear from three mothers who share how they've been coping with the stress and unpredictability of a very confusing return to school. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Before they built one of the biggest athlete-driven business empires in the world, LeBron James and Maverick Carter were just two kids from Akron, Ohio. On this episode of NPR's newest podcast, The Limits With Jay Williams, Carter explains how he and James succeeded — on their own terms. Carter is CEO of the SpringHill Company. Listen to more of The Limits via Apple, Google, or Spotify.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

If you're confused about the new CDC Coronavirus guidelines, you're not alone. In fact, this week, the American Medical Association released a statement saying, "The new recommendations on quarantine and isolation are not only confusing, but are risking further spread of the virus." Adherence to public health guidelines is built on trust, and over the last few weeks, trust in the CDC seems to be eroding. Jessica Malaty Rivera, a Senior Advisor at the Pandemic Prevention Institute and a science communicator, explains how we got to this point...and what steps need to be taken to ensure public trust in the CDC.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A new owner can change everything for a professional sports team. And in the world of professional soccer, more and more of those new owners are countries accused of human rights abuses. Former Manchester City player Nedum Onuoha describes what it was like when a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family took charge of his club. Plus, New York Times reporter Tariq Panja explains why complaints about where money is coming from does little to change this growing trend, as evidenced by the recent purchase of Newcastle United by a Saudi-led investment group.And in case you missed it on our All Things Considered radio broadcast, co-host of the show and of this podcast Audie Cornish is considering a new adventure and leaving NPR. You can hear the show's tribute to Audie here.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A year since the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol, the belief in 'the big lie' is now mainstream. And in states around the country, that belief is driving people to run for public office, where they would oversee elections this year. NPR's Miles Parks reports. Here's his complete report on where election-denying candidates are running to control voting.And NPR's Tovia Smith reports on why 'the big lie' is still so hard to dispel. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New daily cases are at an all-time high. The good news: vaccines and boosters have never been more widely available — but not for everyone. Children five and under still do not have a vaccine available as the omicron surge stretches health care workers thin. For advice on navigating the pandemic in this moment, we turn to Dr. Ibukun Kalu, a pediatric infectious disease doctor at Duke University. Additional reporting in this episode from NPR's Allison Aubrey. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A year ago, insurrectionists stormed the Capitol building in hopes of overturning the election results - fueled by the "Big Lie" that Donald Trump actually won. He did not.As NPR Special Correspondent Melissa Block reports, this lie has become entrenched in the Republican party. And Republican state legislators across the country have used it to justify passing new laws restricting voting access. We look at those changes, and what all this might mean for elections in 2022 and 2024. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This week marks a year since the January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and in this episode we're returning to the events of the day, which have become much clearer over the past year. And Capitol Police Sergeant Aquilino Gonell, who was there on January 6th, describes what it's like returning to work in the building where he says he was almost certain he would die. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We take a look back on the year in news and pop culture... in quotes. Audie Cornish and Ari Shapiro join Sam Sanders for a special episode of NPR's It's Been a Minute to play a deluxe version of their favorite game, Who Said That. Listen to It's Been A Minute on NPR One, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In 2011, influential Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei was secretly detained by Chinese authorities. While in detention, he thought often about his father – who had also been punished by the Chinese government – and how incomplete his understanding of his father was.Ai spoke to Ailsa Chang about his new book, which explores his time in detention, his relationship with his father, and his attempt to avoid a similar disconnect with his own son. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

We're halfway through another intense pandemic school year. As many teachers are taking a well-deserved holiday break, we'll hear why these past few months in the classroom have gotten harder – and what that could mean for students and parents. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced this week that people who test positive for COVID-19 but remain asymptotic can cut their quarantine time in half, from ten days to five. This shift comes in part due to major disruptions causes by rising Omicron cases, with hospitals and airlines in particular struggling to stay fully staffed. This moment in the pandemic feels a little like living in a contradiction. Cases are rising, yet guidance on certain restrictions is loosening. Hospitals are filling up, yet many infections are mild. Prof. Gaurav Suri, computational neuroscientist at San Francisco State, and Dr. Leana Wen, emergency physician and public health professor at George Washington University, discuss how to live with the threat of Omicron right now. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

An NPR investigation digs into the practice of billing parents for their children's foster care — something that happens in every state in the country. It's a bill many cannot afford to pay, which in turn makes it even more difficult for parents to get their lives back on track and reunite with their children. On top of that, research shows government actually loses money when it tries to collect on foster care bills.NPR investigative correspondent Joseph Shapiro reports, in collaboration with Teresa Wiltz of POLITICO. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

After everything that has happened this year, it can feel difficult to find things to celebrate. So we're using this episode to spread a little joy, through something everyone can relate to: food. We asked all of you what holiday dish is never missing from your table, and you answered – from seafood gumbo in Louisiana to Hungarian Beigli to traditional New Mexican cookies called Biscochitos and more. Be careful listening on an empty stomach. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This week, Democratic West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin said he cannot support the Build Back Better Act, which contains more than half a trillion dollars in climate investments. The White House has been negotiating with Manchin for months, hoping he would cast a key vote for the plan in the Senate, where their party's majority is razor thin. Without Manchin's support, the Biden administration's most ambitious action on climate may be dead, and the U.S. could fall short of key goals to prevent the worst effects of climate change. Reporters from NPR's climate change team — Jeff Brady, Lauren Sommer, and Dan Charles — take stock of where things go from here. NPR's Jennifer Ludden also contributed to this episode. Read her piece Manchin says Build Back Better's climate measures are risky. That's not true.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The HBO show Succession is compelling in part because it portrays a world most of us will never see: the backroom deals between cutthroat billionaires and their fraught family relationships. But the show's dark comedy also gives us insight into the world we all inhabit, and how that world treats women across a spectrum of relationships.From entrenched sexism to performative feminism, writer Flannery Dean explains the different forms of misogyny on display in Succession. (Note: Spoilers ahead for those not caught up on the latest season!) Then, actor J. Smith-Cameron – who plays the character Gerri Kellman – discusses navigating through the toxic machismo of Succession's world, and how she made the role her own. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

This holiday season we all deserve a little peace and quiet with the people we love, but the rapid spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 threatens to complicate things for everyone.As tests appear to be in short supply in places like New York City, the White House announced plans to send 500 million at-home tests to Americans who want them and new federal testing sites to meet the demand in the coming weeks. But despite the rising cases and concern, Dr. Ashish Jha, Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, says this is not March 2020 all over again. And he offers some guidance to help us through the next few weeks. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Public school enrollment dropped three percent nationwide during the 2020-2021 school year.NPR's education team continued to track enrollment this school year and found that while districts have gained students, a significant majority are still not back to where they were prior to the pandemic.A similar story has unfolded in Los Angeles, Chicago and at more public schools across the nation.NPR education reporter Cory Turner looked into why students are still not coming back to school and what schools are trying to do about it.Meanwhile, some of the students not enrolled in public school have started being homeschooled during the pandemic. WBHM education reporter Kyra Miles spoke to Black families in Alabama who are choosing that option in increasing numbers.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast has a tradition to look back on some of their favorite things from the last 12 months of television, movies and music. In this episode they're revisiting the pop culture that thrilled them, moved them and kept them company during another challenging year. Listen to Pop Culture Happy Hour on NPR One, Apple Podcasts or Spotify.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

On Jan. 6, three Fox News hosts desperately urged former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows to get the president to tell supporters to stop attacking the Capitol building.The texts, which were made public this week as the House of Representatives voted to hold Meadows in contempt, reveal a starkly different message than the one those same Fox hosts delivered to their audiences about the insurrection. NPR media correspondent David Folkenflik and investigative correspondent Tom Dreisbach discuss the gap between Fox's messaging behind closed doors and in front of the camera. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The COP26 Summit, the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow last month brought together people from all over the world. And everyone had stories of how climate change is already affecting their lives. But, did the conference accomplish what it set out to do? Alok Sharma, president of COP26, gives us a behind-the-scenes glimpse into what the conference felt like from the inside, why he apologized for the process, and what it was like trying to get delegates from nearly 200 countries on the same page. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Five days after tornadoes first touched down in the Midwest and South of the U.S., survivors are coming to grips with what they have lost. Of the several states that the storms tore through last weekend, Kentucky was the hardest hit. At least 74 people have been confirmed dead there. Many more are unaccounted for.As survivors, volunteers, and officials sort through and pick up what's left, how might they think about shoring up homes, businesses and buildings for the future? NPR's Audie Cornish speaks with University of Florida civil engineering professor David Prevatt about how to prepare buildings for tornadoes and hurricanes. The severity and timing of these storms have also raised the question of whether climate change has anything to do with tornadoes. NPR correspondent Dan Charles reports.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Kevin Dawes, an American from California, traveled to Syria in 2012 with hopes of a launching a career as a foreign correspondent. But shortly after crossing the border he was arrested and jailed for three-and-a-half years. And he hasn't shared his story publicly until now.NPR correspondent Deborah Amos interviewed Dawes about his nightmarish experience in a Syrian prison, how he's seeking to bring the government to court, and how he hopes to help do the same for the family of a British doctor he met in the cell next to his. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Almost two years into the pandemic, at-home rapid tests can still be difficult to find in the U.S. If you do find them, they're often expensive. Other countries are faring better, like the U.K. and South Korea, which provide free tests each day to anyone who wants them. Why is the U.S. different? NPR's Yuki Noguchi reports. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

After seven days of testimony directly from Elizabeth Holmes, her defense announced it had rested its case this week in a federal fraud trail that began in September. Holmes, a former Silicon Valley luminary, was CEO of the blood-testing startup Theranos. She told jurors she was not responsible, as prosecutors allege, for fleecing investors of millions of dollars and delivering flawed results to patients.And as NPR tech reporter Bobby Allyn explains, Holmes detailed a story of abuse that could sway the outcome of the trial. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

During oral arguments last week in a major Supreme Court case, Justice Amy Coney Barrett brought up the idea of adoption as an alternative to abortion. But many people who choose not to have a child do not consider adoption and abortion equal and opposite choices, sociologist Gretchen Sisson tells NPR. Plus, one woman shares her experience of relinquishing her rights as a parent.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

At least six conservative broadcasters who spread misinformation about COVID-19 and questioned coronavirus vaccines have now died from just this year. Their deaths may mirror a wider trend in the United States: Americans who live in pro-Trump parts of the country are less likely to be vaccinated and more likely to die from COVID-related complications.NPR's Geoff Brumfiel reports on new analysis from NPR showing that counties that voted for Donald Trump had almost three times the death rate of the counties that voted for Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In October of 1941, a young soldier was on leave in southern California when he met the woman he was sure he would marry. Then, two months later while stationed in Hawaii, Art "Bud" Montagne witnessed the attack on Pearl Harbor firsthand, and was swept up in the conflict that followed. NPR special correspondent Renee Montagne tells the story of what her father witnessed on that day 80 years ago, and how a cinematic love story — put on pause by war — turned out for him.Read more about Art Montagne's experiences at Pearl Harbor. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai made an assault allegation in November, then disappeared from the public eye. She has since re-emerged, but in protest of her treatment, the Women's Tennis Association's has now suspended all tournaments in China. That decision by the WTA could cost the organization and its players hundreds of millions of dollars, maybe more, in revenue. And it's the threat of losing that kind of money that usually keeps most professional sports organizations — like the NBA — treading lightly in response to China. NPR correspondent Tom Goldman has been following the story and looks at how the WTA's unflinching support for Peng may inspire a wider outcry over China's actions.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Banning books from classrooms and school libraries is nothing new, but it's recently become a topic of considerable political debate. How should parents react to this news, and to the books their children are reading? In this episode of NPR's It's Been A Minute senior editor Barrie Hardymon and Traci Thomas, host of The Stacks podcast, joined guest host Ayesha Rascoe to talk about banned book lists.The three talk about why it's important for kids to discover books freely, even if that means starting a hard conversation with them. They also discuss their favorite — and least favorite — books that often show up on banned book lists.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It was only a matter of time before cases of the COVID-19 omicron variant started popping up in the U.S., and now, it's here. Although it's too early to tell how this virus strain will spread, the threat it poses has already lit a fire under public health messaging. President Biden announced a new strategy to avoid a winter surge of cases that involves free at-home testing, a vaccine booster messaging campaign and heightened international travel safeguards. Meanwhile, the race is on to detect how omicron is already spreading in this country. NPR reporter Will Stone gives us a look into what's happening in labs right now across the country. And Saad Omer, director of the Yale Institute for Global Health, discusses what we know about how effective travel bans are scenarios like this. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Buying stuff is a part of this country's DNA. It's a tradition that really took off near the end of World War II, when the American economy was thriving and the market exploded with products Americans didn't even know they wanted. And even in an economy rocked by a pandemic, buying is on track to exceed 2020 levels this holiday season.The result of all that spending means consumption drives 70% of our country's GDP, but it's also the leading driver of nearly every environmental issue our planet faces. Journalist J.B. MacKinnon, who also wrote "The Day the World Stops Shopping, How Ending Consumerism Saves the Environment and Ourselves," discusses how curbing consumption could positively affect a warming planet.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Getting an abortion in Mississippi has never been easy, but it hasn't been impossible. Now, a case before the Supreme Court that centers on a clinic in Mississippi could upend abortion rights for pregnant people across the country. Today, the conservative-leaning court heard arguments in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. The clinic, which is the only abortion provider remaining in Mississippi, is challenging a 2018 state law that bans termination after 15 weeks of pregnancy. If the court upholds the law, it would reverse its own precedent by allowing states to interfere with the right to abortion at that stage of pregnancy. NPR Chief Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg, SCOTUS Blog's Tom Goldstein, and Florida State University Law Professor Mary Ziegler parse the arguments and weigh in on the possibilities on how the justices could rule.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at [email protected] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy