2023 is on track to beat last year's record when it comes to book bans. The free speech group PEN America counted 2,500 instances of book bans in U.S. schools during the 2021-22 academic year. Author Judy Blume has had a number of her books banned. She spoke to NPR ahead of the release of a documentary about her life, "Judy Blume Forever," streaming on Amazon Prime April 21. And NPR's Tovia Smith spoke to other authors of banned books about how the scrutiny has negatively impacted their sales - ...
Apr 06, 2023•12 min
Black Americans are killed by police at more than twice the rate of White Americans. And there's a growing number of Black families who have to live with the pain of losing a loved one at the hands of police. NPR's Juana Summers speaks with two women who have been living that reality for years. 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.adswizz.com for information about ou...
Apr 05, 2023•11 min
The legal and political worlds officially moved into uncharted waters when former President Donald Trump was arraigned on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. NPR's Carrie Johnson breaks down the case against Trump, and the difficult path to conviction for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. And Peter Skinner, an attorney who worked alongside Bragg for several years in the Southern District of New York, talks about what Bragg is like as a prosecutor. In participating regions, yo...
Apr 04, 2023•14 min
The FDA has approved over-the-counter sales of Narcan, a nasal spray version of the life-saving medication naloxone. The medication is known for its ability to rapidly reverse an opioid overdose. The FDA's move will make Narcan more widely available than ever before. But experts say this is just one step in the right direction, when it comes to preventing overdose deaths. NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Nabarun Dasgupta, a senior scientist at the University of North Carolina who has been studying ...
Apr 03, 2023•13 min
In the twenty-five years since the Japanese media franchise Pokémon launched in the US, it has become a staple of American culture — from trading cards to t-shirts, from action figures to videogames, from Oreo cookies to McDonald's Happy Meals. And of course, the animated series. Since the launch of that series the biggest stars have undoubtedly been aspiring Pokémon Master Ash Ketchum and his adorable pocket monster sidekick Pikachu. But now fans must say goodbye to these iconic heroes as the s...
Apr 01, 2023•14 min
Former President Trump has been indicted by a New York grand jury, making him the first former president in American history to face criminal charges. The case involves hush money paid by Trump's former attorney, Michael Cohen, to adult film star Stormy Daniels, who claims she had an affair with Trump. NPR's Andrea Bernstein says the lengths Trump's company went to cover up the hush money payment is part of a larger pattern of how Trump has long operated his businesses. In participating regions,...
Mar 31, 2023•13 min
It's been another month of impressive and unsettling AI breakthroughs. And, along with excitement, these breakthroughs have also sparked concerns about the risks AI could pose to society. Take OpenAI's release of GPT-4, the latest iteration of its ChatGPT chatbot. According to the company, it can pass academic tests (including several AP course exams) and even do your taxes. But NPR's Geoff Brumfiel test drove the software, and found that it also sometimes fabricated inaccurate information. Wedn...
Mar 30, 2023•13 min
Some officials in Democratic-led jurisdictions around the country are pushing to use involuntary commitment as a tool to tackle a surge in homelessness. We hear what officials in New York City, California and Portland, Oregon are proposing - and some of the pushback they are getting. Ailsa Chang speaks with April Dembosky with KQED in San Francisco and Amelia Templeton with Oregon Public Broadcasting about how the conversation about involuntary commitment is playing out in California and Oregon....
Mar 29, 2023•14 min
The United Nations says time is running out to avoid the worst effects of climate change. At the same time, countries like Bangladesh have no choice but to adapt to an already changing climate. Bangladesh is prone to flooding from rising sea levels and melting glaciers. And it is in the path of some of the world's most powerful cyclones. NPR's Lauren Frayer reports from northern Bangladesh on how the country is becoming a hot spot for climate solutions. In participating regions, you'll also hear...
Mar 28, 2023•10 min
A task force set up by the California state legislature is studying how the legacy of slavery has harmed the state's Black residents. This summer it will submit recommendations for how the state legislature should compensate African-Americans for that harm. The task force has to answer thorny questions like who should qualify for reparations, how to measure the suffering that Black people have endured and how to attach a dollar figure to that suffering. The chair of the task force, Kamilah Moore...
Mar 27, 2023•15 min
Donald Trump was the first president in American history to be impeached twice. Now, he may be the first modern president, current or former – to be charged with criminal conduct. The New York investigation into hush money paid to adult entertainment actor Stormy Daniels is just one of several criminal probes currently faced by Donald Trump, And it's the one that is closest to issuing charges. Amid all the legal drama Trump has announced his third bid for the White House. A pending indictment wo...
Mar 25, 2023•15 min
On March 24, 2018, hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of Washington, D.C. to demand an end to gun violence. That was also the start of the March For Our Lives movement, which continues to call on young people to make their voices heard through the ballot box. Survivors of a mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida organized that first march. One of them was David Hogg. NPR's Adrian Florido speaks with Hogg about the triumphs and frustrations of the past five years and...
Mar 24, 2023•13 min
PIMCO founder and legendary investor Bill Gross was known as the "Bond King." People all over the finance world listened to his market calls. He helped change a sleepy bond market into the highly competitive and profitable world we know today. His story is also the story of how American financial markets work, how people game them, and what happens when they implode. NPR's Mary Childs wrote about Gross in her book, The Bond King: How One Man Made A Market, Built An Empire And Lost It All. She re...
Mar 23, 2023•11 min
School districts across the country are struggling to fill vacancies among their teaching staff. In addition to stepping up their recruitment efforts, some districts are looking to turn more of their existing staff into teachers. NPR's Cory Turner reports on the Mississippi Teacher Residency program, and on the impact it is having in the state's capital, Jackson. 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 ...
Mar 22, 2023•11 min
The Cherokee Nation has been hit hard by opioid addiction and fentanyl-related overdose deaths. But the tribe has a plan to heal. Like many communities around the country, the Cherokee Nation received settlement money from big drug companies and pharmacy chains accused of fueling the opioid crisis. The tribe is investing that $100 million in programs to support treatment, harm reduction and a fight against stigma. Tribal leaders say the funds will save lives and save families. NPR's addiction co...
Mar 21, 2023•10 min
On March 20, 2003, the United States launched its invasion of Iraq. We recall how the war started, and the trauma it left behind. NPR's Eric Westervelt was embedded with the U.S. Army's Third Infantry Division as it pushed north from Kuwait. He describes what he saw in the first days of the war. We also hear reporting from NPR's Ruth Sherlock, who spoke to young Iraqis who grew up in the years since the invasion and are still trying to realize a better future for their country. In participating ...
Mar 20, 2023•14 min
Today, when we hear the word pandemic, most people think of COVID-19. But by 2003, while rates of HIV infections and deaths from AIDS had stabilized and fallen in the US, in sub-Saharan Africa, the rates were at epidemic proportions. In his State of the Union address that January, President George W. Bush announced a massive investment in the global fight against HIV –The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR. In the twenty years since, the program has dedicated billions of dolla...
Mar 18, 2023•12 min
When it comes to TV ratings, women's college basketball is trending upward - even as the men's game is losing viewers. When it comes to resources and media coverage? There's still a wide gap between the men and women. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Chantel Jennings, senior writer covering women's basketball for The Athletic , about the factors that contribute to that gap and how the women's game could overcome them. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you...
Mar 17, 2023•13 min
President Joe Biden has signed an executive order that he says can keep more guns out of the hands of dangerous people by increasing the number of buyers who have to submit background checks. The White House says that's the closest the U.S. can get to universal background checks without additional legislation from Congress, where Democrats and Republicans remain divided on any new actions aimed at reducing gun violence. NPR's Deepa Shivaram reports on the order, which Biden announced during a vi...
Mar 16, 2023•13 min
A group of volunteers is braving artillery barrages to evacuate residents from towns and cities in Ukraine's Donbas region, including Bakhmut, the epicenter of fighting in the eastern part of the country. NPR's Frank Langfitt speaks with two rescuers, Kuba Stasiak , 29, a former journalist from Poland, and Andre West , 22, from Germany, who document their rescues on Instagram In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your communi...
Mar 15, 2023•11 min
A new documentary called Sextortion: The Hidden Pandemic has gained attention at screenings hosted by universities, police departments and even the Pentagon. But many of the claims made in the film are poorly supported and overhyped. The film warns parents about the dangers of sexually coercive crimes online and suggests that strangers are targeting potentially millions of minors - pressuring them into sharing revealing content and, often, extorting them for money. But NPR has found the document...
Mar 14, 2023•12 min
The Biden administration took extraordinary measures to protect the accounts of customers at two banks that failed over the past few days: Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. Federal regulators said Sunday that they were taking the emergency measures to prevent contagion at other small and regional banks in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank's implosion. NPR's David Gura reports that, despite those measures, many bank stocks plunged on Monday. And former Congressman Barney Frank, a Democrat who...
Mar 13, 2023•14 min
In about the last 10 years, the legalized cannabis industry has grown into a $32 billion business. Today, in 21 states, and the District of Columbia, you can legally purchase recreational marijuana if you are 21 or older. And 37 states have legalized medical marijuana programs. While it's easy to feel that cannabis has come a long way from the scare tactics of Reefer Madness , since 1970's Controlled Substance Act, marijuana has been classified as a drug on par with cocaine and heroin - dramatic...
Mar 11, 2023•13 min
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says he welcomes a bipartisan effort in Congress to push for new rail safety regulations in the wake of the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Buttigieg spoke to NPR's Ari Shapiro a day after Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw apologized for the East Palestine derailment during a Senate hearing, but stopped short of endorsing specific new regulations for his industry. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of wh...
Mar 10, 2023•14 min
Some 16 million American households receiving benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will get less money this month. During the pandemic, the federal government temporarily increased SNAP benefits. But those extra benefits have now expired. That means recipients will get about $90 less each month on average, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a nonpartisan research institute. Some families may see their benefits cut by more than $250 per month. Dr. Mega...
Mar 09, 2023•14 min
Before he was the face of a protest movement and a starting quarterback in the Super Bowl, Colin Kaepernick was a teenager who was trying to figure out who he was and where he was going. Kaepernick's new graphic novel "Change The Game," written with Eve L. Ewing and illustrated by Orlando Caicedo, is about that time in his life. He talked to NPR about his coming-of-age story, his career, and whether the NFL has changed since his departure. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news ...
Mar 08, 2023•11 min
He hasn't yet entered the contest, but even so, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is one of the leading Republicans in the race for the GOP presidential nomination. DeSantis has just released a new book that highlights his pugnacious style and hardline stance on issues ranging from education to public health. And he has attracted even more attention as Florida's Republican-led legislature began its session Tuesday. NPR's Greg Allen has this look at how DeSantis became what some believe is the future...
Mar 07, 2023•12 min
Tennessee passed a bill last week restricting drag shows. The law specifically bans "adult cabaret performances" in public or in the presence of children. In more than a dozen states, Republican lawmakers have been pushing similar bills. Historian Jules Gill-Peterson of Johns Hopkins University says laws that target drag have a long history in the U.S, and LGBTQ people have fought back before. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going ...
Mar 06, 2023•12 min
When Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot lost her re-election bid this week, many people saw the result as a referendum on how she handled crime. But crime is not just a Chicago issue. Nationally, murders, shootings, and thefts are up. Communities that feel under siege are looking to hold elected leaders accountable for their failure to address the problem. But when agreements on how to solve crime break down along party lines -and even within parties- are politics hindering potential solutions? Host M...
Mar 04, 2023•14 min
Documents released as part of a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit reveal that many Fox News stars knew conspiracy theories about the 2020 election were baseless but invited guests who spewed those claims on air anyway. The documents were released by Dominion Voting Systems as part of its lawsuit against both Fox News and its parent company. They include text messages sent by Fox News personalities and statements made under oath by the network's controlling owner Rupert Murdoch. NPR Media Correspon...
Mar 03, 2023•13 min
