Obama’s obvious overseas success may be a triumph of visuals over substance; will it come back to haunt him? The panelists agree that this campaign should be a walk for a Democratic candidate, so why are the polls on McCain and Obama so close? McCain’s week has been as bad as Obama’s has been good – by anyone’s standards...

This year's presidential campaign is the first when both candidates have campaigned overseas. But Barack Obama's foreign excursion has gotten a lot more attention than John McCain's. Also, frightening moments for Qantas travelers at 29,000 feet, and Iraqi politics and the Olympic Games.

Drummer Steve Reid began his career at the age of 16 when he recorded with Martha & The Vandellas. He's played with everyone including Miles Davis, Fela Kuti and Fats Domino. He's deeply rooted in Jazz and the music of Africa.

In the recall election against Gray Davis, Arnold Schwarzenegger promised to end the annual budget crisis once and for all. But once again this year there’s no state budget, and the revenue shortfall is 15 billion dollars. Schwarzenegger’s public opinion rating has dropped to 40% and the legislature’s is a lot lower than that. Now Schwarzenegger says he’s cutting the salaries of state workers—down to the federal minimum wage.

I've often wondered how former Olympic athletes feel right about this time, on the eve of yet another Olympic Games. Do they wallow in nostalgia, national anthems taking them back to distant memories of zeal and triumph? What about the ones who underperformed? Do they anguish every four years, reliving what could have, should have, would have been when their one and only time was upon them?

The Real Tuesday Weld bring their cabaret stylings to Morning Becomes Eclectic at 11:15am.

The Drop Edge of Yonder (Two Dollar Radio) Where has Rudy Wurlitzer been for the last fifteen years? The mental traveler takes another vision quest, this time into the Old American West...

The Real Tuesday Weld bring their cabaret stylings to Morning Becomes Eclectic at 11:15am.

Americans are carrying $2.5 trillion in consumer debt. The average household owes credit card companies $8,500. Will that be the next bubble to burst? Also, Barack Obama speaks in Berlin, and another disaster in the river off New Orleans.

Icelandic collective Sigur Ros have put the finishing touches on their latest, most upbeat release to date...

A new study claims that one person dies every hour in California because of alcohol. The total economic cost is 38 billion dollars, 90% due to violent crimes. Traffic accidents account for just 20%. On Reporter’s Notebook, California’s mortgage-default rate has hit a record.

When I was in film school, we used to have to present a few pages every week of our script in progress, to be, I guess the phrase is "workshopped" by the rest of the class...

When I was in film school, we used to have to present a few pages every week of our script in progress, to be, I guess the phrase is "workshopped" by the rest of the class...

In the ten years since he’s been making feature films, writer-director Christopher Nolan (Memento, The Prestige, Batman Begins) has been making films in which the protagonists' emotional chaos has been mirrored in the physical world around them. His second Batman film, The Dark Knight, is said to the the pinnacle of that.

Barack Obama confronted one of his toughest political challenges today with visits to Israel and the West Bank. We hear what he said and how both sides reacted. Also, the housing rescue bill moves through the pipeline, and a Texas oilman endorses wind power.

Downtown Los Angeles has its first new park since 1895. It’s called Vista Hermosa, with a beautiful view of the steel-and-glass skyline. It’s ten and a half acres of open space and green technology but, among major American cities, LA remains last in accessible parkland especially in communities of color. Tonight, we’ll hear about the new park and how come there aren’t more like it.

Usually I find myself in the camp of those who see the glass half full and not half empty. But here is some information that challenges my philosophy: there are about one hundred cities in China with a population of more than one million people. With the Chinese economy booming, most of these cities are building or planning to build a new art museum. So what's not to like? It's definitely a bonanza for architects...

This week, we look at the architecture of big ideas, in LA past and China present.

In what's billed as a great year for Democrats, their candidate for president has a big problem. Less than half of Americans think Barack Obama would be a good commander in chief. Almost three-fourths say that about John McCain. Also, Obama in Jordan, and the accused mastermind of genocide in Serbia has been arrested after thirteen years on the run.

Samantha Crain lives in Oklahoma where she has been recording and making dozens of self-produced CD's since her early years. Her de-constructed and loose style is complimented by her backing band, The Midnight Shivers.

A health insurance policy cancelled just when you need it most is a nightmare come true. Blue Cross and Blue Shield will pay 13 million dollars to settle claims investigated by the Governor’s Department of Managed Health Care, but consumer groups claim that’s not enough for leaving policy-holders stuck with tens of thousands in medical bills.

Everyone knows that L.A. is not ruled by the Author of Peace & Plenty, but a local deity known as the god of random things. He’s the genii who builds a Moorish house next to a Cape Cod. Who sews a patch of fake fur on a polyester warm-up jacket. Who chauffeurs six Elvis impersonators to the same event. Who causes you to miss your big break, along with the exit to the Five....

John McCain and other Republicans say it's time to start drilling for oil off the shores of America. Barack Obama leads those Democrats who say, not so fast. Also, a war-crimes trial gets underway in Guantánamo Bay, and Barack Obama visits Iraq.

North Carolina's Avett Brothers have released a steady stream of records since 2002...

North Carolina's Avett Brothers have released a steady stream of records since 2002...

While doctors can do a lot better with regard to talking to people with cancer about end-of-life issues, they are still in the dark ages when it comes to talking to people with other disease who have a poor prognosis...

We learn how to be a compassionate carnivore, celebrate the Gilroy Garlic Festival and make ice cream out of the season’s best. We go to Dodger Stadium for all-you-can-eat, have dinner with 12 strangers and learn about the gluten-free diet. Plus, we dish up Korean budae jjigae and get a fresh Market Report with Laura Avery.

Joe Morgenstern, film critic for the Wall Street Journal, reviews The Dark Knight.