Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Pilots of wayward flight identified
  The Metropolitan Airports Commission has identified the two Northwest pilots who overflew the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport by 150 miles Wednesday evening.5:45 p.m.
• News Cut's Bob Collins talks about the Northwest Airlines pilots
  News Cut's Bob Collins talks more about the Northwest Airlines situation and the larger implications.5:49 p.m.
• In The Loop: "From the Cockpit"
  MPR's "In The Loop" podcast offers its satirical take on what might have happened in the NWA flight 188 cockpit.6:25 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Obama In Campaign Mode To Boost Party, Agenda
  Since taking office, President Obama had kept a relatively low profile on the campaign trail — until recently. In the past week, he has raised money for the party, stumped for candidates and rallied his army of volunteers.
• A Brain Battered By Football
  The years of hard hits have left former NFL player George Visger with severe memory loss. His doctors warn his brain problems could get worse quickly. While he struggles with his short-term memory, his days as a star high school lineman are vivid and special.
• Gibbard And Farrar Take On Kerouac's 'Big Sur'
  An unlikely pair has come together to interpret the words and atmosphere of Jack Kerouac's autobiographical novel. Benjamin Gibbard (of Death Cab for Cutie) and Jay Farrar (of Son Volt and Uncle Tupelo) have both found inspiration in Kerouac's prose, creating a song cycle with country tinges.
• Famous Faces, Look-Alike Stars: The Biopic Dilemma
  As your parents no doubt told you, looks aren't everything. But when a film bio focuses on famous faces — as with the new drama Amelia — it can help to have an actor who looks the part. Even apt casting and accurate costumes can't save a bad story, though; critic Bob Mondello surveys some recent hits and misses.
• Governors Races In N.J., Va., Examined
  Much is at stake for Democrats and Republicans in governors races in New Jersey and Virginia. Polls are suggesting a significant drop in the expected black voter turnout, pivotal for Democrats in both states. The two races could set the stage for the 2010 midterm elections. Cynthia Tucker, of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, and David Brooks, of The New York Times, offer their insight.
• Remembering Soupy Sales
  Comedian Soupy Sales died Thursday in Bronx, N.Y., at age 83. Sales is best known as the host of the 1960s' kids' TV program, The Soupy Sales Show. The comedian married slapstick and double-entendre, making him popular with both children and adults.
• Officials Probe If Northwest Pilots Were Asleep
  Federal officials are investigating why two Northwest Airlines-Delta pilots overshot the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport this week, on a flight from San Diego. Controllers lost contact with the pilots during the flight. The pilots say they missed the airport because they were in a heated argument, but there are also questions of whether they might have fallen asleep.
• Stranded Alaska Island Seeks Flights
  The 114 people who live on the Alaskan island of Little Diomede in the Bering Sea have been cut off from passenger air service — and basic health care on the mainland — for more than three months. The usual twin-engine helicopter has been out of service since July. City Clerk Jamie Ahkinga, a Native Village of Diomede Tribal Council member, says the entire community is frustrated.
• Portland, Ore., Grocer Sells In An 'Alternate Universe'
  New Seasons, a nine-store grocery chain in Portland, Ore., emphasizes locally grown, organic and sustainable meats and produce. But it also stocks its shelves with Doritos, Skippy peanut butter and Diet Coke. "We are not the food police," says founder Brian Rohter.
• Week In Sports Reviewed
  Sportswriter Stefan Fatsis discusses the recent spate of bad officiating in the Major League Baseball Playoffs. Are the bad calls the result of better, faster players or worse umpires? Will instant replay become more of a factor in professional sports?

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