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Cat Schuknecht
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Cat Schuknecht

Cat Schuknecht

Story Archive

Monday

The Halo Effect

Patty Ramge leans against her Ford Pinto in 1978. Since then, the car has become one of the most infamous vehicles in American history, known for a design that made it vulnerable in low-speed accidents. Bettmann/Bettmann Archive hide caption

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Bettmann/Bettmann Archive

Hidden Brain

The Halo Effect

Judy, Lyn and Donna Ulrich were driving to a volleyball game when their Ford Pinto was hit from behind by a Chevy van. The Pinto caught fire, and the three teenagers were burned to death. This week on Hidden Brain, we talk to a former Ford insider who could have voted to recall the Pinto years before the Ulrich girls were killed — but didn't. And we ask, is it possible to fairly evaluate our past actions when we know how things turned out?

The Halo Effect

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Monday

You 2.0: The Mind's Eye
vndrpttn/Getty Images

Hidden Brain

You 2.0: The Mind's Eye

Some challenges feel insurmountable. But psychologist Emily Balcetis says the solutions are often right in front of our eyes. This week, as part of our annual series on personal growth and reinvention, Emily explains how we can harness our sight to affect our behavior.

You 2.0: The Mind's Eye

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Monday

The Night That Lasted A Lifetime

At seventeen years old, Fred Clay was sentenced to prison for a crime he did not commit. Various flawed ideas in psychology were used to determine his guilt. Ken Richardson/Ken Richardson hide caption

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Ken Richardson/Ken Richardson

Hidden Brain

The Night That Lasted A Lifetime

Not long after his sixteenth birthday, Fred Clay was arrested for the murder of a cab driver in Boston. Eventually, Fred was found guilty — but only after police and prosecutors used questionable psychological techniques to single him out as the killer. This week on Hidden Brain, we go back four decades to uncover the harm that arises when flawed ideas from psychology are used to determine that a teenager should spend the rest of his life behind bars.

The Night That Lasted A Lifetime

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Monday

Playing Favorites

Hannah Groch-Begley listens to Dylan Matthews play the ukulele at their home in Washington, D.C. Dylan had hesitated to buy the ukulele because it felt like too big of an indulgence. Shankar Vedantam/NPR hide caption

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Shankar Vedantam/NPR

Hidden Brain

Playing Favorites

If we do a favor for someone we know, we think we've done a good deed. What we don't tend to ask is: Who have we harmed by treating this person with more kindness than we show toward others? This week, in the second of our two-part series on moral decision-making, we consider how actions that come from a place of love can lead to a more unjust world.

Playing Favorites

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Thursday

Theory Vs. Reality: Why Our Economic Behavior Isn't Always Rational

Bilal Chaudhry, 16, picks up a dozen eggs to give to a person in a car during a free egg distribution in Cumru Township, PA. The distribution was held to help people during the COVID-19 outbreak. MediaNews Group via Getty Images hide caption

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MediaNews Group via Getty Images

The Coronavirus Crisis

Theory Vs. Reality: Why Our Economic Behavior Isn't Always Rational

We don't always behave the way economic models say we will. We don't save enough for retirement. We give money to charity. This week, why we act in ways that go against our "rational" self-interest.

Theory Vs. Reality: Why Our Economic Behavior Isn't Always Rational

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Monday

Our Better Angels

Volunteers for the grassroots network Columbia Community Care organize donated groceries and household items at one of five distribution sites in Howard County, Maryland. Courtesy of Erika Strauss Chavarria hide caption

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Courtesy of Erika Strauss Chavarria

The Coronavirus Crisis

Our Better Angels

In the months since the spread of the coronavirus, stories of selfishness and exploitation have become all too familiar: people ignoring social distancing guidelines, or even selling medical equipment at inflated prices. Most of our public and economic policies take aim at these sorts of people — the wrongdoers and the profiteers. But is there a hidden cost to the rest of us when we put bad actors at the center of our thinking? Do the measures we put in place to curtail the selfish inadvertently hurt our capacity to do right by others?

Our Better Angels

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Sunday

Saturday

Monday

With Epstein's Death, Accusers Seek New Legal Recourse

This March 28, 2017, photo, provided by the New York State Sex Offender Registry, shows Jeffrey Epstein. Epstein died by apparent suicide while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. AP hide caption

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AP

National

With Epstein's Death, Accusers Seek New Legal Recourse

Jeffrey Epstein died by apparent suicide on Saturday while awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking. With no defendant to stand in court, the criminal case against Epstein is effectively over.

Friday

A Young Jeffrey Epstein Made An Impression On His High School Students

The New York Times first reported last week that eight former Dalton students said the way Jeffrey Epstein interacted with teenage girls had stuck with them since high school. Last week, Epstein was charged with sex trafficking of minors. Patrick McMullan/Getty Images hide caption

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Patrick McMullan/Getty Images

National

A Young Jeffrey Epstein Made An Impression On His High School Students

Former students at the Dalton School in Manhattan remember Epstein as a young, charismatic teacher. More than four decades later, Epstein stands accused of sexually abusing dozens of underaged girls.

Tuesday

FBI Records Could Have Solved A Civil Rights Cold Case. Now It's Too Late

A memorial to the Rev. James Reeb, attacked near this site in 1965, stands in front of a faded civil rights mural in Selma, Ala. William Widmer for NPR hide caption

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William Widmer for NPR

Investigations

FBI Records Could Have Solved A Civil Rights Cold Case. Now It's Too Late

Alabama officials tell NPR that if the FBI had shared its case file, they would have investigated the James Reeb murder case while one of the assailants was still alive.

FBI Records Could Have Solved A Civil Rights Cold Case. Now It's Too Late

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Tuesday

NPR Identifies 4th Attacker In Civil Rights-Era Cold Case

William Portwood, who died less than two weeks after NPR confirmed his involvement in the 1965 murder of Boston minister James Reeb, poses for a photograph in front of his home in Selma, Ala. Chip Brantley/NPR hide caption

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Chip Brantley/NPR

Investigations

NPR Identifies 4th Attacker In Civil Rights-Era Cold Case

A fourth man was involved in the 1965 attack on civil rights worker and minister James Reeb, but that man was never identified or charged in Reeb's murder, an NPR investigation revealed.

NPR Identifies 4th Attacker In Civil Rights-Era Cold Case

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Saturday

Tuesday

Inside The White House's Bitter Fight Over China

A magazine's cover line in Beijing asks, "How will Trump the businessman change the world?" on Dec. 28, 2016, days after then President-elect Donald Trump tapped outspoken China critic Peter Navarro for a top trade position. Greg Baker/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Greg Baker/AFP/Getty Images

Investigations

Inside The White House's Bitter Fight Over China

The White House has been strong against China in trade talks, but NPR and PBS Frontline found top advisers battled for more than a year over imposing billions of dollars in tariffs on Chinese imports.

Inside The White House's Bitter Fight Over China

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Friday

As China Hacked, U.S. Businesses Turned A Blind Eye

Top government leaders told NPR that federal agencies are years behind where they could have been if Chinese cybertheft had been openly addressed earlier. Bill Hinton Photography/Getty Images hide caption

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Bill Hinton Photography/Getty Images

Investigations

As China Hacked, U.S. Businesses Turned A Blind Eye

The U.S. has largely failed to stop Chinese cybertheft of U.S. companies, but the companies themselves led the charge in keeping it under wraps.

As China Hacked, U.S. Businesses Turned A Blind Eye

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Thursday

Trump Signs Executive Orders In Push To Make It Easier To Build Oil And Gas Pipelines

President Trump hands out pens after signing an executive order aimed at making it easier for companies to pursue oil and gas pipeline projects. The president addressed an audience at the International Union of Operating Engineers International Training and Education Center in Texas. Evan Vucci/AP hide caption

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Evan Vucci/AP

Environment

Trump Signs Executive Orders In Push To Make It Easier To Build Oil And Gas Pipelines

President Trump issues two executive orders that could make it harder for states to block companies from building oil and gas pipeline projects.

Wednesday

Airbnb Reverses Plan To Remove Israeli Settlement Listings

Some residents of the Israeli settlement Eli, shown here in 2016, have rented out properties there using Airbnb. David Vaaknin for The Washington Post/Getty Images hide caption

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David Vaaknin for The Washington Post/Getty Images

World

Airbnb Reverses Plan To Remove Israeli Settlement Listings

On Tuesday, the company said it will allow listings in the occupied West Bank, and will donate all the money it makes from those properties to non-profit humanitarian aid organizations.

Tuesday

Israel Votes On Netanyahu's Political Future

Election campaign billboards in Tel Aviv showing Israeli Prime Minister and head of the Likud party Benjamin Netanyahu (left), alongside the Blue and White alliance leaders Moshe Yaalon and Benny Gantz. Oded Balilty/AP hide caption

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Oded Balilty/AP

Middle East

Israel Votes On Netanyahu's Political Future

The final results of the Israeli parliamentary election are too close to call. The election is largely seen as a referendum on Israel's longtime right-wing leader Benjamin Netanyahu.

'This Is A Great Story', Says Virginia Cavaliers' Coach On Team's NCAA Comeback

Virginia's Kyle Guy celebrates after helping his team defeat Texas Tech in the NCAA championship tournament. The title game finished in overtime – a first since the University of Kansas beat the University of Memphis in 2008. David J. Phillip/AP hide caption

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David J. Phillip/AP

Sports

'This Is A Great Story', Says Virginia Cavaliers' Coach On Team's NCAA Comeback

Monday night in Minneapolis, the University of Virginia won its first-ever NCAA championship in a dramatic 85-77 overtime defeat of Texas Tech University.

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