Accessibility links
Catherine Osborn
Stories By

Catherine Osborn

Story Archive

Thursday

Pelé, who made soccer 'The Beautiful Game,' dies at 82

Pelé appears at Pelé: The Collection, presented by Julien's Auctions in London on June 1, 2016. Neil Hall/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Neil Hall/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Obituaries

Pelé, who made soccer 'The Beautiful Game,' dies at 82

Pelé was one of the world's best soccer players who was the sport's global face for decades. The Brazilian legend was a wizard on the field who dazzled fans, teammates and competitors alike.

Pelé, who made soccer 'The Beautiful Game,' dies at 82

Listen · 4:31
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/993143216/1146097019" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Thursday

The Worst Of COVID-19 Should Be Over For 1 Hard-Hit Brazilian City. But It's Not

Ulisses Xavier, 52, who has worked for 16 years at Nossa Senhora cemetery in Manaus, Brazil, makes wooden crosses to supplement his income. The cemetery has seen a surge in the number of new graves after the outbreak of COVID-19. Michael Dantas/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Michael Dantas/AFP via Getty Images

Goats and Soda

The Worst Of COVID-19 Should Be Over For 1 Hard-Hit Brazilian City. But It's Not

The jungle metropolis of Manaus had a terrible pandemic spring. A study estimates 76% of residents were exposed to the coronavirus. Researchers thought there couldn't be another surge. And yet...

Monday

Coronavirus-Hit Brazil Considers Major Public Funds For Poor And Unemployed

Flaviane da Conceição, 40, a self-employed house cleaner, poses for a photo at her home in the Cidade de Deus favela on July 29 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. A single mother of three, she applied for government emergency aid at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic and it helps her support her family. Bruna Prado/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Bruna Prado/Getty Images

The Coronavirus Crisis

Coronavirus-Hit Brazil Considers Major Public Funds For Poor And Unemployed

Pandemic emergency aid gave an unlikely ratings boost to President Jair Bolsonaro, who has criticized welfare and protested virus prevention measures. Now he's weighing further social spending.

Friday

Environment

Indigenous Brazilians Come Together To Defend Amazon Forest Against Fires

Indigenous Brazilians are joining forces to defend the Amazon forest from fires set by invaders on their land. More than a dozen indigenous groups met recently to strategize.

Indigenous Brazilians Come Together To Defend Amazon Forest Against Fires

Listen · 3:55
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/760642093/760642094" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Monday

SOS From Brazil's Amazon Fire Protesters: 'We Need The World's Help Right Now'

Indigenous people protest in defense of the Amazon in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday. Experts from the country's satellite monitoring agency say most of the fires are set by farmers or ranchers clearing existing farmland, but the same monitoring agency has reported a sharp increase in deforestation this year as well. Bruna Prado/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Bruna Prado/AP

World

SOS From Brazil's Amazon Fire Protesters: 'We Need The World's Help Right Now'

Protesters took to the streets across Brazil this weekend to voice outrage over the fires burning through the Amazon.

Thursday

Brazil's President Faces Backlash For Posting Salacious Carnival Video

Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro attends an event to celebrate 211 years of the creation of the Brazilian Marine Corps in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Thursday Mauro Pimentel/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Mauro Pimentel/AFP/Getty Images

Latin America

Brazil's President Faces Backlash For Posting Salacious Carnival Video

Jair Bolsonaro, who assumed office in January, has found himself on the wrong side of allies and critics alike after he tweeted a video showing two men engaged in lewd behavior.

Monday

Latin America

Mine Executives In Brazil Step Down After Deadly Dam Collapse

Several top executives of a Brazilian iron mine company have stepped down temporarily after a government investigation into January's deadly dam collapse. About 300 people were killed.

Mine Executives In Brazil Step Down After Deadly Dam Collapse

Listen · 2:09
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/699948823/699948824" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Monday

Latin America

Hundreds Are Missing After Dam Collapses In Southern Brazil

The death toll from the collapse of a dam in southern Brazilian continues to rise as searchers labor in deep mud. Several hundred people are still reported missing.

Hundreds Are Missing After Dam Collapses In Southern Brazil

Listen · 2:25
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/689237347/689237348" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Tuesday

World

New Regulations In Brazil Are Trying To Address Gender Gap For Upcoming Elections

Brazilian voters go to the polls in October for general elections. Gender is increasingly an election issue, specifically concerning the low number of female candidates. Several groups are trying to address this.

New Regulations In Brazil Are Trying To Address Gender Gap For Upcoming Elections

Listen · 3:51
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/646801449/646801453" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Friday

'I Know How Far I Can Go': Black Entrepreneurs Overcome Challenges In Brazil

Lívia Suarez, who runs La Frida Bike, arrives at the Dendê Valley boot camp for entrepreneurs in Salvador's city center. Catherine Osborn/NPR hide caption

toggle caption
Catherine Osborn/NPR

World

'I Know How Far I Can Go': Black Entrepreneurs Overcome Challenges In Brazil

Salvador, the capital of Bahia state, has become a hub for black-owned businesses. A startup accelerator there supports companies based on their potential for social and economic impact.

'I Know How Far I Can Go': Black Entrepreneurs Overcome Challenges In Brazil

Listen · 7:01
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/627651246/628694774" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Sunday

A Day In The Boat Life On The Amazon River

A couple watches boats pass the docks in Manaus, a city on the Amazon River. Pop-up restaurants like this line the docks to dish homemade Brazilian fare to ship travelers and crews. Catherine Osborn for NPR hide caption

toggle caption
Catherine Osborn for NPR

World

A Day In The Boat Life On The Amazon River

People networking, just hanging out, praying, escaping city bustle, commuting to work — just another day on the White Swan riverboat.

A Day In The Boat Life On The Amazon River

Listen · 8:15
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/618232377/618648686" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Friday

Latin America

Brazilian Activist Killed In Drive-By Shooting

A popular politician and expert on police violence was shot dead in a drive-by killing that investigators say looks like a targeted assassination.

Brazilian Activist Killed In Drive-By Shooting

Listen · 2:54
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/594199494/594199495" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Monday

World

Instructor Teaches Students To 'Learn To Program Or Be Programmed' In Brazil

In Brazil, civic hackathons have become a popular way for people to use coding to help clean up their politics. The comes after a widespread corruption investigation uncovered how deep the fraud extends in the country's government.

Instructor Teaches Students To 'Learn To Program Or Be Programmed' In Brazil

Listen · 3:46
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/568393484/568393485" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Thursday

Latin America

Why Brazil's Violence Keeps Getting Worse

Brazil is more violent now than at any time in its history. So says a new report, which says an average of seven people die there every hour. Researchers looked at why the problem continues to worsen.

Why Brazil's Violence Keeps Getting Worse

Listen · 2:32
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/561505675/561505676" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Tuesday

Latin America

Tour Rio De Janeiro's Oldest Slave Port With This New App

Rio de Janeiro was home to the Americas' largest slave port, which received nearly a million slaves over several centuries. Now modern day Cariocas have developed an app that provides an immersive tour through that history.

Tour Rio De Janeiro's Oldest Slave Port With This New App

Listen · 3:55
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/537948535/537948536" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Monday

Latin America

Brazilian Street Preacher Spreads Progressive Message

A preacher in Rio de Janeiro is attracting crowds through a combination of evangelical traditions and liberation theology, which usually draw people from opposite sides of the political spectrum.

Brazilian Street Preacher Spreads Progressive Message

Listen · 4:27
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/507922172/507922173" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Tuesday

Latin America

Brazilian Soccer Team's Plane Crashes In Colombia

The crash of the plane killed a Brazilian soccer team living a Cinderella story. The team rose from relative obscurity and was scheduled to play in one of the region's most prestigious tournaments.

Brazilian Soccer Team's Plane Crashes In Colombia

Listen · 2:50
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/503766888/503766889" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Sunday

Latin America

Young Barbers In Brazil Are Cutting Away From Traditional Barbershops

A prize-winning documentary in Brazil is highlighting a new trend in barbershops, where fresh hairstyles are mixing with changing ideas about gender and race.

Young Barbers In Brazil Are Cutting Away From Traditional Barbershops

Listen · 3:41
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/502797691/502797692" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Saturday

Latin America

Fact Checkers Gain Importance In Brazil's Muddled Media Landscape

As Brazil's political crisis unfolds, many Brazilians say they can't trust the "sensationalist" media, and researchers found many news articles are fake. Enter a new website, To The Facts.

Fact Checkers Gain Importance In Brazil's Muddled Media Landscape

Listen · 3:46
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/478076177/478076181" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Wednesday

Latin America

Vice President Temer Would Lead Brazil If The President Is Impeached

If impeached, Brazil's president would be suspended for months while tried on charges she used state funds to plug budget gaps. The man running the country would be Vice President Michel Temer.

Vice President Temer Would Lead Brazil If The President Is Impeached

Listen · 3:08
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/477607387/477607388" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Saturday

Europe

Brazil's Evangelicals Flex Political Power in Impeachment Drama

The lower house of the Brazilian congress votes Sunday on whether to remove President Dilma Rousseff. The evangelical caucus, known as the "bible block," is helping to drive the effort.

Brazil's Evangelicals Flex Political Power in Impeachment Drama

Listen · 4:13
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/474485598/474485599" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Monday

Brazil's Latest Headache: Ticket Sales Lag For Rio Olympics

Teenagers sit on a new sign reading "Cidade Olimpica" (Olympic City) in Rio de Janeiro's port district last October. Ahead of this summer's Olympic Games, the port district is undergoing an urban renewal program. Ticket sales have been slow, and many Brazilians cite the poor state of the economy, which is in recession. Mario Tama/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Mario Tama/Getty Images

Parallels

Brazil's Latest Headache: Ticket Sales Lag For Rio Olympics

The Summer Games open Aug. 5 in Rio de Janeiro, but the country's many problems seem to be turning off ticket buyers in Brazil and abroad.

Brazil's Latest Headache: Ticket Sales Lag For Rio Olympics

Listen · 3:36
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/473828835/473850624" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Wednesday

Race

Racial Tensions Rise In Rio De Janeiro As Economy Continues To Struggle

Amid Brazil's economic slump, race and class tensions are playing out on Rio de Janeiro's beaches. Online images of police and vigilantes targeting poor black youth have captured the public's attention.

Racial Tensions Rise In Rio De Janeiro As Economy Continues To Struggle

Listen · 3:41
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/454692290/454692291" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Saturday

Middle East

In Brazil, Syrian Refugees Retrace Migration Trails

Since Syria's civil war, Brazil has quietly accepted more Syrian refugees than any other country in Latin America. Those refugees are now building new lives and connecting with Syrian history there.

In Brazil, Syrian Refugees Retrace Migration Trails

Listen · 4:03
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/443691876/443691877" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Browse archive or search npr.org