News

German Garcia-Velutini, a banker, was kidnapped in Caracas and held for 11 months in 2009. Now, he says, he is imprisoned by his bodyguards and feels free only when he is out of the country.

World News

For Venezuelans, Kidnappings Are Simply Business As Usual

8:18pm June 06, 2013

by Steve Inskeep

Latin American cities rank as the most violent in the world. The region suffers from sky-high homicide rates, drug wars and gang violence. NPR is examining the region's turmoil in a series of reports, beginning with a look at the rampant kidnapping problem in Venezuela.

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African-Americans said they were optimistic about the future despite anxieties about possible financial hardships.

New Survey Takes A Snapshot Of The View From Black America

5:19pm June 06, 2013

by Gene Demby

Despite being buffeted by high unemployment and the recession in recent years, African-Americans expressed high levels of life satisfaction and optimism for the future.

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Johana Guardado assembles a laptop on Lenovo's new personal computer production line in Whitsett, N.C.

First U.S. Assembly Plant For China's Lenovo Opens In N.C.

8:14am June 06, 2013

by Leoneda Inge

The Chinese computer maker is trying to boost its brand and U.S. market share as other high-tech firms, including Motorola, plan to manufacture here. North Carolina officials say the plant in Whitsett is a sign of manufacturing's return from overseas.

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Attorney General Eric Holder testifies on May 15 before the House Judiciary Committee.

Holder On The Hot Seat Over Leak Investigations

5:52am June 06, 2013

by Carrie Johnson

The attorney general heads to the Senate on Thursday, where lawmakers are sure to demand answers. But being in the center of the storm is nothing new for Holder. Over four years in office, he has been a lightning rod for the president's fiercest critics.

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Economy

Resisting The Temptation To 'Win' When Investing

8:17pm June 05, 2013

by Uri Berliner

Some financial experts say the fees charged by actively managed mutual funds are not worth it. Over the long haul, they could cost a retirement account tens of thousands of dollars. So NPR's Uri Berliner explores funds that have minimal expenses.

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Spain's King Juan Carlos, his daughter Infanta Cristina and her husband, Inaki Urdangarin, are seen together on May 22, 2006. A corruption scandal involving Urdangarin, as well as the royal family's lifestyle is contributing to the public's diminishing re

World News

With Safaris And Yachts, Spanish King Comes Under Fire

8:16pm June 05, 2013

by Lauren Frayer

King Juan Carlos is suffering his lowest ever approval ratings. Some Spaniards roll their eyes at his high-flying lifestyle and now question the future of the monarchy.

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Comedian Marc Maron attends an event in New York in 2009.

Politics & Government

How One Patent Could Take Down One Comedian

5:32pm June 05, 2013

by Zoe Chace

The popular comedian Marc Maron, who works out of his garage in California, faces off with a patent holder who claims to have invented podcasting.

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Write This Down: Keeping your own score does not make you more noble, says Frank Deford.

Sports

Take Golf Out Of The Rough, Into The 21st Century

9:20am June 05, 2013

by Frank Deford

When the St. Jude Classic opens on Wednesday in Memphis, Tenn., Frank Deford will be paying attention to the action on the course. He has some gripes about the requirement that players must tally their own shots.

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Myrlie Evers-Williams retells the moments before her husband's 1963 assassination during a memorial ceremony at the Evers family's former home.

National

Fifty Years After Medgar Evers' Killing, The Scars Remain

9:20am June 05, 2013

by Debbie Elliott

The assassination of the NAACP field secretary galvanized a growing civil rights movement, the effects of which are still being felt across the South today.

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Miss. Turns To Cord Blood To Track Down Statutory Rapists

8:43am June 05, 2013

by Jeffrey Hess

Starting in July, doctors and midwives in Mississippi will be required by law to collect samples of umbilical cord blood from babies born to some girls under the age of 16. Officials will analyze the samples and try to identify the fathers through matches in the state's DNA database.

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