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Some political strategists believe that the nation’s most sparsely-populated places could determine who wins the White House in November. Some 55 million people live in rural towns and counties, which cover 80 percent of the landscape. It is as a dispersed but potent political force.

NPR's Michele Norris talks with former U.S. marshals Don Forsht and Al Butler, who were part of a special team recruited to carry out school desegregation orders in the 1950s and '60s. Their work took them to all the southern hotspots during the campaign of massive resistance.

Chicago has a long history of firehouse dogs. Brothers Trevor and Drew Orsinger have put together a book -- The Firefighter's Best Friend -- tracking their lives and legends. The Orsingers speak with NPR's Liane Hansen.

Thousands of demonstrators crowd the streets of Rome to protest U.S. policies on Iraq and terrorism as President Bush visits the Eternal City. He went to the Vatican Friday to present Pope John Paul II with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and later met with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. The pope, who opposed the U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq, blessed the appointment of a new Iraqi government in Baghdad. NPR's Don Gonyea reports.

Organizations like the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance support the move for equal protection for all body types.

The Web site Second Life has built a booming virtual economy around animated characters called avatars. For a few pennies here or a dollar there, participants can accessorize their avatars with new clothing, a car, even a house.

If the early look at Bloomington Aldermen is a guide, outsourcing golf courses and recovering costs from the downtown police hireback program for high…

A woman in China was flying home to the city of Guangzhou when a blizzard prompted everyone else to switch to earlier planes. Flight CZ2833 went ahead with just her on board.

The Yale Glee Club was traveling on a commuter line out of New York City. The train conductor tapped a hand rail, raised his arms and began a different type of conducting.

The Illinois Supreme Court is taking on another pension case, six months after justices unanimously tossed out the state's landmark pension law. Tuesday,…