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Can the President Be Indicted? Yes, But Not By Who You Think

Prof. Tom Ginsburg examines legality of indicting President Trump




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Tusks, Horns, and Claws: The Fight to Dismantle the Facebook Animal Parts Bazaar

Prof. M. Todd Henderson discusses liabilities for hosting criminal content




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Meredith Monk lifts up the emotional power of voice

In performance at the Walker, the singer-dancer-composer will explore the 'mystery and beauty' of the original primal instrument.




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On Barbra Streisand's latest album, the walls do talk -- to the president

With her latest release, Barbra Streisand has done something different: Her new album, Walls, addresses songs -- including some of her own originals -- to the president of the United States.




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Ensemble 'gives a voice' to Nazi death camp prisoners through unearthed music

While conducting research at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, a music theory professor discovered manuscripts of music that haven't been heard since World War II.




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Friends in high places: Dayton asks Garth Brooks for another show, Brooks says 'I'm in'

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton on Friday called on Garth Brooks to add another Minneapolis show to his upcoming stadium tour — and it sounds like the country music star is on board with the idea.




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Rosanne Cash on the importance of living out loud

Rosanne Cash's latest album, "She Remembers Everything," cuts a path through gun violence, sexism and the relentless march of time. "There's no point in hedging my bets about what I write about anymore," she says.




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Dom Flemons presents a new image of the American cowboy

The singer-songwriter's latest album, "Black Cowboys," chronicles the role played by African-Americans in settling the West after the Civil War. The album has been nominated for a Grammy.




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'Baby Shark' has crashed into the pop charts. How did it get there?

The uber-viral children's song "Baby Shark" landed in the top 40 of the Billboard charts this week, years after it debuted on YouTube.




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For many with disabilities, 'Let It Go' is an anthem of acceptance

The breakout song from Disney's "Frozen" has inspired many marginalized groups -- but its message of rejecting stigma holds special resonance for disabled people and their families.




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Sixty years later, remembering 'The Day the Music Died'

Sixty years ago this week, the Winter Dance Party concert tour was crisscrossing Minnesota and neighboring states, featuring Ritchie Valens, J.P. "the Big Bopper" Richardson and Buddy Holly. Then came "The Day the Music Died."




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Buddy Holly's hometown looks back, 60 years after 'The Day the Music Died'

"He sang strictly country," said Larry Byers, a former DJ in Lubbock, Texas, who heard Buddy Holly's early performances. "Until he saw Elvis Presley and decided that maybe he should change his style a bit."




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Bobbie Gentry's 'The Delta Sweete' gets a much-belated tribute

Back in 1967, Bobbie Gentry sang a haunting ode to young love and sad endings in the deep South called "Ode to Billie Joe." A year later, Gentry released a country-rock opera, "The Delta Sweete." It hardly sold at all — but has since become a cult classic.




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An Italian town fell silent so the sounds of a Stradivarius could be preserved

The mayor of Cremona, Italy, blocked traffic during five weeks of recording and asked residents to please keep quiet so master musicians could play four instruments -- note by note -- for posterity.




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Nat King Cole remains 'one of the great gifts of nature'

Born 100 years ago today, Nat King Cole topped the charts year after year, sold more than 50 million records, pushed jazz piano in a new direction and paved the way for later generations of performers.




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At 83, Mary Lane upholds the blues tradition: 'I still got it'

The Arkansas-born blues singer looks back on her career and discusses "Travelin' Woman," her first album in more than 20 years.




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After the fire, assessing the future of Notre Dame's centuries-old organ

Chief organist Olivier Latry shares recordings of music played on Notre Dame Cathedral's famed organ — and looks ahead to the church's extensive renovation process after the fire on April 15.




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Prince memoir 'The Beautiful Ones' coming out in the fall

"'The Beautiful Ones' is the deeply personal account of how Prince Rogers Nelson became the Prince we know: the real-time story of a kid absorbing the world around him and creating a persona, an artistic vision, and a life, before the hits and the fame that would come to define him," Random House announced.




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Morning Edition debuts the show's updated theme music

NPR's David Greene and Rachel Martin look back at famous theme songs from pop culture, and remember the old Morning Edition theme as the show debuts the updated version of the song.




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Madonna, Prince and the pope

Madonna was back on top of the charts 30 years ago this week with her most controversial song to that point in her career. "Like a Prayer" was a mashup of religion and sexuality.




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Lil Nas X's 'Old Town Road' video is here to lasso the yeehaw agenda

Folks, the yeehaw agenda has reached its absolute apex. Chris Rock, Rico Nasty, Vince Staples, Diplo and, of course, Billy Ray Cyrus guest in the video for the smash hit.




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The Netherlands wins Eurovision Song Contest

The Netherlands won the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv Saturday, with Duncan Laurence's doleful piano ballad "Arcade" crowned champion of Europe's annual music extravaganza.




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The Improvised Life: Sam Miltich takes his message of jazz and mental health across Minn.

Fifteen years ago, Sam Miltich was a teenager on top of the world. He taught himself how to play jazz guitar growing up in the woods outside Grand Rapids. And he got so good that at 18 he played in Europe and New York. Then, four years later, something happened that made it hard for Miltich to comprehend living, much less making a living playing jazz.




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First listen: Bob Dylan, 'The Rolling Thunder Revue: The 1975 Live Recordings'

Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue occupies a mythic place in the history of rock tours. It was an experiment on a conceptually grand scale to create music on an intimate scale.




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Alone together: Robyn's 'Dancing On My Own' opens the corners of community

The magic of Robyn's millennial anthem is its bait and switch: It's a fun, energetic dance song about being lonely and heartbroken. And yet, the minute you hear it, you instantly feel less alone.




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How Prince worked his magic on the Bangles' 'Manic Monday'

In the 1980s, Prince wrote one of the Bangles' biggest hits, 'Manic Monday.' Now, The Prince Estate has released the demo version of the track as part of the artist's posthumous album, Originals.




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A new hope: Seal learns to sing 'Star Wars' theme

Researchers say teaching seals to copy melodies might help inform speech therapy for humans.




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The Amount of Prison Time and Fines That Walter White Would Get If He Were Charged For His Crimes

The Cinema Cop used scenes from "Breaking Bad" to add up the time Walter White would spend in prison if he were ever charged for his crimes.




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A Hungry Anteater Enjoys Several Lovely Treats at the Miller Rehab Zoo in Quebec, Canada

A hungry anteater named Tammy who lives at the Miller Rehabilitation Zoo in Quebec, Canada enjoyed several lovely treats.




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An Adorably Chilling Mashup of ‘Super Mario Bros.’ Combined With ‘The Shining’

Mark Cannataro created an adorably chilling mashup that places Super Mario Bros. into the halls of The Overlook Hotel from 'The Shining'.




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Oscar the Grouch Sings ‘All You Need Is Love’

There I Ruined It created a charming mashup that features Oscar the Grouch singing "All You Need Is Love" alongside The Beatles.




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A Fascinating Montage of Hasidic Families Trying to Cross the Street During the New York City Marathon

Abe Kugielsky shot footage of Hasidic people trying to cross the street in Williamsburg during the 2024 New York City Marathon.




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Artist JR Gives a Tour of His Elaborately Designed L’Observatoire Suite on the Orient Express

French artist JR gave a wonderfully detailed tour of the L’Observatoire Suite he designed for the Venice Simplon Orient Express.




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Fearless Cat Rides on Her Human’s Back While They’re Skateboarding Together

A fearless cat named Callie who was found as a kitten by her human Sam Wallace loves to sit on their back while skateboarding.




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Popular Christmas Toys Introduced in the 1980s

Rhetty for History takes a look back at the top Christmas toys for kids that were introduced in the 1980s.




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Comedian Realizes That the TV Show She Was Watching Was Actually Filmed in Her Apartment

Comedian Stef Dag shared her amazement when she found out that the TV show she was watching was actually filmed inside her apartment.




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Minnesota Lynx GM, associate head coach leave the WNBA team

General Manager Clare Duwelius is headed to Unrivaled, the new women’s three-on-three basketball league started by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart. And associate head coach Katie Smith is headed to Ohio State, where she’ll be the assistant coach for the women’s basketball team.




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John Robinson, successful football coach at USC and with the LA Rams, has died at 89

John Robinson, the veteran football coach who enjoyed many years of success at the University of Southern California and with the Los Angeles Rams, has died. He was 89.




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Denzel Washington details a retirement path that includes a role in 'Black Panther 3'

Denzel Washington is retiring after his next few projects, he said in a recent interview.




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Fireworks incident raises tensions in the Mankato Muslim community

After a tension filled day following an incident Sunday near the Mankato Islamic Center initially feared as an arson attack, the police have a more benign explanation, but anger remains.




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‘It’s the best week’: After being wrongly incarcerated, a Minnesota man is now free

Edgar Barrientos-Quintana was wrongly convicted in 2009 and sentenced to life in prison without parole for the 2008 murder of Jesse Mickelson in Minneapolis. 




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This blog stood on the shoulders of a giant

Paul Tosto applauded, supported, defended, and created a fair amount of the material that found its way onto these pages, and he did so without getting or needing attention. At least until today.




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Theft of the blog: Was NewsCut an act of God? Well, kind of

NewsCut was born from an idea that started with a hurricane. We knew he'd be great -- as long as no one called him a blogger.




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Theft of the blog: He can build the plane and fly the plane

Here's what it's like to fly with Bob Collins in a plane he built.




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Theft of the blog: Yes, there is a real Bob Collins. This is what he’s like

Collins vowed to not write a goodbye post. We're not sure if's staying true to that, so here comes old friend Tom Weber "to sing a little on behalf of a friend who’s made immeasurable contributions to MPR and Minnesota."




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Storytime with Bob: A treat outside of the blog

Being a member of the MPR News staff for a little over a year, and located outside of the St. Paul office, I’ve only had the privilege to observe the NewsCut magic as many readers have, with interactions through emails and reading Bob Collins’ words. But the one time I got to meet Bob in…



  • Theft of the Blog
  • You should meet ... Bob Collins

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Something Wild: The Wheel

Producer's note: Because of the global pandemic, Dave Anderson was not able to record this piece in NHPR's studio. Instead, he recorded through the microphone in his phone, while sitting in his Hyundai during a rain shower. Because that's how he rolls. ______________________________________________________________ My summer lament when weeks accelerate is there are really only two seasons : "summer waxing" and "summer waning." The former happily runs from January to June. The latter opens with the last dying echo of Fourth of July fireworks and extends toward a darkening tunnel of autumn. Most people don’t notice until “Back to School” sales pop up everywhere. I notice the subtle changing angle of summer sunlight before mid-July with an inherited Yankee gothic dose of “ It could be worse” and then “probably will be soon. ” By late July --with pre-dawn light glowing faintly in the east-- the songbird chorus softens. The riotous May-to-June symphony of 20 bird species is dominated now by




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Something Wild: The Hoarders

This Something Wild segment was produced by the amazing Andrew Parrella. You may be familiar with hoarders (not the TV show, but same idea). In nature, a hoarder will hide food in one place. Everything it gathers will be stored in a single tree or den. But for some animals one food cache isn't enough. We call them scatter hoarders. A "scatter hoarder" hides food in a bunch of different places within its territory. The gray squirrel is a classic example, gathering acorns and burying them in trees or in the ground. Not all squirrels are hoarders. Red squirrels are "larder hoarders." If you've ever been walking through the woods and a red squirrel starts screaming at you, it's defending its one and only stash. The same goes for chipmunks and white-footed mice. The gray squirrel isn't alone in the practice of scatter hoarding. Blue jays and gray jays will spend the summer accosting hikers, filling itself with as much granola or fruit as it can. They bring their bounty back into the forest




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Something Wild: The Judas Trees

It's late August, and the leaves are already starting to change. And that flush of red you’re seeing likely comes from the red maple , also known as “swamp” or “soft maple”. It's an adaptable tree renowned for signaling an impending autumn, and has even earned the dubious nickname: “Judas Tree” – for betraying these late summer days. Red maples are common in New Hampshire’s young forests, especially in areas prone to natural disturbances such as flooding in wetlands, along rivers -- and by human disturbances, too. A nd while forest ecologists believe these trees are increasing as a percentage of our forests, red maples are still considered a minority species, adding diversity to overall forest composition.




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Something Wild: Where Have All the Birds Gone?

As we hunker down for the winter weather, we’re frequently too preoccupied with what is in our front yards that we tend not to notice what isn’t there. And short of finding a postcard in your mailbox from a warm exotic location, signed by your friendly neighborhood phoebe, you probably haven’t thought much about the birds that flitted through your yard just months ago. We love to admire the birds when they’re here with us, but we’ve accepted that school-age aphorism that birds fly south for the winter. As if there was some avian Sandals resort, at which birds congregate, sipping margaritas and playing beach volleyball until it’s time to come home. But these birds are not on vacation. New Hampshire is too cold and offers too little food, so most have moved to more hospitable places in order to survive. However, migration is not one-size-fits-all. Different species practice different forms of migration. Ospreys are large raptors that feed almost exclusively on fish. Since the ice that