Rob Schmitz

Marketplace’s China correspondent, based in Shanghai

Rob Schmitz appears in the following:

Morning news brief

Thursday, December 15, 2022

A new NPR poll shows Americans want congressional leaders to compromise. Peru declares a 30-day national emergency. Israel's longest-serving prime minister is poised to return to office.

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Ukrainian refugee sells food and horseradish schnapps at a German Christmas market

Thursday, December 15, 2022

An 18th century Baroque Palace on the edge of Berlin is home to one of Germany's many Christmas markets. There are a variety of food stalls — not to mention a special kind of Ukrainian schnapps.

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The long-awaited sequel to 'Avatar' is more than 3 hours long

Thursday, December 15, 2022

Avatar: The Way of Water is poised to become one of the year's biggest film releases. It's the sequel to the 2009 blockbuster Avatar, which is the highest grossing Hollywood film in history.

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Congress races to finish up some big-ticket items during its lame duck session

Wednesday, December 14, 2022

Congress has a lot on its plate before the Republicans take over the House in January. Democrats hope to pass a spending bill, and the Jan. 6 committee will issue its final report.

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Banned Books: Author Ashley Hope Pérez on finding humanity in the 'darkness'

Wednesday, December 14, 2022

Ashley Hope Pérez published Out of Darkness in 2015 to critical acclaim. The novel re-contextualized contemporary issues of race providing a historical framework in a not-so-post-racial America.

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Morning news brief

Wednesday, December 14, 2022

Thousands of migrants arrive in El Paso, Texas, before pandemic restrictions end. China grapples with a COVID surge, following a loosening of restrictions. And, Somalians faces a major food crisis.

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Disgraced former CEO of FTX crypto exchange is arrested in the Bahamas

Tuesday, December 13, 2022

Prosecutors will unseal a criminal indictment against Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, on Tuesday. He was taken into custody in the Bahamas on Monday.

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President Biden to host more than 40 African leaders at U.S.-Africa summit

Tuesday, December 13, 2022

The summit is the centerpiece of a major effort to reset and improve U.S. ties with the continent — at a moment when Africa's ties with China and increasingly Russia, have attracted scrutiny.

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Morning news brief

Monday, December 12, 2022

A key Lockerbie bombing suspect is in U.S. custody. Karen Bass is sworn in as Los Angeles mayor. Rupert Murdoch to be deposed today in Dominion's $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News.

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Poland is facing a coal shortage this winter

Tuesday, December 06, 2022

Before the war in Ukraine, Poland relied on Russia for its energy needs. As winter approaches, Poland is facing a shortage of coal.

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The missile strike in Poland was potentially a stray Ukrainian missile

Wednesday, November 16, 2022

Initial investigations suggest the missile strike in Poland was not a deliberate attack but potentially a stray Ukrainian missile.

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EU refuses to give Poland money after changes limiting the judiciary's independence

Monday, November 14, 2022

The European Union refuses to give Poland COVID stimulus payments worth billions and is threatening to withhold more unless Poland reverses changes limiting the judiciary's independence.

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Scholz and Xi agree Russia would cross a line with nuclear weapons in Ukraine

Friday, November 04, 2022

After a meeting with Xi in Beijing, Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the two leaders agreed that with the use of nuclear weapons, Russia would cross a line drawn by the international community.

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Movie review: 'All Quiet on the Western Front'

Friday, October 28, 2022

The Netflix adaptation of "All Quiet on the Western Front," the classic novel about the horrors of World War I, was directed by a German man and is in the German language.

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Rising energy prices across Europe lead to protests in the Czech capital of Prague

Tuesday, October 25, 2022

Russia's war in Ukraine has led to rising energy prices across Europe, which in turn is leading to protests and rising tensions in many parts of the continent.

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Americans are concerned about their economy, and the global economic outlook is worse

Friday, October 21, 2022

Inflation and fears of a recession are dominating headlines in the U.S., and a series of global crises means that the economic outlook is even more precarious in some other parts of the world.

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A 1,000-year-old German boys choir is now accepting girls

Monday, October 10, 2022

For the first time since its founding over 1,000 years ago, the Regensburg Cathedral choir and school has begun admitting girls. (Story aired on All Things Considered on Sept. 12, 2022.)

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An act of sabotage shut down parts of Germany's rail system for hours this weekend

Sunday, October 09, 2022

Officials say a key train communications system was compromised, stranding passenger and cargo trains across the northwest of the country on Saturday.

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Here's what to know about the Nobel Peace Prize winners

Friday, October 07, 2022

The winners of this year's Nobel Peace Prize are recognized, the Nobel Committee said, for years of protecting the fundamental rights of citizens in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.

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Nobel Peace Prize: Human rights activists in Ukraine, Russia and Belarus are honored

Friday, October 07, 2022

The winners are human rights advocate Ales Bialiatski from Belarus, as well as the Russian human rights organization Memorial and the Ukrainian human rights organization Center for Civil Liberties.

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