Mark Memmott

Credit Doby Photography / NPR

Mark Memmott is one of the hosts of NPR's "The Two-Way" news blog.

"The Two-Way," which Memmott helped to launched when he came to NPR in 2009, focuses on breaking news, analysis, and the most compelling stories being reported by NPR News and other news media.

Before joining NPR, Memmott worked for nearly 25 years as a reporter and editor at USA Today. He focused on a range of coverage from politics, foreign affairs, economics, and the media. He's reported from places across the Unites States and the world, including half a dozen trips to Afghanistan in 2002-2003.

During his time at USA Today, Memmott, helped launch and lead three USAToday.com news blogs: "On Deadline;" "The Oval;" and "On Politics," the site's 2008 presidential campaign blog.

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1:30pm

Mon April 9, 2012
The Two-Way

Facebook Is Buying Instagram

"I'm excited to share the news that we've agreed to acquire Instagram and that their talented team will be joining Facebook," Mark Zuckerberg just announced.

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12:18pm

Mon April 9, 2012
The Two-Way

Trayvon Martin Prosecutor: Investigation Continues, No Grand Jury

Originally published on Mon April 9, 2012 1:53 pm

The special prosecutor investigating the Feb. 26 shooting death of Florida teen Trayvon Martin announced this morning she will not be taking the case to a grand jury this week.

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12:40pm

Fri April 6, 2012
The Two-Way

VIDEO: Rapping Federal Worker Adds To Evidence Of Waste And Excess

Credit House Oversight & Reform Committee

11:35am

Fri April 6, 2012
The Two-Way

Check It Out: St. Louis Keeps Adding To Its Chess Prowess

We're seeing headlines today about an entire college championship team moving from one school to another. And though the story's about two months old, it's still so unusual and has enough interesting angles to warrant passing along.

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10:24am

Fri April 6, 2012
The Two-Way

Life In Prison For Man Who Planted Pipe Bomb In Colorado Mall

Credit AP

Earl Albert Moore, who in April 2011 on the 12th anniversary of the Columbine school shootings placed a pipe bomb in a nearby Colorado shopping mall, has been sentenced to life in prison.

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9:35am

Fri April 6, 2012

8:34am

Fri April 6, 2012
The Two-Way

Just 120,000 Jobs Added, But Jobless Rate Dips To 8.2 Percent

Originally published on Fri April 6, 2012 10:37 am

Credit NPR

The nation's unemployment rate edged down to 8.2 percent in March from 8.3 percent in February, but only 120,000 jobs were added to private and public payrolls the Bureau of Labor Statistics said this morning in a report that was less positive about the labor market's health than economists had expected.

Prior to the news, forecasters had predicted BLS would say about 200,000 jobs were added to payrolls last month.

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8:10am

Fri April 6, 2012

7:30am

Fri April 6, 2012
The Two-Way

Board Recommends Marine Be Discharged For Comments About Obama

Credit Facebook.com

A U.S. Marine sergeant who posted "contemptuous" comments and images about President Obama on the Web should be dismissed and given an other-than-honorable discharge, a Marine Corps administrative board recommended late Thursday evening.

The case against Sgt. Gary Stein, 26, has raised questions about how far the military can go to restrict the First Amendment rights of its personnel.

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6:55am

Fri April 6, 2012
The Two-Way

Jobless Rate Likely Held Steady At 8.3 Percent In March, Economists Say

The morning's major news, if all goes as planned, will be the 8:30 a.m. ET release of the March jobs and unemployment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

According to Reuters, economists expect we'll hear that the unemployment rate stayed at 8.3 percent and that private and public employers added about 200,000 jobs to their payrolls. The jobless rate's recent peak was 10 percent, in October 2009.

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2:32pm

Thu April 5, 2012
The Two-Way

No One's Claimed Mega Millions Win, Maryland Lottery Official Says

We still don't know who bought the three winning tickets in Friday's $656 million Mega Millions lottery drawing — one in Illinois, one in Kansas and one in Maryland.

And we still don't know what's going on with Mirlande Wilson, the Maryland woman who has made headlines by claiming to have purchased a big winner, but who hasn't yet provided any proof.

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1:55pm

Thu April 5, 2012

10:12am

Thu April 5, 2012

8:40am

Thu April 5, 2012
The Two-Way

Jobless Claims Stay Around Four-Year Low

The number of people filing first-time claims for unemployment insurance stayed around a four-year low last week, the Employment and Training Administration just reported.

It says there were 357,000 such applications, down 6,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 363,000.

Claims have been running at the lowest rate since March and April 2008 for several weeks now.

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7:55am

Thu April 5, 2012
The Two-Way

The Masters Begins: Will Tiger Woods Win? Do You Want Him To?

Credit Streeter Lecka / Getty Images
  • On 'Morning Edition': Christine Brennan talks with Steve Inskeep

They're teeing off this morning in Augusta, Ga. It's the Masters, the first of the "major" tournaments for men each year.

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7:05am

Thu April 5, 2012
The Two-Way

In Greece, Retiree's Suicide Sparks Protests And Clashes With Police

Credit Aris Messinis / AFP/Getty Images

The human toll from the financial crisis in Greece now has a human face.

After 77-year-old retired pharmacist Dimitris Christoulas killed himself Wednesday outside the parliament building in Athens, a suicide note he left was reported to say that he felt he must take a "dignified end to my life" because austerity measures and "annihilated all traces for my survival," particularly his pension.

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3:10pm

Wed April 4, 2012
The Two-Way

After 567,000 Miles And 48 Years, Florida Woman Parks Her 'Chariot'

Originally published on Wed April 4, 2012 6:05 pm

When 93-year-old Rachel Veitch picked up the newspaper on March 10 and realized that the macular degeneration in her eyes had developed to the point where she couldn't read the print, she knew it was time to stop driving.

But there's much more to the Orlando, Fla., woman's story.

The decision meant she would no longer be getting behind the wheel of her beloved 1964 Mercury Comet Caliente, a car she calls "The Chariot." Veitch has pampered her ride for nearly five decades and 567,000 miles.

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11:55am

Wed April 4, 2012
The Two-Way

Coming Up: Romney Talks To News Editors

Credit Jim Watson / AFP/Getty Images

Coming off his three-state sweep in Tuesday's primaries, GOP presidential contender Mitt Romney this noon renewed his charge that President Obama has displayed an "appalling lack of leadership."

Romney said that if elected president he could provide the kind of experience and guidance to give the economy a lift, get the government on the path toward deficit reduction and ensure the USA continues to play a leading role around the world.

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10:45am

Wed April 4, 2012
The Two-Way

Peabody Awards: NPR Among Honorees

Credit Peabody.uga.edu

The winners of this year's George Foster Peabody Awards for excellence in electronic media were just announced and NPR is among those being honored.

NPR work being recognized:

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9:55am

Wed April 4, 2012
The Two-Way

Good News On The Jobs Front, Except From Yahoo

On the plus side, the ADP National Employment Report issued this morning estimates there were 209,000 jobs added to private employers' payrolls in March. And ADP's data often are something of a predictor for what the Bureau of Labor Statistics will have to say when it issues its monthly numbers. Those March figures are due on Friday at 8:30 a.m. ET.

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