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In the first piece of a two-part series, NPR's Robert Smith reports on a new survey conducted by NPR, the Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. The poll examines the sector of Americans who earn enough to put them above the federal poverty line, but still struggle to make ends meet. (7:23) Check out the NPR/Kaiser/Kennedy School Poll .

Bob Garfield, co-host of NPR's On the Media reports on permission specialists -- the people who get the suspects in the "cops" type shows to sign on the dotted line to allow their stories and images to be used in these "reality shows." There are lots of reasons why few suspects hesitate to sign -- some hope it will help their case, some just want that 20 seconds of fame before being put away for 20 years, and some, they say, are just stupid.

NPR's Guy Raz reports that this past weekend some ten thousand European fans converged on Berlin for a country/western music festival. Germans -- long fascinated with the American West -- are among Europe's most avid devotees of country/western. {The festival this weekend featured German language bands, line dancing, and performers in Indian headdresses attempting to re-create Native American dances.}

The latest film from Mexican director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu follows multiple story lines. The film reveals the connections between its multicultural cast of characters -- and, as the title suggests, the difficulties they have in communicating.

NPR's Eric Westervelt reports from Emmitsburg, Md., that this weekend, the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation will honor the firefighters who died last year in the line of duty. Every year at this time, the Foundation places the names of fallen firefighters on a memorial at the National Fire Academy. There will be a special vigil this year to honor the New York City firefighters who died on Sept. 11. The names of those firefighters will be placed on the Fallen Firefighters Memorial this time next year.

As the Bush administration works to line up support for a U.N. resolution authorizing the use of force against Iraq, France urges three African Security Council members to reject the resolution. Meanwhile, the number of U.S. troops in Kuwait climbs to 160,000. Hear NPR's Vicky O'Hara and NPR's Mike Shuster.

In the early 1900s, Henry Ford introduced America to the Model T and the assembly line. The innovations Ford started helped reshape American society. Now, the Ford Motor Co.'s future depends on the leadership of another Ford family member, Bill Ford Jr. NPR's John Ydstie reports.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announces plans to reform the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development. The move, she says, will bring the foreign assistance programs into line with the Bush administration's push to spread democracy, or "transformational diplomacy."

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case involving Grokster, a company that makes a file-sharing program, to determine whether these programs are illegal. Entertainment companies say file sharing violates copyright laws. But the corporate giants of Silicon Valley are lining up to support Grokster.

Iran holds a runoff presidential election Friday. Voters will choose between Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a former president who is casting himself as a reformer, and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the younger, hard-line mayor of Tehran.