Analysis

Actors Tituss Burgess and Ellie Kemper horse around on the set of The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt while filming in New York in March. Tina Fey's new TV series was developed for NBC, but will air on Netflix instead.

Arts

New Streaming Services Are Changing TV — And Viewers, Too

7:49pm January 19, 2015

by Eric Deggans

Streaming services like Netflix and the DISH Network's new Sling TV are helping consumers break free of cable subscriptions. That means TV shows must find new ways to connect with their viewers.

Queue Listen Now

Arts

Larry Wilmore's 'Nightly Show' Brings A New Voice To Late Night TV

1:22pm January 19, 2015

by Eric Deggans

The former Daily Show correspondent becomes the only black man to host an entertainment show on late night TV. And he starts on an important occasion; the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

Queue Listen Now

University of Hawaii students sit together to show the ethnic differences of Hawaii's population in 1948.

National

Hawaii As 'Racial Paradise'? Bid For Obama Library Invokes A Complex Past

3:36pm January 17, 2015

by Ellen Wu

Professor Ellen Wu writes about how the mythology — and the history — of Hawaii as a multicultural melting pot may affect its chances of hosting the Obama Presidential Library.

A man holds a cartoon published by Charlie Hebdo during a gathering at Republic Square in Paris on Wednesday, to show solidarity for victims of the attack on the offices of the satirical weekly.

World News

'Charlie Hebdo' Laughed In The Face Of Violence; Will Future Satirists?

6:36pm January 08, 2015

by Elizabeth Blair

The French magazine responded to a 2011 firebombing of its offices with a cover that showed a Muslim and an editor making out. Its lead editor, described by a peer as fearless, was killed Wednesday.

Queue Listen Now

Tina Fey speaks at the Television Critics Association's winter press tour Wednesday in Pasadena, Calif.

Why I Asked Tina Fey About 'Charlie Hebdo' At The TV Critics Press Tour

4:59pm January 08, 2015

by Eric Deggans

At the TV Critics Association's press tour, journalists can struggle to connect news on the industry to real life. But NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says Tina Fey's words on satire and freedom resonated.

Previewing The New Year's Political Landscape

9:34am January 05, 2015

by Cokie Roberts

Republicans in the Senate are talking about raising gas taxes. Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker suggested a gas tax hike some time ago, and this weekend another Republican said his party is open to the idea.

Queue Listen Now

Ellie Kemper, right, stars with Tituss Burgess in the Netflix series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.

Arts

TV In 2015: Late-Night Shuffles, Big Goodbyes And More

8:31am January 05, 2015

by Eric Deggans

The most important TV events coming in 2015 include new voices in late-night, big goodbyes, online platforms picking up old shows and, NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says, more of everything.

Queue Listen Now

National

2014 Stories At The Intersection Of Race And Sports

4:24pm December 31, 2014

by Kat Chow

As the year winds down, Code Switch is taking a step back to pay tribute to some important — but perhaps forgotten — stories about race and sports.

Lieutenant Telsij of Return of the Jedi is one of just a handful of Asian characters in the Star Wars film series.

Diversity In Space: Tracking The First Asian Pilot In The Star Wars Movies

10:00am December 30, 2014

by Steve Haruch

The Asian characters in the original Star Wars films are few, fleeting and often forgotten. But the manager of the "Holocron" database at Lucasfilm helps uncover their back stories.

President Obama arrives for a news conference Dec. 19 in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington.

Obama Finds Reset Button With 2 Years To Go: Is It Too Late?

5:01am December 29, 2014

by Ron Elving

The president knows he was once regarded as having limitless promise, and realizes as well how disappointed many of his acolytes have been.