All Things Considered Weekend on NPR News

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Hosted by: Guy Raz

Since its debut in 1971, this afternoon radio newsmagazine has delivered in-depth reporting and transformed the way listeners understand current events and view the world. Heard by almost 13 million* people on nearly 700 radio stations each week, All Things Considered is one of the most popular programs in America. Guy Raz hosts a one-hour edition of the program on Saturday and Sunday.

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Around the Nation
1:45 pm
Tue September 11, 2012

Construction Still Slow At World Trade Center Site

Originally published on Tue September 11, 2012 6:57 pm

Transcript

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Melissa Block.

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

And I'm Audie Cornish.

Thousands gathered today at the World Trade Center site in New York. They marked the 11th anniversary of the September 11th terror attacks. Family members of the victims took turns reading the names of the nearly 3,000 people who died in New York, Washington and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Janice Marie Ashley.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Thomas J. Ashton.

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Economy
1:45 pm
Tue September 11, 2012

U.S. Treasury Cuts Stake In AIG With $18 Billion Sale

Originally published on Tue September 11, 2012 6:57 pm

Transcript

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Audie Cornish.

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

And I'm Melissa Block. The U.S. government made a big chunk of money in the stock market today. It sold more than 630 million shares in AIG, the American International Group. The government reluctantly acquired the shares when it injected billions of dollars into the insurance giant to keep it from collapsing. The Treasury Department says the government turned a $15.1 billion dollar profit on the deal. Here's NPR's John Ydstie.

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Books
12:46 pm
Tue September 11, 2012

'Breed': A Pseudonym To Pen A Tale Of Horror

Credit Wendy Ewald
Scott Spencer, writing for the first time under the pen name Chase Novak, is the best-selling author of Endless Love and A Ship Made of Paper.

Originally published on Tue September 11, 2012 6:57 pm

If you're a horror fan, you're probably familiar with the trope of the demon child — you know, the sweet little kid who undergoes a horrible transformation and terrorizes everyone in his or her path (or is just born evil, like Rosemary's titular baby).

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The Two-Way
10:16 am
Tue September 11, 2012

The Mysterious Case Of China's Disappearing Heir Apparent

Credit Xinhua, Li Tao / AP
Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping addresses the opening ceremony of the autumn semester of the Party School of the Communist Party of China in Beijing on Sept. 1.

Originally published on Fri September 14, 2012 8:21 pm

In the rarefied air of China's leadership circle, anything that strays from strict protocol becomes grist for the rumor mill.

So it is with the mysterious and sudden disappearance of Xi Jinping, the presumptive heir to President Hu Jintao.

Xi, 59, has inexplicably missed a series of important meetings with foreign dignitaries in the past week, including one with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Beijing. The last time anyone saw him in public was Sept. 1.

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National Security
8:51 am
Tue September 11, 2012

Question 21: A Matter Of National Security

Credit Chris Hondros / Getty Images
To get security clearance for jobs in the military or the government, applicants must say whether they've undergone counseling in recent years. Some experts say this question — known as Question 21 — is discouraging people from applying for jobs or from getting help.

Originally published on Tue September 11, 2012 6:57 pm

Jennifer Norris was a devoted member of the Maine National Guard.

"I was ecstatic. I absolutely loved serving in the military," she says.

Norris still wanted a career in the Guard even after she was sexually assaulted by other members of the military. After she was raped, she says she got psychological counseling.

But then it came time to renew the security clearance she needed for her job as a satellite communications technician. One question on the form — Question 21 — asked whether she'd sought help from a mental health professional over the past seven years.

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The Salt
5:33 am
Tue September 11, 2012

Why Heavy Teens May Eat Less But Weigh More Than Their Thinner Peers

Credit Robert Brown / iStockphoto.com
Overweight teens tend to eat fewer calories than their healthy-weight peers. So why do they weigh more? A drop-off in exercise in the tween years may be one reason.

Originally published on Wed September 19, 2012 1:08 pm

It may be more important than we thought to tackle obesity in childhood. A new study published in Pediatrics finds that overweight teenagers eat fewer calories than their healthy weight peers.

That's right — they eat less.

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U.S.
3:26 pm
Mon September 10, 2012

Army Aims To Use Words, Not Weapons, With Afghans

Originally published on Mon September 10, 2012 3:53 pm

The U.S. Army has been ramping up instruction in the languages of Afghanistan, even as troop levels in the country decrease in preparation for the U.S. troop withdrawal in 2014.

This year, key installations have added several hundred speakers of Pashto and Dari to their ranks, more than doubling the number of soldiers trained in the Afghan languages.

But it's not just the country's languages that are foreign to U.S. soldiers — it's the culture, as well.

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Shots - Health Blog
2:37 pm
Mon September 10, 2012

Mitt Romney's Shifting Stance On Health Care

Credit Charles Dharapak / AP
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney talks about the Supreme Court's health care ruling near the U.S. Capitol in Washington in late June.

Originally published on Mon September 10, 2012 3:26 pm

Mitt Romney seemed to make health care news in a Sunday interview on NBC's Meet the Press.

He said he might not want to repeal all of the Affordable Care Act.

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All Tech Considered
2:10 pm
Mon September 10, 2012

What Will Apple's Patent Case Mean For Phone Design?

Originally published on Mon September 10, 2012 3:52 pm

A lot of thought goes into giving your smartphone a distinctive look and feel, from the shape of the speaker — square, round or oval — to where to put the buttons — side, front or back.

But industrial designers like Robert Brunner say he doesn't have a lot of room to be creative.

"Because you're really being so heavily driven on maintaining a minimal physical size," he says. "So you really get into this very fine envelope of a few millimeters that you have to work with."

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Asia
2:05 pm
Mon September 10, 2012

Candidates Criticize China; Presidents Show Caution

Originally published on Mon September 10, 2012 3:26 pm

It has become a staple of U.S. presidential campaigns: Candidates talk about getting tough with China, only to adopt much more moderate positions once they are in office.

When Ronald Reagan ran against President Jimmy Carter in 1980, the challenger often blasted the incumbent for, in his words, "abandoning" Taiwan to establish diplomatic relations with China.

"There will be no more abandonment of friends and allies by the United States of America and I want very much to send that message," Reagan said.

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