Today’s episode features new memoirs by journalists who aren’t afraid to connect deeply with their subjects. First, in Paper Girl, Beth Macy travels back to her hometown, Urbana, Ohio. In today’s episode, she tells NPR’s Ailsa Chang about the socioeconomic and cultural changes she found there. Then, Susan Orlean is known for going deep on niche subjects, like orchid enthusiasts or umbrella inventors. In today’s episode, she talks with NPR’s Scott Simon about her memoir Joyride and how she came across her best-known stories.
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Parasites have roamed the Earth for a long time. They were here before the dinosaurs: The oldest fossils are more than 500 million years old. Today on the show, Regina G. Barber speaks with paleontologists Karma Nanglu and Danielle de Carle about a mysterious fossil called the “Riddler,” and the oldest-ever leech fossil. They share stories of the enduring power of parasitism through the ages and why the clues to prehistoric mysteries may be tucked in a basement.
Interested in more science behind rare fossils? Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org.
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The FBI arrested multiple people tied to the NBA in a wide-ranging illegal gambling probe. The NBA and other major sports leagues have been deepening ties with the lucrative sports-betting industry.
Washington Post sports columnist Kevin Blackistone explains the implications of this scandal on the NBA and sports betting in general.
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A stroll down the supplement aisle is a walk filled with hope. One pill offers stronger hair and nails. Another promises better memory (which will help when you have to remember to take all these pills). And if you added just one more, you might be able to finally recapture the energy of your teenage years.
But how true are these claims? Currently, the Food and Drug Administration does not approve the contents or the labeling dietary supplements before they hit the shelves.
The automotive industry in Germany, once the backbone of Europe’s biggest economy, is in a rapid decline. In the past year, the German car industry shed more than 51,000 jobs – about 7% of its total workforce. We go to some companies that are now turning to manufacturing weapons as part of the country’s boost in military spending to keep their factories running.
European leaders meet with Ukraine’s president with billions in frozen Russian assets on the table as the European Union and United States impose new sanctions on Moscow. Courts could rule this week on key legal challenges to President Trump’s National Guard deployments in multiple cities. And the Pentagon press corps gets a right-wing makeover as new reporters replace legacy outlets.
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Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Miguel Macias, Alina Hartounian, Emily Kopp, Mohamad ElBardicy and Martha Ann Overland.
It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas
We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott. And our technical director is Carleigh Strange.
Ticketmaster's CEO says that concert tickets are underpriced. But from inflation to bots to unscrupulous resellers, the market for tickets feels out of control to many fans. Can anything be done?
Today on the show: Ticket resellers, a new law in Maine, and a T-shirt cannon.
As Israeli forces invaded Gaza in 2023, Palestinian journalist Plestia Alaqad kept a diary. Her writing is a record of the 45 days she spent reporting on the ground during the invasion until she evacuated. Now, she’s published her diary as a book called The Eyes of Gaza. In today’s episode, Alaqad joins NPR’s Lelia Fadel for a conversation about the journalist’s memories of home both before and after the conflict.
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For many years, the far right has been the most lethal and persistent source of domestic terrorism in the U.S.
But the assassination of right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk last month and attacks against immigration enforcement efforts have fueled a talking point for Republicans about concerns over left-wing political violence.
The political motivations behind these attacks are still unclear, but one study says that violence from the left has been the greater threat so far this year.
NPR’s domestic extremism correspondent Odette Yousef looks into whether this claim is correct.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
This episode was produced by Jonaki Mehta and Alejandra Marquez Janse, with audio engineering by Damian Herring. It was edited by Andrew Sussman and Sami Yenigun, who is also our executive producer.