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5:29 am
Fri June 1, 2012

Business News

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 9:04 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

NPR's business news starts with a new, multibillion-dollar chemical plant.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

GREENE: Exxon Mobil plans to build a huge chemical facility in Baytown, Texas. It reverses a company statement last year that said it has no plans for new chemical factories in the United States. According to Reuters, decades-low natural gas prices made the move too enticing to pass over. Natural gas is a key fuel in chemical production. By using its own natural gas, Exxon Mobil can run a chemical plant relatively cheaply.

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Europe
5:29 am
Fri June 1, 2012

Bank Official Warns Euro Framework Is 'Unsustainable'

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 9:04 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Good morning. I'm David Greene. The financial woes of Greece and other countries of the eurozone, have meant painful austerity measures in exchange for financial bailouts. Now, Irish voters have approved a European Union treaty to battle the debt crisis. It's an effort to enforce strict budget cuts or face financial penalties.

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Around the Nation
5:29 am
Fri June 1, 2012

Komen Donations Down After Planned Parenthood Dispute

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 9:04 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

The Susan G. Komen Global Race for the Cure takes place tomorrow here in the nation's capital. It's one of the breast cancer charity's biggest fundraisers. But this year, participation is way down. That follows Komen's controversial decision in February to stop funding Planned Parenthood programs. The decision was quickly reversed, but Komen's supporters worry about the long-term impact, as NPR's Pam Fessler reports.

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Business
5:29 am
Fri June 1, 2012

Shilling Blames Rhode Island For Company's Downward Spiral

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 12:01 pm

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Let's spend some time talking about the big money world of video games. In a moment, what may have been the biggest legal battle ever in the game industry. But first to former Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Shilling. He is blaming the governor of Rhode Island for the meltdown of his video game company, 38 Studios. The company's failures have seen almost 400 workers lose their jobs and has Rhode Island taxpayers on the hook for close to $100 million. Ian Donnis of Rhode Island Public Radio has the story.

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Iraq
3:00 am
Fri June 1, 2012

Ignoring Critics, Iraq's Leader Consolidates Power

Credit Marwan Ibrahim / AFP/Getty Images
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki (center) arrives on May 8 at Kirkuk airport in northern Iraq, on his first visit to the multi-ethnic city since taking office.

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 10:30 pm

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki recently held one of his traveling Cabinet meetings in the disputed city of Kirkuk in an effort to show Iraqi Arabs on the edge of the Kurdish-controlled north that he's working on their behalf, too.

But the fact that he felt obliged to bring in large numbers of heavily armed troops for the event illustrated the tension plaguing Iraqi politics.

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Planet Money
2:59 am
Fri June 1, 2012

A Front-Row Seat At A Bank Run

Credit Petros Giannakouris / ASSOCIATED PRESS

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 9:04 am

A decade ago, investors thought Greece would flourish on the euro. Money poured in, and banks started lending it out. Thefilos Papacostakis, a bank teller at Alpha Bank in Thessaloniki, got to hand out a lot of that money.

Last month, Thefilos says, his bosses called him in for a meeting. They told him things were about to get worse. When countries are in this kind of trouble, the bosses said, people panic and pull their money out of banks.

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StoryCorps
2:57 am
Fri June 1, 2012

When Mom Is Right, And Tells Police They're Wrong

Credit StoryCorps
Robert Holmes, 67, is a professor at Rutgers University.

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 1:28 pm

When Robert Holmes' parents moved to Edison, N.J., in 1956, they were one of the first African-American families to integrate the neighborhood.

"After we'd moved to Edison, there was a resentment that we had broken into the community," Holmes says.

Even at the age of 13, Holmes felt the animosity. The neighborhood had a private swim club that opened up to anyone who participated in the Memorial Day parade. Holmes was in the band.

"I arrived at the pool on Memorial Day having marched in the parade with my uniform still on, and they called the police," he says.

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Movie Interviews
12:03 am
Fri June 1, 2012

Andrew Garfield, Disappearing Into Spidey's Suit

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 9:04 am

Andrew Garfield is an actor on the verge of superstardom — and he's only 28 years old.

Although Garfield may be best known to American audiences for playing Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin in The Social Network, Garfield started acting in England, where he grew up. There, Garfield made notable turns in the critically acclaimed Red Riding Trilogy as well as in Never Let Me Go, based on the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro.

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NPR Story
10:57 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

Ethics Group Head On Edwards Verdict

Originally published on Thu May 31, 2012 10:58 pm

A jury found former Democratic Sen. John Edwards not guilty on one count of campaign finance fraud and was deadlocked on five other counts. The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, D.C., filed an amicus brief in the Edwards corruption case, asking that it be thrown out. Melanie Sloan, executive director of the group, offers her insight.

Election 2012
7:09 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

Boston Takes Center Stage In Fight For White House

Originally published on Thu May 31, 2012 10:58 pm

President Obama's re-election campaign is training some of its heaviest guns on a new target — the four years that GOP presidential challenger Mitt Romney served as governor of Massachusetts.

In Boston Thursday, David Axelrod, a top Obama campaign adviser, joined Democratic state legislators and mayors on the steps of the State House to lampoon Romney's record there as governor between 2003 and 2007.

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The Two-Way
6:57 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

LIVE BLOG: The National Bee Casts Its Spell

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 6:45 am

Snigdha Nandipati, 14, of San Diego has been crowned the champion in the 2012 Scripps National Spelling Bee. Her winning word was "guetapens," a French-derived word for "an ambush, snare or trap."

A very calm Snigdha beat eight other finalists, including her last competitor, Stuti Mishra, 14, of West Melbourne, Fla. Stuti got tripped up on the word "schwarmerei."

The winner got $30,000 in cash, a trophy, a $2,500 savings bond, a $5,000 scholarship, $2,600 in reference works from the Encyclopedia Britannica and an online language course.

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It's All Politics
6:48 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

John Edwards' Might've Walked But Trial Still A Warning For Politicians

Credit Sara D. Davis / Getty Images
Former Democratic U.S. Sen. John Edwards (center) and his daughter Cate Edwards leave the federal court Thursday.

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 6:48 pm

With a not guilty verdict on one count and the jury deadlocked on five others, it appears John Edwards' federal trial on campaign-finance charges ended with a whimper, certainly from the Justice Department's point of view.

At first blush, it can be argued that how the trial of the former U.S. senator from North Carolina ended may do little to deter politicians. They'll still be able to go forward and rake in money from supporters and, with some sleight of hand, spend that cash on practically anything.

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Law
6:48 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

Mistrial Declared In John Edwards Corruption Case

Originally published on Thu May 31, 2012 10:58 pm

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

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The Two-Way
6:00 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

Brian Banks, Who Was Cleared Of Rape Conviction, Will Get Shot At NFL Tryout

Credit Nick Ut / AP
A tear of relief: Brian Banks after his rape conviction was dismissed Thursday.

Earlier this month, we told you the story of Brian Banks, who served five years in prison and then five years probation for a rape conviction that was thrown out.

As Mark wrote, he had to endure the "shame of being a registered sex offender and "not being able to get a job." And he thought his dream of playing in NFL was destroyed.

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Energy
5:51 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

Gulf Refinery Expansion May Not Cut Gas Prices

Credit Motiva Enterprises
Expanding the refinery at Port Arthur, Texas, took five years and $10 billion. The facility can now process 600,000 barrels a day.

Originally published on Mon June 4, 2012 7:44 pm

In Texas recently there was a grand opening for what is now the largest refinery in the U.S. Shell and Saudi Arabia's national oil company, Saudi Aramco, have more than doubled the capacity of their Port Arthur refinery.

The refinery business has been going through a tough period in recent years. Americans are buying less gasoline and other petroleum products — about 10 percent less than in 2005, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

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The Salt
5:48 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

Antibiotic-Free Meat Business Is Booming, Thanks To Chipotle

Credit Sarah Willis / courtesy Niman Ranch
The antibiotic-free pigs roam freely on Niman Ranch in Iowa.

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 7:12 pm

It's no longer just foodies at farm markets or Whole Foods buying antibiotic-free, pasture-raised meats.

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Shots - Health Blog
5:11 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

More Americans Are Checking Prices Before Getting Health Care

Credit iStockphoto.com
How much will that cost, doc?

Do you shop around for the best price on a visit to the doctor, a CT scan or surgery at a hospital? If so, it looks like you've got a little more company.

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Mitt Romney
4:50 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

Romney's Foreign Policy Views Comfort, Unsettle GOP

Credit Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney speaks during a campaign rally Tuesday in Las Vegas.

Originally published on Thu May 31, 2012 10:58 pm

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney picked up two big endorsements this week from GOP foreign policy luminaries: former Secretaries of State Condoleezza Rice and George Shultz.

At this point in the presidential race, endorsements are pretty routine. But these particular endorsements are important, since Romney has encountered some skepticism from foreign policy experts in his party.

Some Republicans expected the long, bloody wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to alter their party's traditional interventionist view. Those Republicans are disappointed in Romney.

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Music Interviews
4:23 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

Brandi Carlile: Bending Notes Until They Break

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 10:17 am

What is it about Brandi Carlile's voice that gets right inside you? The power? Her range? It may be the way she can crack open a note, as she does in her best-known song, "The Story," which was prominently featured on Grey's Anatomy.

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NPR's Backseat Book Club
4:23 pm
Thu May 31, 2012

Meet Manjiro, Japan's Unlikely Teen Ambassador

Originally published on Fri June 1, 2012 8:50 am

This month, NPR's Backseat Book Club hits the high seas for an adventurous novel called Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus. The book begins in 1841, and is based on the sprawling true-life tale of Manjiro, whose destiny was almost determined before birth as a son in a long line of fishermen. But a storm blew his life on a new course, and he became one of the first Japanese to set foot in America.

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