Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Fatal accident raises questions about police ride-along policies
  There is still no word Wednesday on whether the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office will review its family ride-along policy following the New Year's Day fatal patrol car accident that took the life of a sheriff deputy's wife.5:20 p.m.
• Traffic fatalities increase slightly in 2007
  Preliminary data released Wednesday by the state Office of Traffic Safety show that slightly more people were killed in traffic-related accidents in 2007 than in the previous year.5:24 p.m.
• A DNA portrait reveals more than what you look like
  Imagine a portrait that showed not only who you are, but where you came from hundreds of generations ago through your unique genetic code.5:50 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Justice Department to Investigate CIA Tapes
  The Justice Department announced Wednesday that it is opening a criminal investigation into the CIA's destruction of interrogation videotapes.
• Who Benefits from Doctors' Free Drug Samples?
  Pharmaceutical manufacturers have long claimed that one of the main reasons they shower doctors with free drug samples is so that doctors can pass the medicine along to poor patients. But a new study challenges the notion that the poor are the major beneficiaries.
• 13 Stories at the Heart of Los Angeles
  Modern Los Angeles serves as the setting for 13 stories in a new book from writer and poet Wanda Coleman. The collection is called Jazz & Twelve O'Clock Tales: New Stories.
• Musharraf Addresses Election Delay, Bhutto Inquiry
  Elections in Pakistan have been postponed for six weeks. The country's election commission announced Wednesday that they'll be on Feb. 18. President Pervez Musharraf defended the decision in a nationwide television address and announced that experts from Britain's Scotland Yard will help investigate Benazir Bhutto's assassination.
• What the Late-Night TV Deal Means for Writers
  David Letterman and Jay Leno return to TV Wednesday night. Since the Writers Guild of America went on strike almost two months ago, the late-night talk shows have been in reruns. Letterman and the Late, Late Show's, Craig Ferguson, will have writers off the picket lines and writing them jokes because Letterman's company owns both shows.
• Albert Shanker's National Fight for Teachers
  The late Albert Shanker, a teachers union president, argued vigorously that the unions — which politicans have blamed for standing in the way of reforms — needed to prove their critics wrong. A new book examines why his ideas have had such a lasting impact on schools, unions and politics.
• Arthur Godfrey an Unlikely Early American Idol
  During television's first decade, Arthur Godfrey was the most omnipresent, watched, listened-to, and talked about personality in America. He was on TV five days a week for nine hours, eight of them simulcast on radio. But his only real talent was a folksy, laid-back, unpredictable charm.
• Candidates Rally Voters in Iowa Caucus Countdown
  Caucusing is not voting. It's not secret, and it can take hours. So persuading Iowans to support a candidate is just the beginning. The candidates go to great lengths to get their supporters to go to the Iowa caucuses.
• Candidates Make Last-Minute Bids in Iowa
  Most of the major contenders for president began their last day of pre-caucus campaigning in Iowa on Wednesday, flying fast planes to the far corners of the state. And in the evening, they were in Des Moines for big rallies — telling everyone to turn out Thursday night.
• Immigrants Leave Okla. After Tough Law Enacted
  Advocates for undocumented workers and activists for tougher immigration measures both say that since the local law took effect Nov. 1, thousands of immigrants have left Oklahoma. Builders and Hispanic leaders denounce the law, which is among the nation's toughest; supporters say it's bridging federal gaps.
• Campaign Money Has Flooded Early Primary States
  Voters in Iowa will begin the process of choosing the next president Thursday night as they go to their local party caucuses. It's the earliest the process has ever begun, and just getting to this starting point has consumed a phenomenal amount of money.
• Kenya Unrest Rooted in Tribal Tensions, Corruption
  Central to the growing unrest in Kenya is the long-standing tangle of tribal affiliation, poverty and political corruption. For a closer look at the forces propelling the recent tide of violence, Makau Mutua, dean of the State University of New York at Buffalo Law School and chair of the Kenya Human Rights Commission, talks with Melissa Block.
• Political Standoff Fuels Ethnic Violence in Kenya
  Hundreds of people have died in post-election ethnic violence in Kenya. A hospital in Eldoret has received more than 70 bodies since election results were announced, including 17 burned alive in a church. Raila Odinga, who narrowly lost the presidential election, has called for protests Thursday.
• Oil Climbs to $100 a Barrel
  The price of crude oil hit a new high of $100 a barrel Wednesday. At midday, oil was up more than $3 at $99.25. Only one trade was recorded at the $100 level and the price quickly fell back a bit. Prices shot up this morning on renewed violence in Nigeria and weakness in the U.S. dollar.
• In the Grand Political Plan, Does Iowa Matter?
  The presidential campaign begins too soon for many Americans. This year, it's starting earlier than ever. Once again, Iowa is the first state to weigh in, and that tradition has become a controversy in itself. Lavish attention is paid to the state by candidates and media alike, but will Iowa matter?

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