NPR Topics: Story of the Day Podcast

Colorado and Washington state are setting up legalized marijuana markets, and advocates are celebrating. But there are signs of discontent. Even a founder of a marijuana legalization group says there's a possibility of a popular backlash.

The Justice Department is trying to compel New York Times journalist James Risen to testify in the case of a former CIA official who may or may not have leaked classified information to him. The case calls into question the limits of the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of the press.

After the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, a group of victim families and others in the community joined together to try to prevent gun violence, and they asked the rest of the world to promise to help. A year after the tragedy, members of Sandy Hook Promise say their efforts to change society are just beginning.

Even for those with the will and drive to pursue treatment, the process remains difficult, frightening and full of holes. Mental health advocates say little has come, on the federal level, from the task forces and promises that followed the Newtown shootings.

The storm's damage and disruption to homes, cities and families is undisputed. But researchers studying the underwater coastline say Long Island fared relatively well. The face of the shore retained much of its shape because underwater ridges of sand just offshore may have cushioned the blow.

Starting in the 1980s, leaders in Garden City, Kan., decided that they were going to treat the immigrant influx as a blessing, not a curse. Working conditions are tough, but the jobs offer decent wages, and a good support system provides a brighter future.

Since Hurricane Katrina, the hated rodents have flourished in piles of trash and blighted buildings. But when simply setting traps didn't work, city officials decided to take a more methodical approach to rat control. They're attacking the problems that invite the rats — and they're winning.

Americans David Harris-Gershon and his wife were studying in Israel when she was nearly killed in a terrorist attack at a cafe. Harris-Gershon decided he needed to meet the family of the terrorist behind the attack, and wrote about that experience in his book, What Do You Buy the Children of the Terrorist Who Tried to Kill Your Wife?

After several years of declining shrimp stocks, regulators have imposed a moratorium on shrimping in New England waters. The closure could hurt commercial fisherman and future demand for the Gulf of Maine shrimp, but scientists say the move may be the only way to prevent the population from collapsing.

Forty-one states and the District of Columbia have banned texting while driving, and six others forbid it for new drivers — but that doesn't stop people from doing it. So New York State Police are using unmarked SUVs to try to spot drivers in the act.

For the past three years, there's been a shortfall in the payroll taxes collected for Social Security. As more baby boomers join the ranks of the 57 million people already receiving benefits and the overall share of wages subject to taxation under the program shrinks, that deficit is bound to keep growing.

Railroads are increasingly becoming the preferred means of shipping the masses of oil being produced in North Dakota and surrounding states. The railroad industry is eager to fill in for the lack of pipeline capacity. But some say the train growth needs to slow down.

To forecast sudden global catastrophe — and, perhaps, head it off — we should be spying on the climate at least as closely as we spy on each other, an expert panel warns. Yet the primary global monitoring network has been cut by 30 percent.

Scientists agree that teenagers naturally go to bed late and sleep late, too. But high school start times are traditionally very early. Proponents of later start times say they're finally getting traction. The result, they say, will be happier kids who do better in school.

Last month, military investigators began a process to charge Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael Barbera with two counts of murder in the 2007 fatal shooting of two deaf, unarmed Iraqi youths. But Carl Prine, a reporter who has been following the story, says it is still unclear what happened and why it took so long for the military to act.