Audie Cornish

Transcript

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

You're listening to ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR.

Every spring, you hear that almost anyone can win March Madness. Well, this year, it's true. There's no obvious favorite in this month's NCAA men's basketball tournament, at least a dozen contenders from schools big and small. And conference championships began today. So who knows which contender will fall on its face and which dark horse no one considered will emerge in the next two weeks?

The Obama administration is set to file a friend-of-the-court brief Thursday urging the Supreme Court to overturn California's Proposition 8, which banned gay marriage. Nina Totenberg talks to Audie Cornish.

Transcript

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Melissa Block.

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

I'm Audie Cornish. And we begin this hour in Egypt, where there were ominous words today from the country's military chief. He said the conflict between Egypt's political forces could lead to the collapse of the state. There have been intense anti-government protests across the country over the past few days and there has been violence. The main opposition group in Egypt has rejected dialogue to calm the situation.

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

And I'm Audie Cornish.

After years of denial, former cycling champion Lance Armstrong has reportedly admitted that he used performance-enhancing drugs. He made the admission as part of an extensive interview with Oprah Winfrey. It's scheduled to air over two nights beginning on Thursday. Few details have been released so far. On "CBS News This Morning," Oprah described the interview as difficult but said Armstrong was forthcoming.

Sonari Glinton talks to Audie Cornish about the technology to be introduced at the North American International Auto Show and looks at the most important auto-related innovations to come out of the recent Consumer Electronics Show. The highlights include research in electronic vehicles, advanced manufacturing that allows one assembly line to make dozens of cars, and increasing synergy between Detroit and Silicon Valley.

Hugo Chavez will not appear on Thursday to be sworn in for his fourth term as president. Chavez is undergoing treatment for cancer in Cuba and the government says his inauguration will be postponed. The opposition says the government is running roughshod over the constitution.

Transcript

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

The Federal Trade Commission has closed its long-running antitrust investigation of Google. The search giant avoided any financial penalties, and the FTC's move is widely seen as a victory for Google. NPR's Steve Henn has been following the story and joins us now to fill us in on the details. And, Steve, this investigation has been going on for years. And now that it's over, I mean, how big a victory is it really for Google?

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

Dr. Abdul Mawgoud Dardery was elected to the now disbanded Egyptian parliament as a candidate of the Freedom and Justice Party. That's the party aligned with the Muslim Brotherhood and with Egyptian President Morsi. Dr. Dardery is a member and spokesman for the Foreign Relations Committee of the party, and he's in Berlin today.

Welcome back to the program. And is it fair to say that you're among the more liberal members of the Freedom and Justice Party?

News Corp announced on Monday that it's making some changes to its management and structure. The company has decided to end The Daily, its tablet-exclusive newspaper. They have also named the management team for its split off newspaper division. David Folkenflik talks to Audie Cornish.