Popular dating shows, imperial court dramas, ghost stories and spy shows have largely disappeared from prime-time TV in China. The clampdown on entertainment is part of a wider ideological campaign by Beijing. But the move risks alienating China's largely nonpolitical youth.

When the current president of South Korea Lee Myung-bak took office four years ago, he turned a cold shoulder to engagement with North Korea. The conservative wing in South Korea opposed improving relations with Pyongyang. But that has proven to be an unpopular policy, and now Lee finds himself in the difficult position of appealing for closer ties in this unpredictable transition period in North Korea. Lee goes to Beijing Monday to seek Chinese backing for this policy shift.

A defiant Bashar Assad addressed the nation for the first time in seven months Tuesday, making clear he has no intention of halting the violent crackdown on anti-government protesters and renegade soldiers. Assad lashed out at the Arab League, which has deployed monitors in Syria to oversee implementation of a peace plan. Two of those monitors were reported lightly wounded Tuesday in an attack near a northwestern city.

Some analysts say the U.S. economy has been "decoupling" from Europe for some time, and won't be significantly harmed by the recession now starting in many European countries. And some say the U.S. may not only escape Europe's troubles, but actually could be helped by the turmoil there.

Getting into Delhi University, the most prestigious school in India, can be even tougher than getting into an Ivy League school in the U.S. The university's College of Commerce takes less than 2 percent of applicants.

The demonstrations that spread across the Middle East in 2011 unseated leaders in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. Yemen's president has agreed to step down and violence continues in Syria. NPR foreign correspondents discuss developments since the Arab Spring and what they mean for the region and the U.S.

Syrian President Bashar Assad vowed to stay in power during a speech Tuesday, defying international pressure for him to step aside. He vowed to respond to threats against him with an "iron hand."