Search results for

Consumer confidence tumbled in December, the third straight month it has fallen. The decline in the closely watched Conference Board index is another indication that the economy has cooled and that consumer spending, which accounts for about two-thirds of the nation's economic activity, is slowing. NPR's Snigdha Prakash reports.

The U.S. Senate begins debate on changes to consumer bankruptcy laws. Business groups started trying eight years ago to put new restrictions on bankruptcy filings by consumers. The number of filings was soaring at the time. More recently, they've declined, but the plan remains a Republican priority.

Fish farming, or aquaculture, is becoming more prevalent as populations of wild fish decline and the world's appetite for seafood keeps increasing. The growth of the industry has left some commercial fishermen wondering if they'll suffer the same fate as small family farmers. NPR's Chris Arnold reports.

President Bush reportedly plans to endorse an investigation into intelligence failures regarding Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. The president previously declined to endorse calls by former chief U.S. weapons inspector David Kay for an independent inquiry. Hear NPR's Bob Edwards and NPR's Don Gonyea.

Rock concert posters produced some of the most iconic art of the '60s. Then came a period of decline. But an explosion of indie bands producing their own CDs has revived the genre. Producer Scott Carrier of the Hearing Voices radio project offers a review of the book Art of Modern Rock.

Clever but not cloying, "Top of the Bottom" documents a pop singer's rise, rapid decline and resurrection to a more mundane new beginning. Harding tells a funny and gripping story about the margins of pop music, while providing a surprisingly convincing look at how and where dreams of stardom often end.

Suicide killed more U.S. troops last year than combat in Afghanistan, a trend that's likely to continue this year. The causes and remedies are complicated, but Fort Bliss in Texas has bucked the trend. Suicides have declined there, after implementation of an interactive suicide prevention program.

President Obama outlines his strategy for Afghanistan at a speech at West Point on Tuesday. Obama will likely face a skeptical audience; support for the war is in decline. Ambassador Wendy Sherman, special adviser to President Clinton, and Michael Gerson, chief speechwriter to President George W. Bush, offer their insight.

U.S. stocks have fallen again on further concerns that the credit crisis has gone global. At one stage, the Dow dropped almost 800 points before recovering later. The Dow declined 3 percent and the S&P 500 was down more than 3 percent.

Involvement in bowling leagues, bridge clubs, and other participatory groups has declined considerably in recent decades, but community choruses have bucked the trend. Commentator Michelle Mercer has noticed the connection between singing and happiness, as she shares in this postcard from her gleeful local chorus.

Sesame Street has been around for almost 40 years and airs in 120 countries. A new CD, Sesame Street Playground, features songs and Muppets from Sesame Streets around the world. Big Bird and South Africa's Zikwe join host Scott Simon to talk about the album.

Archaeologists believe they may have identified the first people in the Western Hemisphere who knew how to write. The Olmec people, who lived in what is now southern Mexico, left behind the carving of a single bird that researchers say may be a clue to an entire language. NPR's Eric Niiler reports.

Led by bird scientist Jonathan Meiburg, who performs double-duty in the alt-folk band Okkervil River, Shearwater finds inspiration both in nature and in albums by Brian Eno and Talk Talk. A two-headed monster, Shearwater is part sorrowful folk ensemble, part noisier Americana outfit.

The L.A. rock quartet, the Deadly Syndrome, has been playing sold out shows and creating a good amount of buzz with their hilarious series of online videos used to promote the new album. Titled after a small bird, the Deadly Syndrome's 'The Ortolan' is a solid art-pop record.

The itinerant troubadour, composer and performer of "Suzanne," "Sisters of Mercy" and "Bird on a Wire" has a growl of a singing voice that seems to simmer and grumble up through the chords, almost like an earthquake. His new album, I'm Your Man, has already sold a quarter of a million copies in Europe.

The birds are singing, the flowers are blooming and May Day is soon upon us. But somehow Jim Nayder, the Annoying Music Man, finds a way to spoil the beauty of it all. On Weekend Edition Saturday, Nayder shares some terrible recordings he considers appropriate for May Day with NPR's Linda Wertheimer.

NPR's Jackie Northam reports a declining population has caused the state of Iowa to try to lure new workers. Many of the newcomers are from other countries, and the state has started to plan programs to deal with their needs. The immigrants are bringing new cultures to Iowa. Some people are unhappy about the changes.

A sharp drop in share prices sent Wall Street to its worst week since last August. Joel Naroff, chief economist for Commerce Bank, tells Jennifer Ludden the decline has been under way for months, and in part reflects investors' concerns about high oil prices.

The International Atomic Energy Agency warns North Korea to reconsider its decision last week to expel arms inspectors and restart its nuclear weapons program. But the IAEA's board of governors declines to refer the matter immediately to the U.N. Security Council for action. NPR's Mike Shuster reports.

A day after he handed his resignation to President Bush, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says the war in Iraq wasn't going as well as had been planned, echoing President Bush's appraisal about recent progress in the conflict. Rumsfeld declined to give himself a performance grade.