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NPR's David Molpus reports on a recent study that looks at the global diversity practices of U.S.-based multinational companies. The study suggests that while companies are becoming more sensitive to diversity issues, they must walk a fine line between American practices and local customs.

Poet Minton Sparks comes from a long line of strong Southern women. She praises them in her latest CD, Middlin' Sisters, and talks with host Lisa Simeone about what it was like growing up with women who had to hold their families together.

Commentator David Levin says that if there's one clear winner of our current economy, a silver lining in this dark cloud of corporate gloom, it's the word "brand." Everything is branded -- and the hipness of a brand is a great distraction from the layoffs and quarterly earnings reports of the actual company.

Homeland security warriors at the Pentagon and the CIA say the next terrorist attack may be prevented by investing in data-mining -- the science of finding patterns in colossal amounts of information. Companies are lining up to supply the government with the equipment to process the raw data. NPR's Larry Abramson reports.

Our commentator says that having one's own fashion line seems to be de rigeur for celebrities lately. But he doesn't plan to buy from any celebrities-turned-garment moguls anytime soon. Rosecrans Baldwin is co-editor and publisher of the MorningNews.org.

For many states, after school programs have proven to be a successful way to help poor and minority kids stay out of trouble, and learn. But cuts in state budgets mean cuts in education, and these programs are first in line for reduction. NPR's Nancy Solomon reports from Newark.

Musician Ralph Towner performs in NPR's Studio 4A. His career spans more than 30 years, from the Paul Winter Consort to the group Oregon. Today he remains a prolific solo artist on the acoustic guitar, with a new CD: Time Line.

Did William White break baseball's color line, 68 years before Jackie Robinson? NPR's Robert Siegel talks with The Wall Street Journal sportswriter Stefan Fatsis about White, who may have played one major-league game in 1879.

The Lodger's "Kicking Sand" works with well-worn ingredients (memorable guitar hooks, a thumping bass line) without adhering to a single sound or era: Siddall's sweet voice even calls to mind Peter Noone from Herman's Hermits. The result begs to be played to excess.

The Brooklyn-based band Yeasayer describes its sound as "Middle Eastern-Psych-Pop-Snap-Gospel." It's already been labeled the latest in a line of indie acts working in the long shadow cast by the highly influential collaboration between Brian Eno and David Byrne.

"Subtractions" builds a mountain of instrumentation while still leaving space for vocals. The multi-tracked voices "ba-ba" and "da-da" their way through distorted guitar leads and warm xylophones, and as the looping continues, synths, saxophones and a plethora of drums trade places at the front lines.

The Senate begins what could be a lengthy debate on Judge Samuel Alito's nomination to the Supreme Court. Discussions have already become as politically polarized as Tuesday's party-line Judiciary Committee vote on the nominee. Still, Senate Democrats seem unlikely to stop him with a filibuster.

The Big Three automakers have presented their plans to Congress for how they will restructure themselves to make them worthy of a congressional bailout. Ford says it wants a $9 billion standby line of credit; GM has sought $12 billion. Chrysler is expected to ask for $7 billion.

NPR and the Kitchen Sisters are looking for stories from around the world of the hidden lives of girls — and the women they become. Stories of coming of age, rituals and rites of passage, secret identities — of women who crossed a line, blazed a trail or changed the tide. Share your stories with us.

The Senate has approved a measure that would prohibit taking a minor across state lines to have an abortion without informing her parents. The 65-34 vote is the first time the Senate has approved such a bill -- many states already have laws covering such cases.

On June 11, 1963, Gov. George Wallace stood at the University of Alabama to block two black students attempting to cross the color line and register for classes. The event forever associated him with segregation. His daughter, Peggy Wallace Kennedy, 63, is trying to shake that link.

Cold War Kids' second album, Loyalty to Loyalty, is based on the work of a little-known philosopher named Josiah Royce, who challenged Nietzsche's positions in the early 1900s. The art-pop band straddles the line between both philosophies in atypical rock fashion.

President Obama continues Thursday to try to heave his health care plan over the finish line, meeting with moderate Democrats, most of whom are seen as skeptical of his overhaul effort. Seventeen senators will talk to Obama about the blueprint he laid out Wednesday.

The volatile Mexican border town of Nuevo Laredo has been on the front line of a vicious gang war. The newly appointed police chief, whose job it is to clean up the mess -- including corruption inside the police force itself -- is a former highway patrolman with an unorthodox approach.

Reedman Paquito D'Rivera called him "the most beloved jazz musician in the world." Naturally, a lot of fellow musicians are lining up to pay tribute to the man during a jazz festival named in Moody's honor. Here's a chance to explore their connections to the great saxophonist.