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Saturday

Comedian Russell Peters Capitalizes On Indian Roots

Russell Peters has made a career of poking fun at ethnic peculiarities. He is now one of the highest-earning comedians. Michael Tullberg/Getty Images hide caption

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Michael Tullberg/Getty Images

Culture

Comedian Russell Peters Capitalizes On Indian Roots

As a small South Asian kid with a big mouth, Russell Peters found himself the victim of race bullying. To coax his bullies from rage to laughter, he used self-deprecating comedy. Decades later, he is still poking fun at his own ethnic quirks to disarm audiences, and in the process, he is becoming one of the highest-earning comedians.

Comedian Russell Peters Capitalizes On Indian Roots

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Friday

Fresh Air

Mike Judge: Mining Comic Joy From Workplace Pain

Fresh Air

Extract, the latest film from the writer and director of Office Space and the creator of Beavis and Butt-head, is another exploration of stupidity in the American workplace.

Mike Judge: Mining Comic Joy From Workplace Pain

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A Taste For Everything: 'Lost' Showrunners Pick DVDs

Damon Lindelof (left) and Carlton Cuse are executive producers for the TV series Lost. The hit ABC drama begins its final season Feb. 2. Frederick M. Brown/Getty hide caption

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Frederick M. Brown/Getty

Movie Interviews

A Taste For Everything: 'Lost' Showrunners Pick DVDs

Lost executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse love everything from country star biopics to rock and roll mockumentaries. They join Morning Edition's Steve Inskeep to talk about how their favorite DVDs have influenced their work on Lost.

A Taste For Everything: 'Lost' Showrunners Pick DVDs

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Thursday

Humor & Fun

iPad Morphs From MADtv Sketch To Apple Device

When Apple computer announced its highly anticipated iPad Wednesday, the name sounded very familiar to two writers for the comedy show Mad TV. Five years ago, Bruce McCoy and Tami Sagher wrote a sketch about a then-fictional Apple device, the iPad. That sketch has now gone viral. The two writers offer their insight.

iPad Morphs From MADtv Sketch To Apple Device

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'Catcher In The Rye' Author J.D. Salinger Dies At 91

J.D. Salinger, pictured in one of the few existing photographs of the author. The 1951 portrait was featured on the original dust jacket of The Catcher in the Rye. The Lotte Jacobi Collection/University of New Hampshire hide caption

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The Lotte Jacobi Collection/University of New Hampshire

Obituaries

'Catcher In The Rye' Author J.D. Salinger Dies At 91

The author of The Catcher in the Rye died of natural causes, his literary representative has said. Salinger was famously reclusive, and his fans hoped for decades that stores of unpublished fiction might be stashed in his New Hampshire home. His last published work was a short story that took up almost the whole New Yorker magazine in 1965.

Wednesday

Anti-Abortion Super Bowl Commercial Causes Storm

University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow embraces his mother, Pam, during a November 2009 pre-game ceremony before an NCAA college football game against Florida State. The two are set to appear in a controversial anti-abortion ad that will air during the Super Bowl. Phil Sandlin/AP hide caption

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Phil Sandlin/AP

Super Bowl XLIV: Colts Vs. Saints

Anti-Abortion Super Bowl Commercial Causes Storm

For years, CBS banned "advocacy" commercials from airing during the Super Bowl. But the network recently reversed its stance. An anti-abortion ad, featuring Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow, is set to air during this year's big game.

Anti-Abortion Super Bowl Commercial Causes Storm

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Tuesday

National

Study: Kids Fixated With Television, Internet and Texting

Children ages 8 to 18 consume an average of nearly eight hours each day of various forms of media, up from 6 hours in 2005, according to a new study by the Kaiser Family Foundation. In addition to TV consumption, kids are increasingly texting and talking on cell phones. The numbers are especially high within African-American and Latino communities. Host Michel Martin speaks with Vicky Rideout, an author of the study, freelance writer Rosie Molinary and Dannette Tucker, a mother of two and a regular Tell Me More parenting contributor. They discuss why kids are using so many mediums offer tips to parents on how to balance the amount of exposure.

Study: Kids Fixated With Television, Internet and Texting

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Monday

Television

The Return Of 'Damages,' And Other Good TV News

Fresh Air

Glenn Close's critically acclaimed legal drama launches its third season tonight, with a plotline about a Bernie Madoff-style Wall Street swindler. David Bianculli says that show — and a handful of other returning series — should warm up any TV-watcher's winter.

The Return Of 'Damages,' And Other Good TV News

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Sunday

The Net At 40

How Flash Brought The Internet To Life

If you've ever wasted time at work watching a YouTube video or playing an online game, you can thank a man named Jonathan Gay for the animation software that revolutionized the Web.

How Flash Brought The Internet To Life

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Science

The Face Of A Famous Skull Found On Flickr

In 1848, Phineas Gage became a medical miracle when a 3 1/2-foot tamping iron blew through his head. His survival became the stuff of medical legend, but photos of him were lost to history — until now.

The Face Of A Famous Skull Found On Flickr

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Saturday

'Everything Is Terrible' Digs Up Gems Of The VHS Era

A group in Ohio visits flea markets, dives into bargain bins and searches Craigslist and eBay for moments captured on videocassette that exemplify life and culture in the 1980s and '90s. Then they share the clips online and in live shows.

'Everything Is Terrible' Digs Up Gems Of The VHS Era

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Friday

Technology

The Technology Behind Texting For Aid

People have texted millions of dollars in donations to victims of the earthquake in Haiti. Is this the new model for philanthropy? Timothy Ogden, editor in chief of Philanthropy Action, explains the technology and the future of charity work in the information age.

The Technology Behind Texting For Aid

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Thursday

Opinion

A Sensitive Subject: Harry Reid's Language On Race

Fresh Air

Condescending? Or merely clueless? Linguist Geoff Nunberg parses the Senate majority leader's comments about the president's skin color and diction — and how the media have responded.

A Sensitive Subject: Harry Reid's Language On Race

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Tuesday

Winter Olympics 2010

U.S. Speedskating Finds Savior In Stephen Colbert

After the team lost a major corporate backer, The Colbert Report host asked his Nation to step up. So far, his fans have contributed more than $300,000. But his sponsorship has its critics. And he has challenged one of them to a race.

U.S. Speedskating Finds Savior In Stephen Colbert

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Friday

National

At Large: Teen Bandit. Even Larger: His Legend.

Colton Harris-Moore has been on the run for 20 months and is being touted as a modern-day Jesse James. Police say the young outlaw is an amateur criminal -- but a master escape artist. He's likely one of the only criminals with 16,000 members on his Facebook fan page.

At Large: Teen Bandit. Even Larger: His Legend.

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