Analysis

Spain's government said this week it impounded this superyacht called "Valerie," moored in Barcelona, saying it belonged to a Russian oligarch.

World News

Why so many Russian billionaires are called oligarchs

2:11pm March 15, 2022

by Wynne Davis

Many of the sanctions the U.S. and EU have imposed on Russia are meant to target some of the country's wealthiest. But what's the difference between a "normal" billionaire and an "oligarch"?

Why your student loan payments may be delayed (again)

6:25pm March 14, 2022

by Cory Turner

Payments on federal student loans have been paused for two years, and the Biden administration appears to be considering extending the pause beyond May.

Queue Listen Now

Once, cultural ties to Russia were deliberate and hopeful. Now, they're eroding

6:00am March 13, 2022

by Linda Holmes

Russia's growing isolation in the cultural world is poignant for those who remember optimistic outreach of the 80s and 90s.

Russian forces returned fire in the direction of the Ukrainian defenders, striking a power line leading to the plant.

Video analysis reveals Russian attack on Ukrainian nuclear plant veered near disaster

11:58am March 11, 2022

An NPR analysis of security footage and photos following the attack on Europe's largest nuclear power plant shows that many of the plant's critical safety systems were in the field of Russian fire.

Queue Listen Now

President Biden's approval ratings have risen since he delivered the State of the Union address Tuesday, according to a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll.

Politics & Government

Biden gets a bounce after the State of the Union, NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll shows

6:08pm March 04, 2022

by Domenico Montanaro

After Tuesday's speech, the president saw a significant jump with Democrats and independents, as he may be seeing a rally-around-the-Ukrainian-flag moment.

Queue Listen Now

President Biden delivers the State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday.

Politics & Government

5 takeaways from Biden's State of the Union address

12:42pm March 02, 2022

by Domenico Montanaro

The president painted an optimistic view of life amid the pandemic in front of a Congress that appeared to be more unified than in recent years.

People in Los Angeles walk in a silent protest march on April 9, 2012, to demand justice for the killing of Trayvon Martin.

National

Trayvon Martin's killing 10 years ago changed the tenor of democracy

10:30am February 26, 2022

by Robert Baldwin III

The Black teen's killing on Feb. 26, 2012, helped spark Black Lives Matter. Though the movement has seemingly yielded some cultural change, it comes at a time when hope for legal change is tenuous.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov walk past honour guards at the Kremlin in Moscow. U.S. sanctions are targeting Putin and a handful of individuals believed to be among his closest advisors.

The U.S. sanctions on Russian oligarchs miss the richest of the rich

9:11am February 26, 2022

by The Associated Press

The sanctions may do little to dim the jet-setting lifestyles of Russia's ultra-rich and infamous – much less force a withdrawal of tanks and troops.

President Biden's State of the Union speech Tuesday will be his first since becoming president. But in April 2021, he addressed a joint session of Congress, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Harris behind him on the dais.

Politics & Government

This won't be the first State of the Union speech given during a crisis

5:00am February 26, 2022

by Ron Elving

Even when under maximum pressure, presidents have viewed the speech as a unique opportunity to make their case to the rest of the government, to the nation as a whole and to the wider world as well.

George Takei testifies before the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians in California in 1981.

Arts

George Takei got reparations. He says they 'strengthen the integrity of America'

1:07pm February 18, 2022

by Neda Ulaby

Eighty years ago, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed an executive order that sent thousands of Japanese Americans to internment camps. Actor George Takei was among them.