March 27, 1998 All Things Considered (entire program) Requires the RealAudio Player

An index of the day's stories:

Jonesboro Funerals -- NPR's Adam Hochberg reports from Jonesboro, Arkansas that funerals for two of the young victims of this week's shooting at Westside Middle School were held today. (3:00)

Eric Rudolph Investigation -- NPR's Kathy Lohr reports that the hunt for Eric Rudolph has intensified. More than half a dozen law enforcement agencies have joined forces to pursue Rudolph, who is believed to be involved in the bombing of a women's health clinic in Birmingham, Alabama. (5:45)

Boeing Lawsuit -- Ruby deLuna of member station KUOW in Seattle reports that 41 workers have filed a class-action lawsuit against the Boeing Company. Most of the complainants are African-Americans, claiming that they worked for years without advancing in the company, were harassed, and were wrongly fired. They're seeking 82 million dollars in damages. (3:00)

Random House Publisher-- The news of a pending sale of publishing giant Random House to German media conglomerate Bertelsmann has caused consternation in the literary world. NPR's Brooke Gladstone looks at what the sale might mean for the book trade and the book buying public. (7:00)

The Prison Business -- All Things Considered host Robert Siegel travels to Youngstown, Ohio to report on a private prison run by the Corrections Corporation of America. The prison has been open less than a year, but two inmates have been murdered there since the end of February. (17:58)

'All-True Travels' -- Novelist Jane Smiley takes on the issues of freedom and slavery in her new book, "The All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton." Reviewer Alan Cheuse says the book is meticulously drawn and well-researched, which is both a plus and a minus to the reader -- but overall, it's destined to be viewed as a classic work of American fiction.

Clinton and Mandela -- NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault reports from Cape Town, South Africa, on today's visit by President Clinton and South African President Nelson Mandela to Robben Island, site of the prison where Mandela was jailed during the apartheid regime. Earlier in the day, Mandela and Clinton met for several hours before holding a joint press conference where they acknowledged differences but reaffirmed their mutual respect and desire to strengthen ties between South Africa and the United States. (4:00)

Yeltsin Nominates Prime Minister -- Russian President Yeltsin has nominated the acting head of government, Sergei Kiriyenko, to be the new Prime Minister of Russia. As NPR's Andy Bowers reports from Moscow, the 35-year old Kiriyenko is a technocrat with solid reformist credentials. However, he's seen as more moderate than some others in the liberal camp. This may help his chances for confirmation by the Communist and nationalist dominated Russian parliament. (4:30)

U.S.-Iran Thaw -- NPR's Ted Clark reports that the United States and Iran have engaged in a series of cautious, delicate and low-key measures aimed at exploring whether conditions exist for improving relations between the two countries. (4:00)

Tobacco Bill -- Negotiations are continuing slowly on Capitol Hill over the tobacco bill, but there are still disagreements over such crucial issues as the size of a cigarette tax, the amount of payments states should receive, and how much liability tobacco companies would have. NPR's Brian Naylor reports. (4:00)

Amazon Fires -- Robert talks with Dan Nepstad, a scientist of forest ecology at the Woods Hole Research Center and a co-founder of the Amazon Institute of Environmental Research. They discuss how the meteorological phenomenon El Ni&ntiled;o is causing severe drought conditions in the Amazon region, making fires in the area more of a concern than ever before. (4:00)

What Paducah Knows -- All Things Considered host Linda Wertheimer traveled to Paducah, Kentucky following Tuesday's shootings at a middle school in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Last December, a student at Heath High School in Paducah shot and killed three of his fellow students while they were gathered for their daily prayer meeting at school. The people in Paducah have spent nearly four months dealing with their grief and shock, and the shootings in Jonesboro have brought much of it back to the surface. (12:30)

NCAA Men's Final Four -- All Things Considered host Noah Adams talks with Stephan Fatsis, who covers sports for the Wall Street Journal and regularly joins us to talk about sports on Fridays. Today, they handicap this weekend's Final Four basketball games -- the final rounds of the annual NCAA Men's Collegiate Basketball Tournament. (4:00)

Spring Training -- Noah concludes his series of talks with historians Gordon Olsen and Mickey Schubert who are co-authors of a forthcoming book on the history of Major League Baseball's spring training. Olsen has been in Lakeland, Florida, watching the Detroit Tigers' spring training and exhibition games. (3:30)