March 19, 1998 All Things Considered (entire program) Requires the RealAudio Player

An index of the day's stories:

Easing Sanctions on Cuba -- All Things Considered host Robert Siegel talks with NPR's Tom Gjelten about reports today that Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has recommended changes in U.S. policy toward Cuba to allow humanitarian relief for the Cuban people. (4:00)

How Important Are Remittances? -- All Things Considered host Noah Adams talks with Jorge Sanguinetti, the president of DevTech Systems, which is an international economic consulting firm. They discuss Mr. Sanguinetti's reaction to the proposed changes in Cuban-American policy, the current state of the Cuban economy, and his opinions about the kind of economy that Cuba should be trying to formulate. (4:00)

France Water Conference -- Sarah Chayes reports on a three-day conference that opened in Paris today on the future of the world's fresh water supply. (5:00)

Mexico City's Water Needs -- NPR's Phillip Davis reports from Mexico City on the daily struggle residents confront to meet their need for clean water. (7:00)

Tobacco Documents -- Minnesota's supreme court gave tobacco companies a break -- if only temporarily -- today. The court said tobacco companies don't have to turn over 39,000 internal documents to the state, pending a final decision. State attorneys want to use the documents in their lawsuit against tobacco companies. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCullum reports. (2:00)

Las Vegas Labor -- NPR's John Biewen reports that the AFL-CIO is holding up Las Vegas as a model for union organizing efforts. The success at organizing service workers on the city's famous "strip" has helped propel a similar push for the construction trades. (5:30)

NYC School Uniforms -- In New York City, the board of education has decided that its half-million students in elementary school should be wearing uniforms. But in the policy approved last night, the board decided that individual schools -- and parents -- could opt out of the requirement. WNYC's Beth Fertig reports. (4:30)

Swallows Return -- Today is the feast day of St. Joseph -- a day that's not a Holy Day of Obligation, but is notable for a significant event that's occurred on this day for almost 200 years: the return of the famous cleft-tailed swallows to the Mission San Juan Capistrano in California following an almost 6000 mile migration from Argentina. This item is not available due to copyright issues.

McKinney Juror Speaks -- Noah talks with NPR's Martha Raddatz about her interview with one of the jurors in the court martial of former Sergeant Major of the Army Gene McKinney. (4:00)

Congress and Starr -- House members are discussing how to handle the evidence that might be used in an impeachment of President Clinton -- should matters come to that. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and House Judiciary Committee chairman Henry Hyde are close to an agreement that involves having a small groups of House members conduct the initial examination of Independent counsel Kenneth Starr's evidence. NPR's Brian Naylor reports. (4:30)

Malice Green Verdict -- Jerome Vaughn of member station WDET in Detroit reports that a jury has found former police officer Walter Budzyn guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the 1992 death of black motorist Malice Green. (4:30)

Today in Kosovo -- Robert talks with NPR's Sylvia Poggioli, who is in Pristina, Yugoslavia. She describes today's protest marches in the Kosovo capital and plans for more demonstrations tomorrow. They also discuss the significance of local elections scheduled in the province this weekend. (4:00)

BBC-Discovery Channel Partnership -- The British Broadcasting Corporation and the U.S.-based Discovery Channel have formed a partnership. They announced plans in London today to launch an international network of new channels -- including a BBC America. The Discovery Channel will provide financial backing for the venture plus nature and science programming. The BBC will contribute television programming from its archive, plus its expertise in developing new productions. NPR's Brooke Gladstone reports. (3:30)

Economic Reports -- NPR's John Ydstie reports the trade deficit grew while consumer prices remained under control last month -- signs that the thus far muted impact of the Asian financial crisis may have arrived. After several days of setting new records the stock market is mixed today with the Dow off slightly and the Nasdaq composite up a bit in mid afternoon. (4:30)

Murdoch Buys Dodgers -- NPR's Tom Goldman reports that major league baseball owners today approved, by a vote of 27 to 2, the sale of the Los Angeles Dodgers to media mogul Rupert Murdoch and the Fox TV network. The sale, reportedly for approximately 311 million dollars, came over the objections of another media mogul, Ted Turner, the owner of the Atlanta Braves. (4:00)

Missing Cubans -- The Coast Guard announced today that it was scaling back a search for four Cuban baseball players and a coach missing at sea. The men left Cuba on March 10, in a small boat, en route to the United States. Scott Anger reports. (2:30)

ATC Mailbag -- Noah and Robert read from listeners' comments. To contact All Things Considered, write to All Things Considered Letters, 635 Massachusetts Avenue Northwest, Washington, D.C. 20001. To contact us via the Internet, the address is atc@npr.org. (4:00)

Minnesota Secessionists -- Noah talks with Paul Colson, a fishing guide and 3rd-generation resident of the Northwest Angle in Minnesota. His family owns the Jackes Resort there. Colson talks about why he and other residents of the Northwest Angle want to vote on secession from the United States and are interested in becoming citizens of Canada. (3:00)