Series

Actor Michael Madsen, known for ‘Kill Bill’ and ‘Reservoir Dogs,’ dead at 67

His representatives confirmed that his death followed a cardiac arrest this morning.

Netherlands police embrace a public health approach to drugs. Will it work in the South?

Despite the opioid crisis’ deadly toll, U.S police treat drug use as a criminal issue. But in the Netherlands, a public health approach has seen better results.

Amtrak’s new Gulf Coast line will start service in August; see details

Supporters say the line will boost tourism in the three states it connects, especially for the Mississippi cities along the coast.

‘Mission: Impossible’ composer Lalo Schifrin dies at 93

Argentine pianist and composer Lalo Schifrin, best known for his scores for Mission: Impossible and more than 200 other films and TV shows, including Bullitt, Mannix and Cool Hand Luke, has died.

Bill Moyers, the former White House press secretary turned acclaimed TV journalist, dead at 91

Bill Moyers, the former White House press secretary who became one of television's most honored journalists, has died at 91.

‘A lid on a pot’: How does a heat dome work?

"If you've made grilled cheese in a pan and you put a lid on there, it melts the cheese faster because the lid helps trap the heat," a National Weather Service official told NPR.

Long and short-term solutions to keep yourself and your home cool in a heatwave

Much of the Midwest and the East Coast are under a heat advisory or warning this week as dangerous heat continues. Here's how to stay cool.

Early-season heat dome brings highest temperatures in years to parts of Eastern U.S.

An intense and nearly historic weather pattern is cooking much of America under a dangerous heat dome this week with triple-digit temperatures in places that haven't been so hot in more than a decade.

At least three people dead from a tornado in North Dakota

At least three residents were killed in the Enderlin area by a tornado on Friday night after storms hit North Dakota and Minnesota.

Welcome to summer: U.S. braces for first significant heat wave of the new season

For many Americans, high humidity will make it feel in the triple digits. The National Weather Service is urging people to prepare to protect themselves from the dangers of extreme heat.

It’s the humidity that gets you. Here’s why — and tips for dealing with muggy days

High humidity can make it tough for your body to cool down. As most of the country braces for extreme temperatures, a doctor shares advice on how to cool down when the humidity is working against you.

Erick is an ‘extremely dangerous’ Category 4 hurricane near Mexico’s Pacific coast

The major storm threatens to unleash destructive winds near where the eye crashes ashore, flash floods and a dangerous storm surge, forecasters said.

‘I literally grew up in prison’: Juvenile lifers share struggles, pleasures of coming home

Accounts of reentry are notable as juvenile cases continue to undergo review. Attorneys and advocates say progress on reviews is halting in some states.

Anne Burrell, TV chef who coached the ‘Worst Cooks in America,’ dies at 55

TV chef Anne Burrell, who coached culinary fumblers through hundreds of episodes of "Worst Cooks in America," has died. Medical examiners are set to determine what caused her death.

Alfred Brendel, the cerebral pianist with a dry wit, dies at 94

Routinely called a "musician's musician," the pianist had an atypical career that even he called mysterious. He spent it returning to a handful of favorite composers, with acclaimed results.

Deadly flash floods kill 13 in San Antonio and at least 3 in West Virginia

Fast-paced floodwaters in San Antonio left 13 people dead. West Virginia also witnessed at least three deaths from flash flooding, with more people missing.

Trauma-informed nurses help sexual assault survivors. Most hospitals don’t have them.

Alabama has 44 certified SANEs for the entire state. Louisiana has 42. Mississippi only has 6 — for a population of almost three million.

Mississippi’s tech scene is in a catch-22. How can it move forward?

Mississippi ranks near the bottom for the size of its tech industry. But despite its shortcomings, some believe the state is not far from its own tech boom.

Brian Wilson, the troubled genius behind The Beach Boys, has died at age 82

The Beach Boys' co-founder, songwriter and producer transformed pop music into high art, and became America's answer to The Beatles' Lennon and McCartney in the process.

Alabama executes Gregory Hunt by nitrogen gas for 1988 murder of Karen Lane

Hunt's execution marks Alabama's third this year, on pace to match the six it carried out last year, and the fifth time it used the controversial method.

‘Day of the Jackal’ author Frederick Forsyth dies at 86

Born in 1938, Forsyth served as a Royal Air Force pilot before becoming a journalist. He covered the attempted assassination of French President Charles de Gaulle, which inspired The Day of the Jackal.

Sly Stone, visionary funk frontman of the Family Stone, has died at age 82

The musical visionary led a multi-racial funk band that produced five Top 10 hits in the late 1960s and early '70s.

Recovery Failure: Why we struggle to rebuild for the next storm

NPR and the PBS series Frontline investigate the forces keeping communities from building resiliently, and the special interests that profit even when communities don't. 

Edmund White, who broke ground in gay literature, has died at 85

Many of White's books chronicled his own experiences as a gay man, making an indelible impression on gay culture and how LGBTQ experiences were understood more broadly at the dawning of the AIDS health crisis.

A New Orleans restaurant owner’s Facebook was hacked. It put her business in jeopardy

While multi-million dollar ransomware attacks and data thefts targeting governments and industry giants grab headlines, small businesses increasingly find themselves in online scammers’ crosshairs.

Stabilizing ‘operations,’ the National Weather Service hires again after Trump cuts

The National Weather Service says it plans to hire more than 100 additional staff members. The move follows complaints and concerns after the Trump administration eliminated more than 500 positions.

Hurricane season has started. Here’s what to know

The 2025 hurricane season officially began on Sunday. Forecasters are predicting an active season.

North Carolina had a housing crisis before Hurricane Helene; now it’s even worse

Hurricanes have gotten larger and wetter because of climate change and inland communities are at greater risk from heavy flooding. That's what Hurricane Helene did to western North Carolina last year.

Billowing smoke from Canadian wildfires wafts into the U.S.

The Manitoba wildfires have forced 17,000 people to flee the province. Plumes of heavy smoke are expected to drift into the United States over Friday and Saturday, affecting millions of Americans.

Bernard Kerik, who led NYPD on 9/11 before prison and pardon, has died at 69

Kerik, an Army veteran, was hailed as a hero after the 9/11 attack and eventually nominated to head the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, before a dramatic fall from grace that ended with him behind bars.

Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, Kenyan literary giant who fought colonialism, dies at 87

The Kenyan author championed local African languages and was imprisoned for his work. His name was often mentioned in discussions about the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Al Foster, drummer for Miles Davis and Sonny Rollins, has died

The superbly alert and flexible drummer formed a swirling current in modern jazz for more than 60 years. He was 82.