Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Health Department delayed disclosure of further 3M chemical contamination
  Minnesota Public Radio News has learned that Minnesota Department of Health officials were warned about the problem posed by the chemical almost two years before residents were notified.4:35 p.m.
• Red Lake boys may have wandered onto thin ice
  Authorities are conducting autopsies on the bodies of two young children found Sunday on the Red Lake Indian Reservation. Tristan White, 4, and his 2-year-old brother Avery Stately disappeared four months ago. A search team found their bodies not far from their home.5:20 p.m.
• Jonathan Lethem and "You Don't Love Me Yet"
  Jonathan Lethem has a new novel about indie rockers and young performance artists living in Los Angeles. But he is also shopping a new idea -- that artists and businesses keep too tight a hold on copyrights, and that the artistic spirit would flourish if everyone agreed to loosen that grip.6:24 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Winning the War on Drugs One Life at a Time
  In America's war on drugs, more federal resources have gone into foreign operations and law enforcement than into demand reduction at home. But policy experts, community activists and recovering addicts say only a combination of strategies will work.
• Artist Forces Racism out of the Shadows
  Artist Kara Walker is known for life-sized silhouettes created from freehand drawings. Cutouts were used in Victorian times as portraits of quiet repose. Walker's silhouettes depict the violence of slavery.
• Passport Backlog Blamed on New Requirements
  A new law that went into effect in January requires U.S. citizens to have a passport when traveling to Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean. The change created demand that is peaking now that spring break is here and summer looms.
• Iranian Leader Surprises British with Release
  In a surprise move, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced the release of 15 British sailors and marines held captive by Iran for nearly two weeks. Iranian TV said the captives watched Ahmadinejad's news conference live and were ecstatic when a translator told them what the president said.
• Standoff Over, What's Next for Iran and the West?
  Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announces that the freedom granted to the 15 British sailors and marines held captive in Iran is a 'gift' to the British people. British Prime Minister Tony Blair has said he is pleased with the news, but what will be the long term consequences of the soldiers capture mean for Iran?
• Syria Welcomes Pelosi, But Doubts Her Impact
  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, along with a small delegation of other House members, paid a much-anticipated visit to Syrian president Bashad al-Assar Wednesday. But while Syrian officials embraced Pelosi's visit as a public signal that their current isolation may be diminishing, they do not think she can shape U.S. foreign policy.
• Allergy Sufferers Face Huge Volumes of Pollen
  The pollen count in Atlanta has reached near-record highs in the past month, causing major irritation for allergy sufferers. Michele Norris talks with the woman who counts pollen for the Atlanta Allergy and Asthma Clinic, as well as two allergists.
• African Bees: A Bad Rep Doesn't Include Honey
  The African bee has the reputation of being more aggressive, and more deadly, than any other bee in the world. But farmers there know that the honey the bees produce is worth a million stings.
• Obama Nearly Equals Clinton's Campaign Total
  Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama's campaign funds are nearly even with his chief rival, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. Obama has reported that he raised $25 million in the first three months of this year; Clinton took in $26 million.
• Funds Nearly Even for Obama and Clinton
  Melissa Block talks with NPR's Mara Liasson about what Sen. Barak Obama's announcement that he has generated almost as much first-quarter campaign funds as his rival Hillary Clinton is a new wrinkle in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.

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