Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Outdoors amendment dead for this session
  The prospects of the state lawmakers taking up a constitutional amendment on natural resources during a summer special session are over. DFL Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson Thursday rejected the latest Republican House offer to raise the state sales tax by one-eighth of 1 percent for hunting and fishing habitats.5:21 p.m.
• The MIA expansion is not about the building
  The Minneapolis Institute of Arts is opening its newly expanded building to the public. While some openings are all about the building, this one is all about the art.5:48 p.m.
• Cartoonist watches the million-dollar success of an idea similar to her own
  For an inventor, an artist, or anyone doing creative work, there may be few things more difficult than seeing your vision -- or something close to it -- succeed in the hands of someone else. So for one Twin Cities cartoonist, this has been a rough few weeks.6:13 p.m.
• Forum Communications agrees to buy papers from McClatchy
  The Big newspaper sell off of 2006 is almost over for the McClatchy Co. Yesterday, McClatchy , the owner of the Star Tribune in Minneapolis, agreed to sell three more newspapers it will acquire when its purchases the Knight-Ridder company. Forum Communications, publisher of the Fargo Forum, will purchase two major regional newspapers, the Duluth News-Tribune and the Grand Forks Herald, as well as the Aberdeen American News in South Dakota. We called upon our media commentator David Brauer to learn more about the company that publishes the Fargo Forum.6:17 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Sampling Sounds of Listeners, Looking for a Spark
  We hear the types of phone calls we received concerning the audio that listeners have suggested we broadcast ...and hint at which types we favor, and which we don't.
• Attack on Zarqawi Followed Weeks of Waiting
  Details are still emerging about the U.S. operation that killed Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and five other people. U.S. military spokesman William Caldwell says the final phase of the hunt for Iraq's most wanted man began weeks ago. Caldwell added that Zarqawi is assumed to have named a successor.
• Network Neutrality Issue Unites Political Foes
  Once again, the old cliche "politics makes strange bedfellows" is proving itself true: The liberal advocacy group Moveon.org is fighting on the same side as the Christian Coalition. That may be the most headline-catching part of an issue with a notably dull name: Network Neutrality.
• Young Analyst Tracks Traffic on Jihadist Web Sites
  Word of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's death spread rapidly among his followers. By early Thursday, Internet chat rooms frequented by Islamist extremists were buzzing. Among those reading along was a young American by the name of Evan Kohlmann, who has become a sought-after expert on the sites.
• The Rise and Fall of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
  Author Loretta Napoleoni says Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi gained international attention when Colin Powell mentioned his name at a U.N. Assembly in 2003. At the time he was not a member of al-Qaeda, but it was enough to inflate his image and role. Zarqawi's role eventually grew, as he became the most wanted militant in Iraq.
• Iraqi Reaction to Zarqawi's Death: A Guarded Hope
  Iraq's government has welcomed news of the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, but it's possible no one will be more affected by Zarqawi's absence than Iraqis themselves. The U.S. military says the Jordanian-born al Qaida leader is responsible for killing thousands of civilians.
• Zarqawi Hideout Yields 'Trove' of Materials
  A U.S. military strike has killed the most feared terrorist in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The Jordanian-born Zarqawi was killed when U.S. warplanes dropped 500-pound bombs on his hiding place. Pentagon officials say they found a treasure trove of material at the safehouse.
• Democrats Vie to Run Against Virginia's Allen
  Two Democrats are vying to challenge Virginia Republican Sen. George Allen. Reports have suggested Allen is considering a 2008 presidential bid.
• Heroin Cocktail Blamed in Chicago Deaths
  A recent rash of drug overdoses in the Chicago area that officials suspect are due to a lethal cocktail of heroin and the synthetic painkiller fentanyl. Michele Norris talks with Chicago Tribune reporter David Heinzmann.
• Dinosaur Jr., For Real
  Dinosaurs are often thought of as giants of the Earth. But on an island in what is now Europe, 150 million years ago, petite dinosaurs ruled. In this environment, Sauropods, known to reach 80 feet in length in other parts of the world, were instead "island dwarves." Island life made them roughly the same size as a modern horse. The phenomenon has been getting attention elsewhere to explain a new species of tiny humans. Experts say the case is also an example of how much more dinosaur experts are learning by doing the unthinkable: cutting open dinosaur bones.
• VIOXX Inquiry, Part Two
  Documents obtained by NPR show that five years before Vioxx was pulled off the market, doctors monitoring the safety of the drug knew that it increased the risk of heart attacks. These doctors were part of a panel overseeing a study of Vioxx. Independent experts tell NPR that the study should have been stopped at the first sign that Vioxx increased the risk of heart attacks and strokes. They say that would have prevented tens of thousands of deaths. The safety panel and Merck say it wasn't clear whether Vioxx was causing the problems. A report from NPR's Snigdha Prakash continues.
• Intelligence Credited with Exposing Zarqawi to Strike
  American Special Operations personnel in Iraq have been instrumental in shaping U.S. military strategy in the country, say experts. Michele Norris talks with Michael Vickers, director of Strategic Studies at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. Vickers, a former captain in the Special Forces, was an operations officer in the CIA.
• Senate Rejects Bill to Cut Estate Tax
  Senate Republicans fell short of the 60 votes needed to cut off debate on a permanent repeal of the estate tax. It was the second day in a row that a major item on President Bush's agenda failed in the chamber. Wednesday, the Senate spiked a proposed constitutional amendment banning gay marriage.
• Letters: Foster Care, Accordions and Headaches
  Michele Norris and Robert Siegel read from listeners' letters and emails, including responses to our story about two boys who came through the Washington, D.C., foster care system and and our report on "International Accordion Awareness Month.
• DeLay Spends Final Day in House
  Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay marks his last day in the House with a farewell speech to his colleagues. DeLay is resigning to battle charges that he violated campaign finance laws in Texas. He stepped down as the Republican floor leader last fall following his indictment.

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