Tuesday, May 27, 2008

AMERICA'S HOSTS: Renee Montagne and Robert Smith; NEWSCASTS: Carl Kasell, Jean Cochran
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA HOST: Donna Apidone; NEWSCASTS: Steve Shadley

Here are some highlights of today's show:

Homeowners are facing foreclosures because they received loans that never should have been approved. One of the mysteries of the subprime mortgage crisis is whether Wall Street banks that were packaging and selling the mortgages knew that lots of them would go sour.  We'll hear from one former employee who says auditors working for investment banks knew about the flawed loans.  That story airs at 6:10 and again at 8:10.

Co-host Renee Montagne talks to Robert Thurman, professor of Buddhist studies at Columbia University, about the Karmapa, a young Buddhist lama visiting the United States. At the age of 22, he's one of the most important leaders in Tibetan Buddhism. Some believe he will succeed the Dalai Lama as the next spokesman for Tibetan Buddhism and Tibet.  We'll hear more at 6:35 and 8:35.

A new exhibition in London celebrates the work of author Ian Fleming, and the character he created -- the quintessential Cold War secret agent, James Bond. Fleming based 007 on his experiences in the British Naval Intelligence.  We'll have the story at :35.  That's 7:35.

Thanks for listening.