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A sound montage of some of the voices in this past week's news, including White House spokesman Joe Lockhart on the Middle East summit at Camp David; former South African President Nelson Mandela at the closing ceremony of the international AIDS conference; Texas governor George W. Bush and Vice President Al Gore at the NAACP Convention in Baltimore; Judge Robert Kaye, who presided over the civil lawsuit in Miami against the top five tobacco companies; Phillip Morris attorney Dan Webb and smokers' attorney Stanley Rosenblatt on the $145 billion punitive damages verdict.

NPR's Adam Hochberg reports from Raleigh, North Carolina on how the $145 billion tobacco settlement will likely shake out. Cigarette companies will embark on a lengthy series of appeals, and the huge judgement could be reduced, in light of a Florida law that prohibits judgements large enough to bankrupt defendants.

Liane talks live with NPR Chief Diplomatic Correspondent Ted Clark about secret peace negotiations being held at Camp David between PLO leader Yassir Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak.

Liane talks with Charles Pelkey of Velo News, who has been covering the Tour de France bike race. With one week left, American Lance Armstrong appears to be on track for his second consecutive victory. Armstrong overcame cancer to win the grueling event last year; this year, his strong riding through the mountains has given him a solid lead.

Jeff Rice of member station KUAZ in Tucson, Ariz., visited Tohono Chul Park for its annual "Queen of the Night" celebration, and sent this audio postcard. Rice spoke with visitors who came to the park to enjoy the cereus, a fragrant cactus flower that blooms only one night a year.

Liane talks with Chinese actress and author Anchee Min about her new book, Becoming Madame Mao, a biography of Jiang Ching, the fourth wife of the late Chinese Premier Mao Tse Tung. ("Becoming Madame Mao" is published by Houghton Mifflin.)

Hard-line Israeli conservatives rallied in Tel Aviv today in the largest demonstration in Israeli history. They want to oppose any concessions by Prime Minister Ehud Barak at the Camp David Peace Talks. NPR's Linda Gradstein reports, that's the opposition is not necessarily the majority sentiment in Israel.

Figures from the Centers for Disease Control show AIDS is now the leading cause of death for African-Americans aged 25 to 44 years old. Jacki talks with Rev. Eugene Rivers, pastor of the Azusa Christian Community in Dorchester, Massachusetts about his crusade to fight the spread of AIDS and HIV among Africans and African Americans. Rivers has issued an open letter to churches and other organizations to urge them to step up activism in Africa and the across the U.S.

As the captains of geekdom battle over wireless standards, Weekend Edition Information Age Specialist Rich Dean says cell phones and handheld gadgets just aren't ready for prime time on the Web.

NPR's Mexico City Correspondent Gerry Hadden reports on President-elect Vicente Fox's efforts to put together a cabinet as he prepares to take over the nation's top job. Fox brings a businessman's experience and priorities to a position that has been dominated by politicians and cronism for more than 70 years.