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Host Bob Edwards talks to reporter Phil Mercer about the latest developments in Fiji. Yesterday nationalist rebel leader George Speight signed an accord with military chief Frank Bainimarama, which allows the rebels who overthrew the Pacific nation's elected government to have some influence in choosing a new administration. The agreement was reached in exchange for the release of the 27 prisoners held in Suva.

Researchers estimate that children 19 and younger influenced half a trillion dollars worth of purchases in the U.S. last year. With that kind of buying power on the line, advertisers are eager for help in targeting the nation's youngest consumers. Increasingly, marketers are getting their intelligence from psychologists who use their expertise. NPR's Elaine Korry reports that now, some psychologists are calling for the practice to be banned.

Brett Blume of member station KWMU in Saint Louis, Missouri reports there are demands for more information on the shooting of two unarmed black men by undercover officers last month. The police department has refused to release information about the race of the two officers. The department says the officers opened fire in fear for their lives during a drug bust.

NPR's Ina Jaffe reports a study published this week shows the success of an effort by the state of Georgia to make sure children of welfare families are immunized against diseases like polio and diptheria. But some have criticized the program -- which imposes sanctions against welfare families if kids don't get their shots. The study can be found in week's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Mitch Teich from member station KNAU in Flagstaff, Arizona, reports on how small communities in the desert are dealing with water issues. In Cedar Valley, Arizona residents don't have their own wells...they share a well. Each year, a different family takes over the maintenance and operation of the well, and an electronic sensor alerts them when the water level drops too low.

Campaigning has posed a new challenge this week for Republican presidential nominee George W. Bush, who has seen his pre-eminent position in the polls slip for the first time since March. Bush has also struggled to keep his focus on the issues he believes will carry him to victory, including his tax cut plan. NPR's Peter Kenyon reports.

Four years ago, a new federal law was enacted to limit the use of pesticides in American food production. But that was just the beginning of the fight. Enforcing the new law has proven difficult, beginning with the writing of detailed regulations. And a coalition of farm organizations and pesticide manufacturers has been working to slow the process, as well. Now there's a new bill pending in Congress that would cloud the picture further. NPR's Peter Overby reports.

Robert talks with Russ Buettner, a reporter at the New York Daily News about how a Long Island-based anti-abortion group raised over 2-million-dollars to support anti-abortion candidates. But only one-percent of the money has gone to political campaigns. The rest has been taken by the direct marketing firm making the fundraising calls.

Richard Harris reports that scientists in Finland have succeeded in making a chemical compound out of one of the few elements on earth considered to be completely inert -- argon. Argon is a gas that makes up 1 percent of our atmosphere. Until now, argon atoms have been complete loners. In today's issue of Nature, chemists reveal a method to make chemical bonds between argon and other atoms.

NPR's John Burnett reports from the Mexico border, where, over the last six years, the United States has substantially increased efforts to stop illegal aliens from entering. Burnett accompanies some Border Agents on their rounds, and talks to some of the Patrol's critics. Ranchers in Arizona and Texas are among those who say the thousands of new agents and new technology have done little to stem the flow of illegals.