Get Off My Lawn! And Other Grumblings About Sports Today
Frank Deford's friend "the Sports Curmudgeon" reflects on some of the things that bother him about the sports world.
Opinion
Op-Ed: Did Boston Law Enforcement Drop The Ball?
The Boston Police Department and cooperating law enforcement entities were praised for working together to track down suspects in the marathon bombings. Boston Globe columnist Joan Vennochi asks whether police could have done more in the months, weeks, and even hours before the explosions.
Week In Politics: Syria, Immigration Reform
Audie Cornish talks to regular political commentators E.J. Dionne of The Washington Post and Brookings Institution, and David Brooks of The New York Times. They discuss Syria, the immigration reform bill and the opening of George W. Bush's Presidential Center.
'Horrific' And 'Surreal': The Words We Use To Bear Witness
After more than a week of gruesome media coverage, linguist Geoff Nunberg takes a close look at the words we use to describe events that mesmerize and horrify, that sensitize and desensitize, that transfix and repel us at the same time.
Redford: An Entertainer Who Looks To Inform
Oscar-winning director and actor Robert Redford is back in theaters with The Company You Keep, a look at aging American counterculture revolutionaries. He spoke with NPR's Robert Siegel about his career, his passion for journalism and how a thoughtful teacher helped encourage him.
Big Op-Ed: Shifting Opinions On Surveillance Cameras
Investigators in the Boston Marathon bombings were able to identify the suspects using footage from surveillance cameras. Some believe that this shows the need for surveillance cameras in public spaces, while others believe that such cameras encroach on our civil liberties.
A 'Tough, Smart, Proud Town' Meets Terror With Determination
The bombing attack at the Boston Marathon Monday could have caused scrambling and panic. Instead, the tragedy revealed the city's character as people rushed to help each other.
Losing A Leg, But Gaining A Sense Of Purpose
Jack Richmond was a young father when his leg was crushed in a work accident. Though in denial at first that it would need to be amputated, he quickly realized he could share his experience to help other amputees, as he tells his daughter, Reagan, on a visit to StoryCorps.
Digging Into Ricky Jay's 'Deceptive' Card Tricks
It's been said that to properly understand a magician, you have to get right on stage and watch how the act is done. NPR's Bob Mondello had that chance once with card whiz Ricky Jay — subject of the new film Deceptive Practice — and has a few words about how the showman works.
The Pitch For More No. 42s
There's more buzz than usual this year around baseball legend Jackie Robinson, who made his major league debut on April 15, 1947. But commentator Frank Deford says there isn't enough buzz in college athletics to help shape the Robinsons of the future.