KERA News

Rawlings And Price Team Up To Take Texas Twin Cities Global

Courtney Collins — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:02:24 +0000

Five stories that have North Texas talking: DFW mayors touch down after international development mission, the journalism community loses one of its best far too soon, snakes as carry-on luggage and more.

IRS Staffer: "What I Did Was Not Targeting"

Tamara Keith — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:34:00 +0000

Another interview with a key IRS employee, another oblique connection to Washington, D.C. and yet still no explosive revelations in the scandal surrounding the agency's targeting of Tea Party groups.

That, it seems, was precisely the point of Rep.

In Germany, Obama Defends NSA Surveillance Programs

Eyder Peralta — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:13:00 +0000

President Obama defended the National Security Agency's surveillance programs today during a joint news conference in Germany with Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Obama said that when he came into office, he came in with a "healthy skepticism" about the programs and ordered his administration to "examine" and "scrub" them.

Obama said he is now "confident that at this point, we have struck the right balance" between protecting the country and the Constitutional guarant

In Brazil, Protests Continue As Some Cities Cut Bus Fares

Eyder Peralta — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 12:49:00 +0000

For a second night in a row, tens of thousands of Brazilians took the streets on Tuesday to protest everything from the cost of living to government corruption.

The AP reports:

"More than 50,000 people massed in front of the city's main cathedral.

Book News: Kim Jong Un Reportedly Gave 'Mein Kampf' As Gifts

editor — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:58:00 +0000

The daily lowdown on books, publishing, and the occasional author behaving badly.

Kim Jong Un gave top officials in North Korea copies of Adolf Hitler's autobiography, Mein Kampf, as gifts on his birthday last January, according to a report in New Focus International, a newspaper written largely by North Korean defectors. It seems the book was intended to promote a study of Hitler's economic reforms, and was not necessarily meant as an endorsement of Nazism.

This Juneteenth, A Newly Uncovered Poem On Slavery, By A Slave

Lauren Silverman — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:40:00 +0000

There’s a brand new poem to add to Juneteenth celebrations this year. It’s a previously unknown work by the country’s first published black writer, Jupiter Hammon. UT Arlington grad student Julie McCown, uncovered the handwritten poem while looking for a specific piece of Hammon’s work. The piece, called “An Essay on Slavery," was buried in documents at the Manuscripts and Archives at Yale University Library in Connecticut.

Heat, Spurs Headed To Game 7 After Stunning Game 6

Eyder Peralta — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:12:00 +0000

We'll let LeBron James do the talking. He said about the sixth game of the NBA finals between the Heat and Spurs:

"It's by far the best game I've ever been a part of."

And it certainly was a stunner: The Heat's Ray Allen hit a three-pointer with just 5.2 seconds on the clock to tie the game, denying the Spurs of their fifth NBA title. The game went into overtime and remained airtight, but eventually the Heat prevailed 103 to 100.

ESPN has highlights:

Game 7 is in Miami at 9 p.m. ET.

Just Washed Your Car? Try Speeding To Dry It

editor — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:09:00 +0000

Police in Canada say a man was driving 112 MPH on a highway south of Black Diamond, Alberta. In court, the man explained that he had just washed his car, and was simply speeding in order to dry it off.

Banner Misspells College World Series

editor — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:04:00 +0000

A huge banner over the third-base dugout spelled the name of the tournament incorrectly — college had three Ls. Organizers of the tournament were embarrassed — especially because they had to hold off on fixing the problem until there was a break in play.

Taliban Attack Kills 4 Coalition Soldiers; Afghan Govt. Suspends Talks

Eyder Peralta — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 10:48:00 +0000

In the hours following an announcement by the Taliban and the United States saying they were ready to begin peace talks, we received reminders of just how tenuous that situation is: On Tuesday night the Taliban said they fired two rockets near Bagram airbase in Kabul.