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Ginseng has linked America and China for centuries. A new graphic novel digs into why
Craig Thompson, author of the award-winning graphic memoir Blankets returns with its spiritual successor. It's a look at his childhood growing up on ginseng farms, and the intricate balance of the global ginseng trade.
Nearly 60 cases dismissed due to corruption in Hanceville Police Department
The grand jury determined that 58 felony criminal cases had been tainted by corruption in the Hanceville Police Department, after four officers and the police chief were indicted on a variety of charges related to mishandling or removing evidence from the department's evidence room.
President Trump fires Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden
Hayden, who became the first woman and the first African American to serve as the Librarian of Congress when she was appointed in 2016, was abruptly fired via email late Thursday.
The best new albums out May 9
NPR Music's Stephen Thompson welcomes WXPN's John Morrison to discuss billy woods, Thom Yorke, PinkPantheress and more.
First Afrikaners granted refugee status due to arrive in U.S.
Three months ago, President Trump signed an executive order telling white Afrikaans South Africans they could apply for refugee status in the U.S. The first group has been swiftly processed and is set to arrive on U.S. soil Monday
Court rules Alabama violated Voting Rights Act in drawing congressional lines
A three-judge panel permanently blocked Alabama from using a state-drawn map that they said flouted their directive to draw a plan that was fair to Black voters. The decision was not a surprise because the panel ruled against the state twice previously and put a new map in place for last year’s elections.
Who is the new Pope Leo XIV and what are his views?
Pope Leo XIV was born and raised in Chicago. He is of French, Italian and Spanish descent. He spent years working as a missionary in Peru.
India and Pakistan trade attacks amid risk of war between nuclear states
The escalation began after India accused Pakistan of being behind an attack where gunmen killed 26 people, mostly tourists, in India-administered Kashmir on April 22. Pakistan denies it.
FEMA’s acting administrator is replaced a day after congressional testimony
The abrupt change came the day after Cameron Hamilton testified on Capitol Hill that he did not agree with proposals to dismantle an organization that helps plan for natural disasters and distributes financial assistance.
RFK Jr. says autism database will use Medicare and Medicaid info
The National Institutes of Health will partner with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid to create a database of Americans with autism, using insurance claims, medical records and smartwatch data.
World Central Kitchen closes soup kitchens across Gaza due to dwindling supplies
Israel's ongoing blockade of aid for Gaza forced the humanitarian group to shut its soup kitchens as it faced empty warehouses and no replenishment of supplies in the war-battered enclave.
Coca-Cola Amphitheater poised to open mid-June
With just six weeks until the first show, construction at the new Coca Cola Amphitheater north of downtown Birmingham is still underway.
Trump administration unveils a plan to modernize the air traffic control system
The transportation secretary announced a far-reaching plan to drastically overhaul the current technology used by thousands of controllers responsible for guiding planes in and out of airports.
From apps to gadgets, ‘Second Life’ considers how tech is changing having a baby
When Amanda Hess learned her unborn child had a genetic condition, she turned to the internet — but didn't find reassurance. "My relationship with technology became so much more intense," she says.
Trump pulls controversial pick for U.S. Attorney for D.C.
President Trump will replace his controversial pick, Ed Martin, for the role of top prosecutor in Washington, D.C. following bipartisan Senate opposition
A filmmaker in Nazi Germany strikes a deal with the devil in ‘The Director’
When do compromises turn into full-blown capitulation? Daniel Kehlmann's new novel draws on the true story of German film director G.W. Pabst.
A firing squad tried to shoot a prisoner in the heart. They missed, autopsy indicates
The autopsy notes two bullet wounds even though there were three shooters, and a forensic expert says the misfires likely caused "excruciating conscious pain and suffering."
Former CDC staff warn of “a five alarm fire”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has laid off thousands of workers since January. Current and former CDC staff are grappling with uncertainty about both their futures and public health.
Holy white smoke, we have a new pope!
White smoke streamed from a chimney atop the Sistine Chapel, signaling to the world that the 133 cardinals inside have elected a new pope. But we don't yet know his identity.
The story of Lilly Ledbetter’s fight for equal pay comes to the big screen
Lilly Ledbetter's journey began in 1979 at the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. plant in Gadsden. Her experience working there led her to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Holy white smoke: New pope selected by Catholic Church
White smoke streamed from a chimney atop the Sistine Chapel, signaling to the world that the 133 cardinals inside have elected a new pope. But we don't yet know his identity.
Ivey overhauls Birmingham Water Works Board amid cries of racial discrimination
The bill redistributes power from Birmingham city officials — who currently appoint a majority of the nine-person board — to the governor, the lieutenant governor and the surrounding four counties that are also in the board’s jurisdiction. It also reduces the number of board members to seven.
As Pynk Beard, Grammy-winning songwriter Sebastian Kole turns the page
Grammy-winning songwriter Sebastian Kole has accomplished a great deal in his career. As his alter ego Pynk Beard, though, he could achieve much more. The Birmingham native is stepping out from behind the scenes and into the spotlight to bring his brand of country music to the masses.
Americans are already seeing Trump’s tariffs kick in. They sent in receipts to prove it
There's new tariffs on almost everything that is imported. Some of that increased cost is being eaten by exporters in other countries, but a lot of the higher prices are being picked up by Americans, who are seeing it in their receipts.
Medicaid payments barely keep hospital mental health units afloat. Federal cuts could sink them
Patients seeking mental health care are more likely to be on Medicaid than patients in more profitable areas of care, such as cancer or cardiac treatment.
Wanda Sykes is grateful her audience sticks with her
Wanda Sykes says getting back on the road helps remind her that she's still funny. On this week's Wild Card, Sykes talks about her conversations with God and why she loves bowling alleys.
How one writer quit dieting and discovered her strength through weightlifting
Casey Johnston spent years running and restricting calories. When she started weightlifting, she rebuilt muscle mass — and her relationship with her body.
Q&A: How lethal injection ‘hides the violence’ of executions in the South and elsewhere
A new book explores the secretive, complicated history of lethal injection and its relationship to the death penalty.
Not taking India-Pakistan escalation seriously a ‘huge risk,’ warns conflict expert
Efforts to mediate the India-Pakistan conflict are not going to work "unless the U.S. steps in with full sincerity," Praveen Donthi, a senior analyst with the International Crisis Group, told NPR.
Discovering a mom we never knew, in letters she saved from WWII soldiers
My sister and I recently unearthed a forgotten box of correspondence our mom received from servicemen she'd met at Red Cross dances in Rome near the end of the war. She would have been 100 this year.
Glittering blue creatures are washing up on California beaches. Here’s why
Hundreds of thousands of Velella velella, more commonly known as by-the-wind-sailors, are drifting onto the coastline. Beachcombers say they look like "blue diamonds strewn across the beach."
GOP-led states are passing new restrictions for voters to get issues on the ballot
Two dozen states allow citizens to propose ballot measures. But Republican lawmakers in many of those states are now adding hurdles to those efforts, saying they want to combat fraud.
