NPR Topics: Story of the Day Podcast

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is stepping up pressure on the Obama administration to draw clear red lines when it comes to Iran's nuclear program. But Israeli and U.S. observers say the issue has become too public.

Neither President Obama nor Mitt Romney seems to be winning the hearts of blue-collar voters in this part of the state. Economically, says one analyst, many residents here should be voting Democratic; but their social conservatism clouds the picture.

The government says that the poverty rate for 2011 was 15 percent, essentially unchanged from the year before. That still means that more than 46 million people lived below the poverty line last year. According to one economist, "the bad news isn't as bad as it has been."

In Detroit, the predominantly black city and predominantly white suburbs have feuded for decades over finances and control of assets. A recent suburban vote to help a city institution offers hope for better cooperation. But old tensions are still roiling over a proposal to put a beloved city park under state oversight.

The West Los Angeles VA Medical Center is a nearly 400-acre campus whose onetime sole purpose was to house veterans, but some say it has lost sight of that mission. The Department of Veterans Affairs has been renting chunks of the land, mostly to enterprises that have nothing to do with helping veterans.

Paul Ryan gained national attention and praise from conservatives with bold proposals to cut the deficit and balance the budget. But critics say the Republican vice presidential nominee's talk doesn't match his record. To others, he is more a small-government conservative than a deficit hawk.

In a scene dominated by party music, Kenya's most popular band has created its own sound, and in the process sent a grown-up message to the country's young people.

Navy Lt. Brad Snyder lost his sight to an explosion in Afghanistan exactly one year ago. On the anniversary Friday, he won the 400-meter freestyle at the Paralympics in London, capturing his second gold medal.

Lincoln Center and the Brooklyn Academy of Music recently opened new, smaller theater spaces designed by architect Hugh Hardy. There, new works can be performed without the financial pressure of filling a large theater — and with cheaper tickets, they can attract the younger generation, too.

Subscription-based business models are nothing new. But right now, e-commerce subscriptions are exploding. And in some cases, companies that make a unique pitch about their product line can win customers away from large retailers like Amazon.

Even though organic food has less pesticide residue, a new review of several recent studies finds scant evidence that it has more nutrients or fewer risky bacteria than conventionally grown food. But researchers note that organic agriculture can bring environmental benefits.

Our capacity to forget is as important, and certainly as interesting, as our ability to remember. But can we train ourselves to suppress certain memories, or the meaning we attach to life events?

City Academy in St. Paul, Minn., became the nation's first charter school in 1992. Its founders were convinced troubled students would thrive in a small school with rigorous instruction and caring teachers. The school inspired similar projects nationwide, and now there are 5,600 schools in 41 states.

The actor was born in 1937 to a Japanese-American family that, after Pearl Harbor, was sent to live in internment camps for the duration of World War II. His experience growing up in the camps inspired a new musical, Allegiance, which Takei also stars in.

Michigan officials and pig farmers are locked in an escalating debate over new rules that make wild boars illegal in the state. The state maintains that the animals can destroy natural ecosystems, but some farmers say that the rules will destroy their livelihoods.