Search results for

Republican Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania announced Wednesday that he is switching parties and is now a Democrat. The switch means that if Democrat Al Franken is declared the winner in the contested Minnesota Senate race, Democrats will have the 60 votes needed to block GOP filibusters.

The United Nations today sent its top humanitarian official, John Holmes, to Sri Lanka to push for more protection for civilians trapped in the island's war zone. The UN estimates nearly 6,500 civilians have been killed there in the last three months. The conventional war now appears to be in its final stages. But does that mean the island's civil conflict is finally at an end? NPR's South Asia Correspondent Philip Reeves reports.

At 70, Hugh Masekela says he has personally healed. But the trumpeter and vocalist, long known as both a celebrated artist and an anti-apartheid activist, has recorded "songs of concern" on his new album, Phola.

Gourmet magazine's editor in chief and food critic Ruth Reichl grew up in a house where mold-covered pudding was considered an adequate dessert. But Reichl doesn't begrudge her mother. In a new book, she thanks her.

Most people are putting off big purchases during the recession — especially cars. Dealers are trying to change that with what analysts say are some of the lowest prices in a long time. But all those rebates and discounts have yet to re-kindle the market.

In their 2004 book, Gary Stern and Ron Feldman, top executives at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, cautioned the world about systemic financial risk and the need for more oversight. They admit to a fleeting sense of "I told you so."

A special U.S. Navy operation freed Richard Phillips — the captain who was held captive by Somali pirates for five days off the east coast of Africa. U.S. Navy snipers shot to death three of the pirates on Sunday.

Eunju Namkung's family thinks she's a broken gourd. The New York City high school senior received a top honor for her essay, "Broken Gourd" from this year's Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. In her essay, she explores her relationship with her Korean parents, who do not speak English.

After being barred from performing at Constitution Hall in 1939 because she was black, opera singer Marian Anderson gave a performance on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Author Raymond Arsenault's new book, The Sound of Freedom, reflects on the cultural significance of Anderson's performance that Easter.

The pianist for the BMI/New York Jazz Composers Orchestra is also a singer and a former musical director at an Episcopal church. Her latest studio album elaborates on familiar jazz forms while embracing sacred texts, including a piece for Easter vespers.