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January 16, 2013 At his peak, Lance Armstrong alternately charmed, manipulated and strong-armed the media. He transcended the world of cycling, and much of the coverage from nonsports media was adulatory. The now-disgraced cycling champion is turning to a televised interview with Oprah Winfrey for redemption.

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On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

January 16, 2013 If you're not a drama nerd, you might think the Canadian backstage comedy Slings and Arrows isn't for you. But film critic Bob Mondello says just one episode may be enough to change your mind.

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On All Things ConsideredPlaylist

January 16, 2013 California public television host Huell Howser earned the affection of many fans, hundreds of whom turned out for a memorial Tuesday night.

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January 16, 2013 He was the kindly white adoptive father of two young African-American brothers on the popular TV series, which aired from 1978-86. Bain, 89, died Monday in California. The show made Gary Coleman a star. He died in 2010.

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January 16, 2013 We've crowdsourced a good-mood playlist before; now we made another one. Or rather, you made another one.

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January 16, 2013 The veteran actor makes his directorial debut with a film about four aging opera singers who stage a concert at their retirement home. Starring Maggie Smith and Tom Courtenay, the film explores friendship, memory and the time that remains.

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On Fresh Air from WHYYPlaylist

January 16, 2013 Harlem Renaissance writer Eric Walrond's 1926 story collection, Tropic Death, is being reissued after decades out of print. Reviewer Oscar Villalon says the stories are "disturbing reminders of how utterly vulnerable we are to the injustices of the heart and of community."

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January 16, 2013 The outspoken Whole Foods founder tells us why he hates "Obamacare" and why we have trouble cutting the sugar, fat and salt out of our diets. But now he's told CBS he used a poor choice of words when referring to the health law as fascism.

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On Morning EditionPlaylist

January 16, 2013 It may not be as sexy as farro, as healthy as quinoa or as versatile as oats. But barley has a lot more going for it than being malted for beer or being dumped in a soup. Its versatility shines in salads, soup — even risotto.

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January 15, 2013 Imagine a library without books — only computers and gadgets. That's the vision of one Texas county that plans to launch a digital-only public library. Despite the project's cost-efficiency, one librarian argues that the plan may be too ambitious.

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January 15, 2013 With Lance Armstrong set to confess to Oprah Winfrey, what comes into stark relief isn't just that he has apparently said a lot of things that weren't true, but that he has said them very forcefully.

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January 15, 2013 Fresh off Sunday's Golden Globe Awards, where he won for best director and his film won for best motion picture/drama, the actor and director talks about his approach to the story of six diplomats who managed to escape a hostile Iran — and the CIA operative who helped them do so.

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On Fresh Air from WHYYPlaylist

January 15, 2013 At the beginning of January, the cover story of The New York Times Magazine declared: "George Saunders Has Written The Best Book You'll Read This Year." The stories in the author's latest collection, The Tenth of December, prove that The Times may well be right.

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On Fresh Air from WHYYPlaylist

January 15, 2013 In fiction, Karen Thompson Walker's sci-fi debut and Vladimir Nabokov's unfinished final novel arrive in paperback. In softcover nonfiction, Toby Wilkinson reviews Egypt's political past; Alec Wilkinson surveys 19th-century polar exploration; and William Broad probes the science of yoga.

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January 15, 2013 Dav Pilkey has just released his 10th Captain Underpants book. The series, packed with potty humor and goofy illustrations, delights reluctant readers and horrifies many grown-ups. Pilkey says he wanted to create books that would appeal even to readers who struggle, the way he did as a child.

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On Morning EditionPlaylist