Video game performers launch strike over compensation and AI
After over a year of negotiations with major video game companies over issues like AI, video game performers in the union SAG-AFTRA are on strike.
Arts
How to stay safe while swimming this summer
Drowning is the number one cause of death for children ages 1-4 in the United States. NPR's Life Kit has water safety tips to keep young swimmers safe this summer.
'Didi' director Sean Wang says 13 is 'old enough to know better, too young to care'
NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with filmmaker Sean Wang about his new coming-of-age movie Didi, which was inspired by his own experiences growing up in an immigrant household in the Bay Area.
'Deadpool & Wolverine' is a self-cannibalizing slog
Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman have good, thorny chemistry in this odd-couple action hero flick. But brand extension disguised as a satire of brand extension is still just ... brand extension.
Remembering comic and actor Bob Newhart
David Bianculli offers an appreciation of the star of Newhart and The Bob Newhart Show, who died July 18. In 1998, Newhart told Terry Gross that his signature stammer was not an affect.
What's Making Us Happy: A guide to your weekend reading and listening
Each week, guests and hosts on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour share what's bringing them joy. This week: This Is How You Lose the Time War, GWAR covering “I’m Just Ken,” and the Tested podcast series from NPR's Embedded.
So how do you 'accurately' speak English in ancient Rome?
Many studios and viewers cling to longstanding conventions around using a posh-sounding British accent for ancient characters — even though this defies logic. Absolutely no one spoke English in Rome.
'Wait Wait' for July 27, 2024: With Not My Job guest Kathleen Hanna
This week, Wait Wait is live in Chicago with special guest Kathleen Hanna and panelists Mo Rocca, Meredith Scardino, and Peter Grosz
'Deadpool & Wolverine' is a feast of inside jokes
In the highly meta Deadpool & Wolverine, Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman finally meet up for their own big movie. Deadpool is still smarmy, Wolverine is still tragic, and they have to get together to save the world. Along the way, Deadpool continues his usual routine of endless wisecracking. The movie is jam-packed with fan service and Easter eggs. But how will casual Marvel fans like the movie?
Olympic hurdles for women athletes; plus, big trucks and big questions
This is the first year the Olympics have gender parity between men's and women's teams - but does it mean gender equity? ESPN writer Katie Barnes and Rose Eveleth, host of NPR's Tested, join Brittany to discuss the barriers that women athletes still face - from men-only categories to women-only sex testing.
And later - in recent years, you may have noticed some new behemoths prowling the streets of America: giant trucks. The sheer size of them has sparked policy debates – many are so big that it's not possible to see a child crossing directly in front of them, and there's been a spike in pedestrian deaths. Brittany is joined by Angie Schmitt, author of Right of Way, to chat about why these big trucks are so popular and what they say about our cultural anxieties.
And later - in recent years, you may have noticed some new behemoths prowling the streets of America: giant trucks. The sheer size of them has sparked policy debates – many are so big that it's not possible to see a child crossing directly in front of them, and there's been a spike in pedestrian deaths. Brittany is joined by Angie Schmitt, author of Right of Way, to chat about why these big trucks are so popular and what they say about our cultural anxieties.