Investigations

Horseshoe crabs are bled alive at a facility in Charleston, S.C., in June 2014.

Environment

Vaccines are still tested with horseshoe crab blood. The industry is finally changing

11:00am September 23, 2023

by Chiara Eisner

The horseshoe crab bleeding industry is in transition. One biomedical company agreed to more oversight, and a regulatory group is paving the way for drug companies to use animal-free alternatives.

A photo of Jeffrey Ramirez is seen at his parents' home in Vista, California. He was diagnosed with cancer while in prison and died at age 41.

1 in 4 inmate deaths happens in the same federal prison. Why?

6:00am September 23, 2023

by Meg Anderson

The Butner federal prison complex in North Carolina is where a quarter of federal inmate deaths occur. It includes a medical facility but inmates aren't getting needed care, there or at other prisons.

Emanuel "Chris" Welch, the Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, said that Democrats in the Illinois House would no longer work with the public relations firm SKDK due to revelations of a "glaring conflict of interest" in a sexual harassment and retaliation case.

Politics & Government

Illinois Dems criticize Biden adviser, cut ties with PR firm over #MeToo conflict

4:36pm September 18, 2023

by Tom Dreisbach

Illinois Democrats said they cut ties with the prominent public relations firm SKDK following reporting by NPR about an undisclosed conflict of interest in a sexual harassment case.

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) waits to speak during a news conference following a closed-door lunch meeting with Senate Democrats at the U.S. Capitol March 22, 2023 in Washington, D.C.

Politics & Government

Sen. Mark Kelly says Biden impeachment talks are 'a distraction and a waste of time'

8:46pm September 13, 2023

Congress is back this week, Dem. Senator urges colleagues to avoid government shutdown.

Queue Listen Now

Anita Dunn (left) speaks onstage with Hilary Rosen (right) at an event titled "Women Rule" in June 2018. That summer, Dunn and her communications firm began providing crisis communications for the then-Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives regarding allegations of sexual harassment and retaliation.

A corruption trial revealed a #MeToo ethics entanglement for a top Biden adviser

6:55pm September 13, 2023

by Tom Dreisbach

Newly disclosed evidence revealed an apparent conflict of interest for Biden adviser Anita Dunn, when she consulted for an Illinois politician facing #MeToo related allegations in 2018.

Queue Listen Now

Justin Kasieta, who is 22 now, was just 13 when his father died and he was thrust into a role looking after his four younger siblings. In college, he interned in the state legislature and the U.S. Congress.

National

These kids used to get the bill for their own foster care. Now that's changing

10:07am September 12, 2023

by Joseph Shapiro

States routinely took the benefits checks of children in foster care who were orphans or disabled. After an NPR/Marshall Project investigation, there's reform.

Queue Listen Now

Authorities respond to the scene of a mass shooting at a Dollar General store, Saturday, in Jacksonville, Fla.

National

4 people dead, including gunman, in Jacksonville dollar store shooting

8:26pm August 26, 2023

by Emily Olson

A man opened fire at a Dollar General store in Jacksonville on Saturday, killing three people before taking his own life. Police described the shooting as a "racially motivated" hate crime.

Jenny Eckart Hoyt directs her daughter Winnie's attention to an "eye gaze" device in their Portland, Ore., home.

Schools could be getting millions more from Medicaid. Why aren't they?

10:13am August 24, 2023

In 2022, schools recouped $6.6 billion from federal and state Medicaid programs. They could be getting much more.

Queue Listen Now

Immigrants in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) use the phones at a detention center in California in 2019. Secret government reports obtained by NPR described "negligent," "barbaric" and "filthy" conditions in ICE detention.

Politics & Government

A 'shocking' 911 call and other key takeaways from NPR's ICE detention investigation

5:00am August 24, 2023

by Tom Dreisbach

NPR obtained secret government inspection reports, which described "negligent," "barbaric" and "filthy" conditions inside immigration detention facilities. Here's what to know.

This photo, purported to be of the Loch Ness Monster, was taken near Inverness, Scotland in 1934. One of the participants revealed on his deathbed that the pictures were staged.

Environment

Monster hunters are conducting the largest search of Loch Ness in more than 50 years

12:27pm August 21, 2023

There have been more than a thousand official sightings of the Loch Ness Monster, the Loch Ness Centre says. Nessie enthusiasts are deploying new tools this weekend to try and prove it's real.