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Music Reviews
11:28 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Chuck Prophet's 'Beautiful' Homage To San Francisco

Chuck Prophet's new album, Temple Beautiful, takes its name from a former synagogue that hosted punk-rock shows in the late '70s and early '80s; it was next door to the temple overseen by cult leader Jim Jones. That may sound like a grim or black-humored reference point around which to erect an album, but with Prophet, grimness, humor, fact and fiction mingle freely. Before anything else, he's a guitar player with a melodically nasal voice whose phrasing favors the whimsical and the querulous.

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The Two-Way
11:10 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Report: Data Show No 'Upsurge In Muslim-American Terrorism'

Credit Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images
January 2010: Muslim-Americans protest against terrorism outside a federal court building in Detroit, where "Christmas Day" bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was being arraigned.

There was a decline last year in the already "small" number of Muslim-Americans indicted for violent terrorist plots and the rate of radicalization among that group remains "far less than many feared" after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, a researcher at North Carolina's Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security reports today.

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Author Interviews
10:42 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Finding 'Life, Death, And Hope' In A Mumbai Slum

Credit
cover detail

Originally published on Wed February 8, 2012 12:01 pm

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Katherine Boo spent more than three years in Mumbai's Annawadi slum to do research for her new book, Behind the Beautiful Forevers. Residents of the slum — which is located next to the Mumbai airport and in the shadow of several luxury hotels — live in devastating poverty.

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Television
10:31 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Two Rowdy Talk Shows Showcase Vintage Humor

The two DVDs I want to talk about today are hilarious, but they aren't sitcoms. They're talk shows — well, one's a talk show, and one's a filmed seminar. But they're both fascinating examples of a specific pop-culture moment frozen in time.

And they're something else as well: Both are highly entertaining real-time examples of talk-show Darwinism. Both shows feature a large, unwieldy guest roster, all of the guests competing for attention at the same time — and by the time the programs are over, the winners are apparent.

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The Salt
10:23 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Recall Reveals An Egg's Long Path To The Deli Sandwich

Credit iStockphoto.com
How long has that egg been waiting to get to your salad?

What did a Cobb salad and a chicken salad have in common that have made them the latest entries in a big ongoing food safety recall?

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Shots - Health Blog
9:53 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Teen Pregnancies Hit New Low, But Disparities Remain

Credit iStockphoto.com
The rate of pregnancy among teens has dropped.

Originally published on Wed February 8, 2012 11:57 am

Teen pregnancies are at their lowest rate in nearly 40 years, according to the latest data from the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization focused on sexual and reproductive health.

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The Two-Way
9:35 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Russians Claim To Have Punched Through To Antarctic 'Subglacial Lake'

Credit Russia's Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring
In Antarctica, Russian scientists posed at the site where they say they've drilled through to Lake Vostok. The sign indicates that the breakthrough happened on Feb. 5, 2012.

One week after pausing with about 40 feet to go, Russian scientists today announced that they have successfully drilled through two miles of ice to reach Lake Vostok — a body of water the size of New Jersey that hasn't been touched for millions of years.

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The Two-Way
8:15 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Egyptian Judge Says Foreign Groups Have Been Working There Illegally

Credit Filippo Monteforte / AFP/Getty Images
Egyptian soldiers stand guard in front of the U.S. National Democratic Institute, an NGO rights group in downtown Cairo on December 29, 2011.

Foreigners who have been working for international organizations in Egypt are in the country illegally and have been engaging in "political activity," a judge in Cairo just told reporters.

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It's All Politics
7:49 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Did Santorum Win Big or Win Squat? What's a Nation to Believe?

Credit Whitney Curtis / Getty Images
Republican presidential hopeful and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum speaks to supporters, flanked by his daughter, Elizabeth (left), and wife, Karen.

Pity the poor news junkie, waiting bleary-eyed at the witching hour, wondering how to feel about the latest events in the Republican nominating contest.

One news source — let's say it's a cable news operation — says the latest round of GOP presidential preference contests is a huge boost to the flagging fortunes of Rick Santorum, the winner of the night's trifecta. The cable outlets all air tape of Santorum's triumphant victory speech again and again. He surely looks like a winner.

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The Two-Way
7:35 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Santorum's Wins: Huge? Meaningless? In Between?

Credit Whitney Curtis / Getty Images
Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum celebrated his victories at a rally in St. Charles, Mo.

Last night "belonged to Rick Santorum, who went three-for-three in Tuesday's Republican contests," as Eyder wrote on It's All Politics very early this morning.

The former Pennsylvania senator took first place in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri.

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Around the Nation
7:00 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Maine Film Festival Shows Off Mustaches

Trophy categories include Best 'Stache Growth Story and Best 'Stache Shaving Story. It is an international film festival and founder Nick Callanan says submissions are coming in from three continents.

The Two-Way
7:00 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Report: Pentagon 'Beginning Review Of Syria Options'

Credit AP
A Syrian rebel stands guard at a street in Idlib, Syria, Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2012.

Originally published on Wed February 8, 2012 8:36 am

As the U.S. continues to search for diplomatic solution to the crisis in Syria, "the Pentagon and the U.S. Central Command have begun a preliminary internal review of U.S. military capabilities," CNN is reporting.

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Around the Nation
6:52 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Trump Chosen To Revamp Historic Old Post Office

Donald Trump won't be living in the White House, but his brand will be a few blocks away. The Obama administration has chosen Trump to redevelop the Old Post Office. His company plans to build a luxury hotel in that stone Victorian landmark in Washington, D.C.

Middle East
5:00 am
Wed February 8, 2012

5 Reasons Why Israel Might Bomb Iran, Or Not

Originally published on Sun February 12, 2012 9:22 am

Will Israel bomb Iran or not?

Israel says it hasn't decided. But top Israeli figures, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, suggest that the country will have to make a choice soon.

Israel believes Iran will soon have the capacity to make a nuclear weapon. Not everyone shares this assessment, and Iran insists its program is only for civilian purposes.

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Business
4:00 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Business News

Transcript

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

NPR's business news starts with investors hopeful again.

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Business
4:00 am
Wed February 8, 2012

To Get Bailout, Greece Must Reduce Minimum Wage

Originally published on Wed February 8, 2012 6:42 am

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

The deal Greek officials are working on includes several more painful concessions. Among them, reducing the minimum wage.

Joanna Kakissis reports from Athens on how strong unions secured those wages and why some economists say those guarantees have to go.

JOANNA KAKISSIS, BYLINE: The minimum wage in Greece is about one $1,000 a month before taxes. International lenders say it must be reduced to about $780 a month to make the Greek economy more competitive.

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Business
4:00 am
Wed February 8, 2012

The Last Word In Business

Some British companies are fuming over where the tickets for this summer's London Olympic games are being printed. Specialty printer Weldon, Williams and Lick in Fort Smith, Arkansas, won the contract.

Election 2012
4:00 am
Wed February 8, 2012

Rick Santorum Sweeps 3 GOP Nominating Contests

Originally published on Wed February 8, 2012 5:08 am

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. Good morning, I'm Renee Montagne.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep. Good morning.

Several factors may affect your thinking as you decide how important last night's voting was. Turnout was low, and no convention delegates were awarded as Missouri held a primary, and Minnesota and Colorado held caucuses.

MONTAGNE: Then again, nobody awarded delegates when Iowa voted, either. The fact is, people voted, and Rick Santorum won all three states.

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Election 2012
4:00 am
Wed February 8, 2012

TV's King: Web Fails To Dominate Election Coverage

Newt Gingrich has made it clear his GOP presidential aspirations also depend on running a national media race on cable TV and in major newspapers. A study from the Pew Research Center shows the promise that "new media" will dominate the nominating process isn't coming true. The research shows more Americans rely primarily on cable news, and very few on Twitter.

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