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NPR's Jack Speer reports on the investigation of Bridgestone/Firestone. Another 15 deaths are being linked to defective Firestone tires, raising the suspected death toll to 103. Yesterday, Continental General announced that it's recalling about 160-thousand tires because of tread separation.

NPR's Elaine Korry reports on the high cost of commercial property in San Francisco. High-tech companies have been flocking to San Francisco area in droves, causing office rents to skyrocket. In November voters will decide on two measures on the ballot that would restrict future growth.

Jon Miller reports from Lima, Peru that the country's intelligence chief Vladimiro Montesinos -- suspected in a bribery scandal -- has not been seen, but the government denies reports that he is in military custody. The scandal prompted Peru's President Alberto Fujimori to disband the spy agency, and announce plans to call new elections. Fujimori further pledged that he will not be a candidate in those elections. Peru's cabinet today tried to work out details, as opposition candidates began to rally support in hopes of replacing Fujimori.

NPR's Tom Gjelten reports that newly released, declassified documents show that a former Chilean official convicted in a fatal 1976 car bombing in Washington, DC was an informer for the CIA. According to the documents, released by the CIA in a declassified report to Congress, the CIA maintained its relationship with General Manuel Contreras, director of Chile's secret police, until 1977. It's unclear whether the CIA knew of his involvement in the bombing, which killed former Chilean Ambassador Orlando Letelier and his American associate Ronni Moffitt. In 1993, Contreras was sentenced to seven years in prison for the assassination.

Commentator Guillermo Gomez-Pena tells the tale of his marriage to his wife Carolina. Their union was a blending of two cultures, Mexican and Colombian, done in what he calls is the most "American" way -- at City Hall. He says their marriage represents a transnational love that defies all boundaries.

NPR's Tom Goldman in Sydney reports Romania's women gymnasts have defeated their arch-rival, Russia, to win Olympic gold, thanks largely to an uncharacteristic mistake by a Russian star.

The National Museum of American History -- part of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC -- is being given 80-million-dollars. Real estate developer and philanthropist Kenneth Behring is making the gift, which is the largest single donation the Institution has ever received. Noah talks to Smithsonian Institution Secretary Lawrence Small.

Robert talks with Russian tycoon Boris Berezovsky about politics and media in Russia today. Berezovsky controls a 49-percent share in the ORT television network. The Russian government owns the rest. He has come under pressure from the Russian government to give up his shares, which would put the network under complete state control. His empire has included an oil company and Aeroflot, the Russian airline. He was also recently a member of the Russian parliament, the Duma, but resigned his seat.

NPR's John Nielsen reports on the controversy over a type of genetically altered corn that's fed to livestock. The corn has not been approved for human use, but may have found its way into the food supply. It's one of eight varieties of genetically modified corn seed currently on the market and contains a substance called krinine c (KRIGH-nine.see), which can trigger allergic reactions in humans.

Peter Clowney of member station WHYY reports on the plan to restore financial solvency to the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia, which owns one of the world's richest collections of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art. The plan would raise 85 million dollars to re-endow the foundation and increase the budget for administering the Barnes collection.

NPR's Andy Bowers reports from Los Angeles on Vice President Al Gore's commitment to keeping medical records private. At a town meeting, the Democratic candidate discussed with the audience problems with medical information being sold to drug companies or other businesses. Gore says as president, he'll work to make these kinds of disclosures illegal.

Claire Doole reports from central Switzerland on a proposal that would limit the number of foreign-born residents in the country. Right-wing groups say foreign workers are keeping wages down and stifling the economy. Others say enforcing a quota would hurt Switzerland's reputation. Opinion polls say a vote on the proposal, scheduled for this weekend, will be close.

Power, Politics and Style, is the name of a pre-election exhibition at the Baltimore Museum of Art. The show focuses on how presidents used paintings furnishings, china, and fashions to convey their values and messages to the nation. The show opens this Sunday. NPR's Susan Stamberg reports.

NPR's Uri Berliner reports from Sydney, Australia that most of the major league baseball teams have sent scouts to the Sydney games. The scouts are there to evaluate players especially pitchers in an effort to find new talents from various countries around the world.

Matthew Ferguson of Michigan Public Radio reports on the ruling against Ameritech. The Chicago-based phone service was fined for failing to clear the credit record of a customer who was wrongly billed for an account. The company, which serves five Midwestern states, has been under investigation in Indiana and Wisconsin for slow repair and service lapses.

Marcie Sillman from member station KUOW reports that the fate of a 93-hundred year old skeleton known as Kennewick Man is still in limbo. The Clinton Administration says the bones should be returned to the five tribes who claim them...but eight Oregon scientists have taken the case to federal court.

In a report from Podgorica, NPR's Sylvia Poggioli says Serbian State TV tonight broadcast word that opposition candidate Vojislav Kostunica finished first in Sunday's presidential election. But, the Yugoslav State Election Commission said Kostunica did not win an outright majority and will have to face President Slobodan Milosevic in a run-off. The opposition insists Kostunica won well over 50-percent of the vote and denounced the government's call for a run-off.

Commentator Diana Nyad says with the media and fan demand on high-profile sports superstars, staying at the Olympic Village isn't quite what it was intended to be.

NPR's Anthony Brooks reports from St. Petersburg on Democratic Presidential candidate Al Gore's efforts to win voter support in Florida for his Medicare reform plan. Florida is considered a critical state. Both Gore and his Republican opponent, George W. Bush, are offering proposals to add prescription drug coverage to the Medicare program.

Host Mike Shuster talks to Peter Miller, author of The Common Sense Mortgage: How to Cut the Cost of Home Ownership by $50,000 or More, about interest rates and mortgages. (3:21) The Common Sense Mortgage : How to Cut the Cost of Home Ownership by $50,000 or More by Peter G. Miller is published by Contemporary Books; ISBN: 08092

NPR's Sylvia Poggioli reports on the latest developments on Sunday's Presidential elections in Yugoslavia. The official results from the elections have not been made public yet. Yesterday the Yugoslav Federal Electoral Commission said it would announce the results of Sunday's elections by Thursday evening.

Host Mike Shuster talks to Stephen Quinn of CBC Radio News in Vancouver about the trial of former NHL player Marty McSorley. He is charged with assaulting Donald Brashear, another Hockey player during a nationally televised game in February. The attack left Brashear bleeding and unconscious on the ice with a severe concussion.

Robert talks to Aleksa Djilas, Public Policy Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, about the apparent winner in the Yugoslav election, Vojislav Kostunica. Djilas says Kostunica is not corrupt, has no ties to Milosevic, is educated, a legal scholar and respects the rule of law.

BBC reporter Andrew Cassell) talks to Noah Adams about the trial of two Libyans accused of the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jetliner over Lockerbie, Scotland. Today a Libyan man who is a self-professed former double agent testified against one of the defendants, saying that the defendant kept explosives in his airport office.

NPR's Martin Kaste reports from Caracas, Venezuela, where high ranking representatives of oil exporting countries are gathering for a summit. OPEC leaders will discuss how to respond to demands for increasing oil production, as a way of lowering petroleum prices. They're not expected to take any action that would drive oil prices below twenty-five dollars a barrel.