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A food counter menu lists various milkshakes and a Hot Beef Sundae for sale at the New York State Fair in Syracuse, New York, on Friday, August 30, 2024. Ted Shaffrey/AP hide caption

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Ted Shaffrey/AP

How the beloved state fair grew from livestock showcases to cornucopias of amusement

The state fair dates back to the 1800s, and its agricultural roots go back even further. Ever since, states have been putting their own spin on the annual event while staying true to tradition.

People arrive at an ICE recruitment job fair at the Utah Valley Convention Center in Provo, Utah on Sept. 15, 2025. George Frey/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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George Frey/AFP via Getty Images

Fired feds, Trump lovers and veterans: Meet the people applying for ICE jobs

At a recent DHS career expo in Provo, Utah, many attendees hoped to get hired to help with the Trump administration's deportation efforts.

DHS recruitment expo

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Gov. Gavin Newsom discusses the "Election Rigging Response Act" at the Democracy Center, Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles on Aug. 14, 2025, outlining a potential California referendum on redistricting in response to Texas' plan to add five Republican House seats. Mario Tama/Getty Images hide caption

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Mario Tama/Getty Images

Millions pour into California's redistricting ballot measure

KQED

The campaigns for and against Gov. Gavin Newsom's controversial redistricting ballot measure are raising millions to flood California's airwaves ahead of the state's Nov. 4 special election.

Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin says the party's overperformance in recent special elections bodes well for the 2026 midterms, and that Democrats can oppose President Trump's policies and offer voters an alternative vision for America. Stephen Fowler/NPR hide caption

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Stephen Fowler/NPR

DNC chair says special elections show Democrats are winning, even when they lose

DNC Chair Ken Martin says recent special election results show Democrats are on the right track for 2026, and tells detractors to "stop bitching" and help the party's efforts.

DNC Chair says special elections show Democrats are winning, even when they lose

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Peter Navarro says the MAGA 'mindset' is to punish Trump opponents before 2026

Peter Navarro, a longtime adviser to President Trump, says time is running short to investigate the president's perceived political enemies.

In his new book, Trump adviser Peter Navarro talks about his time in prison

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Brian Finn tattoos people wanting to cover up scars from domestic abuse, human trafficking, self-harm and more. Brian Finn hide caption

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Brian Finn

How a Toledo tattoo artist helps turn scars into art

Brian Finn is a tattoo artist in Toledo, Ohio who has been offering free and discounted tattoos for people covering trauma scars for more than 10 years.

An Ohio tattoo artist has been turning traumatic scars into works of art for a decade

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Former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey leaves the Rayburn House Office Building after testifying to two House committees on Dec. 7, 2018, in Washington, D.C. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images hide caption

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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Ex-FBI Director James Comey is indicted on criminal charges stemming from his 2020 testimony

Comey faces one count of making false statements and one count of obstruction of justice in connection with his testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee nearly five years ago.

FBI Director James Comey indicted on criminal charges stemming from 2020 testimony

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The Chicago city skyline is seen Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. Erin Hooley/AP hide caption

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Erin Hooley/AP

'Free speech doesn't work just when you agree with it'

NPR's Scott Simon recalls a First Amendment case from the late 1970s involving the rights of a neo-Nazi group to march through a predominantly Jewish suburb of Chicago.

ESSAY 09-27-25

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Sharon Osbourne, left, Liev Schreiber and Mayim Bialik are among the 1,200-plus Hollywood figures who have signed an open letter pushing back against a previous, widely-signed industry boycott of Israeli film groups. Matt Winkelmeyer; Jeff Spicer; Aldara Zarraoa/Getty Images hide caption

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Matt Winkelmeyer; Jeff Spicer; Aldara Zarraoa/Getty Images

Hollywood now has dueling open letters over the Israel film boycott

Over 1,200 Hollywood figures, among them Liev Schreiber, Mayim Bialik and Sharon Osbourne, signed a letter on Thursday rejecting a previous call to boycott Israeli film groups.

Jimmy Kimmel at the 95th Annual Academy Awards in 2023. The Sinclair broadcasting group restored the late night TV host's show to their stations after taking it off the air for more than a week following comments he made about the suspect in Charlie Kirk's killing. Kevin Winter/Getty Images hide caption

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Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Sinclair and Nexstar restore 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' to their local TV stations

The major broadcasting groups said in statements the late-night talk show will return to their TV stations on Friday.

Vice President Vance looks on as President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office on Sept 25, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump signed an order approving a partial sale of TikTok's U.S. operations, following a 2024 law requiring parent company ByteDance to divest or face a ban. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images hide caption

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Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Trump's TikTok deal payment is criticized as a 'shake-down scheme' by experts

The U.S. government will collect a multibillion-dollar fee from the American investors who will take over TikTok. Some experts call the fee and other deals like it "extortion."

A 1905 statue of Sacagawea by sculptor Alice Cooper stands in Washington Park in Portland, Ore., on April 9, 2002, depicting the famous Lewis and Clark guide pointing west and carrying her son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau. Charbonneau died at age 61 at an obscure ranch in Oregon's southeast corner. He had lived in a German castle with a prince, learned several languages, toured Europe and Africa and worked as a trapper, a gold miner, a scout and interpreter. As the bicentennial of the Lewis and Clark expedition nears, historians are trying to find out more about the youngest member of the Voyage of Discovery. Don Ryan/AP hide caption

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Don Ryan/AP

Tribal history and new evidence tell a different, fuller story of Sacagawea

WBUR

Sacagawea's story was mostly told by the white American and European men who kept journals of the expedition, but the Hidatsa tribe and other tribes have a long oral history that tells a different story of her life.

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NoSo: Tiny Desk Concert

NoSo's soft-spoken nature complements their musical dexterity to create the kind intimate performance that really shines in the close quarters behind the Desk.

Sally Mann in her home studio in Virginia on August 16, 2025. Zayrha Rodriguez/NPR hide caption

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Zayrha Rodriguez/NPR

Photographer Sally Mann warns of a 'new era of culture wars' after her art is seized

As she reflects on her career in a second memoir, Sally Mann warns of a "new era of culture wars" after police pulled several photographs she took of her children decades ago off the walls of a museum.

Photographer Sally Mann warns of 'new era of culture wars' after her art was removed

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