Ongoing Coverage:

NPR News

Pages

The Two-Way
3:07 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

'An Evolutionary Throwback': Panda Filmed Eating Meat

Credit Wanglong Nature Reserve
A panda eating meat.

The staff at a Chinese nature reserve have caught a very rare thing on film: a wild panda eating the meat of a dead widebeest.

The AP reports:

"Staff at the Wanglong Nature Reserve in southwest Sichuan province set up the camera after noticing dead animals with chew marks. It was not known if the panda had killed the animals.

Read more
The Road Back To Work
2:26 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

When The Road Back To Work Detours

Credit Tamara Keith / NPR
Randy Howland works in his small office in March, shortly after he began a work-from-home job with a call center earning $10 an hour.

Part of an ongoing series

For the long-term unemployed, getting a job isn't always the end of the story.

Randy Howland spent most of this past year working at a $10-an-hour customer service job. He used to make six figures. With this job, he was settling, just so he could have the satisfaction of working. It was essentially a call-center job.

Read more
Around the Nation
2:22 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

How A Teen's Coerced Confession Set Her Free

Movies
2:19 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

2011 In Film: Bob Mondello's Top 10 (Plus 10)

Wizards, transformers and vampires did their best, but they couldn't transform 2011 into a magical year for Hollywood: Despite all the 3-D and IMAX screenings and the premium prices that come with them, industry box office sagged by half a billion dollars compared with last year. But quality? That's another story.

Read more
Around the Nation
2:11 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

'Haters' Are Going To Hate This Story

Credit iStockphoto.com
A fist with the word "hate" on it.

Haters are here. And there. And everywhere. And the word "hate" is in the air.

Fox has a new sitcom: I Hate My Teenage Daughter. A recent issue of Us magazine tells us "Why Scarlett Johansson Hates Blake Lively." Psychology Today explains "Why We Hate Airport Security." Dick Meyer, formerly of NPR and now executive producer for news services at BBC America, wrote a provocative book called Why We Hate Us.

Read more
The Salt
2:08 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

A Year That Was Good To Beets

Credit JOSEPH SILVERMAN / The Washington Times /Landov
Heirloom beets served at Bibiana Restaurant in downtown Washington, D.C.

Children hate beets. Many adults hate beets. In fact, so few people in the U.S. eat table beets that the federal government doesn't bother to keep track of how many are grown and sold, even though it does keep track of just about every other crop, including turnip greens and horseradish.

Read more
Shots - Health Blog
1:56 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

Build-A-Bear Workshop Recalls Colorful Hearts Teddy Bears

Credit CPSC
Build-A-Bear has recalled almost 300,000 Colorful Heart teddy bears.

If you gave or received a Build-A-Bear this holiday season, you may want to check it over.

Nearly 300,000 Colorful Hearts teddy bears from Build-A-Bear Workshop sold in the U.S. and Canada have been recalled.

The teddy bear's eyes can fall out and become a choking hazard for children, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Company spokeswoman Jill Saunders tells Shots in a statement that Build-A-Bear hasn't received any reports of injuries or deaths from the teddy bears.

Read more
The Two-Way
1:39 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

University Of Miami Will Return $83K In Former Booster Donations

The University of Miami will return $83,000 in donations it received from Nevin Shapiro, a former booster, who was incarcerated for his role in running a $930 million Ponzi scheme.

Read more
World Cafe
1:19 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

World Cafe: Looking Ahead To 2012

Credit Courtesy of I Am Fuel You Are Friends
Heather Browne, who runs the music blog I Am Fuel You Are Friends, stands before her formidable record collection. She and WXPN's Bruce Warren share their picks for artists to watch in 2012.

As the last World Cafe before we ring in 2012, today's show looks back at the wonderful year of music that was 2011, and takes a peek at what's ahead.

Read more
Economy
1:17 pm
Fri December 30, 2011

Even Finish Masks Volatile Year For U.S. Economy

2011 was a year of crisis and revolution, and that took a big toll on the world's financial markets. In the United States, stocks lurched along for much of the year, losing and gaining ground over and over again.

Stock prices are ending the year just about where they were at the beginning, and anyone who invested in anything but the bluest of blue chip stocks probably didn't make much money. And yet, the flat trend lines masked a huge amount of volatility, says Jack Ablin, chief investment officer of Harris Private Bank.

Read more

Pages