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NPR's Tom Gjelten reports on changes in U.S. trade policy toward Cuba. Last night, the Senate gave final approval to a bill that modestly eases the trade embargo on Cuba. It will allow sales of food to Cuba for the first time in four decades, but bars the federal government or U.S. banks from financing shipments.

Commentator Richard Rosenfeld talks about how the issue of religious tolerance was an issue in the Presidential campaign two hundred years ago. Then the candidates John Adams and Thomas Jefferson battled over the formation of an official state religion. Today the role of spirituality in public life is again being debated.

National Correspondent for The New York Times, Nicholas Kristof and Times Foreign Correspondent Sheryl Wundunn. The two won a Pulitzer prize for their coverage of the Tiananmen Square. They've collaborated on the new book, Thunder from the East: Portrait of a Rising Asia (

Debbie Elliott reports that World Health Organization hosts two days of hearings, beginning today in Geneva, on first draft of international treaty on tobacco control. The goal is to get countries to do such things as ban cigarette advertising and limit sales to adults only.

NPR's Sarah Chayes reports from Paris on the Chinese-born writer Gao Xingjian, who was honored today with the Nobel Prize for Literature. Gao -- the first Chinese writer ever to win the literature prize -- has been living in self-imposed exile in France since 1987. The Swedish Academy honored him for his novels and plays about the struggle for individuality in mass culture.

Violent events in the Middle East drew American attention away from the presidential election today, and even drew the candidates away from their campaigns. Vice-President Gore returned to Washington to meet with security advisors, while Bush decried the terrorist attack on the USS Cole during his campaign stops in Pennsylvania and Michigan. NPR's Peter Kenyon reports.

South Korean president Kim Dae-Jung has won of the Nobel Peace Prize this morning. The Nobel committee recognized Kim for his promotion of democracy and human rights after years of authoritarian rule in South Korea, as well as his work towards peaceful relations with North Korea. NPR's Eric Weiner reports from Tokyo on the award.

Linda talks to Bashraheel Bashraheel, a reporter for the Al Ayyaam newspaper in Yemen, who saw the aftermath of the explosion that killed four American sailors aboard the U.S.S. Cole. The Navy destroyer was refueling in a Yemeni port when the explosion occurred this morning. Bashraheel describes the port, the ship, and the condition of the sailors aboard. And he fills us in on additional information about the investigation that is being conducted by the U.S. and Yemeni authorities.

The second debate between Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush and Democrat Al Gore was more polite than the first, but there were contentious moments. Gore criticized the Texas governor's record on health care and hate crime legislation, citing statistics from Bush's home state. Robert talks to Dave McNeely, political columnist for the Austin American Statesman. He joins us by phone from Austin, Texas.

Bob Edwards talks with Bill Cosby and Dwight Allen about their new book "The 100 Billion Dollar Challenge." The actor/comedian has teamed up with the Old Dominion University professor to urge the public to raise the money necessary to really reform education. They say they want to challenge how students are taught...and how teachers are trained. Their book will be published on the internet this weekend. More information can be found at npr.org.