Human Interest

Sen. Booker Delivers Record Setting Floor Speech Protesting Trump

Word of the Week: The swashbuckling origins and evolution of 'filibuster'

6:21am April 04, 2025

Sen. Cory Booker's record-breaking Senate speech wasn't technically a filibuster, but it still put the word in focus. Here's what to know about its history, from the swashbuckling to the stonewalling.

Human Interest

Obama photobombs a picture of siblings among D.C.'s cherry blossoms

6:09pm April 03, 2025

by Patrick Jarenwattananon

D.C.'s cherry blossoms are a classic backdrop for family photos, and that's what Portia Moore had in mind by having her kids pose for professional photos -- but a figure photobombed the picture.

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Human Interest

Researchers unearth rare King Arthur sequel

5:12pm April 03, 2025

by John Ketchum

Researchers have discovered a manuscript of one of the oldest versions of the story of King Arthur. How did they find and decipher it?

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Echoes of the Pandemic: Haw River Ballroom's Heather LaGarde reflects on COVID's impact on live music

2:31pm April 03, 2025

by April Laissle

For over a decade, Heather LaGarde has been the driving force behind the Haw River Ballroom in Saxapahaw —a small, beloved music venue that has hosted big names like St. Vincent and Jason Isbell. In the final installment of Echoes of the Pandemic, she reflects on ways the virus reshaped the music industry and how, for the first time in years, live shows finally feel normal again.

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Human Interest

'The Indicator From Planet Money' explains why tariffs are back

4:18pm April 02, 2025

by Darian Woods

A brief history of U.S. tariffs: How they came into fashion, fell out of fashion, are now back again and why economists aren't too happy about it.

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25 hours? Before Cory Booker, there was 'Mr. Smith'

2:58pm April 02, 2025

In 1939, the character of Mr. Smith — played by Jimmy Stewart — spent 25 hours on the Senate floor railing against corruption.

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Human Interest

How FDR expanded executive power and shaped the modern presidency

4:05pm March 31, 2025

by Ramtin Arablouei

NPR's history show Throughline has the story of the first modern president to really expand executive power.

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SpaceX launches historic privately funded mission around Earth's poles

3:55pm March 31, 2025

SpaceX launched four people into space Monday evening on a first-ever human mission to orbit Earth's polar regions. If successful, the mission also will be the first to cultivate mushrooms as a crop.

Beloved historic landmarks navigate an uncertain future after the LA fires

5:00am March 31, 2025

In Pasadena, The Gamble House was in a fire evacuation zone and its custodians are trying to safeguard its future. In Altadena, only concrete walls are left from the former home of novelist Zane Grey.

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Joshua Swift directs traffic at a COVID-19 testing site

Human Interest

Echoes of the Pandemic: Forsyth Health Director Joshua Swift on mobilizing a community

5:00am March 31, 2025

by April Laissle

At Forsyth County's COVID-19 mass vaccination site at the Winston-Salem fairgrounds, nearly 100,000 people received their shots in a tightly run operation staffed largely by the National Guard. At the helm of it all was the county’s Public Health Director Joshua Swift. He reflects on what he learned in this episode of Echoes of the Pandemic.

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