Rob Schmitz is NPR's international correspondent based in Berlin, where he covers the human stories of a vast region reckoning with its past while it tries to guide the world toward a brighter future. From his base in the heart of Europe, Schmitz has covered Germany's levelheaded management of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rise of right-wing nationalist politics in Poland and creeping Chinese government influence inside the Czech Republic.
Scott Simon is one of America's most admired writers and broadcasters. He is the host of Weekend Edition Saturday and is one of the hosts of NPR's morning news podcast Up First. He has reported from all fifty states, five continents, and ten wars, from El Salvador to Sarajevo to Afghanistan and Iraq. His books have chronicled character and characters, in war and peace, sports and art, tragedy and comedy.
The open letter and accompanying petition asking publishers "to make a pledge that they will never release books that were created by machines" garnered more than 600 signatures within a few hours.
Israel was stunned by a surprise Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Since that day, Israel has delivered devastating blows to rivals and has reconfigured the Middle East.
NPR's Scott Simon and sportswriter Howard Bryant preview the upcoming Wimbledon tennis championship and look at the recent spike in Achilles tendon injuries in the NBA.