Gwen Thompkins Gwen Thompkins hosts hosts Music Inside Out on WWNO.
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Gwen Thompkins

Gwen Thompkins

Gwen Thompkins hosts Music Inside Out on WWNO in New Orleans.

Up until recently, she was an NPR foreign correspondent covering East Africa. She was based in Nairobi, Kenya, reporting on the countries, people and happenings from the Horn to the heart of Africa.

Since arriving in Africa in 2006, Thompkins has reported on the toppling of the Islamic Courts Union government in Somalia, ethnic violence in Kenya, insecurity in Darfur and Sudan's first nationwide elections in a generation. She has also written a series on the Nile River, traveling from the shores of Lake Victoria to the Mediterranean Sea. Heading south, she has reported stories from South Africa and Antarctica.

From 1996 to 2006, Thompkins was senior editor of Weekend Edition Saturday. Working with Scott Simon she learned — among other things — that when a horse walks into a bar, the bartender has to say, "So, why the long face?"

While at Weekend Edition, Thompkins also reported from her hometown of New Orleans. In the months following Hurricane Katrina, she and senior producer Sarah Beyer Kelly filed stories on the aftermath of the storm and the rebuilding efforts.

Before coming to NPR, Thompkins worked as a reporter and editor at The Times-Picayune newspaper.

A graduate of Newcomb College at Tulane University, Thompkins majored in history and Soviet studies. While on a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, she was in Eastern Europe when the Berlin Wall fell. Fortunately, she says, she was not injured.

Story Archive

Tuesday

ÌFÉ Trenity Thomas/Courtesy of the artst hide caption

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Trenity Thomas/Courtesy of the artst

Courtesy of the artist

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Thursday

Big Freedia Nelson Cosey/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Nelson Cosey/Courtesy of the artist

Big Freedia on World Cafe

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Wednesday

Merry Clayton Mathieu Bitton/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Mathieu Bitton/Courtesy of the artist

Merry Clayton on World Cafe

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Wednesday

Branford Marsalis Eric Ryan Anderson/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Eric Ryan Anderson/Courtesy of the artist

Branford Marsalis On World Cafe

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Thursday

David Shaw Alysse Gafkjen/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Alysse Gafkjen/Courtesy of the artist

David Shaw on World Cafe

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Monday

Dumstaphunk Jeff Farsai/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Jeff Farsai/Courtesy of the artist

Dumpstaphunk On World Cafe

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Sunday

Carol Sutton arrives at the World Premiere of "Poms" on May 1, 2019, in Los Angeles. Sutton died this past week at the age of 76 — more than a month after contracting the coronavirus. Willy Sanjuan/Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP hide caption

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Willy Sanjuan/Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP

Wednesday

79rs Gangs - Jermain Bossier (left) and Romeo Bougere (right) Diwang Valdez/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Diwang Valdez/Courtesy of the artist

79rs Gang On World Cafe

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Wednesday

Sweet Crude Augusta Sagnelli/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Augusta Sagnelli/Courtesy of the artist

Sweet Crude On World Cafe

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Wednesday

Don Vappie David Spielman/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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David Spielman/Courtesy of the artist

Don Vappie On World Cafe

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Tuesday

Maggie Koerner Kathleen Fitzgerald/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Kathleen Fitzgerald/Courtesy of the artist

Maggie Koerner On World Cafe

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Monday

Dr. John, one of the icons of New Orleans' music scene, performs on stage during the Nice's Jazz Festival, July 18, 2010. Valery Hache/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Valery Hache/AFP via Getty Images

Gwen Thompkins on World Cafe

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Thursday

Patriarch Of New Orleans Musical Family, Ellis Marsalis, Dies At 85

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Saturday

Wednesday

Fats Domino, Founding Father Of Rock 'N' Roll, Dies At 89

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A 1967 portrait of Fats Domino. The singer and pianist died Oct. 24 at age 89. Clive Limpkin/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

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Clive Limpkin/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Fats Domino, Architect Of Rock 'N' Roll, Dead At 89

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Sunday

Friday

Ernie K Doe performs at the 2001 New Orleans Jazz Festival. Leon Morris/Redferns hide caption

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Leon Morris/Redferns

Stanton Moore, 'Here Come The Girls'

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Saturday

Sunday

Alfred Drake and Patricia Morison perform in the 1958 TV adaptation of Kiss Me, Kate. The music by Cole Porter employed accidental notes to help illustrate the lyrics. Ralph Morse/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images hide caption

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Ralph Morse/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

How 'Accidental' Notes Grab Our Attention

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Saturday

Allen Toussaint performs at the 2007 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Sean Gardner/Getty Images hide caption

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Sean Gardner/Getty Images

Hear An Unreleased Song By Allen Toussaint

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Sunday

Nothing, Not Even Recovery, Moves Quickly In New Orleans

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Saturday

Saturday

Egypt's fishermen near Alexandria ply the Nile and the Mediterranean Sea. The river is a lifeline for the country. Philip Rizk for NPR hide caption

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Philip Rizk for NPR

Thirsty Egypt Clings Tight To The Nile

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