NPR News

As the volcano erupted Tuesday night and early Wednesday, cameras caught the dramatic scene. Watch as the night sky glows red.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Microsoft blames the fine on sloppy coding in a service pack update that blocked a feature to offer users the choice of a competitor's Internet browser.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

William Moody, who as the pro wrestling character Paul Bearer embodied a sense of theater that was equal parts morbid and absurd, has died at age 58. A portly man known for his wild-eyed stare and habit of carrying a brass urn under his arm, Paul Bearer was most notably the manager of The Undertaker and Kane.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

A rash of public school closings in some U.S. cities has parents and teachers reeling. School officials say the closings are needed to save money, but some argue it's a form of discrimination. Host Michel Martin talks with a Chicago reporter and a Philadelphia activist about how the closings could affect students and local communities.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Hugo Chavez was a controversial but charismatic leader of Venezuela. Host Michel Martin speaks with Dan Hellinger, a professor of political science at Webster University, about Chavez's legacy.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Look around your kitchen table and you'll see the work of Ambassador Ron Kirk. He's the United States Trade Representative, which is a cabinet-level position, and he's negotiated trade deals all around the world. Host Michel Martin talks to him about why he's choosing to step down from his post, and the importance of U.S. trade.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Many doctors and patients expect too much from prescription opioids as pain relievers, some physicians say. These expectations need to be reined in to curtail drug abuse and overdoses that claim more than 16,000 lives a year in the U.S., they say.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Sit down to eat in Iceland, and you might be served boiled sheep's head, complete with the eye. In some cultures eyeballs are considered a culinary treat, but for most of us they're still in the category of "eww."

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Reporting in China is sometimes a cat-and-mouse game with authorities, who want to keep journalists far from the scene when unrest breaks out.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Alleging that the cardinals either ignored or covered up cases of sexual abuse involving priests, the groups are pushing to keep those cardinals from being part of the deliberations. The cardinals have either not commented or denied wrongdoing.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Seoul says it will strike back if North Korea makes good on a threat to attack U.S. and South Korean forces.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Few of us own the music we listen or the movies we watch in exactly the same way we did a decade ago. And today if you buy a smartphone from a cellphone company, what you can legally do with it — how and where you can use it — may be proscribed even if that phone is fully bought and paid for.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Now 73, the actress tells People magazine that she doesn't think about dying. She thinks about "being here now." Doctors have told her she has about three months to live, Harper says.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

The U.S. secretary of state announced last week that Washington will provide $60 million in nonlethal aid to the Syrian opposition.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

The job market remains "sturdy," according to the latest ADP National Employment Report. Much more will be known about the labor picture when the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its figures on Friday.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

The Department of Veterans Affairs doesn't track how many free gun locks it gives out or whether they're even effective. Rather, the devices are viewed as a stalling technique in the event a veteran picks up a gun in a moment of crisis.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

With a hand-picked vice president now controlling the purse strings and opponents looking weak, NPR's Juan Forero says the controversial and charismatic leader's policies are likely to survive for at least a while. Chávez died Tuesday.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Winter storm Saturn, which has already left Chicago digging out from 10 inches, is expected to dump more snow on Maryland and Virginia.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Also: The influence of Victor Hugo's Les Miserables on Hugo Chavez; Jeb Bush's new book on immigration; and a 9-year-old saves himself and friends from quicksand after reading a survival guide.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us

Two car thefts, one in the U.S. and one in China, have transfixed many in China. In both cases, babies were in the vehicles. The American case ended happily when the thief phoned police to tell them where to find the child. In China, the suspect has confessed to killing little Haobo.

» E-Mail This     » Add to Del.icio.us