Business

A voter leaves a polling booth at St. Anthony Community Center in Manchester, N.H., during the state's presidential primary on Jan. 23.

Politics & Government

Tech giants pledge action against deceptive AI in elections

4:53pm February 16, 2024

Fears over how AI could be used to mislead voters are escalating in a year that will see hundreds of millions of people around the world cast ballots. As a result, tech giants are pledging action.

What happens when a wind farm comes to a coal town?

4:27pm February 16, 2024

Coal jobs have been declining for generations. Now in the town of Keyser, West Virginia, there's a different energy source on the horizon.

As Denver struggles to absorb influx of migrants, other services are cut

5:10am February 16, 2024

NPR's Michel Martin spoke with Denver Mayor Mike Johnston about the city's budget cuts to help cover the cost of providing services for newly arrived migrants.

Lawmakers across the U.S. want to crack down on bots and ticket resellers

4:42pm February 15, 2024

by Wayne Schutsky

Lawmakers in several states want to crack down on the bots and ticket resellers that they say drive up concert ticket prices. In Arizona, a pair of 'Taylor Swift' bills would impose new rules, but industry leaders are opposed.

Economy

The mysterious threats and impacts of workforce obsolescence

4:42pm February 15, 2024

Workforces facing obsolescence sometimes behave in mysterious ways. Often, wages wind up spiking in an occupation at risk of disappearing. We examine what this means for the workforce as AI advances.

A registered scavenger, who mainly collects plastic waste to sell, walking in a landfill in Indonesia.

Reduce, reuse, redirect outrage: How plastic makers used recycling as a fig leaf

2:53pm February 15, 2024

by Michael Copley

Recycling "does not solve the solid waste problem," the head of a plastics trade group said in 1989, around the time the industry was launching its recycling campaign.

More people are using Buy Now, Pay Later services like they might a credit card — frequently and on everything.

How do you use Buy Now, Pay Later? It likely depends on your credit score

1:01pm February 15, 2024

by Alina Selyukh

New research finds that people who use it the most tend to use it like a credit card, instead of a credit card. And that's regardless of income.

Queue Listen Now

National

Nonprofit in New York trains formerly incarcerated people to work in food industry

8:03am February 15, 2024

by Ava Pukatch

A nonprofit in Syracuse, New York, is helping people released from prison find jobs.

What is the fate of all this empty space?

Could vacant office spaces across the U.S. be the solution to a national problem?

7:54am February 15, 2024

by Manuela López Restrepo

A recent study calculated that about a fifth of U.S. office space was vacant at the end of last year. What is the fate of all this empty real estate?

Queue Listen Now

How Saudi Arabia is using its oil influence to fund fantastical plans for the future

5:16am February 15, 2024

For decades, Saudi Arabia's economy has been defined by its abundant oil reserves. But with a plan known as Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia is trying to pivot away from that economic base.