Brian Mann
Brian Mann is NPR's first national addiction correspondent. He also covers breaking news in the U.S. and around the world.
Mann began covering drug policy and the opioid crisis as part of a partnership between NPR and North Country Public Radio in New York. After joining NPR full time in 2020, Mann was one of the first national journalists to track the deadly spread of the synthetic opioid fentanyl, reporting from California and Washington state to West Virginia.
After losing his father and stepbrother to substance abuse, Mann's reporting breaks down the stigma surrounding addiction and creates a factual basis for the ongoing national discussion.
Mann has also served on NPR teams covering the Beijing Winter Olympics and the war in Ukraine.
During a career in public radio that began in the 1980s, Mann has won numerous regional and national Edward R. Murrow awards. He is author of a 2006 book about small town politics called Welcome to the Homeland, described by The Atlantic as "one of the best books to date on the putative-red-blue divide."
Mann grew up in Alaska and is now based in New York's Adirondack Mountains. His audio postcards, broadcast on NPR, describe his backcountry trips into wild places around the world.
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Leaders in Washington, D.C., say they're striving to maintain calm as growing numbers of National Guard soldiers deploy to the city. President Trump hasn't said how he wants this "crisis" to end. -
This weekend, people in Washington, D.C., have been adapting to their police department being under federal control as the Trump administration has taken over policing.
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Washington, D.C., has filed a lawsuit to block President Trump's claim of authority over the city's police department. Experts say the legal fight raises constitutional questions and potential public safety dangers.
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The White House says people living on the street in Washington, D.C., can avoid jail by going to a shelter. Homeless advocates say there aren't enough shelter beds. -
Some residents are skeptical that President Trump's use of tough police tactics will work to solve complex social ills. -
President Trump promised a weekend crackdown on Washington, D.C.'s homeless population and criminals. Trump activated federal agents to also be a show of force across the district. -
Using advanced DNA-analysis techniques researchers in New York City identified three more victims of the 9/11 terror attacks that occurred nearly 24 years ago. -
President Trump signed bipartisan legislation Wednesday toughening criminal penalties for fentanyl traffickers. But some drug policy experts worry about funding for drug treatment and health care.
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Much of the attention on the world's plunging birth rate is on East Asian countries like Japan and South Korea. But Latin American countries, like Chile, are also seeing a decline in fertility.
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Far more families are choosing to have fewer — or no — children. Many countries, including the U.S., now face a rapidly aging population that could begin to shrink.
