Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Goodbye to the real estate boom
  Newly released statistics show that June was another slow month for the Twin Cities housing market. Both new and existing homes, which not long ago would have been the subject of bidding wars between anxious buyers, are now sitting idle in a market increasingly flooded with sellers.5:19 p.m.
• Hatch and Entenza -- can they get along?
  Republican Party officials are calling on two of the state's top Democrats to come clean on an apparent feud between them.5:24 p.m.
• South Dakota driver in running for reality TV show
  A Sioux Falls man is in the running for a 3-month stint as a reality race car driver. Greg Gunderson has something to prove and it's not just about winning.5:52 p.m.
• Music and technology converge in unique piano competition
  Judges Thursday night chose a young pianist from the Republic of Georgia as the winner of the Minnesota International Piano-e-Competition. The competition used some advanced technology to judge the performances of contestants from around the world.6:20 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• The Ascendance of MySpace
  This week, MySpace became the most visited website in the United States, overtaking Yahoo and Google. Michele Norris talks with Spencer Reiss, contributing editor at Wired magazine. Reiss, who recently profiled the site and its owner, Rupert Murdoch, for the magazine, will talk with us about the rise of MySpace and whether it can sustain such rapid growth.
• EU Fines Microsoft for Violating Anti-Trust Ruling
  The European Union fines Microsoft more than $350 million for defying a 2004 antitrust ruling. The EU warned the company it could face even bigger penalties from the start of August. European regulators want the software giant to provide technical information to rivals after it found Microsoft abused the dominance of its Windows operating system.
• Gertrude Bell, a Masterful Spy and Diplomat
  The extraordinary British diplomat and spy Gertrude Bell was buried 80 years ago today. After World War I, she was almost single-handedly responsible for the founding of modern Iraq, where her grave is still located.
• U.S. Suggests Geneva Accord May Cover CIA Detainees
  Lawyers both in and outside the Bush administration are debating how prisoners held by the CIA may be affected by this week's policy shift on detainees. The White House on Wednesday suggested that the Geneva Conventions will probably apply to those in the custody of intelligence agencies.
• Pentagon to Change Bid Process for Iraq Contracts
  The Pentagon says it will change the way it lets companies bid on multi-billion-dollar contracts for logistical support for troops in Iraq. Under the plan, Halliburton will no longer be the exclusive holder of the contracts. The Pentagon says the changes should save the taxpayers money.
• Israeli Army Enters Lebanon After Soldiers Taken
  Israel bombs Lebanese bridges and sends troops north into a region it occupied for more than 20 years, in response to the Hezbollah's capture of two Israeli soldiers. Just 10 miles south of Beirut, Israeli planes attacked a center Israel identified as a guerrilla base.
• Rice, Key Counterparts Return Iran Issue to U.N.
  Foreign ministers from the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany agree to refer Iran to the council for possible punishment. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her colleagues said Iran is not serious in negotiations to end its nuclear-enrichment program.
• Asian Carp: Can't Beat Them? Eat Them
  Asian carp, an invasive species, are making their way up the Mississippi River and its tributaries, edging out native fish along the way. Faced with dwindling supplies of their old catch, some commercial fishermen are shifting course: They're now cruising for carp.
• Homeland Security Asset Report Inflames Critics
  Homeland Security's inspector general criticizes a database of places designated by states as being vulnerable to terrorist attack. The list includes such apparently frivolous entries as an insect zoo and a popcorn factory. Indiana is listed as having 50 percent more critical assets than New York.
• Ralph Reed's Bumpy Road in Georgia
  Ralph Reed was once the golden boy of Christian conservative politics. Now, entangled in the Jack Abramoff mess, Reed is in a tough battle for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor of Georgia. From Georgia Public Radio, Susanna Capelouto reports.
• Rachmaninov's Refreshing 'All Night Vigil'
  Written around the time of World War One, Sergei Rachmaninov's "All Night Vigil" is an extraordinary choral music composition. A new recording of Rachmaninov's work from conductor Paul Hillier and The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir is out, and music critic Tom Manoff says it's magnificent.
• Judging the Trial of Saddam Hussein
  As the trial of Saddam Hussein nears its closing arguments, Melissa Block talks with New York University law professor Noah Feldman about whether the trial has met international legal standards.
• Fatal Fall Leads Boston to Survey Highway System
  The head of the agency overseeing Boston's Big Dig highway project orders a review of the entire highway system after investigators looking into this week's fatal collapse of concrete ceiling slabs found 60 more questionable areas inside the same tunnel.
• More Cubans Take an Island Route to U.S.
  An increasing number of Cubans are traveling legally to the Dominican Republic, then slipping onto a Puerto Rican island to gain entry to the United States. Once on Mona Island, they are free to enter the rest of the U.S. As resources have increased to block Cubans from coming to Florida, more have taken to this route. Melissa Block talks to Juan Monoz-Torres, press officer for the Customs & Border Protection Service.
• White House Revises Federal Grazing Rules
  The Bush administration announces new rules for grazing on federal land. The White House says this is an important step toward saving American ranches in the West. But conservationists say the changes will reduce protections for vast stretches of public land.

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