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- Daniel talks with curator Betsy Walsh of the Folger Shakespeare Library (Washington, DC) about "Yesterday's News," an exhibition about the forerunner of today's newspapers - the "newsbook." News accounts in 17th Century England were sold in stores, posted on street corners, and even sung by balladeers. They contained many of the kinds of stories newspapers report on today.

In Chicago today, Mitsubishi Motor Manufacturing of America announced that former Secretary of Labor Lynn Martin will conduct an independent review of company policy regarding sexual harassment and discrimination. Mitsubishi is the target of two sexual harassment suits. NPR's Cheryl Corley reports that a lawyer representing some of the women charging sexual harassment says hiring the former Labor Secretary is just a public relations move.

As senators campaign hard for positions in the new Senate leadership line-up, members of both parties are pessimistic about their ability to achieve any substantive legislation in the rest of this Congress. There's no indication that the squabbling over the minimum wage and the gas tax will be resolved, while legislation on welfare, Medicaid, immigration, campaign finance reform, and insurance reform remains unfinished. NPR's Peter Kenyon reports.

NPR's Mike Shuster reports that after many false starts, Iraq has finally agreed to the terms of a UN plan that allows Iraq to sell 2 billion dollars in oil over six months. Iraq could use the hard currency to buy food and medicine. The deal does not mean an end to the sanctions, however.

Prosecutors in Lane County, Oregon tape-recorded a Catholic confession between a jailed triple-murder suspect and a jailhouse priest. Colin Fogarty of Oregon Public Broadcasting reports that what was said has not been revealed, but prosecutors want to use the tape in court. Some Catholic leaders and civil libertarians are outraged; they say confessions are sacred and cannot be revealed.

The Supreme Court today voted to limit punitive damages. The case involved an Alabama doctor who had been awarded two million dollars because the paint on his new BMW had been touched up. The decision is a victory for manufacturers, but the justices did not provide clear guidance on limits for future awards. NPR's Chitra Ragavan reports.

Energy Secretary Hazel O'Leary apologized today for mismanaging her expensive overseas official travel. But she also defended the trips, in her testimony before the House Commerce investigations subcommittee. O'Leary said her missions abroad generated business for American firms and benefitted U-S foreign policy. NPR's John Nielsen reports.

Deborah Amos reports that an American court is considering a case against Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadich. Karadich has been indicted by the International War Crimes Tribunal at The Hague, but no trial can take place there unless Karadich is arrested. He's still at large in Bosnian Serb territory, but Amos says that won't hamper the American court proceeding.

NPR's John Ydstie reports that Iraq's acceptance of a U.N. plan that would allow Iraqi oil producers to export 2 billion dollars' worth of oil likely won't bring an immediate drop in the world's oil prices. But experts say U.S. consumers can expect to see lower prices at the gasoline pump in coming months as a result of the plan.

NPR's Derek Reveron reports on the status of the investigation into the cause of the crash of Valujet flight 592. The DC-9 went down in the Florida Everglades one week ago killing 110 people. Divers today began diving missions into the crater opened up by the plane when it went down. Yesterday officials ruled out engine failure as the cause of the crash.