NPR Staff

In 1988, when Eddie Murphy presented the nominees for Best Picture at the 60th Academy Awards, he told the audience that when he'd been invited to present the award, his initial reaction was, "I'm not going, because they haven't recognized black people in the motion picture industry."

Almost 30 years ...

Two composers and a songwriter walk into a bar. That's not the start of a joke; it's the start of a band.

Keefus Ciancia has composed for the TV shows True Detective and The Fall. David Holmes is a DJ, producer, and the man behind the score of the Ocean's ...

With apologies to Andy Williams, now is the most wonderful time of the year ... for it is Girl Scout cookie season.

But after plowing through several sleeves of Thin Mints, fatigue can set in. So we wondered, when you're starting to feel sick of Girl Scout cookies, is there ...

Before NASA had its Mercury 7 astronauts, the Air Force was launching its own team into the stratosphere — in balloons.

Without the glamour or budget of NASA, these early space scientists and test pilots performed extreme experiments that helped pave the way for the Mercury crew. Among them ...

If Marco Rubio or Ted Cruz make it to the White House, it will be historic — it would mean this country had its first ever Latino president.

Both Rubio and Cruz both have a Cuban background, but neither candidate can necessarily count on the support of Latino voters to ...

When the military opens front-line combat roles to women soldiers — across all branches — in April, it will mark the culmination of a years-long process, which was often subject both to consternation and controversy. It will also mark a historic first for a female service members, many of whom ...

Presidential campaigns may inspire people to vote, but they rarely inspire people to compose music. Jazz pianist Marcus Roberts takes up the challenge on a new EP called Race for the White House, which explores the personas of four different candidates from this year's election cycle.

One of those candidates ...

The Life and the Adventures of a Haunted Convict is the earliest known prison memoir by an African-American writer. Written by Austin Reed in the 1850s, it was discovered at an estate sale in 2009.

Chief Jarrod Burguan says the push for Apple's help unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino shooters is "an effort to leave no stone unturned in the investigation."

In the 1960s, when jobs were rare for black stuntmen, Willie Harris and Alex Brown had to teach themselves how to take a punch. But they couldn't prepare themselves for the vitriol they felt on set.

The California governor, late Apple co-founder and state general attorney are among the people the San Francisco transit agency owes some $6.1 million in overpayments for parking citations.

Reframing addiction as a chronic illness would help people get appropriate treatment and benefit the health care system, says A. Thomas McLellan, co-founder of the Treatment Research Institute.

California regulators say autonomous cars should have a licensed driver, but a top Google engineer says that makes as much sense as putting a steering wheel or brake pedal in the back of a cab.

California's Department of Motor Vehicles proposed that self-driving cars should have a licensed driver inside. It may disrupt the dream of driverless cars, but it's also seen as a step for safety.

An interactive map on Atlas Obscura explores alternate capital cities — not of countries, but products, events and states of mind. George Pendle explain the origins of the toilet paper capital, more.

U.S. operation of the Guantanamo Bay military detention center in Cuba is "contrary to our values" and is seen as "a stain on our broader record" of upholding the highest rules of law, President Obama said Tuesday as he announced plans to close the facility.

The administration's proposal is "not ...

In 2006, Derek Amato suffered a major concussion from diving into a shallow swimming pool. When he woke up in the hospital, he was different. He discovered he was really good a playing piano. Yes, we're serious. Derek is one of just a few dozen known "sudden savants" or "accidental ...

Would you have a computer drive for you?

Some say yes if the computer is accurate and has no bugs in it, while some say no because they want to be in control and they enjoy driving.

A University of Michigan survey found that about 90 percent of Americans have ...

The NPR Politics team is back with a quick take on the winners and losers of the Republican primary in South Carolina and the Democratic caucuses in Nevada. Does Trump's win in South Carolina solidify him as the Republican nominee? Does Clinton's big win in Nevada make the road ...