News Archive - November 19, 2009

Gallaudet Uses New Technology, Opening Youtube To Deaf And Hard Of Hearing

By Sabri Ben-Achour

Gallaudet University is trying out new software from Google that will make Youtube videos more accessible to the deaf and hard of hearing.

According to Google, 23 hours of video are uploaded to Youtube every minute. Some of it is educational. Some of it is.. not....

Power Breakfast for November 19, 2009

Today the House Foreign Affairs Committee revisits an old question: Is it time to lift the ban on travel to Cuba? Cuban-born Florida Republican Ileana Ros-Lehtinen says no.

Elizabeth Wynne Johnson reports...

Montgomery County Executive Wants New Building Codes

By Matt Bush

Montgomery County executive Isiah Leggett is pushing the county council to pass new building codes.

Leggett pushed for a series of changes earlier this year, and the council has only passed a few of them. One building code still being debated would ban commercial vehicles...

Environmental Groups Threatening Lawsuit

By Meymo Lyons

Four environmental groups are threatening to sue subsidiaries of Mirant Corp. over coal ash. Defenders of Wildlife, Sierra Club, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, and Patuxent Riverkeeper informed Mirant that they intend to sue over what they say are violations of the Clean...

Rap Group Public Enemy Raises Awareness For Homeless Teens In D.C.

By Patrick Madden

The legendary rap group Public Enemy is in D.C. to raise awareness about homeless youth. The first stop for the band was the Sasha Bruce House, a facility for homeless teens in Northeast D.C. They helped deliver an early Thanksgiving dinner to the 30 or so teens that stay...

Third Round Of Budget Cuts In Maryland

By Matt Bush

Cuts to Maryland's state budget for this fiscal year now top $1 billion. In its third round of reductions since the budget took effect July first, the state's board of public works approved more than $360 million in cuts.

The new round of cuts also eliminates 112 state jo...

Jury Begins Deliberation In Baltimore Mayor's Theft Trial

By Matt Bush

Jury deliberations are underway in the theft trial of Baltimore mayor Sheila Dixon.

Dixon faces charges she spent gift cards on personal shopping that were meant to be given to needy children. Dixon claims she unknowingly used the cards, thinking they were for her.

...

Coalition Wants Streetcar Network Across Northern VA

By Jonathan Wilson

A newly formed coalition in Northern Virginia is trying to build momentum for a network of streetcar lines stretching across several counties.

The group held it's first meeting Wednesday night.

Tim Lovain is co-founder of the Northern Virginia Streetcar Coalit...

Montgomery County Struggles To Meet H1N1 Vaccine Demand

By Jonathan Wilson

Health department directors are still urging people to get the H1N1 vaccine, but responses from residents have varied across the region.

D.C.'s health director Dr. Pierre Vigilance says some of the district's clinics have been packed, while others, especially in the...

Latest Maryland Regional News

BALTIMORE (AP) The jury is deliberating in the theft and misconduct trial of Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon. During closing arguments, defense attorney Arnold Weiner drew applause from Dixon supporters and occasional laughter from the crowded gallery as he mocked the state's case as a thin and wort...

The Gambling Door is Open

Slots casinos are due to open in Maryland next year - and electronic table games will likely be part of the equation. Commentator Fred Fiske says it's just a matter of time before "real live" versions of games like blackjack and roulette follow.

What do you think? Tell us at conversation.w...

Army Corps Of Engineers Gauges Storm Damage

By Bill Redlin

The Army Corps of Engineers is wrapping up its survey of the beaches in Ocean City, Maryland to determine how much damage the Nor'Easter did last week.

City engineer Terry McGean says a three-person team was expected to finish its work yesterday. McGean says he will pro...

Latest D.C. Local News

WASHINGTON (AP) A new Newseum exhibit that opens tomorrow will allow visitors in Washington will get the chance to step into ``Meet the Press'' moderator Tim Russert's old NBC office. The office appears as it was in June 2008 when Russert died of a heart attack at age 58.

WASHINGTON (AP) Na...

"Art Beat" With Stephanie Kaye - Thursday, November 19, 2009

(November 19) ICE! There's plenty of bling at ICE! during Christmas on the Potomac at National Harbor in Prince George's County, Maryland, opening tonight and chilling visitors through January 10th. Two million pounds of the frozen stuff have been chiseled into towering topiaries and cozy igloos...

Conversations...Michael Cottman Speaks With Neuropsychologist Stephanie Johnson

As part of our continuing series "Conversations," reporter Michael Cottman speaks with Dr. Stephanie Johnson, a neuropsychologist and founder of the International Dementia Research Foundation, during Alzheimers Awareness Month.

Latest Virginia Regional News

McLEAN, Va. (AP) The wife of Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana has been charged with drunken driving and hit-and-run after hitting a parked car in northern Virginia. Fairfax County police say 76-year-old Charlene Lugar was stopped yesterday evening after they saw damage to her car and smoke coming fr...

Teaching Local Clergy The ABCs Of Affordable Housing

By Rebecca Sheir

Some local clergy members are working to solve what some see as a spiritual crisis in affordable housing.

Angeloyd Fenrick, the founding pastor of Higher Ground Church in Southeast D.C., believes affordable housing, and houses of worship go hand in hand. "If we really...

Washington Times Denies Discrimination Accusation

By Natalie Neumann

The Washington Times is denying a religious discrimination claim by the paper's former opinion editor.

Richard Miniter filed a complaint Tuesday with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Miniter says he was coerced into attending a Unification Church ev...

D.C. Council Considers Proposal To Reduce Unexcused Absences In Schools

By Kavitha Cardoza

The D.C. council is considering a proposal to reduce the number of unexcused absences students can have before authorities investigate.

Children in D.C. public schools can have 20 total days of unexcused absences within a school year before a referral is made to Chi...

On Morning Edition: Sheila Dixon Trial

Closing arguments are expected today in the criminal theft trial of Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon. Dixon has been accused of personally using gift cards prosecutors say were intended for charity.

Professor Doug Colbert from the University of Maryland School of Law joins WAMU's Morning Editio...

Recovery In Store For Holiday Travel

By David Schultz

Last year, more people than usual elected to stay home for the holidays. But this year might be different.

Damion Gardner delivers magazines to the newsstands and bookstores at Reagan National Airport. He says despite the crowds full of stressed-out people, he loves w...