Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Sun Country now controlled by Petters Group
  Mendota Heights-based Petters Group Worldwide now owns more than 80 percent of Sun Country Airlines. Petters bought out co-owners Whitebox Advisors, a Minneapolis-based hedge fund, on Friday and is now solely responsible for Sun Country's operations.4:45 p.m.
• Pawlenty announces foreclosure aid
  Saying the subprime mortgage crisis is a major problem in Minnesota, Gov. Tim Pawlenty has announced more state money to help people who are facing foreclosure.5:19 p.m.
• Hundreds of students skip class to protest Iraq war
  The protesters called for the immediate return of the troops, a diversion of funds from the war effort to education and an end to military recruiting in high schools.5:49 p.m.
• U of M students present child abduction case to president of South Sudan
  A group of University of Minnesota students campaigning for the release of two kidnapped children in Sudan scored a major victory recently, when they were able to meet with the president of Southern Sudan.5:53 p.m.
• Stunned by turnout, organizers cancel e-waste effort
  Thousands of cars jammed the streets around the Mall of America, extending to the I-494 ramps, as consumers rushed to rid their homes of stockpiled electronics.5:56 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Herb Alpert Donates $30 Million for School of Music
  The University of California in Los Angeles announced the formation of the Herb Alpert School of Music on Friday. Alpert, the Latin crossover giant who headed up the Tijuana Brass and co-founded the A&M label, donated some $30 million to the school.
• FCC Chief Aims to Relax Cross-Ownership Rules
  This week, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin formally announced plans to relax media ownership rules by allowing newspapers in the top 20 markets to also own a TV or radio station in the same market. That's something that has been barred for more than 30 years.
• Afghan 'Kite Runner' Actors Say They Were Misled
  Concern is growing about the safety of four Afghan child stars of a movie called Kite Runner, due for release next month. The boys and their families are increasingly frustrated with the filmmakers and say if they had it to do over again, they would not have been in the film.
• U.S. Hopes for Power Sharing in Pakistan Fade
  Pakistan's President Gen. Pervez Musharraf swore in a caretaker government Friday to run the country until elections take place in January. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte is visiting to try to convince Musharraf to end the state of emergency, free political prisoners and resign as army chief of staff.
• Doomed Nuclear Worker Steals Weapons in 'PU239'
  PU239, which premieres Nov. 17 on HBO, is a film about a nuclear plant worker in post-Soviet Russia who gets a lethal dose of radiation. With days to live, he decides to steal some weapons-grade plutonium to sell, to provide financial security for his wife and son.
• Britons Bank on Scents to Boost Junk Mail's Appeal
  Britain's Royal Mail teams with an advertising agency to revive old-fashioned junk mail with a new twist: aromas as a branding tool. New envelope technology paired with the idea that just the right scent can speak louder than words is being used starting this month.
• Court Rejects SUV Fuel-Efficiency Loophole
  A federal appeals court has rejected the Bush administration's fuel economy standard for light pickups, vans and SUVs and ordered the government to come up with a new, tougher one. Automakers say any change now would be disruptive.
• Senate Gridlock Snares War Funding, Farm Bill
  Before leaving town for two weeks, the Senate failed to move forward on an Iraq war funding measure including a timeline for troop withdrawal. Gridlock also prevailed on the farm bill and other measures.
• Starbucks Dismisses 'Saturation' Warnings
  Starbucks released its quarterly earnings report Thursday: Profits were up again. The stock price fell, though, because of a small decline in customer traffic in U.S. stores. The company will press ahead with plans to open 1,600 new stores next year.
• Protesters Demand Hate-Crime Prosecution
  Marchers flooded the nation's capital Friday, protesting what they believe to be the Justice Department's unwillingness to prosecute hate crimes. Leading the rally were the Rev. Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III.
• U.N. Special Envoy Returns from Myanmar
  The U.N. Special Envoy to Myanmar Ibrahim Gambari recently returned from the country. He speaks with Michele Norris about the state of the country and what details have emerged about the junta's crackdown on demonstrators.
• California Oil Spill Could Affect Migrating Birds
  One of the lingering effects of the San Francisco Bay oil spill is the continuing death of wild birds and other sea life. So far, more than 1,500 dead or oily birds have been recovered. Environmentalists say that number could grow tenfold as migrating birds flock to the area.
• Barry Bonds Update
  Barry Bonds is charged with perjury and obstruction of justice in the Bay Area Laboratory Cooperative case. Larry Williams, who helped break the BALCO story three years ago, talks about the grand jury indictment.
• New Kerner Commission Starts Poverty, Race Tour
  A reconstituted Kerner Commission launches a six-city nationwide tour to examine contemporary poverty and race issues. After the race riots in 1967, the original Kerner Commission concluded that the nation was "moving toward two societies, one black, one white, separate and unequal."
• Ruling on Child Sex Abuse Revives Stalled Cases
  Last year, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that the statute of limitations on childhood sexual abuse cases should be based on when the victim realized he or she was hurt, rather than a set time after the incident. Now dozens of long-stalled priest sexual abuse cases are moving ahead in the state.

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