Search results for

NPR's Tom Goldman reports from Sydney, Australia that drug use by athletes is overshadowing the Olympics. Today three positive drugs tests were announced just two days before the opening ceremony of the millennium Olympics.

NPR's Jim Zarroli reports that two of the biggest names in banking are merging. Chase Manhattan will acquire J.P. Morgan in a deal valued at more than $35 billion. It is the latest such transaction in the rapidly consolidating financial services industry, and is expected to put additional pressure on smaller firms to get bigger fast.

Defenders of the nation's leading entertainment corporations came to Capitol Hill today to say they do not market adult programming to minors. They were responding to the Senate Commerce Committee's hearing on a Federal Trade Commission report. The report indicates mature films, CD's and video games are routinely advertised in places where young children and teens will see them. Many members of Congress were eager to attack the industry's tactics. But they were just as careful to point out that they do not want to violate the First Amendment. NPR's Larry Abramson reports.

Janet Heimlich reports that Austin, Texas utility officials are trying out a new program that allows their customers to buy power generated from renewable energy sources such as solar, or wind power. It means slightly higher power bills for customers who choose the program. But the city has long been home to a strong environmental community that supports such initiatives. Also, the rising price of fossil fuels -- oil and natural gas -- has closed the price gap, making the program more attractive to residents.

NPR's Howard Berkes reports the International Olympic Committee has said it would like to broaden its base and add more women to the organization. As the IOC concluded three days of meetings in Sydney, Australia today, it added fourteen new members, all of them male. The nominees were put forth by National Olympic Committees and international sports federations, which are not under IOC control. Some women complain that having few females on the IOC results in inattention to their issues of concern; notably refusal by some nations to allow women to join Olympic teams.

NPR's Rob Gifford reports China has mounted a massive cleanup and construction campaign in Beijing in an effort NOT to lose out again on a bid to host the Olympics. Beijing was bitterly disappointed when Sydney, Australia won the right to host the 2000 summer games, beating Beijing by only two votes. The people of Beijing now hope their city will be chosen to host the 2008 Olympics. They say it's a matter of national pride. But winning an Olympic bid also would force the government to address severe problems with noise, traffic and air pollution.

NPR's Guy Raz reports from Albuquerque on the release of former Los Alamos Nuclear Scientist Wen Ho Lee after nine months of solitary confinement. Lee was released yesterday with an apology from a judge who said the government's actions "embarrassed our entire nation."

On the banks of the Skykomish River in Monroe, Washington today, Republican Presidential nominee George W. Bush announced a $5 billion environmental initiative. Bush said the program was needed to improve maintenance and resource protection in the National Park System. Aides hope the event will get the campaign back on message after days of distraction. Andy Bowers, of NPR News, is with the Bush campaign.

NPR Senior News Analyst Daniel Schorr notes that, even in the face of overwhelming evidence that it is dangerous and addictive, the US House of Representatives voted today to aid the export of tobacco.

NPR's Eric Weiner reports that anti-globalization demonstrators in Melbourne, Australia have declared their three-day effort a success, even though they failed to shut down a conference of the World Economic Forum, a gathering of international business leaders. Organizers of the protests say globalization, as exemplified by the World Economic Forum, benefits only a few of the wealthiest corporations, while harming the environment, destroying local cultures and increasing poverty. The protesters in Melbourne were well-prepared and well-equipped. They used walkie-talkies to monitor police movements, loudspeakers to direct protesters and they'd even set up first aid and legal aid stations.