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Linda talks with two experts about the legal and moral issues involved with undercover reporting. They discuss when undercover journalism is necessary, and what it really accomplishes. The question of when "getting the story" crosses the line from legitimate factfinding and journalism into deception has come into sharp focus, with the punitive damages award handed down today in a trial which pitted the ABC network against the Food Lion supermarket chain.

NPR's Michael Goldfarb reports from London on the most recent campaign by the Irish Republican Army against the government of the United Kingdom. This campaign uses the threat of a bomb to upset life in Britain. Over the past two weeks there have been small bomb explosions on railroad lines, threats against railroads and highways. Most recently a phoned-in threat stopped the running of the historic Grand National steeplechase horse race.

Noah Adams speaks with Griff Hubbard, a fifth generation railroad man. He is the station agent for Amtrak in Longview, Texas. Amtrak has announced plans to end service on several lines, including the passenger train that goes through Longview once a day, six days a week.Mr. Hubbard maintains that many people still rely on trains for long distance travel...people for whom autos or planes are not practical.

Linda speaks with White House Correspondent Mara Liasson about the coming year for the White House...she says the President will not be seeking to pass huge legislative packages (like health care..) as he did in his first administration--and he faces many investigations into everything from Whitewater to campaign finance--but one new tool he will have in his second term will be the line item veto.

Disaster relief workers, homeowners and businesses struggle to recover from Hurricane Isabel in several states as utility companies gradually restore power to millions. The storm renews questions about why more power lines aren't buried underground and about alternative ways to provide power in emergencies. Hear reports from Jessica Jones of member station WUNC, NPR's Liane Hansen and NPR's Greg Allen.

A probe into the largest electrical outage in U.S. history focuses on an area in northern Ohio, where an investigator says three transmission lines failed just before the blackout. In New York City, power has been restored to most areas. But grid overseers warn of more rolling blackouts as a new work week begins. Hear NPR's Jennifer Ludden, NPR's Scott Horsley and NPR's Mike Pesca.

Now that U.S. forces have engaged the Iraqi Republican Guard south of Baghdad, American artillery will play an increasingly important role. The big 155 mm howitzers line up several miles behind the front to support the forward infantry. For the gun crews, it's often a lonely, thankless job, but they draw satisfaction from their gun's reputation as the "king of battle". NPR's John Burnett reports from central Iraq.

Silent film star Buster Keaton is always seen more than he is heard. But through our Quest for Sound phone line and listener Bob Borgen, we hear Keaton sing at a party. Also, NPR film critic Bob Mondello takes us back to the days of silent films and reminds us that there was a time when we weren't supposed to hear anything in the movies. July 30, 1999

Robert talks with Naomi Goodin, a line worker at the Saturn Corporation in Tennessee, about Saturn's unique management structure. Although no Saturn cars were produced during the General Motors brake parts strike, Saturn workers remained on the job to do training, team development and other workshops. Saturn workers are organized in "teams," within which jobs are rotated. Goodin is a team leader whose team puts doors on Saturn automobiles.

Bob Garfield, co-host of NPR's On the Media reports on permission specialists -- the people who get the suspects in the "cops" type shows to sign on the dotted line to allow their stories and images to be used in these "reality shows." There are lots of reasons why few suspects hesitate to sign -- some hope it will help their case, some just want that 20 seconds of fame before being put away for 20 years, and some, they say, are just stupid.

In a straight party line vote the Senate Banking Committee today approved a measure to indefinitely extend the Whitewater committee. NPR'S Jon Greenberg reports Democrats argued that the further into this election year the committee hearings go, the greater the appearance of political motives. In vain, Democrats also appealed to Republicans' sense of history and fairness by pointing out that when Republicans asked for an early end date on the Iran/Contra investigation, Democrats agreed. Today, though, Republicans said too many questions remain and too many witnesses are unavailable until the conclusion of the McDougal-Tucker trial by the Independent Counsel.

Scott Horsley reports negotiators for Bell Atlantic -- now known as Verizon are meeting with union leaders in Washington this week trying to resolve a contract dispute. A third of its workers, including telephone operators, line technicians, and clerical workers, are involved. The company says it has submitted a new contract offer, with a strike deadline looming tomorrow night. A strike could disrupt service for millions of customers in eastern states. In addition to the usual issues of wages and pensions, unionized workers are demanding a larger role in the company's fast-growing wireless and internet access divisions.

NPR's Pam Fessler reports on a bid by minority groups for the Census Bureau to release both the official 2000 census and the figures that include estimates of people the census takers missed. The bureau intends to release both numbers, but the incoming Bush administration could block release of the data compiled with statistical sampling techniques. Positions on the issue have typically broken along partisan lines, with Democrats supporting the enhanced figures. Republicans tend to say "sampling" adds population to Democratic-leaning areas. GOP members also say the basic headcount is more in keeping with the founders' intent for the census.

In the final installment in our series on California's Central Valley, NPR's Richard Gonzales reports that working conditions for farm workers have not improved much in the last 50 years. Half of the valley's farm laborers are illegal immigrants, and they work for farm labor contractors and growers who take advantage of their illegal status. The system creates vague lines of responsibility for how and whether workers are paid and who is responsible if someone gets hurt. Ultimately it creates an underclass of low-skilled workers who -- unlike immigrants in the past -- have little chance to improve their lives.

What if the notion that the world's people can be divided biologically along racial lines was proven to be a myth -- a social construct that has no basis in science? A three-part PBS documentary series, Race: The Power of an Illusion, tackles the thorny issue of race, biology and how the legacy of racial preferences still permeate U.S. society, 40 years after the Civil Rights Act. All Things Considered host Michele Norris reports.

Osage oranges, also known as hedge balls or monkey brains, fall from hedge shrubs that line many Iowa farms. They've been a problem because cattle can easily choke on them. But they've become valuable since Todd Johnson, a southern Iowa chemist, started paying $180 per ton — more than what many farmers are getting for their corn this fall. He promises it's not a prank.

Those ticker tape parades are getting to be routine for the New York Yankees. Kerry Nolan of member station WNYC reports that thousands of New Yorkers lined Broadway's Canyon of Heroes to cheer on the Yankees, who have won four of the past five World Series. Yankee fans considered this year's triumph especially sweet, because it came over the cross-town rival Mets, and because the team had been playing poorly at the end of the season.

President Clinton met with members of the Republican leadership today to discuss balancing the budget. The White House said the President was pleased with the meeting, but House Speaker Newt Gingrich indicated it was unlikely both sides could agree before the election on a long-term plan to balance the budget. Instead, the Republicans sais their legislative agenda will be to fund the government for the rest of the year, and pass a farm bill and a scaled-down line-item veto. NPR's Brian Naylor reports.

Commentator Frederica Matthewes-Green (fred-REE-kah MATH-yooz GREEN) works at home, but she misses the office -- the daily flow of human interaction among colleagues. So she has joined an on-line group where they regularly enjoy jokes, recipes, memories, and dreams: the skin contact of cyberspace. It isn't like sharing stories with a buddy over the coffeemaker, she says, But it's not like sitting in rush hour traffic, either.

NPR's Brian Naylor reports on the flurry of activity on capitol hill this week. Congress passed a number of bills -- including legislation to raise the debt ceiling, a line-item veto, and an overhaul of the farm bill . But lawmakers also got bogged down in some partisan fights, including a move by democrats to try to increase the minimum wage. That feuding is seen as a sign of trouble to come for the rest of the year, as democrats try to stymie the legislative efforts of presumptive gop presidential nominee Bob Dole.