Business

White House Takes Stock Of Financial Crisis Five Years Later

2:20pm September 16, 2013

by Ari Shapiro

Five years ago this week, Lehman Brothers collapsed, and America's financial crisis began. On Monday morning, President Obama will mark the anniversary with a speech in the White House Rose Garden. The White House released a new report ahead of the address, assessing how the government's efforts to stabilize the economy turned out.

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Apple's fingerprint technology is an effort to combat smartphone theft.

Dear Apple: Good Luck Against The Smartphone Black Market

2:09pm September 16, 2013

by Ilya Marritz

The new iPhone's fingerprint recognition technology is the company's first major effort to combat smartphone theft. But with an insatiable global appetite for the devices, will it really make a difference?

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Carlos Mesquita (left) and Filipe Preto invented Vem aí a Troika (Here Comes the Troika), a satirical card game that pokes fun at Portugal's economic crisis and its creditors.

World News

With A Card Game, The Portuguese Get Back At Their Creditors

1:39pm September 16, 2013

by Lauren Frayer

Here Comes the Troika is a satirical card game where players can stash away savings in Swiss bank accounts or fund useless airports or high-speed trains to nowhere. The winner is the one who can hide the most money in offshore accounts, win elections — and avoid the dreaded troika card.

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United To Honor Free Tickets Generated During Glitch

7:08am September 16, 2013

Some faulty online data caused airline tickets to be sold for free last week. The carrier closed down its booking engine after learning about the glitch. United isn't saying how many freebie seats were sold, but they've agreed to honor all the tickets.

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Music & Culture

Sound Pioneer Ray Dolby Dies At 80

8:26am September 13, 2013

by Mandalit del Barco

Dolby, who invented some of the technologies that revolutionized film and sound recording, was instrumental in developing surround sound technology. Dolby had been living with Alzheimer's and was diagnosed with leukemia this summer.

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Without Action, Government Will Shut Down At Month's End

5:44am September 13, 2013

by Tamara Keith

The four top congressional leaders held a closed-door meeting Thursday to assess where they stand on the coming government funding and debt-ceiling deadlines. As has become typical in recent years, some conservative House Republicans appear to be the stumbling block with their insistence that any deal repeal or defund Obamacare.

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Economy

D.C. Mayor Vetoes Wage Bill Targeting Large Retailers

5:38am September 13, 2013

by Patrick Madden

Wal-Mart says its plans to open six stores in the nation's capitol are back on after the mayor vetoed a so-called living wage bill that targeted big box retailers. The focus now turns to the District's 13 member City Council. The bill passed in July with eight votes — nine are needed to override a veto.

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Twitter Files For Initial Public Offering

4:58am September 13, 2013

by Laura Sydell

Twitter announced via Tweet Thursday that it's launching its long awaited initial public offering. It will be the most high profile IPO since Facebook went public last year. But Twitter hopes to avoid the mishaps that's marred Facebook's stock market debut.

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The headquarters of Lehman Brothers in Times Square in 2008, the year the financial services firm filed for bankruptcy.

5 Years After Financial Crisis, Are Big Banks Still A Threat?

11:30am September 12, 2013

by Jim Zarroli

It's been five years since Lehman Brothers collapsed and touched off a banking crisis that is still being felt by the global economy. Today, the banking industry is a lot stronger than it was, but some critics say efforts to reform banking regulations have fallen short of their potential.

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Economist Tyler Cowen believes that income inequality in America is only increasing. His new book is called Average Is Over: Powering America Beyond the Age of the Great Stagnation.

Tired Of Inequality? One Economist Says It'll Only Get Worse

9:57am September 12, 2013

by NPR Staff

In his new book, Average Is Over, Tyler Cowen predicts that America will become a new, more creative meritocracy. Though he believes a rise in income inequality is inevitable, he hopes that "happiness inequality isn't going up in the same way."

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