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Outgoing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced the extension of some military benefits to same-sex partners of service members. While the Defense of Marriage Act is law, however, gay military partners are not entitled to all of the same benefits as their straight counterparts.

The percentage of Americans living in rural areas is shrinking. As rural America changes, programs that serve those areas, like postal facilities and subsidies for commercial aviation service, are being reevaluated.

With a deal in hand to lift the debt ceiling and cut spending, congressional leaders now must sell that compromise bill to two wary houses of Congress. NPR's Ron Elving and Tamara Keith explain the agreement, the negotiations and what happens next.

Though the Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf entered the market to fanfare, the battery-powered cars haven't been selling as quickly as hybrid models such as the Toyota Prius. Industry experts discuss electric car technology, from batteries to charging stations, and what it might take to encourage drivers to make the shift.

For abortion-rights defenders, the fall of Roe v. Wade was a disaster in slow motion. That made the blow no less painful. Thirteen people with personal connections to the issue share their stories.

After a string of engineering failures, the most consistent mitigation strategy for the oil spill has been dumping hundreds of thousands of gallons of potentially toxic dispersant into the Gulf. Ira Flatow and guests discuss whether scientists should be able to provide better solutions.

A massive crowd that extended more than two miles from the U.S. Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., gathered to watch Barack Obama's swearing-in on Tuesday. NPR reporters sent updates of the scenes from around the National Mall and the inaugural parade.

Though he fully expected to be infected with COVID, Dr. Thomas Fisher says he was committed to providing medical care to the Black community on Chicago's South Side. His new book is The Emergency.

Environmental scientist Kate O'Neill discusses recycling and the global politics of waste. "Once you throw something away, you've got to think about where's it going to go next," she says.

Blurred Lines author Vanessa Grigoriadis says female college students were once told to protect themselves from sexual assault by learning self defense. Now, the focus is on changing men's behavior.