Michelle Yeoh has been a star for decades. American audiences will know her as a warrior in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon or an icy matriarch in Crazy Rich Asians . Now, in Everything Everywhere All At Once , she's playing Chinese immigrant Evelyn Wang who is both a failure and possibly the key to saving the multiverse from a great chaos-spreading evil. Michelle Yeoh talks with NPR's Ailsa Chang about her journey through the multiverse, with all its wackiness, wonder and wisdom. In participatin...
Apr 08, 2022•14 min
Reports of civilians being tortured and killed — and the accompanying images that have surfaced this week in the city of Bucha — have raised questions about potential war crimes committed by Russian forces in Ukraine. The Biden administration is assisting international investigators in looking into potential war crimes. And some experts say the evidence of such crimes is clear in this highly-documented conflict. But history shows that drawing a straight line between war crimes and heads of state...
Apr 07, 2022•11 min
Many Americans haven't gotten an initial COVID-19 booster. A second one is authorized for some. Others are waiting to see if they can get one soon. Will everyone need them eventually? An FDA advisory committee met Wednesday to discuss what's next in America's booster strategy. Dr. Anthony Fauci tells NPR the path forward is paved with uncertainties — about whether more variants will arise, how long booster protection lasts, and what kind of funding will be available for research. Fauci spoke to ...
Apr 06, 2022•13 min
Florida's Parental Rights in Education law, which prohibits classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity for students in kindergarten through third grade, was signed into law at the end of March by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. Critics have dubbed this it the 'Don't Say Gay' law. A lawsuit has been filed against Gov. DeSantis by several LGBTQ rights advocates in an effort to block the law. NPR's Melissa Block spoke with a number of teachers across the state of Florida who are ...
Apr 05, 2022•11 min
Thousands of people who claim Johnson & Johnson baby powder caused them to develop cancer cannot sue the company, which used a controversial legal maneuver in bankruptcy court to freeze lawsuits against it. NPR's Brian Mann explains. More from his reporting here . Additional reporting this episode from NPR's Scott Horsley . 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 considerthis@npr.org . See pcm.ad...
Apr 04, 2022•12 min
Roger Latimer says he was beaten by guards in a security camera blind spot at Western Illinois Correctional Center. He complained at the prison. He complained to local officials. He asked medical staff to take pictures. Nothing happened. Then another prisoner, Larry Earvin, died after an altercation with guards in the same blind spot. In this episode of WBEZ Chicago's Motive podcast , host Shannon Heffernan tracks the pattern of beatings in that blind spot, surfacing nine additional cases, somet...
Apr 03, 2022•42 min
Since Russia invaded Ukraine, there has been intense focus on Russian oligarchs - elites with enormous wealth and close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The United States and international allies have imposed travel bans and economic sanctions on the billionaires, freezing accounts and impounding yachts and private jets. The goal is to disrupt the covert money funneled to Putin and his regime and to make the oligarch's lives difficult enough that they might pressure Putin to loosen his ...
Apr 02, 2022•12 min
Binge watching a show you love is enjoyable, but not always productive. But artists Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear turned their binge into a Grammy nomination. They were inspired by Season 1 of Netflix's series Bridgerton , and used that inspiration to write a full musical theater album. They didn't intend to write a full album, but as they workshopped the songs on social media, fans everywhere watched as Barlow & Bear wrote the songs live — offering followers a front row seat to the music ma...
Apr 01, 2022•11 min
Researchers say the intersection between far-right movements and environmentalism is bigger than many people realize — and it's growing. Blair Taylor , researcher at the Institute for Social Ecology, explains. Alex Amend , who researches eco-fascism, says climate change will only fuel the link between the far-right and environmentalism. Dorceta Taylor of Yale University traces the rise of the American conversation movement, which was partly motivated by a backlash against the racial mixing of Am...
Mar 31, 2022•11 min
Ginni Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, is a longtime conservative activist who has been public about her views and support of former President Donald Trump. And text messages that surfaced last week showed that she went as far as peddling falsehoods about the 2020 election directly to former White House staff and urging them to overturn President Joe Biden's victory. Earlier this year, Clarence Thomas was the sole dissenter as the Supreme Court ruled to give a House sel...
Mar 30, 2022•10 min
An omicron subvariant known as BA.2 could soon become the dominant form of the coronavirus in the United States. It's not more deadly, but it is more transmissible. At the same time, the Biden administration has authorized a second booster shot for people over 50 and other people vulnerable to infection. But against that backdrop, Congress has so far refused to authorize more COVID spending measures, which would fund the stockpiling of more vaccine doses and public health surveillance for emergi...
Mar 29, 2022•10 min
In 2008, Russia invaded another former Soviet republic: Georgia, a small country on the southeast edge of Europe. Today, Georgia is seeing an influx of Russians who are fleeing their home country in opposition to its invasion of Ukraine. Mary Louise Kelly traveled to Georgia to hear how people who live with Russian troops on their doorsteps are feeling as they watch the war in Ukraine play out. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going...
Mar 28, 2022•11 min
Even if you're not a fan of celebrity gossip, you've probably heard that there's something going on with the rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West. He's exhibited increasingly erratic behavior, including relentless online harassment of his ex-wife, reality TV queen Kim Kardashian and her current boyfriend, comedian Pete Davidson. Now he's been banned from performing at the Grammys, and was recently suspended from Instagram for a day. For years Ye's behavior has been puzzling to observe - rangi...
Mar 26, 2022•14 min
The film Flee has already made Oscars history: it's the first to be nominated for best documentary, animated feature and international film. Flee tells the story of a boy whose family left Afghanistan in the 1990s. Now an adult and identified by an alias to protect him and his family, Amin Nawabi reveals a painful secret about his childhood journey to Denmark—a secret he has told almost no one. The film opens with the question: "What does the word 'home' mean to you?" Nawabi gives NPR his first ...
Mar 25, 2022•10 min
This week, the average price for a gallon of gas in L.A. County crested six dollars — the highest in the country. The national average is up around 70 cents in the last month. The are a lot of complicated reasons why gas is more expensive — and a lot of ideas for how to make this easier on consumers. But none of them are quick or easy. NPR's Scott Horsley explains why drivers who are newly interested in purchasing an electric vehicle might not have a lot of options. NPR's Brittany Cronin reports...
Mar 24, 2022•12 min
The NCAA's March Madness Tournament is upon us, and after over two years of pandemic restrictions at sporting events, stands are packed to full capacity with fans. Transformative changes are happening off of the court too: for the first time in March Madness history, college athletes can cash in on endorsement deals because of changes to the NCAA's Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) policies, which are a result of a Supreme Court ruling last summer. While the new arena in college sports has been luc...
Mar 23, 2022•11 min
Tuesday was the second day of Ketanji Brown Jackson's Supreme Court confirmation hearings. She would be the first Black woman to serve as a Supreme Court justice, and the first Democratic nominee to be confirmed since Elena Kagan in 2010. A vote on her nomination could come in weeks, and Democrats have the votes to confirm her without Republican support. NPR political correspondent Juana Summers spoke to black women working to support Jackson's historic nomination. In participating regions, you'...
Mar 22, 2022•13 min
Inside Ukraine, millions of people have been displaced, with millions more living in increasingly dire conditions. In the city of Maruipol, hundreds of thousands of civilians remain trapped — with dwindling supplies of food and water and no electricity. Mariupol has been bombarded by the Russians for weeks now. Petro Andrushchenko, an adviser to Mariupol's mayor, told NPR civilians in bomb shelters are running out of food. Millions of others have fled Ukraine without knowing if or when they'll b...
Mar 21, 2022•15 min
Senate confirmation hearings begin next week for Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. If she is confirmed she will be the first Black woman on the high court and the first public defender. Judge Jackson served as a federal public defender between 2005 and 2007. She defended several Guantanamo detainees and others accused of crimes, a fact that her critics use to suggest that she works to free terrorists and put criminals back on the street. The 6th Amendment to the Constitution gua...
Mar 19, 2022•14 min
It's been one year since a white man opened fire at three spas in the Atlanta area killing eight people — six of whom were Asian women. Since the beginning of the pandemic there has been an alarming rise in hate crimes against Asian people in America, and a majority of the victims are women. Harmful stereotypes of Asian Women play a huge role here — often portrayed in pop culture as demure, exotic, hyper sexualized, or carriers of disease. CNN journalist Amara Walker discusses what it feels like...
Mar 18, 2022•11 min
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wants America to help impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine. The U.S. favors other avenues of support, providing weapons and equipment. Now there are signs the Russian advance is stalling. Could there be a diplomatic endgame in sight? Marie Yovanovitch is skeptical. The former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine tells NPR a no-fly zone should be kept on the table, citing the unpredictability and ruthlessness of Russian president Vladimir Putin. Yovanovitch has written ...
Mar 17, 2022•11 min
The pandemic created a spike in demand for housing that sent real estate prices through the roof. Which means a lot of Americans could no longer afford to buy, while many of those who could are now experiencing buyer's remorse. NPR heard from many new homeowners who made compromises as they rushed to buy. Some even waived inspections or moved sight-unseen. Hyojung Lee, a professor at Virginia Tech, explains how low interest rates, lockdowns and a desire to stop renting created the real estate sc...
Mar 16, 2022•12 min
In the U.S., with key COVID metrics trending rapidly downward, the pandemic's third spring is already looking very different. But concerns remain about future variants as China and Hong Kong battle new outbreaks . NPR's Tovia Smith reports on workers heading back to the office — where employers are figuring out how to give them new flexibility. NPR's Will Stone reports on a recent change to the way the CDC talks about COVID risk. More on that story here . NPR's Allison Aubrey has more on the bat...
Mar 15, 2022•13 min
The scenes of devastation in Mariupol, a southeastern port city in Ukraine, are increasingly reflected in cities across the country as Russian forces advance. More than 2,000 people have been killed in the port city since the start of Russia's invasion. A humanitarian crisis is deepening, as residents say they can't find drinking water or food, and the International Committee of the Red Cross says they cannot get emergency supplies in. Journalists Maura Reynolds and David Filipov both reported o...
Mar 14, 2022•11 min
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law that could impose fifteen years in prison on anyone who publishes or broadcasts what the Russian government considers "false information" about the invasion of Ukraine. The law makes it illegal to use the word "war" or "invasion," a move aimed at shutting down the last remaining independent Russian media outlets. Even as news is being censored and social media platforms are being shut down, some people in Russia are determined to be heard. The Ru...
Mar 12, 2022•14 min
The movement to ban books from public school reading lists is not new, but lately it's been gaining momentum throughout the country. In part, because fights over children and schools is a tried and true political tool. Revida Rahman, with One WillCo , discusses efforts to ban books in her children's school district in Williamson County, Tennessee and how this just the newest iteration of parental outrage on display. And Elizabeth Bruenig , staff writer for The Atlantic, explains the political be...
Mar 11, 2022•16 min
Governor Greg Abbot has directed the state's Department of Family and Protective Services to investigate certain gender-affirming care as possible child abuse, leaving parents of transgender youth feeling caught between two choices: support their children or face a possible CPS investigation. Annaliese and Rachel are mothers living in Texas, both have transgender children. They speak to NPR about the emotional and mental toll this order has had on their families. And Chase Strangio, Deputy Direc...
Mar 10, 2022•15 min
More than two million people have fled Ukraine since Russia attacked two weeks ago - at least half of them children. It's a dangerous journey for anyone, let alone premature babies who were already fighting for their lives. This is the harrowing story of some of the youngest evacuees - babies less than two weeks old who were born prematurely. Each day, they've been growing stronger as Kyiv grows weaker. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of wha...
Mar 09, 2022•10 min
Throughout the pandemic, the The Federal Bureau of Prisons has maintained that they have a plan to keep the pandemic under control. But federal prison records tell a different story. NPR's Meg Anderson dug into those those records. Many high risk inmates applied for compassionate release, or Home Confinement, where they could live at home while being monitored by the prison. But since the beginning of the pandemic nearly 300 prisoners have died from COVID-19, and almost all of them were elderly ...
Mar 08, 2022•13 min
In what the U.N. refugee agency calls the fastest-growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II, more than a million Ukrainians have fled their country since Russia invaded less than two weeks ago. The bulk of them have traveled through Poland and many are staying there. That's where Ari Shapiro spoke with acting United States ambassador to Ukraine Kristina Kvien. She and her staff relocated to Poland soon after the fighting started, and she discusses the strain this new humanitarian crisi...
Mar 07, 2022•12 min
