Search results for

The U.S. Olympic swim team struck gold in the 400-meter freestyle relay, beating the French team by a fingertip. The victory lets Michael Phelps continue his quest to win a historic eight gold medals, but it was teammate Jason Lezak who clinched this medal with the fastest relay lap ever.

Russia and Georgia have signed a cease-fire, but the conflict continues. Journalist James Traub, author of The Freedom Agenda: Why America Must Spread Democracy (Just Not the Way George Bush Did), discusses the latest developments.

In the first of a three-part discussion with real-estate agents across the country, John Paul Rosser, a condo specialist in Miami, says the housing market was bad in September, but it has gotten a lot worse since then.

Russian tanks and troops have rolled into neighboring Georgia. Georgia's president Friday went on television to say that Russia was fighting a war with his country. Georgia, a former Soviet Republic, has been battling pro-Moscow separatists in its own breakaway region of South Ossetia.

The Beijing Olympic Games have ended in a blaze of fireworks, with the largest share of gold medals going to the host country. Chinese citizens and state media said that their success in holding the games for the first time would make China a more confident and open country.

Day 13 brings the U.S. softball team's gold-medal game and important contests for American women in soccer, volleyball and water polo. But it isn't all good news: The softball team, aiming for its fourth straight Olympic gold medal, had to settle for silver after an upset loss to Japan.

Democratic candidate Barack Obama's choice of Sen. Joseph Biden shows he's pragmatic, says NPR's national political correspondent Mara Liasson. She discusses with Scott Simon some of the positives and negatives of Obama's vice presidential selection.

As delegates to the Democratic National Convention assemble in Denver, Barack Obama started a bus trip through several battleground states expected to be crucial in the November election.

Denver is debating how it wants to be portrayed as thousands of journalists and delegates arrive for the Democratic National Convention. But Denverites are split over whether to play up the city's folksy western reputation or its emergence as a cultured city.

President Bush has offered new support to Georgia, saying the U.S. is sending a huge aid package to help Georgians displaced by the conflict. He is also sending Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to help pressure the Russians to abide by the cease-fire. She'll also visit France, whose president helped to broker the truce.