Morning Edition

On Network TV, there are 27 new shows and nearly all of the main leads are white actors. There is one role on television where minority characters may be on the rise: Black Best Friend. TV critic Eric Deggans says these characters need to be upgraded to well-rounded co-star.

The southwest African country of Namibia is trying a controversial approach to preserving its wildlife. Rural people control the animals and profit from them. But they have also found they must shoot some of the animals to cull the herds.

The 74-page report by the United Nationss concludes that suspected Taliban fighters have been subjected to beatings, electric shocks and other forms of torture in some Afghan-run detention centers.

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep. Good morning.

Today, opening statements are scheduled for a man who became instantly famous in the Christmas season in 2009. Omar Farouk Abdulmutallub is a young Nigerian. He's accused of attempting to bring down an airliner bound for Detroit with explosives in his underwear.

Shareholder Services, a major investor advisory firm, is urging shareholders to oust Rupert Murdoch and his sons from the board at News Corp. The firm recommended against re-electing 13 of the 15 News Corp. board members when shareholders hold their annual meeting in two weeks.

Two recent college grads, who met in economics class, have collaborated to form the band The Bull & The Bear. Their album, Recession Sessions, includes tunes for downtrodden times such as "Main Street Venting Blues" and "Our Love Is An Illiquid Asset."

Two Seattle-based companies plan to open the first American-operated senior facility in China. Chinese families used to rely on children and grandchildren to care for aging parents, but people are working long hours, and options for senior care are limited.

Food Network star Paula Deen loves seasoning, bacon and, of course, a bit of butter.

She also loves Southern cooking, which why her latest cookbook, Paula Deen's Southern Cooking Bible, explores the regional variations of Southern food.

Deen tells NPR's Steve Inskeep that she first discovered some of those variations in her home state of Georgia.

The company says it is scuttling its plan to split off its DVD-by mail and streaming video services.

Walking on the beach in Sweden, Anika Winhagen picked up a bottle with a message in it. The note asked a future finder to respond. A response was possible since it turned out Winhagen had worked with the mother of the girl who floated the bottle two decades ago.